UTAH, Aug. 1, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 8 announced $599,000 in grant funding for Utah from President Joe Biden’s Investing in America agenda to protect children from lead in drinking water at schools and childcare facilities across the state.
“Thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, activities that remove sources of lead in drinking water are now, for the first time, eligible to receive funding through the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act,” the EPA statement says.
The Utah funding is part of $58 million in appropriations on a national level, and advances the Biden-Harris Administration’s Lead Pipe and Paint Action Plan and unprecedented commitment to delivering clean water for all communities, especially historically marginalized and low-income communities, the statement says.
“These additional funds will expand on existing lead remediation programs and help to improve public health in Utah,” said administrator K.C. Becker, EPA Mountains and Plains Region, in the prepared statement. “By amending existing clean water programs through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and supporting them with historic infrastructure investments, EPA is taking unprecedented action to protect all our children from lead in drinking water.”
The EPA also released a revised grant implementation document that contains detailed information on how it will award and administer grants that support eligible actions, such as those for remediation or replacement activities. The Voluntary School and Child Care Lead Testing and Reduction Grant Program funds voluntary lead testing, compliance monitoring, and for the first-time, lead in drinking water remediation projects.
Lead remediation actions may include but are not limited to the removal, installation, and replacement of internal plumbing, lead pipes or lead connectors, faucets, water fountains, water filler stations, point-of-use devices, and other lead-free apparatus related to drinking water.
For more information on the grant, click here.
