Reno, Nev. – U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) applauded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for awarding an additional $136,913 in Clean Air Act grant funds to the Washoe County Health District to help improve air quality in an area experiencing its worst level of ozone air pollution in 10 years due to recent wildfires.
“Nevadans are working hard to reduce wildfire smoke pollution. I am very grateful to the EPA for awarding these grants to provide the Washoe County Health District the additional resources they need to improve air quality in Nevada,” said Senator Cortez Masto. “As our community continues to support one another through another difficult wildfire season, I’m doing everything I can to ensure federal assistance like these grants are available to help protect the health of our communities. Thanks to these grants, Washoe County will be able to better monitor air pollution and decrease public exposure to the harmful properties of wildfire smoke and other air pollutants. I applaud the EPA and Washoe County officials, health providers, and residents for their collaborative efforts in improving Nevada’s air quality.”
The grant funds will be awarded as follows:
- $136,913 in grant funding will go to Washoe County Health District to improve air quality through local monitoring and wildfire-smoke awareness activities. These funds will support Washoe County’s “Be Smoke Smart” outreach campaign. The campaign informs community members of ways to limit exposure to hazardous air and minimize the impact of smoke from wildfires by providing relevant, updated information to the public and businesses about air quality in the county.
- $684,564 in Clean Air Act grant funds were previously awarded to Washoe County in March.
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