New EPA Adviser Looks to Juice Investing in Communities of Color

The new head of the EPA’s in-house financial advisory board wants to prove low-income communities of color aren’t risky places for private investors to park their money.

That goal is crucial because President Joe Biden has made environmental justice one of his central concerns. But it’s historically been hard to convince bottom line-oriented investors that projects such as laying down permeable pavement or shoring up disaster resiliency are worth financing, especially in rural areas without much economic activity.

“Sometimes, to attract private capital in, you have to provide some sort of credit support, some sort of credit enhancement, to get ...