Hartford To Get $243.5K To Plan For Climate Change Impacts: State

HARTFORD, CT — State officials Wednesday announced the distribution of millions of dollars in grant funding to help towns and cities plan for the impacts of climate change, including Hartford.

Gov. Ned Lamont Wednesday announced the State of Connecticut is awarding $8.8 million in grants through the inaugural round of the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s Climate Resilience Fund (DCRF).

These state awards will support 21 climate resilience plans and projects across 17 Connecticut municipalities and councils of governments.

The City of Hartford is expected to get $243,500 to develop a citywide flooding/climate resiliency assessment using existing data and create a prioritized list of resilience projects for future advancement, according to state officials.

Through the DCRF, the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) is providing support to local governments, nonprofits and others seeking to advance climate resilience projects, with the goal of enabling the recipients to in turn seek federal funding for construction and implementation phases.

“Connecticut is already playing a leading role in addressing the challenge of climate change because making those investments means healthier people and a healthier environment, as well as new business opportunities,” Lamont said. “Planning for climate resilience requires preserving and protecting what we love about this state so that we can continue to be a great place for families with clean air and water and thriving communities.”

In this first round of funding, more than 90 percent of the funds will go to vulnerable communities that will feel the effects of climate change first and worst, including 10 municipalities that are designated by state statute as “environmental justice communities.”

“Investing in reducing climate-changing emissions and preparing for future extreme storms and events by building community resilience is critical to Connecticut’s future, particularly for our most vulnerable communities,” DEEP Commissioner Katie Dykes said.

For more information on this program, click on this link.

For more information on the DEEP Climate Resilience Fund, click on this link.