SWMO Local Government Briefing - December 2023

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Last Call: We Need Your Input on Missouri's Pollution Reduction Funding

The Southwest Missouri Council of Governments (SMCOG) recently partnered with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to host three regional public meetings to assess the need for climate pollution reduction, inform communities about Missouri's climate planning efforts, and identify prospective greenhouse gas emission reduction projects in our area. These meetings were made available through DNR's Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRG) Planning Program.

As a reminder, the projects proposed from the regional meetings will be evaluated in a formal report prepared by SMCOG to be submitted to DNR. These project ideas will be included in Missouri’s Priority Climate Action Plan. Next Spring, CPRG implementation funding will be released by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as part of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 with the aim of funding the proposed projects from the regional meetings.

EPA has not yet released information about eligible funding recipients or specific projects for the implementation phase of the CPRG Program. Once released, more details will be added to DNR’s website. However, a few broad examples of eligible projects include but are not limited to, increasing renewable energy generation (such as solar, wind, etc.), increasing energy storage capacity, increasing energy generation from sources other than carbon (such as nuclear), weatherization projects to improve a building's energy efficiency, appliance efficiency upgrades, increasing use of electric vehicles, sustainable agriculture, and increasing use of recycled materials. In support of EPA’s program goal of directing 40% of CPRG benefits to marginalized, underserved, and overburdened groups, we highly encourage public participation from all residents in the SMCOG 10-county region.

For those of you who may have missed our regional meetings, we would like to share a video recording of the presentation along with the program materials. Please use the link below to view the recording: https://missouristate.zoom.us/rec/share/CLn57kqgkz9f36qhcaGPRKDjzULcTY5bBNo2gfIa050P0gehNvhurk8mJyZ518MF.6aSU9zURlSBiyXpI

Additionally, please use the following link to locate the CPRG Project Idea Submission Form: https://dnr.mo.gov/document-search/missouri-climate-pollution-reduction-grant-project-idea-submission-mo-780-3038

Lastly, we strongly encourage you to complete DNR's survey regarding upcoming CPRG Implementation funding and Missouri's Climate Action Plans. The last day to complete the survey is November 30, 2023. You can fill out the survey here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CPRG-Community-Engagement-Survey

If you or your community is interested in receiving CPRG Implementation funding, please consider submitting the CPRG Project Idea Submission Form to DNR as soon as possible.

For questions or comments, please contact Kelsi Burton from SMCOG at KelsiBurton@MissouriState.edu or contact DNR at CPRGTeam@DNR.mo.gov