U.S. EPA begins work to set up $27 bln green bank
This Friday, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it is beginning the process of designing a $27 billion green bank that will offer grants to disadvantaged communities across the country in order to deploy projects that are low- or zero-emission in nature.
It is important to note that the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund is part of the administration’s broader efforts to combat climate change and environmental injustice more broadly.
“As EPA Administrator Michael Regan told Reuters on Friday in an interview that he was excited about creating a program that would pump billions of dollars of capital into local communities that would have a direct impact on energy efficiency programs, community solar programs, or any program that will reduce pollution and create jobs,” it was a great honor for me to be the Executive Director.
In his remarks, he added that the Inflation Reduction Act, through the creation of a $120 billion fund, would be a transformative move for a country that hasn’t had a lot of success in attracting investments for clean transportation and energy.
EPA, which is responsible for overseeing the development and implementation of the fund, has begun a national listening session by inviting the public’s input about how the fund should be designed and implemented as well as the best way to implement it. Participants include community finance institutions, labor unions, local governments, and others.
The climate provisions in the IRA will unlock over $362 billion in spending on climate-related investments, including the fund.
In order to scale up the model of about two dozen green banks located throughout the United States in places such as the state of Michigan and Montgomery County, Maryland, the fund was proposed as a means of increasing the number of green banks. These institutions invest in a variety of community programs, including residential solar energy installation, efficient heat pump installation, or charging stations for electric vehicles.
Green banks are not-for-profit organizations that are engaged in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and providing financial backstops, or green funds, to low-income communities so that projects within these communities can be de-risked and improved.
As part of its proposal for a national green bank, the EPA will solicit comments on the types of entities, projects, and financial structures that might be eligible for funding from the program
Source- Reuters
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