Kentucky’s largest cities are vying for millions of federal dollars aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions and are turning to residents of surrounding communities for help.
Louisville, Lexington and Bowling Green are developing climate plans as a part of the federal Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program, something the cities undertook after the state government declined to take part in the grant program.
The plans, due to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency by March 1, will include an inventory of local greenhouse gas emission sources such as transportation and industry, an analysis of how the plan benefits low-income and disadvantaged communities in their metro area and a list of “near-term, high-priority, implementation ready measures” to lower local emissions.
These plans will be used to compete for grants worth up to $500 million each, a part of a pool of more than $4 billion in available federal funding.
But first, cities are hoping to hear from people in their metro areas about the plans. For example, Louisville Metro Government’s Office of Sustainability has created a survey asking Louisvillians and communities in surrounding counties to give feedback on what the region’s priorities are, what solutions to climate change should be looked at and what individuals and organizations should be involved in the planning process.
“You don’t have to be an expert on climate science or necessarily have that background to participate in the survey. This is more just thinking about what’s important to you with the future of this region,” said Sumeha Rao, the executive director of the office. “We can find ways to connect that with climate solutions and get those funded.”
The survey is targeted toward people in Louisville’s metro area including more rural counties surrounding the city. Rao said her office historically hasn’t had “the best connections” in surrounding counties because her office is mostly focused on Louisville, but she believes there are emissions reduction strategies such as zero-emission buses and improving energy efficiency of homes that can appeal to communities both urban and rural.
She’s said she’s also cognizant that some people may not see human-driven climate change as a priority or connect the issue of “climate pollution” to problems faced by their community.
“This grant has the opportunity to impact all of those other things that people care about, and we have funding that can deliver solutions that can solve multiple challenges at once,” Rao said. “So we might be able to both solve a housing problem, as well as a climate problem, by building greater housing.”
Rao said her office also hopes to set up virtual and in-person meetings across Louisville’s metro area to get feedback ahead of the March deadline to submit a plan. In-person meetings are also something Bowling Green officials plan to do in developing their plan.
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Categories: Kentucky, Energy, Sustainable Agriculture