The Environmental Protection Agency announced Thursday that the Sault Sainte Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians will receive a roughly 46 thousand dollar grant for air quality improvements.
Officials with the tribe said the grant will got to support a number of air quality initiatives within the tribe, from air-quality assessment trainings to a database of diesel vehicles.
Kathie Brosemer is the Environmental Program Manager for the Tribe. She said the grant will allow the tribe to hire a person to focus on air quality.
“We get someone who can specialize. On all sorts of issues: water, emergency, invasive species, any number of things. Which is important when you’re dealing with a complicated thing like air quality.”
Brosemer said one issue in particular is handling international pollution.
“The really big international issues like we’re on the border here with a major integrated steel maker right across the border so we have international air pollution issues here as well. It’s nice that we have some funding from the EPA which allows us to spend time looking at these things in depth with a specialist who can focus just on air.”
In a written press release EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt said the EPA is protecting the environment by engaging with tribal partners.