EPA Awards Environmental Justice Grants, Orders PFAS Testing

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on Tuesday a total of $35 million in grants through the Great Lakes Environmental Justice Program. The program is administered under the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI). Recipients include Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper, Inc., which will receive $5,633,581 for the Western New York Environmental Justice Grant Program, and the Ohio Lake Erie Commission, which will receive $5,805,006 for the Lake Erie Environmental Justice Grant Program for underserved communities in Ohio’s Lake Erie watershed, as well as other organizations across the Great Lakes Basin.

Historically underserved communities face a greater uphill battle than most in applying for federal funding. The extra step of awarding federal funding to larger regional organizations who then, in turn, conduct their own grant programs is meant to alleviate the burden on these “subrecipients,” helping them access funding to work on GLRI projects where it would otherwise have been inaccessible.

“As a co-chair of the Great Lakes Task Force, I have seen just how critically important The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative is to protecting our greatest natural treasures and the communities that depend on them,” Congresswoman Debbie Dingell (D-MI) said. “These grant programs will prioritize those who have been overlooked for too long, and I will continue to work in Congress and with the Biden Administration to ensure we’re focused on environmental justice as we make historic investments in combating the climate crisis,” she continued.

Also this week, the EPA issued a test order to manufacturers 3M and the Wacker Chemical Corporation, requiring those companies to conduct research on the physical-chemical properties and potential health effects of NMeFOSE. Both companies produce this PFAS, which is used in clothing and furniture coatings. This testing, which the companies can conduct collaboratively, and must be completed within one year, will help the EPA determine whether NMeFOSE presents “an unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment.”

Correction to Report on President's FY 2025 Budget

A previous version of NEMWI’s Report on the President’s FY 2025 Budget Request incorrectly stated that NOAA’s Center of Excellence for Ocean and Great Lakes Mapping had not received funding in FY2024. It received $10 million, equal to the amount appropriated in FY2023. You can view the updated report here.

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