The Trump administration has terminated a $75,000 Environmental Protection Agency grant meant to fund air quality monitoring in North Birmingham, Alabama—an area long affected by industrial pollution and designated a Superfund site. The grant, awarded in 2023 under the Biden administration, supported the Greater Birmingham Alliance to Stop Pollution (GASP) in helping residents track air contaminants near their homes.
GASP Executive Director Jilisa Milton said she wasn’t surprised, noting the application had referenced helping Black residents disproportionately harmed by nearby coke plants. The EPA’s termination letter cited a shift in agency priorities, stating the award “no longer effectuates the program goals.”
Residents in Collegeville, Harriman Park, and Fairmont neighborhoods live near active polluters and rank in the 90th percentile for particulate matter. Milton emphasized that revoking the grant sends a message that the health of marginalized communities is “disposable.” She called the decision racist, citing the administration’s labeling of environmental justice efforts as “illegal DEI.”
GASP plans to appeal the termination but may need to rely on donors to continue its work.
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