Biden-Harris Administration Selects Minnesota Recipients to Receive Over $1 Million in Pollution Prevention Grants to Advance Environmental Justice
Today, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that Regents of the University of Minnesota and Minnesota Pollution Control Agency have been selected to receive a total of $1,076,955 in pollution prevention grants through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, a key pillar of Bidenomics. EPA has selected Regents of the University of Minnesota and Minnesota Pollution Control Agency to receive the funding, made possible by President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, to develop and adopt practices that prevent pollution at the source.
“Achieving lasting environmental justice requires community-driven solutions boosted by federal resources,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “President Biden has secured historic levels of funding to address environmental harms in vulnerable communities under his Investing in America agenda. These dollars have supercharged our ability to empower a wide range of businesses from across the country to deploy solutions that prevent pollution while strengthening economic growth.”
Regents of the University of Minnesota has been selected to receive $663,475. University of Minnesota will use their funding to help local nail salons find safer products and practice air pollution prevention. The University will develop a Healthy Nail Salon Recognition Program, which will be offered in multiple languages. The project will increase the use of safer nail products locally and reduce the environmental impact of toxic products.
Minnesota Pollution Control Agency has been selected to receive $413,480. Minnesota Pollution Control Agency will use their funding to help approximately 20 businesses in Minneapolis and St. Paul increase boiler efficiency. They will create a toolkit with instructions and best practices for boiler tune-ups and provide on-site advanced boiler tune-ups by certified professionals. The proposed project will reduce air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions in some of Minnesota’s most vulnerable communities.
"Preventing pollution is a crucial part of environmental justice efforts across the Great Lakes region,” said EPA Region 5 Administrator Debra Shore. “Thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the grants being announced today will encourage businesses to help overburdened and underserved communities become cleaner, healthier places to live, learn and work.”
“We know that communities of color are disproportionately affected by pollution, so we need to be intentional in our solutions,” said Sen. Tina Smith. “Today’s announcement is just that. These investments, made possible by President Biden’s Infrastructure Law, in these very communities will help local businesses reduce environmental contamination at the source. I look forward to continuing our work to improve human and environmental health in communities across Minnesota.”
“I’m proud to help bring strategic investments to our Minnesota communities to fight climate change and protect human health,” said Rep. Betty McCollum. “These Bipartisan Infrastructure Law grants will help reduce and prevent air pollution by partnering with businesses to update their technology—which not only will conserve energy and improve efficiency, it will improve air quality for historically-excluded communities in the Twin Cities.”
“I’m on a mission to bring more of our hard-earned tax dollars home to Minnesota,” said Rep. Dean Phillips. “The vital work made possible by over $1M in EPA Pollution Prevention Environmental Justice Grant investments will be executed by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and the Regents of the University of Minnesota, ensuring maximum impact for businesses and communities in our state. Improving our collective health and environment takes teamwork, and I celebrate the Biden Administration and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for leading the way.”
"We are thrilled to have this opportunity to improve the health and safety with the nail salon community, in collaboration with our community partners,” said Drs. Tran Huynh and Susan Arnold, associate professors at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health.
“Too many Minnesotans who live in low-income and communities of color are exposed to pollution at no fault of their own, and we are committed to reducing the burden these communities bear simply because of where they live,” said Katrina Kessler, commissioner for the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. “These federal grants will help us advance goals to reduce air pollution in environmental justice areas and expand programs to prepare for climate change, grow clean energy jobs, and build a stronger economy.”
The Environmental Justice in Communities grant program will provide pollution prevention technical assistance to businesses to improve human health and the environment in disadvantaged communities. The Environmental Justice Through Safer and More Sustainable Products grant program will assist businesses to increase the supply, demand, and use of safer and more sustainable products, such as those certified by EPA’s Safer Choice program, or that conform to EPA’s Recommendations for Specifications, Standards and Ecolabels for Federal Purchasing.
EPA’s Pollution Prevention Grant Program advances President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative, which aims to deliver 40 percent of the overall benefits of certain federal investments to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution.
Ensuring greater availability and use of safer and more sustainable products can reduce harmful chemical exposures and their human health and the environmental impacts in disadvantaged communities and create a more sustainable and accessible marketplace. These efforts will continue to benefit businesses and communities across the nation by capturing what works and what can be adjusted in other communities. Recipients will share successful practices that are new or not widely known, as well as lessons learned, so that future businesses and communities can continue to innovate.
EPA anticipates awarding the grants once all legal and administrative requirements are satisfied.
Background:
The United States generates millions of tons of pollution each year and spends billions of dollars per year controlling this pollution. Once in our environment, this pollution harms human and environmental health, which disproportionally impacts underserved communities. Preventing pollution at the source, also known as P2 or source reduction, rather than managing waste after it is produced, is an important part of the solution landscape, and advances a sustainable infrastructure that supports local economies while better protecting public health and the environment. P2 practices can reduce exposure to toxic chemicals, conserve natural resources, and reduce cleanup and financial costs for businesses, particularly for waste management and environmental liability. Practicing P2 is essential for protecting public health and improving environmental conditions in and around disadvantaged communities that have long been overburdened by pollution.
Between 2011-2021, EPA’s Pollution Prevention program has issued nearly 500 grants totaling more than $50 million, which have helped businesses identify, develop and adopt P2 approaches. These approaches have resulted in eliminating 19.8 million metric tons of greenhouse gases, saving 49 billion gallons of water, reducing 917 million pounds of hazardous materials and pollutants, and saving more than $2.2 billion for business.
President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure is boosting these efforts by providing a historic $100 million to support the program’s continued efforts. Thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, state and Tribal programs that are awarded grants will not be required to provide matching funds, which has helped expand access to these resources and broadened the applicant pool.
Read more about P2 and the P2 Grant Program.