Air monitoring projects can help foster transparency and accountability to reduce pollution in underserved communities

December 13, 2021

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WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the availability of $20 million in competitive grants through the American Rescue Plan (ARP) to enhance ambient air quality monitoring in communities across the United States, especially in underserved and overburdened communities that often lack access to adequate air quality information. EPA will award funds to support community and local efforts to monitor air quality and to promote air quality monitoring partnerships between communities and Tribal, state, and local governments.  Community-based nonprofit organizations, Tribes, states, and local governments may apply for the grants. 

“In my travel across the country, from Newark to Flint to the deep south, community members have told me how important air quality monitoring is to protecting their health. Through the American Rescue Plan, Congress and the President entrusted EPA with critical funding to help those who are hurting,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “This funding will support communities that need better information about air quality in their neighborhoods and reflects EPA’s commitment to deliver environmental justice for our most vulnerable populations.” 

The announcement follows Administrator Regan’s Journey to Justice Tour through Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas, where he met with residents and advocates to hear firsthand how their communities have been affected by air pollution and why improved air monitoring can help residents. 

Under the ARP, Congress provided EPA with a one-time supplemental appropriation of $100 million to address health outcome disparities from pollution and the COVID-19 pandemic. Of that $100 million, $50 million has been dedicated to environmental justice (EJ) initiatives that identify and address disproportionate environmental or public health harms in underserved communities, and $50 million is dedicated to address air monitoring for the same issues.

Today’s announcement of the availability of $20 million for community monitoring is part of that $50 million for monitoring. This is the largest investment in community-based monitoring systems in EPA history. The remaining $30 million will support state, Tribal or local air agencies for enhanced monitoring of fine particles and five other air pollutants regulated by the National Ambient Air Quality Standards under the Clean Air Act; cover administrative costs; and invest in mobile monitoring labs or air sensor loan programs to improve EPA’s ability to support communities in need of short-term monitoring and air quality information.

To be considered for funding under this Request for Applications (RFA), grant applications must address ambient monitoring for at least one of the following types of air pollution: criteria pollutants (particle pollution, carbon monoxide, lead, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, or sulfur dioxide) and their precursors or hazardous air pollutants, as defined by the Clean Air Act.

The grants do not require matching funds from organizations that apply. The grants will be focused on collecting information that addresses air pollution problems identified by communities and effective partnerships.  This EPA grant competition to enhance ambient air monitoring in communities with health outcome disparities from pollution and the COVID-19 pandemic exemplifies the Biden Administration’s Justice40 commitment to charting a new and better course that puts environmental and economic justice at the center of all we do.

Through this grants program, EPA anticipates awarding a total of 50-70 grants or cooperative agreements.  Approximately $2 million of the total amount will be awarded to Tribal governments under a Tribal government set-aside, and approximately $2 million will be awarded to eligible community-based organizations under a community-based organization set-aside. EPA may increase or decrease the total funding or set-aside amounts based on the quality of applications received and agency priorities.

The application period closes February 25, 2022, and EPA will be offering an informational webinar about the RFA on January 11, 2022 from 1:00PM-2:00PM eastern. 

More information is available at https://www.epa.gov/grants/enhanced-air-quality-monitoring-communities OR https://www.epa.gov/arp/enhanced-air-quality-monitoring-funding-under-arp

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EPA plans to use first $1B from Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to clear out the Superfund backlog and accelerate cleanup for dozens of additional Superfund projects

December 17, 2021

LENEXA, KAN. (DEC. 17, 2021)  – Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a $1 billion investment from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to initiate cleanup and clear the backlog of 49 previously unfunded Superfund sites, including the Valley Park TCE Site in Valley Park, Missouri, and the Vienna Wells Site in Vienna, Missouri. Until this historic investment, many of these were part of a backlog of hazardous waste sites awaiting funding.

