A clean environment project in Fort Smith, Arkansas and the Northwest Arkansas Regional Planning Commission is among the $4.3 billiion in grants in 30 states from the Environmental Protection Agency to reduce climate pollution.
The EPA announced the funds will go to 25 projects targeting greenhouse gas emissions from transportation, electric power, commercial and residential buildings, industry, agriculture and waste and materials management.
The grants are paid for by the 2022 climate law approved by congress. The law, officially known as the Inflation Reduction Act, includes nearly $400 billion in spending and tax credits to accelerate the expansion of clean energy such as wind and solar power, speeding the nation’s transition away from the oil, coal and natural gas that largely cause climate change.
The announcement did not detail how much of a grant was going to Fort Smith and its project entitled “Energy and Environment Innovation for the Natural State.” Oklahoma will also benefit from the grant to the city located at the border.
The selected application will support the Metropolitan Planning Organization for Central Arkansas (Metroplan), the Northwest Arkansas Regional Planning Commission, and the City of Fort Smith in their transition to clean energy in Arkansas and Oklahoma.
Under the grant, the coalition will fund the implementation of shovel-ready, impactful, and transformative projects including the development of green networks to restore lands and promote active transportation and transit. The selected application will support the transition to efficient and electrified transportation and improve building efficiency.
A description ofthe Arkansas project claimed that between 2025 and 2030, it would have an estimated greenhouse gas reduction of 0.26b million metric tons of CO2. By 2050, the reduction is estimated to total 1.1 million metric tons of CO2.
Fort Smith’s plan includes efforts to:
- Promote carbon sequestration projects to reduce transportation emissions and protect and restore natural infrastructure corridors.
- Construct bicycle and pedestrian trails to improve electric bike access, including vouchers reserved for income-qualified applicants.
- Connect low-income and disadvantaged communities to jobs, education, services, and natural places.
- Improve transportation efficiency by incentivizing the conversion of fossil fuel public fleets to electric vehicles and deploy electric vehicle charging infrastructure for public-use and for fleet operators.
- Pilot innovative funding solutions to reduce energy consumption in buildings with the establishment of a revolving, low-interest loan fund for small property assessed clean energy projects with a focus on low-income and disadvantaged communities.
- Establish a program for small grants to help organizations participate in energy savings performance contracts with a focus on public buildings and low-income and disadvantaged communities.