The St. Louis Housing Authority was recently awarded $520,300 by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to advance the remediation of housing-related health hazards at the agency’s Northside Scattered Sites (NSS) public housing development.
The funds were received under HUD’s Housing-Related Hazards & Lead Based Paint Capital Fund Program, which enables public housing agencies to identify and eliminate housing-related environmental health hazards – such as carbon monoxide, mold, and fire risk – to protect the safety and health of its residents. SLHA will utilize grant funds to transition 34 units from natural gas to clean energy through appliance replacements, furnace and electrical services upgrades, and exhaust fan replacements.
“Research has proven that, at elevated levels, indoor air pollution from combustion appliances can affect respiratory and heart health, among other conditions,” said St. Louis Housing Authority Executive Director Alana C. Green. “Eliminating combustion appliances and inadequate ventilation at the Northside Scattered Sites makes way for improved health outcomes and indoor air quality by reducing our families’ exposure to fire hazards and harmful household pollutants such as carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide.”
SLHA’s focus on NSS carries a significant value because the scattered development is located in or near high-poverty north city neighborhoods that experience disproportionate exposure to higher levels of environmental pollutants, resulting in poorer health outcomes.
Said Green: “Historically, gas stoves have been linked to childhood asthma. North city residents account for most of the asthma-related emergency room visits and hospitalizations in the city. These upgrades not only modernize the household, but it allows SLHA to remove the risk of hazardous pollutants in the household to protect the health and safety of our children and families.”
St. Louis Housing Authority awarded $520K by HUD to address housing-related health hazards