“This work is just the beginning; with more than one in four Black and Hispanic Americans living within 3 miles of a Superfund site, EPA is working to serve people that have been left behind,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “Approximately 60% of the sites to receive funding for new cleanup projects are in historically underserved communities. Communities living near many of the most serious uncontrolled or abandoned releases of contamination will finally get the protections they deserve.”

“I’m glad to see the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency prioritize funding to address soil and groundwater contamination at the Vienna and Valley Park Superfund sites,” said U.S. Senator Roy Blunt. “Our underground infrastructure is just as important as the infrastructure we traditionally think of above ground. Ensuring communities have a safe and reliable water supply is one of the most important federal investments we can make for the economy and, most importantly, for the families living near Superfund sites. I was proud to support the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and look forward to seeing that legislation continue to have an impact in our state.”

“Thanks to the funding through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, EPA will be able to expedite work on these Superfund sites and deliver environmental results for the communities of Vienna and Valley Park, Missouri,” said EPA Region 7 Administrator Meghan A. McCollister. “We’re rolling up our sleeves and getting to work to accelerate cleanups at these sites and ensure that everyone lives in a healthy community, regardless of where it is or how big or small it may be.”

Valley Park TCE Superfund Site – Valley Park, Missouri

The Valley Park TCE Superfund Site is located in the eastern portion of the city of Valley Park, approximately 15 miles southwest of the city of St. Louis, in St. Louis County, Missouri. Wainwright Industries owned and operated a metal stamping and tool and die shop at the property, located on the northwest corner of the intersection of Benton Street and Third Street, from 1949 to 1979. Part of the manufacturing process included a solvent degreasing system that used the solvents trichloroethylene (TCE) from 1963 to 1970 and perchloroethylene (PCE) from 1970 to 1979. These operations resulted in PCE and TCE contamination in soil and groundwater.

Infrastructure funds will be used to implement a soil remedy at Operable Unit 02 Valley Technologies Soil, so that the soil will no longer be a source of TCE contamination impacting the groundwater aquifer at Valley Park.

Learn more about the Valley Park TCE Superfund Site.

Vienna Wells Superfund Site – Vienna, Missouri

The Vienna Wells Superfund Site consists of three contaminated public drinking water wells and the source area, a former hat factory. The site property is a 7.9-acre parcel of land that begins at the southeast corner of the 10th Street and Chestnut Street intersection.

From 1952 to 1996, the site property was owned and operated by two companies, Langenberg Inc. and Top This Inc. Operations at the facility resulted in soil and groundwater contaminated with volatile organic compounds, primarily perchloroethylene (PCE).

Infrastructure funds will be used to implement a soil remedy at the site, so that soil will no longer be a source of PCE contamination impacting the drinking water supply at Vienna.

Learn more about the Vienna Wells Superfund Site.

The $1 billion investment is the first wave of funding from the $3.5 billion in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to help cleanup polluted Superfund sites in communities. The backlog of previously unfunded sites that will now be receiving funding are in 24 states and territories and all 10 EPA regions, including some communities who have been waiting for cleanup for more than four years.

EPA is committed to carrying out this work in line with President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative by advancing environmental justice and incorporating equity considerations into all aspects of the Superfund cleanup process. This will help ensure that historic and ongoing impacts of contamination on overburdened communities are fully considered and addressed.

Administrator Regan visited the Lower Darby Creek Area site in Pennsylvania, one of the many sites with ongoing work that will receive a boost from the historic Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding. Along with new construction projects, infrastructure funds will be used to accelerate ongoing work and begin cleanup at additional Superfund sites in various stages of pre-construction and planning throughout the country.

These Superfund cleanup projects will make a visible and lasting difference in communities. In one Florida community, residents have been advocating for removal of creosote-contaminated soil in their neighborhood for years. At a New York site, lead-contaminated soil will be removed from people’s backyards. At a site in New Mexico, EPA will address the source area of a contaminated groundwater plume migrating towards a community.

The funds will supercharge the Superfund program to address the toll contaminated sites have on communities. EPA is finalizing cleanup plans and preparing funding mechanisms to get construction work started as soon as possible. More information about funding for backlogged sites and accelerated cleanup sites will be available in the coming weeks.

