Congressmembers, EPA officials attend ceremony to award UNM center $4 million
July 21, 2023 - by Kim Delker
At a ceremony Monday (July 24) at The University of New Mexico, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) awarded a grant of $4 million to the Southwest Environmental Finance Center, part of the School of Engineering.
The Investing in America event was held noon-1 p.m. in the Centennial Engineering Center’s Stamm Commons on the UNM campus.
The grant is the first part of a total of $10 million in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding to be awarded over five years. The center will use the grant to help small, disadvantaged communities build capacity to develop, maintain and operate water infrastructure. With the funding, the Southwest Environmental Finance Center will provide technical assistance to small and disadvantaged communities and systems within Region 6 to assist them with building financial, managerial and technical capacity. The intent is to ultimately provide them with technical assistance that may lead to an infrastructure application through state revolving funds.
Region 6 includes New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas, as well as 66 Tribal nations.
