Sept. 5, 2024. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced that four tribes in Michigan have been selected to receive more than $38 million in Climate Pollution Reduction Grants as part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing in America agenda.
- The Bay Mills Indian Community will use their $17,316,468 grant to install 11 ground-mounted solar panels across 40 acres of tribal land. The tribe will also establish a workforce development program, through Bay Mills Community College, to prepare tribal members for careers in the solar industry.
- The Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians will use their $14,946,563 grant to retrofit 145 units of HUD-regulated Tribal low-income housing as well as two commercial buildings. The buildings will be retrofitted with energy efficiency assessments, heat pumps, weatherization and roof-mounted solar installations.
- The Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi will use their $1,179,197 grant to install electric vehicle charging stations on Tribal lands and convert 23 commercial vehicles to electric. They will also improve waste collection, upgrade lighting in Tribal greenhouses to LED and plant wild grasses and native plants.
- In addition, a coalition application led by the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians
has been selected to receive $4,999,793 to install solar panels to serve multiple buildings on the Tribal campus. They will also retrofit nine Tribal buildings with heat pumps and six buildings with heat pump water heaters as well as install EV charging stations around the campus.
Today’s investment marks one of the largest climate investments EPA has ever made in Tribal and territorial communities. The ambitious projects selected will deploy community-driven solutions to fight climate change and protect public health,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “The selected applications will fund innovative projects that improve air quality, deliver cleaner affordable electricity, and create economic and workforce opportunities that can be scaled up and replicated across tribal lands and U.S. territories.”
“When it comes to reducing energy use and protecting the environment, the path forward often comes through community driven solutions,” said EPA Regional Administrator Debra Shore. “This is particularly true of Tribal Nations, who have long worked at the forefront of these issues. EPA is proud to support their work and partner with them on critical projects to restore ecosystems and reduce energy use.”
"Lac Vieux Desert Band is committed to addressing the potential effects of climate change and being good stewards of Mother Earth by reducing the Tribe’s carbon footprint,” said James William Jr., chairman of Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. “The receipt of CPRG funds to electrify 145 units of tribal housing and 2 of the Tribe’s businesses is a game changer for us. We are honored and humbled to have received this award."
Nationally, EPA has selected 34 applications to fund projects proposed by 33 Tribal recipients and the Municipality of Saipan in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands to implement community-driven solutions to tackle the climate crisis, reduce air pollution, advance environmental justice, and accelerate the clean energy transition.
The grants for the proposed projects, which are funded by President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, will support the implementation of greenhouse gas reduction measures that were identified by Tribal and territorial communities. When estimates provided by all selected applicants are combined, the proposed projects would cumulatively reduce greenhouse gas pollution by over 7 million metric tons of carbon dioxide by 2050 – equivalent to the carbon dioxide emitted from nearly 1.4 million homes' electricity use for one year.
Today’s selections mark the latest phase of investment under this first-of-its kind, nearly $5 billion Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program. In July, EPA announced selected applications from the CPRG Implementation Grants General Competition to receive $4.3 billion in funding. In 2023, EPA provided $250 million in planning grants to develop climate action plans. Those plans served as the basis for greenhouse gas reduction measures proposed in the CPRG implementation grant applications.
The selected applications will target greenhouse gas pollution from six sectors of the economy with a particular focus on the transportation, electric power, and commercial and residential buildings sectors, while spurring workforce development and job creation in Indian Country and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
Today’s investment and ongoing CPRG technical support for planning grant recipients are consistent with President Biden’s Executive Order 14112 on Reforming Federal Funding and Support for Tribal Nations to Better Embrace Our Trust Responsibilities and Promote the Next Era of Tribal Self-Determination. The Executive Order demonstrates respect for Tribal sovereignty and its commitment to ushering in the next era of Tribal self-determination by directing agencies to reform federal programs for greater autonomy of Tribal Nations over how Tribes can invest federal funding. The Executive Order also directs agencies to make federal funding less burdensome and more accessible for Tribal Nations.
The Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program is also advancing President Biden’s historic Justice40 Initiative, which aims to ensure 40% of the overall benefits of certain climate, clean energy, and other federal investments flow to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by under-investment and overburdened by pollution.
EPA made its Tribes and Territories Competition selections following a review of 110 applications that requested a total of more than $1.3 billion in funding. The agency expects to award funds under both the Tribes and Territories Competition and the General Competition later this year, once all legal and administrative requirements are satisfied.
See the complete list of selected applications.
Learn about the CPRG program.