In 1980, the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, known as Superfund, was passed. The novel law gave EPA the authority and funds to hold polluters accountable for cleaning up the most contaminated sites across the country. When no viable responsible party is found or cannot afford the cleanup, funds appropriated by Congress are used. A tax on chemical and petroleum industries provided funds to the Superfund Trust fund for Superfund cleanups up until 1995. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law reinstates the chemical excise taxes and invests an additional $3.5 billion in environmental remediation at Superfund sites, making it one of the largest investments in American history to address the legacy pollution that harms the public health of communities and neighborhoods.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is a once-in-a-generation investment that will create millions of jobs modernizing our infrastructure, turn the climate crisis into an opportunity, and put us on a path to win the economic competition for the 21st century. 

For more information and to see a list of the 49 sites to receive funding for new cleanup projects, please visit EPA’s website.

# # #

Learn more about EPA Region 7

View all Region 7 news releases

Connect with EPA Region 7 on Facebook: www.facebook.com/eparegion7

Follow us on Twitter: @EPARegion7

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Originally Appeared Here

December 14, 2021

WASHINGTON (Dec. 14, 2021)  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is extending the public comment  on the Agency’s proposed comprehensive new protections to sharply reduce pollution from the oil and natural gas industry to January 31, 2022. The previous comment deadline was January 14, 2022.

The proposed Clean Air Act rules, announced November 2, 2021, would lead to significant, cost-effective reductions in methane emissions and other health-harming air pollutants that endanger nearby communities. The proposal would expand and strengthen emissions reduction requirements that are currently on the books for new, modified and reconstructed sources in the oil and natural gas industry and would require states to reduce methane emissions from hundreds of thousands of existing sources nationwide for the first time. It also would encourage the use of innovative methane detection technologies and other cutting-edge solutions, many of which are being developed and deployed by small businesses providing good-paying jobs across the United States.

To read the comment period extension notice, visit: https://www.epa.gov/controlling-air-pollution-oil-and-natural-gas-industry/epa-extends-comment-period-proposed-new

For instructions on submitting public comment on the proposal, see: https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2021-11/epas-2021-oil-and-gas-proposal.-how-to-comment.pdf

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Originally Appeared Here

EPA plans to use first $1B from Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to clear out the Superfund backlog and accelerate cleanup for dozens of additional Superfund projects

December 17, 2021

LENEXA, KAN. (DEC. 17, 2021) – Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a $1 billion investment from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to initiate cleanup and clear the backlog of 49 previously unfunded Superfund sites, including the Cherokee County Superfund Site in southeastern Kansas. Until this historic investment, many of these were part of a backlog of hazardous waste sites awaiting funding.

“This work is just the beginning; with more than one in four Black and Hispanic Americans living within 3 miles of a Superfund site, EPA is working to serve people that have been left behind,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “Approximately 60% of the sites to receive funding for new cleanup projects are in historically underserved communities. Communities living near many of the most serious uncontrolled or abandoned releases of contamination will finally get the protections they deserve.”

“Thanks to the funding through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, EPA will be able to expedite work on these Superfund sites and deliver environmental results for the people of Cherokee County,” said EPA Region 7 Administrator Meghan A. McCollister. “We’re rolling up our sleeves and getting to work to accelerate cleanups at these sites and ensure that everyone lives in a healthy community, regardless of where it is or how big or small it may be.”

The Cherokee County Superfund Site is a former mining area in southeast Kansas, part of a larger regional mining area known as the Tri-State Mining District that covers about 115 square miles. Over 100 years of widespread lead and zinc mining created piles of mine tailings covering more than 4,000 acres. The mine tailings contaminated groundwater with lead, zinc and cadmium. Sitewide, nearly 3 million cubic yards of mining wastes have been remediated on over 2,800 acres; over 800 residential yards have been remediated; and over 500 homes have been supplied with a clean, permanent source of drinking water. The infrastructure funding will be used to further ongoing remediation work and initiate remediation in new areas at the site.

