Congresswoman Summer Lee Celebrates Over $6.6 Million for Sustainable Construction Initiatives Through EPA Grant

**For Immediate Release**

Kyla Gill, Kyla.Gill@mail.house.gov 

Vaibhav Vijay, Vaibhav.Vijay@mail.house.gov 

Congresswoman Summer Lee Celebrates Over $6.6 Million for Sustainable Construction Initiatives Through EPA Grant

Pittsburgh, PA – July 18, 2024 – Today, Congresswoman Summer Lee proudly announces the allocation of $6,639,427 to the Building Materials Reuse Association (Build Reuse) as part of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s recent grant awards to support clean U.S. manufacturing of steel and other construction materials. This funding, stemming from President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act—the largest climate investment in history—will significantly bolster efforts to report and reduce climate pollution from the manufacturing of construction materials and products.

The Build Reuse project stands out as a national initiative dedicated to supporting the reuse industry within the U.S. Through this project, Build Reuse will provide sub-awards and technical assistance aimed at generating Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) for minimally processed salvage construction materials and products across the country. Recipients of these sub-awards will benefit from comprehensive Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) education and Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) data collection training and mentorship.

Congresswoman Lee emphasizes the importance of this initiative: “The reuse of construction materials is a critical step towards sustainable development and reducing our carbon footprint. By empowering communities to turn construction and demolition waste into local resources, we are promoting a sustainable economy that benefits everyone. I am proud to support Build Reuse in their efforts to create innovative solutions that will benefit both our environment and our economy, ultimately improving the quality of life for the people in PA-12 and beyond.”

Key components of the Build Reuse project include the development of a digital LCA-EPD generator software tool, the enhancement of the organization’s capabilities as a program operator, and the creation of a sub-category Product Category Rule (PCR) for salvaged and reprocessed construction products. These advancements will provide valuable data on product use, quality, service lifespans, past uses, and end-of-life in key product group categories, aiding in product circularity activities such as design for reuse and materials passport development.

Build Reuse also hosts an annual deconstruction and reuse conference, attracting an average of 300 participants, with dedicated tracks focused on LCA topics. This conference serves as a vital platform for industry professionals to share knowledge and advancements in the field of construction material reuse.

This funding not only underscores the commitment of the Biden-Harris Administration to clean construction materials through the Federal Buy Clean Initiative but also highlights Congresswoman Summer Lee’s dedication to bringing impactful, environmentally-conscious projects to her district and beyond.

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Since taking office in January 2023, Lee, who serves on the House Oversight Committee and Space, Science and Technology Committee, has delivered historic levels of federal investment totaling over $1.85 Billion brought back to Western PA, including over $580 million for infrastructure, over $110 million for affordable transit, over $500 million to keep clean energy manufacturing at home in Pennsylvania, and over $55 million on clean energy efforts in and around schools to help keep our kids and communities safe. These investments will help improve Western Pennsylvania’s infrastructure and transit, ensure cleaner air and drinking water, lower housing costs, fund research institutions, fuel clean manufacturing, fund STEM innovation and entrepreneurship, boost workforce development, and create thousands of good paying union jobs.  Lee and her team have also delivered casework and constituent services to over 2,300 constituents with issues ranging from helping our seniors and disabled community access Medicare and social security to helping folks secure housing and helping families with immigration support and passports.