The Valley Air District was selected to receive the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Environmental Justice Government-to-Government Program (EJG2G) Grant for $1,000,000 to build outreach and community engagement capacity in grassroots organizations throughout the Valley and work with these organizations to provide free residential air purifier devices to 3,700 residents living in under-resourced and underserved communities throughout the Valley.
Poor air quality, especially during wildfire season, can disproportionately affect the Valley’s most vulnerable populations. The District places a high priority on protecting public health during periods of poor air quality, and dedicates resources to notifying the public regarding air quality conditions and steps individuals can take to protect their health. After decades of work, the District has found that one of the best ways to ensure that clean air messages reach the populations in need is to work directly with grassroots, community-based outreach organizations.
Through this environmental justice grant, the District has partnered with four community-based organizations, including: Environmental Justice Coalition for Water, Binational of Central California, Fresno Street Saints and Centro la Familia. All of the identified community partners bring a unique background and perspective to the project, allowing for a community-centered and regionally-targeted outreach approach. These agencies will work directly in their communities to teach residents about the District’s clean air programs and how to protect themselves from poor air quality, including providing them with a free indoor air purifier.
“Binational of Central California is honored to be selected for this grant and to work with the Valley Air District to provide crucial air quality information and much-needed resources, like air purifiers, to the communities we serve throughout the Central Valley. This grant will allow us the ability to expand our reach and capacity to continue serving low-income, immigrant, and farmworker communities. This opportunity will keep our mission moving forward to help our community rise,” stated Ricardo Castorena, Executive Director, Binational of Central California.
These committed community partners will receive subawards to support their work and help build their capacity, making them the District’s first Clean Air Program Ambassador (CAPA) organizations. The District expects to launch the effort with collaborating community-based organizations in early 2024 and aims to begin air purifier distribution in the spring of 2024.
