Salt Lake City — On Monday the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced the general competition selections of the Utah Department of Environmental Quality (UDEQ) to receive a $74,744,454 Climate Pollution Reduction Grant to implement community-driven solutions that reduce harmful emissions, improve air quality, support communities, and advance clean energy.   UDEQ’s Beehive Emission Reduction Plan will fund activities focused on transportation, including electric vehicles and chargers, bicycles, and transit; solar power generation, oil and gas methane emissions reduction, and assessments and efficiency upgrades to reduce greenhouse gas emissions across multiple sectors. Although the plan is entirely voluntary and involves no mandates, there are incentives to support the plan’s goals. This investment will also accelerate the deployment of renewable energy in homes across Utah.  “Our guiding mission is ensuring all people in Utah have clean air to breathe, clean water to drink, and the opportunity to live healthy lives. These grants—unprecedented in their funding–bring us and Utahans closer to achieving these goals,” said Regional Administrator KC Becker. “Utah DEQ’s all-voluntary plan will accelerate the deployment of renewable energy in homes across Utah, bring more solar power generation across the State and work to drive down pollution through reduced emissions across multiple sectors. This funding allows the people of Utah to execute their own plans toward a cleaner and more sustainable future. ”   “Combatting climate change and elevating sustainability throughout our communities requires thoughtful leadership and strategic investment,” said Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall. “Salt Lake City is grateful for the Biden-Harris Administration’s continued prioritization of our environment, which is fundamental to our quality of life. Funding from the Climate Pollution Reduction Grants will empower our communities to implement key ambitions, improving our air quality and curbing greenhouse gas emissions.”     “Through an extensive, collaborative process with industry, policymakers, municipalities, scientists and researchers, the Beehive Emission Reduction Plan was developed to ensure that Utah is in the best position to find balanced, state-driven solutions to improving air quality and reducing pollution,” said Utah DEQ Executive Director Kim Shelley. “This award is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the Utah Division of Air Quality and the many stakeholders that contributed to a successful plan. We look forward to continuing this partnership and finding approaches that foster innovation, energy security, and maintain state and local decision-making while supporting Utah’s economic and workforce development interests.”  EPA made its selections through a rigorous grants competition that was designed to be fair and impartial. The Agency reviewed nearly 300 applications that were submitted by entities from across the country and requested a total of nearly $33 billion in funding.    The 25 selected applications – from states, a Tribe, local governments, and coalitions of these entities – will receive federal funding to implement local and regional solutions. Many of these projects can be expanded and provide examples that other states, local governments, Tribes, and even businesses can replicate in their work to tackle pollution.   Together, these selected projects will implement ambitious emission reduction measures designed by states, Tribes and local governments that will achieve significant cumulative GHG reductions by 2030 and beyond. When estimates provided by all selected applicants are combined, the proposed projects would reduce greenhouse gas pollution by as much as 971 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2050, roughly the emissions from 5 million average homes’ energy use each year for over 25 years.  EPA expects to announce up to an additional $300 million in selections under the Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program for Tribes, Tribal consortia, and territories later this summer.  State, Tribal, and local action is vital to deliver on the President’s commitment to reduce climate pollution by over 50% by 2030 and achieve net-zero emissions no later than 2050. The innovative measures contained in the selected applications, developed with input from local communities, are expected to achieve substantial public health benefits such as reducing exposure to extreme heat, improving air quality, reducing energy burden for lower income Americans, improving climate resilience, and providing workforce and economic development opportunities, particularly in low-income, rural, and disadvantaged communities.   The grants will fund projects supporting the deployment of technologies and programs to reduce pollution across the country and build the infrastructure, housing, industry, and competitive economy needed for a clean energy future. These grants will also help businesses capitalize on new opportunities, spur economic growth and job creation in new and growing industries, and support development of training programs to prepare workers. EPA expects to award the funds later this year, once all legal and administrative requirements are satisfied.  Many of the proposed projects contained in the selected applications announced today, as well as the $250 million in planning grant funding that EPA is providing under the CPRG program for development of Climate Action Plans by state, local, and Tribal governments across the country, will complement other emission reduction and clean energy efforts Those include: the U.S. National Blueprint for Transportation Decarbonization, the Administration’s efforts to achieve 100% clean electricity by 2035 and make zero emissions construction common practice by 2030, the Industrial Decarbonization Roadmap, the U.S. Buildings Decarbonization Blueprint, the Administration’s climate-smart agriculture efforts and Nature Based Solutions Roadmap, the U.S. Methane Emissions Reduction Action Plan, the National Climate Resilience Framework, and more.   Learn more about the selected applications  Learn more about the CPRG program  The post Biden-Harris Administration announces $74.7 million for community-driven solutions to cut climate pollution across Utah appeared first on Utah Business.