EPA Announces $3 Million in Funding to Reduce Lead in Tribal Drinking Water
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced grant funding totaling more than $3 million for three projects to reduce lead in drinking water in Tribal communities.
“Strengthening public health for Tribes and reducing toxic lead in drinking water are priorities as we work to ensure that all Americans have clean and safe water under the agency’s Powering the Great American Comeback initiative,” said EPA Acting Assistant Administrator for Water Peggy Browne. “With $3 million in EPA funding, Tribes will be able to remove legacy sources of lead in drinking water, including replacing lead-lined water mains and rehabilitating water storage tanks that have lead-based paint on their interior. These actions will support safe drinking water for current and future generations.”
The three projects announced today are funded under the Safe Drinking Water Act’s Reducing Lead in Drinking Water Tribal Grant Program. EPA will provide funding via interagency agreements with the Indian Health Service (IHS). The agency anticipates awarding federal grants to the following recipients after legal and administrative requirements are satisfied:
- City of Anadarko (Oklahoma) Lead Water Main Replacements – $1 million to identify and inventory several water mains and replace those lined with lead, which will lower the risk of drinking water-related lead exposure and protect the community’s health.
- Mescalero Apache Tribe (New Mexico) Community Water Storage Tank Rehabilitation – Over $1 million to rehabilitate and operationalize the old water storage tank, by removing lead paint, addressing any deficiencies with steel and welds, repainting, and bringing back online.
- White Mountain Apache Tribal Utility Authority (Arizona) Storage Tank Rehabilitations – $984,000 to rehabilitate three degrading steel water storage tanks by removing lead paint, which will improve the health of the community.
Background
On July 17, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin reaffirmed the EPA Policy for the Administration of Environmental Programs on Indian Reservations (EPA Indian Policy), which contains nine fundamental principles to guide EPA’s work with Tribes. On July 31, the agency made $1 million in grant funding available for Tribes to develop underground injection control programs that protect sources of drinking water while supporting industry and energy projects. Additionally, this year EPA made $202 million available to improve drinking water and wastewater infrastructure for American Indian Tribes and Alaska Native Villages through the Clean Water Indian Set Aside and Drinking Water Infrastructure Grants. The agency also awarded $49 million in funding for technical support for small, rural and Tribal communities working to make wastewater infrastructure improvements through Water Technical Assistance.
Learn more about EPA’s Reducing Lead in Drinking Water Tribal Grant Program and Clean and Safe Water in Indian Country.