News Releases from Region 03

EPA Awards Grant to Virginia Group For Environmental Stewardship Project

PHILADELPHIA (October 30, 2017) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced an Environmental Justice Small Grant award of $30,000 to the Boxerwood Education Association, a community organization based in Lexington, Virginia. 

EPA’s Environmental Justice Small Grants program provides funding for non-profit and tribal organizations to partner with stakeholders in industry, government, and academia.

The Boxerwood Education Association will use this funding to advance citizen-level environmental stewardship among under-resourced, rural or small-town populations around Buena Vista, a former manufacturing town.  Project partners include Buena Vista City Public Schools, Rockbridge County Public Schools, Community Action Network, Rockbridge Rising, Washington and Lee University, and the Community Service Board.

The association will recruit middle and high school students to create youth action teams that will collaborate with local community institutions such as churches, volunteer fire stations, and pre-schools to combat plastic pollution in local waterways.  Action teams also will work to develop curricula and toolkits for other organizations and communities facing environmental justice issues.

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.