Overview:
- Federal environmental and climate grants in Michigan have been frozen again, impacting 43 projects including five in Detroit, despite multiple court orders blocking the freeze.
- The move follows allegations by EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin of widespread waste, fraud, and abuse within the agency.
- The freeze has affected funding for projects in Detroit, including One Love Global, The Green Door Initiative, Ecoworks, and the Detroit/Wayne County Port Authority, totaling over $48 million.
Just days after some federal environmental and climate grants resumed, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin froze a slew of climate and environment grants again early this week, affecting 43 projects in Michigan, including five in Detroit. The move came despite multiple court orders blocking the freeze.
Planet Detroit reported that funds briefly began flowing again late Friday, but the relief was short-lived. By Monday evening, most recipients were locked out of the system, according to Michelle Roos, executive director of the Environmental Protection Network, a group of former EPA staffers and appointees.
The freeze follows allegations by EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, who has claimed widespread waste, fraud, and abuse within the agency. In an internal memo sent to EPA officials Friday evening, Zeldin referenced a video posted to X in which an EPA official from the Biden administration described post-election grant disbursements as akin to “throwing gold bars off the Titanic.” The official said EPA staffers were trying to get grants out the door in advance of an expected Trump funding freeze.
Also on Friday night, an anonymous email from within the EPA’s Office of the Chief Financial Officer directed officials to halt obligations and disbursements for numerous climate and environmental justice programs.
Detroit projects among those affected
According to data shared on BlueSky by former EPA director of implementation Zealan Hoover, frozen grants in Detroit include funding for One Love Global, The Green Door Initiative, Ecoworks, and the Detroit/Wayne County Port Authority.
Collectively, these grants total over $48 million, with individual awards ranging from nearly $500,000 to more than $20 million. The projects were intended to enhance community resilience, reduce pollution, and support sustainable port operations.
Roos, who previously oversaw EPA grant programs, said she doubts the legitimacy of the fraud claims.
“EPA makes it very difficult for somebody to get a grant,” she said, noting that grantees undergo months of rigorous vetting before receiving funds. “[Zeldin’s assertion] just feels like a very insincere accusation of waste, fraud, and abuse. EPA is full of bureaucrats, and bureaucrats like to follow the law.”
Port Authority cleanup grant stalled
Among the frozen projects is a $3.2 million grant for replacing 57 diesel trucks and a tugboat as part of a decarbonization effort at the Detroit/Wayne County Port Authority. The project planned to introduce cleaner alternatives, including new diesel and propane-powered trucks and a biodiesel-powered tugboat.
Raquel Garcia, executive director of Southwest Detroit Environmental Vision, said all of the organization’s federal grants—including a $22 million subgrant to the Port Authority or which it is a subrecipient—are on hold. She has not received any updates on their status.
Although some funds remain visible in the system, Garcia said she is hesitant to spend them out of concern that her small nonprofit might be required to repay the money.
She remains hopeful, emphasizing that the Port Authority grants are designed to benefit businesses and the environment.
“It’s growth for the region, better equipment. It will make companies more efficient,” Garcia said.
Despite the freeze, she said SDEV would continue its work.
“We can still build relationships and keep working.”
Meanwhile, Sam Krassenstein, Detroit’s infrastructure chief, told Planet Detroit that the city had not received any formal notice of a funding pause on a separate $67 million federal grant awarded to the Michigan Department of Transportation and matched by $45 million from Norfolk Southern to modernize and decarbonize the Livernois Intermodal Facility.
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$3.2M federal grant aids Southwest Detroit nonprofit in replacing diesel trucks with cleaner options
Southwest Detroit Environmental Vision received a $3.2 million federal grant to replace 57 diesel trucks and a tugboat with cleaner options, cutting diesel emissions and enhancing air quality in the community.
A ‘constitutional crisis’?
Federal judges have repeatedly pushed back against the administration’s actions. On Jan. 29, Judge Loren AliKhan issued a restraining order against the funding freeze, followed by another order from Judge John McConnell on Jan. 31. On Feb. 3, AliKhan issued a strengthened restraining order.
On Monday, Feb. 10, McConnell explicitly stated that the White House had defied his order to release grant funds, marking the first time a judge formally declared that the Trump administration violated a judicial mandate.
The White House, in turn, has accused federal judges of creating a constitutional crisis by overstepping their authority by blocking Trump’s executive actions on immigration and government spending. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt claimed that liberal judges are using their power to obstruct the administration’s agenda, while critics argue that Trump is exceeding his legal authority.
Despite the uncertainty, Roos expressed optimism that funding would ultimately be restored.
“I think the law is still on the side of these grantees,” she said. “So we remain cautiously hopeful that they will be able to implement their projects and, you know, make the air cleaner and the water safe to drink, which is all they’re really trying to do.”