PADUCAH — On September 12, the Department of Energy's Office of Environmental Management announced competitive financial assistance grant selections for the Community Capacity Building Grant Program Funding Opportunity Announcement, including two that will benefit Paducah.
According to the DOE, the awards will focus on reinvestment in disadvantaged communities impacted by decades of nuclear defense and research missions, and currently hosting environmental cleanup sites. They will also focus on strengthening relationships with communities by supporting projects that serve community and economic development goals, promote revitalization efforts, and promote inclusive community engagement practices.
The DOE stated that the Paducah Independent Schools will receive a grant award to revitalize 6 acres of unused school property into a green infrastructure of solar panels that will generate clean energy for the community while teaching the next generation the importance of being environmentally conscious of clean energy use. The total estimated value for this grant is $1,325,000 — the period of performance is three years from the award grant date.
The Steelworkers Charitable & Educational Organization of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, will receive a grant award as well — but while the applicant is based in Pennsylvania, the grant will focus on the Portsmouth and Paducah cleanup sites, among others.
According to the Office of Environmental Management, in 1950, the Atomic Energy Commission selected a 3,556-acre tract of government-owned land near Paducah, Kentucky, as the location to construct a second gaseous diffusion uranium enrichment plant to support US national security needs.
This grant will be used to creating a talent pipeline to provide a well-trained and well-qualified workforce to fill occupations critical to EM completing cleanup activities around the country and demonstrates EM’s support for improving the educational and economic conditions in disadvantaged communities near EM sites. The total estimated value for this grant is $1,968,445.
This contract was awarded to Enterprise Technical Assistance Services Inc. of Knoxville, Tennessee, who will be required to provide technical and administrative support to assist EM with oversight and management of these cleanup projects.
For a full list of the projects these grants support, click here.
