QAZAQ GREEN.  On Earth Day 2024, today, President Joe Biden announced $7 billion in grants through the Environmental Protection Agency’s Solar for All grant competition, a key component of the Inflation Reduction Act’s $27 billion Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund. Selectees under the Solar for All program will serve every state and territory in the nation and deliver residential solar power to over 900,000 households in low income and disadvantaged communities, saving overburdened households more than $350 million in electricity costs annually — approximately $400 per household — and avoiding more than 30 million metric tons of carbon pollution over the next 25 years, Clean Technica reports.

The selectees will provide funds to states, territories, Tribes, municipalities, and nonprofits across the country to develop long lasting solar programs that enable low income and disadvantaged communities to deploy and benefit from distributed residential solar. In total, solar projects funded by this program will create nearly 200,000 jobs. The program also advances the President’s Justice40 Initiative, which set a goal that 40% of the overall benefits of certain federal climate, clean energy, affordable and sustainable housing, and other investments flow to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by under-investment and overburdened by pollution.

Janet McCabe, deputy administrator of the EPA, told the press on Earth Day, “One of the most innovative provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act was the creation of the greenhouse gas reduction fund, which was designed to mobilize private capital to address the climate crisis, ensure our country’s economic competitiveness, and deliver lower energy costs and economic revitalization to communities that have historically been left behind.

“EPA has chosen 60 applicants to receive $7 billion in grant awards. It will invest in overburdened communities that the private market finds particularly challenging to serve [and] focus on low-income communities, communities around historically Black colleges and universities, Hispanic-serving institutions, and tribal colleges and universities. This historic investment will generate more than $8 billion in savings on electric bills for the overburdened households over the entire life of the program.”

John Podesta, senior advisor to President Biden, said, “Solar is the cheapest form of electricity and one of the best ways to lower energy costs for American families. Today’s announcement of EPA’s Solar for All awards will mean that low income communities, and not just well-off communities, will feel the cost saving benefits of solar thanks to this investment.”

Climate activist groups welcomed Biden’s solar energy announcement. “Solar For All is exactly the type of investment the country needs to re-imagine our clean energy future,” Jean Su, energy justice program director at the Center for Biological Diversity, said in a statement. “Broad community based solar is our brightest hope for protecting people and our climate from the scourge of fossil fuels. These targeted investments mean low income families get clean energy that is affordable, resilient, and protects our ecosystems. It’s great to see President Biden jump start this landmark program.”