The Biden administration will provide funding for 146 tribal climate resilience projects totaling $120 million, announced by Interior Department officials on Thursday.
The money consists of $71 million from Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) funds, $26 million from Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funds, and $23 million from annual appropriations for fiscal 2023. These funds can be used for various projects to reduce the impact and improve readiness for climate changes, such as moving people to safer places, managing coastal areas, and restoring natural habitats, according to the Interior Department.
During a discussion with journalists, Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, the first indigenous cabinet secretary of the nation, stated that this funding is the largest amount ever given to tribes in a year for dealing with climate change, from the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The funds will be divided among 102 tribes and nine tribal organizations.
Haaland also commended the administration's significant investment in Native community infrastructure during the call with reporters, mentioning the total of $45 billion, which equals the annual budget of the Bureau of Indian Affairs for 15 years.
“Indigenous communities are facing unique and intensifying climate-related challenges that pose an existential threat to Tribal economies, infrastructure, lives and livelihoods,” Haaland said in a statement. “Through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, we are making transformational commitments to assist Tribes and Tribal organizations as they plan for and implement climate resilience measures, upholding our trust and treaty responsibilities and safeguarding these places for generations to come.”
The award is part of $440 million in funds the administration has allocated to climate resilience in tribal communities. It follows another program. launched in 2022 that funds voluntary relocation of Native Americans displaced by climate change.
Recipients included residents of Alaska’s Newtok Village and Native Village of Napakiak, both of which have seen severe erosion, with Interior projecting Napakiak is losing between 25 to 50 feet annually of riverbank.
Haaland has emphasized Native issues during her tenure, including an ongoing review of federal boarding schools where Native children were forcibly placed and forbidden from growing their hair or speaking tribal languages.
