Austin awarded $1M grant to help fight climate change - FOX 7 Austin
Austin awarded $1M grant to help fight climate change
AUSTIN, Texas - The City of Austin was awarded a million dollars in federal money to help fight climate change.
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) made the announcement at city hall on Monday, Feb. 12. that Austin is getting a "Climate Pollution Reduction Grant."
Austin will use the money to develop climate action strategies in collaboration with other cities like Georgetown and Round Rock.
The goal is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution in order to stem the impact of climate change on local communities.
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"Anyone who has been around here last summer knows it's too hot, and it will get hotter if we don't do something quickly. It will get so hot here and around the world that it will become unsustainable," said Rep. Lloyd Doggett.
"With this challenge comes an opportunity to invest in a cleaner economy that can spur economic growth and will build climate-resilient communities," said Dr. Earthea Nance, EPA Region 6 Administrator.
The EPA is distributing a total of $5 billion in climate grants to cities across the country.
Related Knowledge Center: Climate economics
Climate change is now a driver of the world’s economy. The impact is profound:
- Catastrophic weather events — hurricanes, floods, droughts, high temperatures — are more frequent and more extreme. The cost can be measured in both the initial damage caused and the longer-term impact on the economy.
- Vulnerable communities are increasing climate-related investments, hardening infrastructure and taking other protective measures.
- Investment in carbon capture and storage technologies is increasingly rapidly.
- Governments are making investments and crafting regulations to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
On top of all of this is the cost of uncertainty. As the Fourth National Climate Assessment, released in 2018 by the U.S. Global Change Research Program, says, “The assumption that current and future climate conditions will resemble the recent past is no longer valid.”