Learn more about the Cherokee County Superfund Site.

The $1 billion investment is the first wave of funding from the $3.5 billion in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to help cleanup polluted Superfund sites in communities. The backlog of previously unfunded sites that will now be receiving funding are in 24 states and territories and all 10 EPA regions, including some communities who have been waiting for cleanup for more than four years.

EPA is committed to carrying out this work in line with President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative by advancing environmental justice and incorporating equity considerations into all aspects of the Superfund cleanup process. This will help ensure that historic and ongoing impacts of contamination on overburdened communities are fully considered and addressed.

Administrator Regan visited the Lower Darby Creek Area site in Pennsylvania, one of the many sites with ongoing work that will receive a boost from the historic Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding. Along with new construction projects, infrastructure funds will be used to accelerate ongoing work and begin cleanup at additional Superfund sites in various stages of pre-construction and planning throughout the country.

These Superfund cleanup projects will make a visible and lasting difference in communities. In one Florida community, residents have been advocating for removal of creosote-contaminated soil in their neighborhood for years. At a New York site, lead-contaminated soil will be removed from people’s backyards. At a site in New Mexico, EPA will address the source area of a contaminated groundwater plume migrating towards a community.

The funds will supercharge the Superfund program to address the toll contaminated sites have on communities. EPA is finalizing cleanup plans and preparing funding mechanisms to get construction work started as soon as possible. More information about funding for backlogged sites and accelerated cleanup sites will be available in the coming weeks.

In 1980, the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, known as Superfund, was passed. The novel law gave EPA the authority and funds to hold polluters accountable for cleaning up the most contaminated sites across the country. When no viable responsible party is found or cannot afford the cleanup, funds appropriated by Congress are used. A tax on chemical and petroleum industries provided funds to the Superfund Trust fund for Superfund cleanups up until 1995. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law reinstates the chemical excise taxes and invests an additional $3.5 billion in environmental remediation at Superfund sites, making it one of the largest investments in American history to address the legacy pollution that harms the public health of communities and neighborhoods.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is a once-in-a-generation investment that will create millions of jobs modernizing our infrastructure, turn the climate crisis into an opportunity, and put us on a path to win the economic competition for the 21st century. 

For more information and to see a list of the 49 sites to receive funding for new cleanup projects, please visit EPA’s website.

# # #

Learn more about EPA Region 7

View all Region 7 news releases

Connect with EPA Region 7 on Facebook: www.facebook.com/eparegion7

Follow us on Twitter: @EPARegion7

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Originally Appeared Here

December 20, 2021

WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized the Fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 5) to establish nationwide monitoring for 29 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and lithium in drinking water. This action is essential to addressing the public health and environmental risks of PFAS in drinking water and marks a significant milestone in EPA’s PFAS Strategic Roadmap.

“At EPA, we are advancing the science and the monitoring that are necessary to protect all communities from PFAS,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “With the data provided by this rule, EPA will be able to develop better regulations while the agency, states, and our local partners will be able to make protective public health decisions that are grounded in science.”

EPA uses the Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule to monitor for priority unregulated contaminants in drinking water every five years. UCMR 5 will collect new data on 29 PFAS that is needed to improve EPA’s understanding of the frequency and magnitude at which these chemicals are found in the nation’s drinking water systems. Additionally, expanded monitoring in UCMR 5 will improve EPA’s ability to conduct state and regional assessments of contamination. This will enable analyses of potential Environmental Justice impacts on disadvantaged communities. This data will also serve as a potential source of information for systems with infrastructure funding needs for emerging contaminant remediation.

The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), as amended by America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018, now requires all drinking water systems serving between 3,300 and 10,000 people to participate in UCMR and specifies that a representative sample of systems serving fewer than 3,300 people participate, subject to the availability of appropriations and sufficient laboratory capacity. If the necessary funds are appropriated, the UCMR 5 will significantly expand the number of small drinking water systems participating in the program, which should provide more Americans with a better understanding of potential contaminants in their drinking water. The rule requires participating drinking water systems to collect samples from 2023-2025 and report final results through 2026.

