US President Joe Biden is observing Earth Day by announcing $7 billion in federal grants for residential solar projects, which will serve 900,000-plus households in low and middle income communities.
He also intends to increase his New Deal-style American Climate Corps green jobs training program, according to the Associated Press.
Environmental Protection Agency is awarding the grants as it revealed the 60 recipients on Monday. By the equivalent of 30 million metric tons of carbon dioxide, the projects are expected to eventually reduce emissions and save households $350 million annually, as per the senior administration officials.
As Biden is working to energise young voters for his reelection campaign, he also came up with his latest environmental announcements.
Youth was an important part of a broad but potentially delicate coalition that helped him defeat then-President Donald Trump in 2020.
Young Americans are keenly invested in the Biden climate agenda and want to actually help enact it, said senior administration officials. The Climate Corps initiative is a way for them to do that, the officials said.
Having the potential to reduce the nation’s reliance on fossil fuels emitting planet-warming greenhouse gases, solar is gaining traction as a key renewable energy source.
Solar energy can also boost the reliability of the electric grid and is also clean.