×

Great Lakes Environmental Justice Grant ProgramsGrant


Max. Grant Award: $20,000,000 for Great Lakes Basin-wide applicants; $10,000,000 for region-based applicants

Project Type: Planning; Construction

The Great Lakes Environmental Justice Grants Program (GLEJGPs) is the Great Lakes National Program Office’s (GLNPO’s) major competitive grant funding opportunity for FY-23 to help fulfill EPA’s commitment to Environmental Justice (EJ). The GLEJGPs are being established to make Great Lakes Restoration Initiative funds available to underserved communities to promote the restoration and protection of the Great Lakes ecosystem in or near those communities. Grant awards from this funding opportunity are to be used by potential pass-through entities for issuing and overseeing subawards for environmental restoration projects in historically underserved Great Lakes communities in order to develop and implement a subaward funding program to fund projects in those communities pursuant to the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Action Plan III.

Under this competition, approximately $30,000,000 may be awarded for one to six cooperative agreements over approximately six years. The number of cooperative agreements and total amount awarded is contingent upon funding availability, the quality of applications received, Agency priorities, and other applicable considerations.

Click through the sections below to learn more about this funding opportunity.

Grant Priorities

Grant priorities include:

  • Projects in alignment with EPA Strategic Plan Goal 2
  • Projects in alignment with the six priorities identified by the EPA in its Equity Action Plan
  • Projects in underserved communities to promote the restoration and protection of the Great Lakes ecosystem in or near those communities

Click on the next section to learn more about this funding opportunity’s eligibility requirements.

 

 

Eligibility Requirements

Applicants must provide a written commitment that all Project Subrecipient activities are carried out within underserved communities in the Great Lakes geographic region.

Click on the next section to learn more about the matching requirements for this funding opportunity.

 

 

 

Matching Requirements

There is no cost-sharing or matching requirement as a condition of eligibility under the Request for Proposals (RFA).

Although cost-sharing/matching is not required as a condition of eligibility under this competition, under Section V of the RFA will take leveraging into account when evaluating proposals.

Click on the next section to learn more about the eligible costs for this funding opportunity.

 

Eligible Costs

Eligible costs include:

  • Projects that protect, enhance, and/or restore the Great Lakes
  • Projects that protect the Great Lakes ecosystem health
  • Activities that are mentioned in the GLRI Action Plan III, including habitat restoration, invasive species management, and non-point source runoff reduction.

Ineligible activities include:

  • Scientific research
  • Activities that EPA cannot fund under the above-described statutory authority
  • Applications focused solely on improving access and recreational activities
  • Applications focused solely on workforce development activities
  • Applications focused solely on monitoring activities
  • Applicant activities and subaward activities occurring outside the historic Great Lakes basin except as otherwise agreed on a case-by-case basis between EPA and the selected Principal Recipient(s)
  • Activities related to septic system inspection, maintenance, repair, replacement, or installation.

Click on the next section to learn more about this funding opportunity’s project timeline.

Project Timeline

It is EPA’s expectation that the award, including all subawards, will have a total period of performance of up to six years (January 2024 – January 2030) with incremental funding provided on an annual basis.

Click on the next section for this funding opportunity’s application deadline and forms.

 

 

 

Application Deadline

Complete application package must be submitted electronically to EPA through Grants.gov no later than September 15, 2023, 11:59 PM ET. Application packages must be submitted electronically to EPA through Grants.gov. Organizations applying to this funding opportunity must have an active SAM.gov registration. Please note that this process can take a month or more for new registrants.

If your organization has no access to the internet or access is very limited, you may request an exception for the remainder of this calendar year at least 15 calendar days before the application due date.

Click on the next section to access the Contact Information for this funding opportunity.

Contact Information

If you have general and technical questions, please contact the following staff at the EPA Great Lakes National Program Office:
Cara Walsh

Sign up for the Great Lakes News email list to get information about funding opportunities to support Great Lakes environmental work and updates about Great Lakes environmental projects.

 

logo

Tap into Resilience

A WaterNow Alliance Initiative

Have a project that needs support? Our team of experts is here to help

Ask an expert

Whether you have a project that needs support or are just dipping your toe in, our team of experts is here to help.

Ask an expert