The Biden administration issued guidance to states on Tuesday that it will ensure that the country's largest investment in water infrastructure doesn't bypass disadvantaged communities that are disproportionately affected by environmental hazards like pollution.
The Environmental Protection Agency's guidance memo applies to $43 billion for the infrastructure bill, which will make drinking water cleaner, improve sewage treatment and replace lead pipes. The memo helps the Biden Administration meet its goal of addressing environmental needs in communities that have high poverty and unemployment, according to the agency.
The money will be distributed over five years and boost programs that give states and territories more discretion in funding water projects, but with some parameters on how the money should be used. Nearly half of the $15 billion for lead pipe replacements must go to disadvantaged communities, according to the memo.
Katy Hansen, a senior advisor for water at the Environmental Policy Innovation Center, said that putting in place guardrails to help ensure the funds reach the communities that need them most is essential for the program to reach its potential and to advance equity.
According to a report by the Center and University of Michigan that looked at data between 2011 and 2020, money from a federal-state program for drinking water was less likely to go to projects in smaller and more racially diverse communities.
Hansen, co-author of the report, said disadvantaged communities sometimes lack the resources to compete for funding and that it is important that they can upgrade their infrastructure without taking on more debt.
The EPA memo is part of the Biden administration's Justice 40 goal of providing 40% of federal investment in areas like clean water to disadvantaged communities that are often low income or largely minority. Some advocates have asked for more details about how the program will be administered.
Many Republican officials criticized the effort, saying that the White House should not impose a policy agenda on infrastructure funding. In January, a coalition of Republican governors sent a letter to President Joe Biden saying that excessive consideration of equity, union memberships or climate would be counterproductive.
A top Republican on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee said the new infrastructure law shouldn t be a vehicle for the administration's agenda after federal officials issued guidance aimed at prioritizing pedestrian and bicycle safety when widening roads. The funding for water projects will flow through state revolving funds and include grants and forgivable loans, according to the EPA memo. The agency must tell the agency how they intend to use the funds, and the EPA will review those plans.
Radhika Fox, head of the Office of Water, said the implementation memo really gives states the rules of the road.
Money to replace lead pipes, for example, needs to be used to get rid of the entire lead portion of a pipe, not just a part of it, according to the memo.
Erik Olson of the Natural Resources Defense Council praised the requirement, noting that partial line replacements can actually increase the amount of lead in tap water.
A portion of the $5 billion for addressing contaminants such as PFAS, or forever chemicals, has to go to disadvantaged communities and smaller water systems, the memo said.
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