U.S. Senator Tina Smith Announces Significant Federal Funding to Combat Extreme Heat, Create More Green Spaces in Minnesota

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) announced over $33 million in federal funding to plant and maintain trees, combat extreme heat and climate change, and improve access to nature in cities, towns, and suburbs throughout Minnesota. The funding is made possible through the Inflation Reduction Act, which Smith helped pass.

“As climate change fuels record-breaking heat waves across the country, we need to be doing more to increase tree cover and improve access to nature,” said Smith. “Extreme heat strains our energy systems and has negative effects on public health and overall well-being. These investments, made possible by the Inflation Reduction Act, will increase access to green spaces and help communities become more resilient to extreme heat thanks to the cooling effects of tree cover.”

The grants are made possible by investments from President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, the largest climate investment in history. Studies show that trees in communities are associated with improved physical and mental health, lower average temperatures during extreme heat, and increased food security, and create new economic opportunities.

This historic funding will help support projects that increase tree cover in disadvantaged communities, provide equitable access to the benefits of nature, and deliver tangible economic and ecological benefits to Minnesota.

The grants include:

• $10,000,000 for Cooling Minnesota Communities (CMC): Expanding Tree Canopies and Increasing Access Great River Greening
• $10,000,000 for Beating the Heat Island in Hennepin County, MN
• $8,000,000 for Minneapolis Equitable Tree Canopy Management Program in the City of Minneapolis, MN
• $2,000,000 for Saint Paul Urban & Community Forestry Project in the City of Saint Paul
• $1,730,396 for Urban Tree Diversity in the Upper Midwest Minnesota
• $1,000,000 for MN Healthy Trees, Healthy City Initiative in the City of Rochester, MN
• $498,075 to Increase Urban Tree Canopy in the City of Richfield, MN
• $210,000 for Boulevard Tree Replanting in the City of Shoreview, MN