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Vermont Receives $25,000 EPA “Healthy Urban Communities” Grant

Release Date: 02/26/04
Contact Information: Contact: Andrew Spejewski, EPA Press Office, (617) 918-1014

For Immediate Release: February 26, 2004; Release # 04-02-16

BOSTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s New England Office announced today that a project in Vermont has been awarded a grant of $25,000 through the agency’s new Healthy Communities Grant Program.

The grant to the Vermont Department of Health will address indoor and outdoor air quality in Vermont schools through work with school districts. So far more than 80 schools have been trained in the Tools for Schools Program and DOH plans to train 100 more schools using the Vermont Institute’s Interaction Learning Network. In addition, 10 grants will be awarded to schools for efforts to write environmental health management plans, including ways the schools can reduce asthma triggers, ensure water is free from lead and improve community air quality by reducing exposure to diesel fuel exhaust.

Partners will include the state Department of Education, state Department of Building & General Services, American Lung Association-Vermont, Vermont Institute Interactive Learning Network, Vermont Superintendents Association, Vermont Principles Association and the Vermont School Board Association.

Launched last year, the regional Healthy Communities Grant Program aims to identify competitive community-based projects that will achieve measurable environmental and human health improvements in communities across New England. A total of 25 grants were awarded across the region.

“All of New England’s residents deserve to live in neighborhoods with clean air, open space and healthy homes and schools,” said Robert W. Varney, regional administrator of EPA?s New England Office. “This grant to Vermont will help the state's schools in their efforts to create more-livable, safer environments.”

In addition to the Maine projects, EPA has given $30,000 to the Asthma Regional Council of the Medical Foundation, a collaboration of governmental and non-governmental entities, for a project to reduce childhood asthma around New England. Through this project, called the “Regional Collaboration to Address Asthma and the Environment, the council will coordinate efforts to monitor asthma trends and correlate trends to indoor and outdoor air quality. The council will bring together leaders from different levels of government, public and environmental health experts, academics, community development and advocacy groups. It will work with policy makers and health insurers to support programs to reduce indoor air pollutants. The Boston Urban Asthma Coalition, the Conn. Department of Public Health and the US Department of Health and Human Services are working with the regional council.

The Healthy Community grants are being awarded through a partnership of nine different EPA New England Programs: Assistance & Pollution Prevention; the Schools Sector; Asthma; Children’s Environmental Health; Community Air Toxics; Pesticides; Smart Growth; Tools for Schools; Toxics; and the Urban Environmental Program. For more information about the programs, visit the agency’s web site at www.epa.gov/ne.

Related Information:
EPA NE Grants
Asthma