The USDA is unfreezing clean energy money — but ‘inviting’ grant recipients to remove DEI and climate language
Jim Levli wants to install solar panels on the surface in the local food market for his family, just minutes away from Bear Dunes National Lakehore Beach in North Michigan. These panels can help operate the RV camp that they want to open next to the market and compensate for other electricity bills.
But although Lively received a $ 39,696 grant for the project through the American Ministry of Agriculture program called the rural energy program for America, or earns, it is not sure whether he will be able to obtain the solar panels it wants. As one of Thousands From the awards award throughout the country, Lively was shouting on this money to cover half the cost of the solar project.
Among the first few days of President Donald Trump, issued a A set of executive orders It aims to eliminate government initiatives directed towards climate change, improving environmental justice, and supporting diversity, fairness and inclusion. In the midst of the familiar wave of fluctuations and uncertainty for farmers and business owners who were dependent on funding from various programs, Lavelli was said that harvesting of harvesting had stopped temporarily.
Last week, Lively got a welcome update: the money has not been frozen now.
On March 25, the US Department of Agriculture Declare You will issue a grant money through ReAP and two other clean energy programs partially supported by the Act of Inflation for the year 2022. But there is some beautiful printing.
In this announcement, the US Department of Agriculture also called on grants and loans to review their voluntary proposals to comply with Trump’s executive order by “eliminating Dia in the Biden era and the climate that are included in the previous proposals.”
In an email, a US Agriculture Ministry spokesman said that people who have already obtained funding could “review” their plans voluntarily within 30 days to be closely in line with the Trump administration. Executive order. If the receivers have written in writing that they do not want to change anything about their proposals, the US Department of Agriculture, the “treatment”, said to their projects that will continue immediately. If the receptions do not communicate with the US Department of Agriculture, “payments and other procedures will resume after 30 days,” according to the statement. But many questions remain, and the agency did not take GRIST for clarification.
For example, the agency did not provide details about the timetable for the projects already approved to actually receive funds; Whether the agency will open new request periods or not; Whether the announcement of financing and the invitation for review applies to grants, loans, or both, or both; And whether the advertisement applies to future fairies.
Perhaps more importantly, it is also not clear what the agency means through “treatment”: will those who choose not to change their requests continue to receive the money that has been granted or will their proposals be subject to another review process? The phrase “other procedures” has many observers.
Mike Lavender, Director of Policy in the National Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture, is not expected to see the request prevents farmers and companies from receiving the money they deserve, but he admits that “anything is possible with this US Department of Agriculture.”
“Our current understanding of the US Department of Agriculture is that the ReAP donors will receive compensation that they are entitled to the signed grant agreements whether they choose to complete the voluntary optical wenge review form, including whether they are providing the model that shows that they do not intend to make any amendments to their projects.” “It is very important that the US Department of Agriculture clearly and publicly emphasizes the voluntary nature of the Al -Junaida review to avoid planting more confusion and uncertainty.”
Rebecca Wolf, The Food & Water Watch, is not sure that the program will continue smoothly. She said that the act of issuing the invitation in conjunction with the news about the resumption of financing is likely to pay farmers and business owners to feel pressure to fear not to get their money.
The ambiguity of everything is its source of tension.
“I know that there are people who have gave solar grants,” said Wolf. Because we know that the administration is more eager for fossil fuel. ”So there is a lot of this type of this type of,“ What does this actually mean? ”
The efforts of the US Department of Agriculture to comply with Trump’s executive orders take various forms through the vast agency. A An internal note leaked It is distributed within the Agricultural Research Service of the US Department of Agriculture detailed guidelines about reviewing “agreements” to obtain a list of the main banned words, including “people of color”, “climate change” and “clean energy”, as reported by the non -profit news organization for the first time. Last week, the US Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development cleaned the application process for 14 programs – including ReAP – of.Registration criteria“It is linked to the goals of the property and the climate established by the Biden Administration.
“Another example of chaos and confusion that has become a supremacy of the Trump administration.” She added that this step is “small and harsh.”
“The US Department of Agriculture’s mission is to support our agricultural products and countryside societies. Farmers do not have time to jump through additional hoops to obtain support for the critical preservation work on which they depend on their livelihoods,” actor Gil Tukuda, a democratic who represents the second Hawaiian province in Congress and also sits in the Agricultural Committee.
Grist continues to the Republican President of the Agriculture Committee in the House of Representatives and a member of two other Republican Party for comment, none of them wanted before publishing.
Other critics say that the actions of the US Department of Agriculture may lead to a return to the discriminatory practices conducted by the agency for decades, such as Refuse more loans in a way that is not commensurate with black farmers From any other population group and excluding the original farmers from Agricultural programs. Activists and scientists have also argued that many solutions needed to alleviate huge carbon emissions in agriculture have been developed by marginalized societies. In this way, Trump’s attacks are related to justice and climate agriculture.
“From the perspective of climate justice, the effects of this decision, and hostile policies are as much as we know, are not less than destroyed.”
Finally, the US Department of Agriculture has so far complied with Trump’s efforts to eliminate Dei initiatives and climate work mechanisms at each level of the federal government. The agency has suspended education, research and government financing. He temporarily stopped a list of programs receiving the Irish Republican army funds and destroying others. The general correspondence behind these moves remained consistent: the agency, which works in Lockstep with the initiative known as the Ministry of Governmental efficiency, goals “goals”To strengthen the workforce in the US Department of Agriculture and get rid of waste spending”
According to Lolf, from Food & Water Watch, the actions of the US Department of Agriculture indicate the opposite. “We have seen a real wage from the first day, whether it is jobs or financing,” she said. “A very clear indication of how things appear to go forward.”
For his part, Jim Livly decided to wait for a period of 30 days instead of changing any language. He said: “It is just a project to install solar equipment. There was nothing there. So I don’t really think I need any changes.” “We may only take our chances, leave things as they are, and we hope to get the Finance Award announcement at the end of the month.”