EPA will hold multiple webinar meetings for stakeholders in 2022. Dates and times of the upcoming meetings will be posted on EPA’s website at: https://www.epa.gov/dwucmr/unregulated-contaminant-monitoring-rule-ucmr-meetings-and-materials.

More information on UCMR 5 may be found at: https://www.epa.gov/dwucmr/fifth-unregulated-contaminant-monitoring-rule.

Background on UCMR

UCMR is a key provision of the SDWA that helps identify unregulated contaminants present in our drinking water supply. Every five years, EPA publishes a new UCMR to address a new set of priority unregulated drinking water contaminants. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020 (NDAA) (Public Law 116-92) amended SDWA and specifies that the Administrator shall include each PFAS in UCMR 5 for which a drinking water method has been validated by the Administrator and that are not subject to a national primary drinking water regulation. The five-year UCMR 5 period spans 2022–2026, with UCMR 5 sample collection beginning in 2023 and continuing through 2025.

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Originally Appeared Here

December 16, 2021

(CHICAGO) December 16, 2021 – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has filed a complaint against Diesel Ops LLC and Orion Diesel LLC in Waterford, Mich., for manufacturing, selling, and installing aftermarket parts known as “defeat devices” designed to defeat required vehicle emissions controls in violation of the federal Clean Air Act.

“This action sends a strong message that selling and installing defeat devices on vehicles and engines will not be tolerated,” said EPA Region 5 Administrator Debra Shore. “Emission control systems on vehicles are designed to protect public health by reducing pollution, which is why EPA is committed to ensuring that companies comply with the Clean Air Act.”

EPA is seeking monetary civil penalties and injunctive relief in its CAA complaint to prevent Diesel Ops and Orion Diesel from manufacturing, selling or installing the defeat devices. The complaint also alleges that Nicholas Piccolo, an owner of the companies, failed to establish and maintain records and respond to requests for information, and that the companies transferred assets to him in violation of the Federal Debt Collection Procedures Act.

As a result of EPA’s efforts to improve air quality and fuel efficiency, cars and trucks manufactured today emit far less pollution than older vehicles. To meet EPA’s emission standards, engine manufacturers have carefully calibrated their engines and installed sophisticated emissions control systems. EPA testing has shown that aftermarket defeat devices can increase vehicle emissions substantially, which can contribute to a variety of public health problems typically associated with exposure to air pollution. These health effects can include premature death in people with heart or lung disease, heart attacks, irregular heartbeat, aggravated asthma, decreased lung function, and respiratory symptoms such as irritation of the airways, coughing, or difficulty breathing.

Because defeat devices contribute excess dirty emissions to communities located adjacent to highways and freight facilities, EPA regards halting the manufacture, sale, offering for sale, and installation of defeat devices as key issues in working toward environmental justice.

This enforcement action is part of EPA’s National Compliance Initiative for Stopping Aftermarket Defeat Devices for Vehicles and Engines: https://www.epa.gov/enforcement/national-compliance-initiative-stopping-aftermarket-defeat-devices-vehicles-and-engines.

December 16, 2021

LENEXA, KAN. (DEC. 16, 2021) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced $14.1 million in environmental justice (EJ) grant funding for 133 grants selected through the Environmental Justice Small Grants (EJSG) and Collaborative Problem-Solving Cooperative Agreement (EJCPS) programs.

A total of eight organizations in Missouri and Nebraska were selected to receive grant funding through these programs.

Ninety-nine EJ Small Grant recipients were selected to receive up to $75,000 each, and 34 EJCPS grant recipients were selected to receive up to $200,000 each, following successful completion of the award process. The majority of these EJ grants are receiving funds appropriated through the American Rescue Plan (ARP).

