NOAA today announced the award of $171 million in funding for 72 projects in the U.S., Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands designed to improve climate resilience, with projects addressing areas including environmental justice, climate model improvements, advancing use and understanding of ocean observations, increased understanding of the pandemic’s impact on air quality, advances in resilience planning for flooding and other coastal stressors, and the impact of emissions and chemical reactions on air quality and climate in the urban atmosphere.
Commerce Sec. Gina Raimondo said that the grants “will spur the knowledge and innovation that is at the heart of President Biden’s executive order to tackle the climate challenge” and “are critical economic and research investments that will improve the health and security of communities across America.”
NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad said that “we have a narrow window of tie to avoid costly, deadly, and irreversible climate impacts,” and calling the projects “essential to improve understanding of how to mitigate these impacts and bolster community resilience to climate change.”
