State of Alaska and Fairbanks North Star Borough Receive $5.6 Million EPA Grant to Improve Air Quality in Fairbanks
SEATTLE — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency awarded $5.6 million to the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation to help the Fairbanks North Star Borough improve air quality. Grant funds will be used to reduce harmful fine particle air pollution from wood smoke through a woodstove change-out program operated by the Borough.
Fairbanks currently has the fourth highest concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM2.5), commonly known as smog and soot, in the country. Residential wood smoke is identified as the largest contributing source of PM2.5 pollution the Fairbanks North Star Borough.
This funding is projected to support over 400 changeouts of older home heating devices, including approximately 125 solid fuel burning appliances, such as wood stoves and pellet stoves, and 275 conversions from oil heating appliances to gas. This award will bolster existing funding that overall is expected to lead to changeouts and conversions of an estimated 2,000 heating appliances to lower emitting appliances that will significantly aid Borough progress towards attainment over the next five years.
“EPA is pleased to continue its Targeted Airshed Grant funding in support of the community's efforts to reduce wood smoke pollution and improve air quality in the Borough,” said Acting EPA Region 10 Administrator Michelle Pirzadeh. “There is still work to do, but the efforts of the state, the Borough, and local leaders are making progress toward healthier air quality.”
“Wood burning is the greatest contributor to PM2.5 in the Fairbanks North-Star Borough non-attainment area,” said Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Jason Brune. “One way we can help solve this problem is by changing out old woodstoves for newer, cleaner burning devices. These funds will help residents change out their stoves so that they and their neighbors can breathe cleaner, healthier air.”
"The Borough's change-out program is the most popular approach to bring clean, healthy air to our community. This Targeted Air Shed grant enables that program to continue for years and ensures that popular options remain available,” Borough Mayor Bryce Ward said. “We want to thank our congressional delegation for ensuring that this federal funding remains available. We also want to thank our partner agencies, ADEC and the EPA, for working with the Borough to secure this funding.
EPA’s Targeted Airshed Grants are used to support local clean air projects in areas facing the highest levels of ground-level ozone and PM2.5. Congress authorized this program in 2010 and every year since 2015. In 2021, Congress funded the grants at $59 million to reduce air pollution in nonattainment areas that the EPA determined were the five most polluted areas relative to ozone, annual PM2.5, or 24-hour PM2.5 standards.
More information about the grants: https://www.epa.gov/air-quality-implementation-plans/targeted-airshed-grants-program
Learn more about EPA’s Pacific Northwest Region 10 at: https://www.epa.gov/aboutepa/epa-region-10-pacific-northwes