Jackson encourages local governments to apply for FEMA grants

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is making $1.8 billion available for two grant programs to assist the resilience of local communities to the effects of climate change. The two programs are the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grant and the Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) program. As part of the Justice40 Initiative, 40% of the funding from both of these programs is aimed to help disadvantaged and marginalized communities that suffer heavily from pollution.

“Our community has long been overburdened by pollution and environmental hazards,” State Rep. Carolyn Jackson (D-Hammond) said. “Yet, we seem to be continuously overlooked by the entities that we desperately need help from. Just this year, the EPA finally moved the Federated Metals superfund site in Whiting to the National Priority List, but residents have been waiting for a comprehensive cleanup of the lead contamination since 1992. Allocating 40% of the funds from these FEMA grant programs to communities in need like ours could greatly help residents as they face the impending impacts of climate change. I encourage all units of local government who can apply for these grants to do so.”