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Building on his climate, clean energy, and environmental justice agenda, President Biden traveled today to Prince William Forest Park
in Triangle, Virginia, to celebrate Earth Day 2024, and to highlight his Administration’s unprecedented progress in tackling the climate crisis, cutting costs for everyday Americans, and creating good-paying jobs. This includes the following major new actions
to advance President Biden’s historic climate, conservation, and environmental justice agenda:
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$7 billion in grants through the Environmental Protection Agency’s Solar for All grant competition,
a key component of the Inflation Reduction Act’s $27 billion Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund. Selectees under the Solar for All program will serve every state and territory in the nation and deliver residential solar power to over 900,000 households in low-income
and disadvantaged communities, saving overburdened households more than $350 million in electricity costs annually – approximately $400 per household – and avoiding more than 30 million metric tons of carbon pollution over the next 25 years. In total, solar
projects funded by this program will create nearly 200,000 jobs. The program also advances the President’s
Justice40
Initiative, which set a goal that 40% of the overall benefits of certain federal climate, clean energy, affordable and sustainable housing, and other investments
flow to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution.
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Several new actions to stand up the American Climate Corps
– a groundbreaking initiative modeled after FDR’s Civilian Conservation Corps that will put more than 20,000 young Americans to work fighting the impacts of climate change today while gaining the skills they need to join the growing clean energy and climate-resilience
workforce of tomorrow. Americans can now apply to join the American Climate Corps through a newly launched website,
ClimateCorps.gov.
The website will feature nearly 2,000 positions located across 36 states, DC, and Puerto Rico. These positions are hosted by hundreds of organizations
advancing clean energy, conservation, and climate resilience.
Also today, the U.S. Global Change Research Program
announced
the availability of all chapters of the
Fifth
National Climate Assessment in Spanish. This marks the first time that the entire National Climate Assessment has been translated into Spanish, broadening
the reach and accessibility of the U.S. Government’s premier resource for communicating climate risks, impacts, and solutions.
A more detailed description of today’s announcements can be found
here,
and a round-up of select press releases, news clips, and social media statements is included below.
These announcements come on the heels of a series of
major conservation actions by the Biden-Harris Administration, including:
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The launch of
Conservation.gov,
a new website that will help connect people with information, tools, resources, and opportunities to support land and water conservation projects in communities across the country
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A
final
rule
to maximize protections for more than 13 million acres in the western Arctic while supporting subsistence uses and needs of Alaska Native communities.
This action brings the number of acres of America’s lands and waters conserved under President Biden to 41 million.
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A
final
supplemental environmental impact
statement from the Department of the Interior identifying as the preferred alternative the denial of a right of way for the Ambler Road project; the proposed road, which
would cross more than 200 miles of pristine lands and waters in Alaska, would have significant impacts on caribou and other subsistence resources upon which more than 60 Alaska Native communities rely.
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A
final
rule to help guide the balanced management of nearly 250 million acres of America’s public lands that are overseen by the Bureau of Land Management. The final
Public
Lands Rule will help conserve wildlife habitat, restore places impacted by wildfire and drought, expand outdoor recreation, and guide thoughtful development.
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The
expansion
of four national wildlife refuges, which will allow for the voluntary conservation of up to 1.13 million acres of wildlife habitat in New Mexico, North Carolina, and Texas.
We invite you to join the White House Council on Environmental Quality on
Friday, April 26th
at 12:00 pm ET/9:00 am PT
for a virtual briefing with senior Biden-Harris Administration officials to celebrate Earth Week. Please RSVP
here.
Press Release
Biden-Harris
Administration Announces $7 Billion Solar for All Grants to Deliver Residential Solar, Saving Low-Income Americans $350 Million Annually and Advancing Environmental Justice Across America
News Clips
CNN:
Biden
marks Earth Day with new solar energy funds and steps to stand up American Climate Corps
AP:
Biden
is marking Earth Day by announcing $7 billion in federal solar power grants
Reuters:
Biden
to unveil $7 billion for rooftop solar in Earth Day message
NPR:
Here's
how to apply for Biden's Climate Corps jobs : NPR
Social Media
@POTUS: “Happy Earth Day,
folks! Today, I’m reminded of the work we must do to protect our planet for future generations. I’m also reminded of the historic progress we’ve already made — building a cleaner, healthier planet for every American. And we’re just getting started.” [X
Post, 04/22/2024]
@KamalaHarris:
“This Earth Day and every day, we’re working to protect our environment, not just for ourselves but for future generations.” [X
Post, 04/22/2024]
@EPAMichaelRegan:
“For too long, underserved communities have been left out of investments needed to tackle climate change. Today’s $7B investment from @EPA’s Solar for All program is ensuring
that all communities can participate in America’s growing clean energy economy.” [X
Post, 04/22/2024]
@SecGranholm:
“The American Climate Corps is a first-of-its-kind program that will train the next generation of clean energy, climate resilience, and conservation leaders. I'm proud to
work with @POTUS and our fellow agencies to mentor the first cohort of 20,000 young Americans this summer.” [X
Post, 04/22/2024]
Cabinet Travel
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Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement Stephen Benjamin
traveled to Las Vegas, Nevada to break ground on the Brightline West High-Speed Rail Project funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The high-speed
rail line will connect Las Vegas to southern California, creating thousands of good union jobs now and eliminating millions of car trips per year once the all-electric train sets are up and running.
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Department of Energy Secretary Jennifer M. Granholm
traveled to Lyndora, Pennsylvania to highlight how President Biden’s agenda is lowering emissions for domestic steel manufacturing and supporting American
workers as they help build the clean energy economy.
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Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra
delivered remarks at the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health in Washington, DC on reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the health care sector.
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Department of Housing and Urban Development Acting Secretary Adrianne Todman
participated in an event in Washington, DC with children to plant trees, supporting Washington, DC’s tree canopy, helping to combat the urban heat island
effect, and making sure the many benefits of trees reach everyone.
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Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Arati Prabhakar
traveled to Scarborough, Maine to announce $123 million in funding across state and territorial coastal management programs and national estuarine research reserves to support habitat restoration and conservation, as part of President Biden’s Investing in
America agenda.
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