News Releases from Region 04

EPA awards Environmental Justice Small Grants to local communities in Georgia

ATLANTA – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will award Environmental Justice Small Grants to the Chattahoochee Riverkeeper, Inc. and Trees Atlanta Inc. in Atlanta and the Cook County Family Connection, Inc. (CCFC) in Sparks. EPA’s Environmental Justice Small Grants program provides funding for non-profit and tribal organizations to partner with stakeholders in industry, government, and academia.

Environmental Justice Small Grants were awarded to:

Chattahoochee Riverkeeper, Inc., for the project “Neighborhood Water Watch.” Project partners include Adopt-A-Stream, City of Atlanta, Proctor Creek Stewardship Council, West Atlanta Watershed Alliance, Mozley Park Neighborhood Association, and Georgia State University. The project is a one-year effort aimed at engaging and educating people in historically low-income and minority communities in West Atlanta to improve water quality and decrease public health risks. Working with partners, Chattahoochee Riverkeeper (CRK) will address water quality concerns through data collection and education initiatives.

Trees Atlanta Inc., for the project “Youth Tree Team (YTT) Internship Program.”  Project partners include the Atlanta Public Schools, Westside Works, Fernbank Museum of Natural History, Atlanta Botanical Garden, Georgia Tech's College of City and Regional Planning, Perkins + Will, Equifax, HGOR Landscape Design, and Atlanta BeltLine Inc.  The YTT internship program will increase Atlanta’s greenspace and tree canopy improving local air quality and mitigating water pollution. The program will target the Atlanta Beltline Westside Trail area providing (1) urban forest protection and restoration, (2) environmental job training, education, and career development for 20 local high school students, and (3) community education about local environmental issues and the benefits of the urban forest.

Cook County Family Connection, Inc. (CCFC) for “The Get Growing Project.” Project partners include Young Farmer’s Club of Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, Valdosta State University, Department of Sociology; The Boys & Girls Club of Cook County; The Cook County Senior Center, and Lake Park Christian Church. The project will train, educate, and promote the significance of water conservation and organic gardening through this project. Cook County is a small, rural community that has very few local food options resulting in many residents depending on canned and boxed foods purchased at convenience stores and gas stations. CCFC is proposing addressing this limited food access through pesticide-free community gardens and water conservation.

EPA’s Environmental Justice Small Grants Program is designed to help communities understand and address exposure to multiple environmental harms and risks, and funds projects up to $30,000 a year.

More information about EPA’s Environmental Justice Small Grants Program:

https://www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/environmental-justice-small-grants-program.

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