Funded projects cover a wide array of environmental justice issues including: the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic; air monitoring; indoor/outdoor air quality; food access; community planning; EJ tool development; water treatment training; community agriculture; green jobs and infrastructure; emergency preparedness and planning; toxic exposures; water quality; land reuse; and support of healthy homes.

“President Biden has made it clear that delivering environmental justice is a top priority for this administration, especially in communities most gravely impacted by the pandemic and health outcome disparities from pollution,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “Thanks to the president and Congress, today’s environmental justice grants funded in large part by the American Rescue Plan will provide critical support to our most overburdened and vulnerable communities.”

“We are pleased that eight Region 7 organizations were chosen to receive funding that will empower our underserved communities to address their environmental and public health concerns,” said EPA Region 7 Administrator Meghan A. McCollister. “These community-driven projects seek to improve air quality, build climate resilience, promote and foster food security, and educate neighbors on issues ranging from energy efficiency to pandemic recovery.”

Six Region 7 EJSG projects were selected for a grant of $75,000 each. For full project descriptions, see EPA’s website (click on Region 7 link on Page 1). Projects include:

• City Sprouts (Omaha, Nebraska): City Sprouts Victory Gardens Health Initiative
• Metropolitan Energy Center (Kansas City, Missouri): Kansas City Urban Heat Community Workshops
• Missouri Energy Care (St. Louis): Inclusive Sustainability for St. Louis
• PedNet Coalition (Columbia, Missouri): Air Quality & Transportation Equity: Building community capacity to improve local environments and public health
• Spark (Omaha, Nebraska): North Omaha Trail
• Springfield Community Gardens (Springfield, Missouri): Springfield Community Gardens Environmental Justice Small Grants Project

Two Region 7 EJCPS projects were selected for a grant of $200,000 each. For full project descriptions, see EPA’s website (Page 16). Projects include:

• BikeWalkKC (Kansas City, Missouri): Getting Around KC: An evaluation of KC’s Zero-Fare Bus Transit
• Mid-America Regional Council Community Services Corporation (Kansas City, Missouri): Resilient People, Resilient Places – Creating a Community-based Model for Climate Resilience in Metro Kansas City

EJ Small Grants Selections

The 2021 EJ Small Grants selections will benefit communities in 37 states, as well as Washington DC and Puerto Rico. These 99 projects, many funded through the ARP, cover a wide array of environmental justice issues.

Also, in support of President Biden’s Executive Orders 13985 and 14008, EPA has for the first time created a designation exclusively for small nonprofit organizations, defined as having 10 or fewer full-time employees. This effort reflects the president’s Justice40 initiative defined in EO 14008, and ensures that grant resources reach organizations of lower capacity that historically struggle to receive federal funding. Eighty-three of the organizations receiving an EJ Small Grant this year are small nonprofit organizations.

In addition, 7 EJ Small Grants will support EPA’s Ports Initiative by addressing air quality issues at coastal ports, inland ports, and rail yards. These projects help prepare community stakeholders to effectively engage with operators and other stakeholders of nearby port or rail facilities to influence decision-making that may impact diesel engine emissions and related air quality.

To see the full listing of all 99 organizations receiving an EJSG and to learn more about EJSG, visit EPA’s website.

EJ Collaborative Problem-Solving Selections

The 2021 EJ Collaborative Problem-Solving selections will benefit communities in 24 states, as well as Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. These 34 projects address a breadth of environmental justice issues.

To see the full listing of all the selected 34 EJCPS projects and to learn more about EJCPS, visit EPA’s website.

Background on the American Rescue Plan Appropriation to EPA

Earlier this year, EPA announced spending plans for the $100 million in ARP funding appropriated by Congress in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and health outcome disparities, with $50 million being designated to improve ambient air quality monitoring, and $50 million specifically designated for environmental justice to address disproportionate environmental or public health harms and risks in underserved communities through a range of local initiatives.

