Biden-Harris Administration Announces over $1.3 Million to Fort Independence Indian Community to Cut Climate Pollution, Accelerate Clean Energy Transition

Biden-Harris Administration Announces over $1.3 Million to Fort Independence Indian Community to Cut Climate Pollution, Accelerate Clean Energy Transition

Funded by the Administration's Investing in America Agenda, the EPA selected 34 Tribal and territory applications through the competitive Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program

September 5, 2024

Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that the Fort Independence Indian Community (FIIC), located within California, has been selected to receive a $1,362,172 Climate Pollution Reduction Grant as part of the Biden-Harris Administration's Investing in America agenda.

Extending Los Angeles Department of Water and Power Service (LADWP) to the FIIC Grinding Rock Aggregates project:

The project will deliver renewable electrical power to the Fort Independence Indian Community's Grinding Rock Aggregates operation and eliminate diesel generators used to power rock processing by first extending the LADWP distribution line to the community. The project will mitigate toxic air pollution, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and deliver community health benefits, including cleaner air, decreased food waste, and decreased respiratory illnesses, especially for vulnerable populations, including elders and children.

"The Climate Pollution Reduction Grants being unveiled today will deliver unprecedented resources to Tribes here in California for local solutions that can provide national examples for how to transition off of fossil fuels," said EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator Martha Guzman. "These investments, which deliver on the Biden-Harris Administration's Justice40 Initiative, will create jobs and reduce the emissions fueling climate change."

"California Tribes are on the frontlines of the climate crisis, developing their own solutions to reduce greenhouse gas pollution, improve air quality, and bolster climate resilience," said U.S. Senator Alex Padilla. "I'm grateful to the Biden-Harris Administration for providing tens of millions in direct federal funding from the Inflation Reduction Act to the Fort Independence Indian Community to support their sovereignty and locally led solutions."

Across the United States, the EPA selected 34 highly competitive applications to fund projects across 31 Tribal Nations, 2 Tribal consortia, and the Commonwealth of 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.

Thanks to the Biden-Harris Administration's historic Inflation Reduction Act, these grants will support the implementation of greenhouse gas reduction measures identified by Tribal and territorial communities. When estimates provided by all selected applicants nationwide are combined, the proposed projects will reduce harmful 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 announcement marks the latest investment under this first-of-its-kind, nearly $5 billion Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program. In July, the EPA announced $4.3 billion for CPRG Implementation Grants General Competition selected applicants. In 2023, the EPA provided $250 million in planning grants, which 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 announcement 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 the Biden-Harris Administration's 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 Tribal Nations autonomy 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 also advances President Biden's Justice40 Initiative, which aims to ensure 40% of the benefits of specific federal investments flow to disadvantaged communities marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution. 

EPA made its Tribes and Territories Competition selections after reviewing 110 applications that requested 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, and learn about the CPRG program here.

Learn more about EPA's Pacific Southwest Region on our Instagram, Facebook, X, and website.