COMMERCE, Calif. — Nearly $500 million in federal funding will help efforts to decarbonize the transportation and freight sectors, and improve air quality for Southern California residents, U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla announced Monday.

Padilla, D-Los Angeles, led representatives from the Environmental Protection Agency, California Resources Board, and the South Coast Air Quality Management District on a tour of freight transportation operators in the Inland Empire to experience firsthand the impacts of air pollution in the region and discussed plans to transition to zero-emission. The tour included a visit to the WattEV in San Bernardino, the Inland Empire's first heavy-duty truck charging depot.

"Today's historic half a billion dollar investment marks a consequential step in curbing the harmful effects of toxic air pollution for current and future generations," Padilla said in a statement. "Southern California is the heart of our nation's goods movement, and by making these crucial investments in zero emission infrastructure, we are one step closer to protecting our planet, decarbonizing the heavy-duty sector, and improving air quality for underserved communities who for too long have been left behind."

The funding came in part of the EPA's Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program and the Inflation Reduction Act. Money will be used to support projects that reduce emissions generated by goods movement near the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, and invest in zero-emission equipment and electric switcher trains.

In total, EPA awarded 25 applicants a combined $4.3 billion through its program to implement community-driven solutions that address climate crisis, reduce air pollution, advance environmental justice, as well as accelerate America's clean energy transition.

When combined, the proposed projects would reduce greenhouse gas pollution by as much as 971 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2050, roughly the emissions from 5 million average homes' energy use each year for over 25 years, according to the EPA.

"The Climate Pollution Reduction Grants being unveiled today will deliver unprecedented resources to states, local governments, and tribes — here in Southern California and across the U.S. — for local solutions that can provide national examples to accelerate the needed transition off of fossil fuels," EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator Martha Guzman said in a statement. "These efforts will create jobs, reduce the emissions fueling climate change, and clean up the dirty, dangerous air that too many already overburdened communities have breathed for too long."

Vanessa Delgado, chair of South Coast AQMD's Governing Board, estimated that over the next 25 years the funding will reduce 12 million metric tons of carbon emissions. She also noted 1,600 tons of smog forming emissions will be avoided annually while creating green jobs and fostering economic growth.