The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment has announced the Environmental Justice Grants Program to fund projects that avoid, minimize, measure, or mitigate impacts to public health and the environment in disproportionately impacted (DI) communities, or that promote equitable participation in rulemaking and permitting proceedings that may affect DI communities.
Donor Name: Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment
State: Colorado
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 02/03/2023
Size of the Grant:$250,000
Grant Duration: 1 year
Details:
The EJ Grant Program was created by the Environmental Justice Act. It funds projects in Colorado communities disproportionately impacted by pollution and climate change.
Only projects in disproportionately impacted communities are eligible for grant funding. You can use Colorado EnviroScreen to determine whether you live in a disproportionately impacted community.
Colorado communities of color and low-income communities have historically carried and continue to bear a disproportionate burden of environmental health risks. The EJ Grant Program can support communities by providing funding to conduct interventions, and participate in agency processes to advocate for policy changes to avoid (prevent), minimize (reduce, lessen, remediate), measure (monitor), and mitigate (offset, compensate for) impacts to public health and environmental health risks as well as advance a healthy and sustainable Colorado where everyone has equitable protection from environmental and health hazards.
Communities can use Colorado EnviroScreen, an interactive environmental justice mapping tool to determine their eligibility for the grant program and to:
- Identify areas with current and past environmental inequities;
- Pinpoint communities that face a greater burden of environmental health risks; and
Identify DI communities based on the definition in the Colorado Environmental Justice Act. DI communities include census block groups with a Colorado EnviroScreen score above the 80th percentile; or where at least 40% of the population are people of color (POC), low-income, or housing cost-burdened.
Projects can focus on any environmental topics:
- Air quality
- Water quantity and quality
- Waste
- Land use
- Built environment
- Climate
- Noise
- Chemicals
- Pesticides
- Natural assets
- Soil quality
- Historical industrial contamination
Funding Information
A maximum of $1,000,000 in total funding will be available. The funding period for projects is July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2024 (1 year). Awards will range from $50,000-250,000. CDPHE may fund up to 8-10 organizations during this initial grant cycle. The maximum amount for an individual grant award will be $250,000.
Criteria
Eligible applicants include:
- Non-profit organizations
- Local governments
- Federally-recognized Tribal governments
- Universities
- Other educational institutions
- For-profit corporations
- Grassroots organizations
The EJ Grant Program can fund projects that measure, prevent, or reduce pollution to improve public health and the environment.
For more information, visit Environmental Justice Grants Program.
