Biden-Harris Administration Announces $60 million in Grants to Protect Children from Lead in Drinking Water and Air Pollution in Schools
WASHINGTON – Today, August 22, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced $60 million in grant funding to reduce exposure to lead in drinking water and air pollution in schools.
$26 million in funding will be used to protect children from lead in drinking water at schools and childcare facilities. This grant funding will be used by 55 states and territories and the District of Columbia to reduce lead exposure where children learn and play while advancing the goals of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Lead Pipe and Paint Action Plan.
“The science is clear: There is no safe level of exposure to lead,” said Acting Assistant Administrator for Water Bruno Pigott. “As part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing in America agenda, this $26 million will help protect our children from the harmful impacts of lead. EPA is also investing $15 billion under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to remove lead pipes and is providing technical assistance to communities to help them develop and implement lead pipe replacement projects.”
In children, lead can severely harm mental and physical development, slowing down learning, and irreversibly damaging the brain. In adults, lead can cause increased blood pressure, heart disease, decreased kidney function, and cancer.
The funding announced today was authorized by the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act and is provided to states, the District of Columbia, and participating territories as grants for lead testing and remediation in schools and childcare facilities.
The grant program requires recipients to use the 3Ts – Training, Testing and Taking Action – to reduce lead in drinking water. The 3Ts Program provides valuable resources for states, territories, and Tribes to take action on lead and protect children in early care and educational settings. Learn more about the 3Ts Program.
EPA is also advancing its Get the Lead Out (GLO) initiative, which is partnering with underserved communities nationwide to provide the technical assistance they need to identify and remove lead service lines. GLO is specifically helping participating communities identify lead services lines, develop replacement plans, and apply for funding to get the lead out. Communities seeking to access GLO Initiative resources can request assistance by completing the WaterTA request form on EPA’s WaterTA website.
Addressing Air Pollution in Schools:
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency also announced the five selected recipients of $34 million in grant funding to address indoor air pollution in schools. These five selected applications will fund proposed initiatives to monitor and reduce greenhouse gas emissions and indoor air pollution at schools from kindergarten through grade 12 in low-income, disadvantaged, and Tribal communities across the country. These grants to protect children’s health are made possible through the President’s Inflation Reduction Act, the largest investment in climate action and environmental justice in history.
“Children spend so much of their day in school. It is critical for their health and academic success that schools have clean and healthy air,” said EPA Deputy Administrator Janet McCabe. “These grants will put schools in the best position to improve attendance and academic achievement, while addressing the unique and disproportionate health impacts that children in overburdened communities face as a result of indoor air quality challenges.”
EPA anticipates that grants to the five selected applicants will be finalized and awarded in the fall of 2024 once all legal and administrative requirements are satisfied and that selected applicants will begin their projects shortly thereafter.
These projects will help schools develop and implement comprehensive indoor air quality plans through training, education, capacity building and research and demonstration projects. The following entities have been selected for awards:
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The University of Utah will support the development of indoor air quality management and greenhouse gas reduction plans for schools in urban and rural areas in Utah and Nevada, as well as with the Northern Arapaho Tribe in Wyoming. This will be accomplished through energy efficiency assessments of school buildings, indoor/outdoor air pollutant monitoring, demonstration of effectiveness of air pollution reduction strategies, development of an indoor air quality school phone app, community engagement, training, educational activities, and by providing indoor air quality and greenhouse gas reduction guidance to schools.
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The American Lung Association will deploy the Clean Air School Challenge to raise awareness, educate, build capacity, increase implementation, and recognize the efforts of schools in low-income, disadvantaged, and Tribal communities nationwide as they implement comprehensive indoor air quality and greenhouse gas management plans.
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The New York State Department of Health and Health Research, Inc. will provide capacity building in indoor air quality and greenhouse gas reduction in disadvantaged and Tribal schools throughout New York State and additional states across the country. The two organizations will draw on past experience to enable hundreds of disadvantaged and Tribal schools in New York to adopt sustainable indoor air quality management plans to make air quality improvements and greenhouse gas reductions that will improve the health and performance of New York’s 1.6 million disadvantaged students plus teachers and school staff.
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The Go Green Initiative will partner with the National School Boards Association and their state affiliates to provide education and training for school staff, administrators, and school board officials involved in improving school indoor air quality and reducing climate pollution across all 50 states, as well as providing targeted, intensive technical assistance and capacity building in Tribal and low-income school districts in all 10 EPA regions.
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The U.S. Green Building Council’s Center for Green Schools will build capacity among school district staff in low-income, disadvantaged and Tribal communities to establish indoor air quality management and greenhouse gas reduction plans. This work builds on long-running and successful support that the Center for Green Schools has provided to hundreds of school district staff, who collectively serve 9.3 million students. The program places direct emphasis on making capacity building and training activities more accessible to school district staff serving low-income, disadvantaged, and Tribal communities.
Learn more about the Grant Funding to Address Indoor Air Pollution at Schools. This page will be updated in the future with details on how schools can connect and partner with the organizations receiving funding. Learn more about Indoor Air Quality in Schools. Read the full announcement here.
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