EPA Gives $3M To Cut Pollution From Closed HV Landfills

HUDSON VALLEY, NY — The Hudson Valley Regional Council will receive a $3 million federal Climate Pollution Reduction Grant to reduce fugitive methane emissions from closed landfills.

It's part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing in America agenda, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Monday.

"The Mid-Hudson Region has a high number of small municipal landfills," New Paltz Town Supervisor Neil Bettez said in a March letter to the HVRC. "We are also a region with dozens of small communities that have completed GHG inventories and climate action plans. We understand the sources of emissions in our communities and know that our closed landfill methane emissions are insidious drivers of emissions. These emissions, particularly from small, closed municipal landfills, are often hidden. This project will bring more awareness to this issue and mitigate emissions from our communities – helping us to do our part to stop climate change."

The Hudson Valley Regional Council’s project will use biofilters, layers of porous and organic material like compost to oxidize methane in landfill gas. Methane is a climate “super pollutant” that is many times more potent than carbon dioxide and is responsible for roughly one third of the warming from greenhouse gases occurring today. The program aims to improve landfills by providing technical assistance for the future installation of solar arrays, battery storage systems and native pollinator gardens that support ecological restoration.

The HVRC was established in 1977 as an organization of county governments comprising Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster and Westchester counties.

Its 2012 study of greenhouse gas emissions in the region found that the single largest source of GHG emissions was energy consumption for transportation. The second largest was residential stationary energy combustion such as home heating and lighting. The next largest contributor was commercial energy consumption. The remaining significant GHG contributors in the region were emissions related to industrial energy use, electricity generation and supply, waste management, and industrial processes.

“With the Hudson Valley experiencing yet another historic heat wave, the health of our families and climate can’t wait any longer. We have to act now to reduce greenhouse gas pollution,” said Representative Pat Ryan (NY-18). “I’m proud that this funding from the landmark Inflation Reduction Act will help the Hudson Valley Regional Council fight methane pollution – among the most potent greenhouse gasses – right here at home. That’s cleaner air for our families now and cooler air for future generations.”

The grants are meant to implement community-driven solutions that tackle the climate crisis, reduce air pollution, advance environmental justice and accelerate America’s clean energy transition.

Investing in reducing greenhouse gas emissions is critical, said Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. “I am thrilled to see that the Hudson Valley Regional Council has been selected for this grant to reduce fugitive methane emissions and help protect Hudson Valley communities from pollution."

EPA made the selections through a competition, reviewing nearly 300 applications to ensure the competition was fair and impartial. Applications were submitted by entities from across the country and requested a total of nearly $33 billion in funding.

The 25 selected applications – from states, a Tribe, local governments, and coalitions of these entities – will receive federal funding to implement local and regional solutions. Many of these projects can be expanded and provide examples and blueprints that other states, local governments, Tribes, and even businesses can replicate in their work to tackle the climate crisis.
These selected projects will implement ambitious climate pollution reduction measures designed by states, Tribes and local governments that will achieve significant cumulative GHG reductions by 2030 and beyond, EPA officials said.

Together, these grants are estimated to reduce greenhouse gas pollution by as much as 148 million metric tons by 2030 and by 971 million metric tons by 2050, based on estimates provided by the selected applicants.

State, Tribal, and local action is vital to deliver on President Joe Biden’s commitment to reduce climate pollution by over 50% by 2030 and achieve net-zero emissions no later than 2050. The innovative measures contained in the selected applications, developed with input from local communities, are expected to achieve substantial public health benefits such as reducing exposure to extreme heat, improving air quality, reducing energy burden for lower income Americans, improving climate resilience, and providing workforce and economic development opportunities, particularly in low-income and disadvantaged communities.

The Climate Pollution Reduction Grants advance Biden’s historic Justice40 Initiative, which aims to ensure 40% of the overall benefits of certain climate, clean energy, and other federal investments flow to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution.

The grants will fund projects supporting the deployment of technologies and programs to reduce greenhouse gases and other harmful pollution across the country and build the infrastructure, housing, industry, and competitive economy needed for a clean energy future. These grants will also help businesses capitalize on new opportunities, spur economic growth and job creation by supporting new and growing industries, and support development of training programs to prepare workers. EPA expects to award the funds later this year, once all legal and administrative requirements are satisfied.

“This critical federal grant, created by the Inflation Reduction Act I led to passage, will enable the Mid-Hudson Municipal Landfill Emissions Mitigation program to utilize biofilters to reduce the noxious and potent methane emissions from closed landfills. The selected application will assist in providing technical assistance to install solar arrays and battery storage systems, while supporting ecological restoration through installation of native pollinator gardens to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and boost the urgent fight against climate change,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.

Many of the proposed projects contained in the selected applications announced today, as well as the $250 million in planning grant funding that EPA is providing under the CPRG program for development of Climate Action Plans by state, local, and Tribal governments across the country, will complement the Biden-Harris Administration’s historic federal actions and national climate strategies across sectors.

Those include: the U.S. National Blueprint for Transportation Decarbonization, the Administration’s efforts to achieve 100% clean electricity by 2035 and make zero emissions construction common practice by 2030, the Industrial Decarbonization Roadmap, the U.S. Buildings Decarbonization Blueprint, the Administration’s climate-smart agriculture efforts and Nature Based Solutions Roadmap, the U.S. Methane Emissions Reduction Action Plan, the National Climate Resilience Framework, and more.

Learn about the CPRG program.