Ginny Cleaveland, Deputy Press Secretary, Federal Communications, Sierra Club, ginny.cleaveland@sierraclub.org, 415-508-8498 (Pacific Time)
WASHINGTON, DC — On Thursday, the Biden-Harris Administration and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the availability of $100 million in grants to support efforts to report and reduce climate pollution linked to the manufacturing of construction materials and products. The funding will help manufacturers disclose environmental impacts across the life of a product and inform purchasers who are prioritizing low-carbon construction materials.
With the industrial sector responsible for nearly a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S., accurate accounting of these releases is critical to ensuring that the billions of dollars in public funding for pollution abatement through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the Inflation Reduction Act deliver results.
In response to the announcement, Yong Kwon, a Senior Policy Advisor at the Sierra Club, issued the following statement:
“Alongside the billions of dollars in grants to help manufacturers adopt advanced technologies, this latest resource from the EPA is another critical element of the Inflation Reduction Act that is helping domestic industries simultaneously become more competitive and better stewards of the Earth. Federal and state initiatives to reward manufacturers that release lower levels of carbon emissions can only move forward when industries disclose their impact on the climate.
When these incentives move domestic industries toward lower greenhouse gas emissions, American products are set up to become more competitive, as emerging trade rules make them easier to sell internationally. The ball is now with American companies to be transparent about their emissions, and once they receive the public funding, to share the resulting gains with their workers and community.”
LATEST REPORT
A new Sierra Club report, database, and interactive map details the greenhouse gas emissions intensity at every domestic facility in the US for four heavy industries (steel, cement, aluminum, and metallurgical coke). While previous public estimates exist for climate and toxic pollution from these sectors, this is the first time a public database has been made available that compares hundreds of facilities with their peers within the industry.
The report, “Coming Clean on Industrial Emissions”, also profiles the fenceline communities living near these facilities, examines the public health impact of these sectors, and details employment figures at each facility — underscoring the importance of federal investments in these critical sectors to the US economy that will both grow employment and reduce pollution.
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.