Workshops aim to build more regional approach to address climate change

These sessions are designed to move eligible federal funding applicants, and other project champions, beyond a piecemeal approach and into a larger view of regional funding prospects.

The aim of these sessions is to support the development of a regional Priority Climate Action Plan for projects that accomplish both climate change mitigation (emissions reduction) and resilience (risk reduction).

Participants will leave with at least one strong funding proposal concept, a sense of how to build a successful coalition for upcoming grant applications and guidance on how to maintain momentum.

• Local government staff
• Staff from public institutions
• Nonprofit staff
• Community-based organization staff
• Experts in the transportation, energy, building, public health, food and agriculture, solid waste, water or other relevant sectors
• Representatives of environmental justice communities or those disproportionately impacted by climate change.

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These workshops support planning efforts under EPA’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grant Program: Formula Grant for Planning. The Kansas City region will receive $1,000,000, with MARC as the leading agency, to support the development of local climate action plans and the expeditious implementation of investment-ready policies, programs and projects to reduce greenhouse gas pollution in the near term.

The passage of the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and Inflation Reduction Act in the last two years has created the most significant opportunity for transformational infrastructure investment in a generation. Mobilizing this scale of funding will require increased local and regional coordination and larger-scale projects.

Through the Inflation Reduction Act, EPA established a new Climate Pollutions Reduction Grant Program. At a national level, this two-staged grant program provides funding of $250 million for noncompetitive planning grants and $4.6 billion for competitive implementation grants. Initial planning grants will award $1 million to large metro areas like Kansas City to establish or refine existing climate plans. This Fall, EPA will request proposals for implementation grants with maximum awards of $500 million.

Planning grants allow for only one organization in each metro to apply for funds. Consultation with over two dozen local governments, the Climate and Environment Council, Air Quality Forum and Climate Action KC have clarified local support for MARC to serve as lead agency. In this role, MARC will implement a scope of work through a multi-step consultation process with regional stakeholders, including meaningful engagement with environmental justice and disadvantaged communities, to ensure that planning addresses local and regional needs.

Grant funds will enable MARC to work with community partners to transform the climate action plan into a prioritized implementation plan so that the region is prepared to compete for competitive implementation funds in 2024. The grant will help MARC address additional needs including an updated greenhouse gas inventory and community benefits assessment.