Environmental Infrastructure Project Pipeline Swells with Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund Poised to Funnel Dollars from Green Banks to Natural Climate Solutions
By Tee Thomas and Matthew Carney
Quantified Ventures is thrilled to see the influx of $20 billion in Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) climate funding leveraged in tandem with green banks and community development financial institutions (CDFIs) to maximize benefits for climate, communities, and pollution reduction.
Environmental infrastructure projects are eligible under the $14 billion National Clean Investment Fund and the $6 billion Clean Communities Investment Accelerator awards, underscoring how this funding represents a generational opportunity to accelerate investment in clean water, climate-smart agriculture, renewable energy, and other natural climate solutions. As a leader in working with green banks to develop environmental infrastructure programs, QV looks forward to working with GGRF awardees to mobilize these investments.
Thanks to several forward-thinking funders and our hard-charging team we already have a head start on this work! Our partners Lyda Hill Philanthropies and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation are pioneers in both recognizing the opportunity to leverage green banks to finance environmental infrastructure and dedicating capital to this effort.
Over the past year, Lyda Hill Philanthropies has supported QV's work with the Clean Energy Fund of Texas, the state’s first green bank, to develop a range of financing programs and canvass communities across Texas to build a pipeline of projects. In December 2023, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation made a $1 million investment in equitable water infrastructure through a strategic collaboration between the Coalition for Green Capital (CGC) and QV. As part of this initiative, we will select a cohort of 6 green banks to receive grants and technical assistance to build a pipeline of equitable clean water infrastructure projects that will directly benefit disadvantaged communities.
Last but not least, we congratulate our partner, the Coalition for Green Capital on receiving a $5 billion award to establish a national green bank through the National Clean Investment Fund! As one of only three NCIF awardees, CGC will be a major force for catalyzing investment in environmental infrastructure through their nationwide network of green banks. QV is a proud partner in that effort.
According to the U.S. EPA the suite of proposed activities by the GGRF selected applicants will collectively:
Reduce or avoid up to 40 million metric tons of climate pollution per year (equivalent to emissions from nearly 9 million typical passenger vehicles).
Mobilize almost $7 of private capital for every $1 of federal funds.
Let’s keep charging forward and ensure that environmental infrastructure is a key contributor to delivering these outcomes, as well as workforce and community co-benefits. And if you’re working on an environmental infrastructure project in a low-income or disadvantaged community stay tuned for more news and funding opportunities in the weeks and months ahead!