Of the $50 million ARP appropriation for EJ, $4.1 million went to support 21 EJ projects under the State/Tribal/Local EJ Cooperative Agreement (SEJCA) awards program. The additional EJSG and EJCPS selections announced yesterday will account for approximately $9.55 million of ARP funds, with additional funding provided through regular annual appropriations to EPA. Upcoming ARP-funded EJ grant activities will be announced after the EJSG and EJCPS awards are finalized.

Learn more about EJ at EPA.

The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 was signed into law on March 11, 2021. To learn more about ARP funding at EPA, visit: www.epa.gov/arp.

For up-to-date information about environmental justice funding opportunities, events, and webinars, subscribe to EPA’s Environmental Justice listserv by sending a blank email to: [email protected]. Follow us on Twitter: @EPAEnvJustice.

# # #

Learn more about EPA Region 7

View all Region 7 news releases

Connect with EPA Region 7 on Facebook: www.facebook.com/eparegion7

Follow us on Twitter: @EPARegion7

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Originally Appeared Here

December 15, 2021

SEATTLE (December 15, 2021) — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced it has recently awarded over $32 million in Indian Environmental General Assistance Program grants for 257 tribes and tribal consortia in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington.

“Tribes are on the front lines of protecting public health and the environment in our region,” said Michelle Pirzadeh, EPA Region 10 Acting Regional Administrator. “EPA’s grant funds are critical to helping tribes sustain and grow their environmental programs and protect their communities and natural resources for current and future generations.”

Indian Environmental General Assistance Program (GAP) funding helps tribes develop environmental protection programs and make informed decisions about issues that impact the health of tribal members and the quality of their environment. Tribes use GAP grants to develop environmental plans and set priorities, seek technical assistance, conduct research, and provide outreach and education – the building blocks for successful environmental programs.

GAP grants have helped tribes in Alaska and the Pacific Northwest plan, develop and establish core environmental protection programs.  GAP grants have also helped tribes plan for climate change impacts, develop solid waste management plans, and educate and engage local communities in addressing priority environmental projects.

Examples of this work include:

• With GAP and other federal funding, Chugach Regional Resources Commission and their Alutiiq Pride Marine Institute are working with tribes in Southcentral Alaska to conduct outreach, provide training, and collect baseline data on ocean water quality, harmful algal blooms, and climate change.  Their work is highlighted in an educational video: Community Sampling for Ocean Acidification in South Central Alaska.

• GAP funds were instrumental this summer to the Shoshone Bannock Tribes of the Fort Hall Reservation, which provided timely air quality information as wildfire smoke from California and Oregon drifted towards Idaho. The Tribes disseminate air quality alerts, information on building DIY box fan air filters for healthier indoor air during wildfire smoke events, and other critical information for the Fort Hall community.

• EPA Performance Partnership Grants that include GAP funds, supported the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians in Oregon to receive EPA approval to administer the Clean Water Act’s water quality standards and certification program. The Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe in Washington also used the funding to prepare an application for treatment in a similar manner as a state under the Clean Water Act. These approvals will enable these tribes to develop their own water quality goals and standards.

EPA is now inviting proposals from eligible tribes and tribal consortia located in Region 10 for 2023 funding. Details about the application process are available on the EPA Region 10 Tribal Environmental GAP Funding website.

For more information about EPA’s work with tribes in Region 10, check out EPA’s Tribal Programs in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska website. More information about EPA’s GAP program is available on EPA’s Indian Environmental General Assistance Program (GAP) website.

EPA’s Region 10 serves communities in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington, and 271 tribal nations. Learn more about EPA’s work in the Pacific Northwest at: epa.gov/epa-region-10-pacific-northwest. Connect with us on Twitter: @EPAnorthwest and Facebook: @eparegion10. 

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Originally Appeared Here

December 15, 2021

WOONSOCKET, R.I. – The United States, on behalf of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), has reached a proposed settlement with Synagro Northeast, LLC and the City of Woonsocket for alleged violations of the Clean Air Act.

Under a proposed consent decree filed in the federal district court in Providence, Synagro, the operator, and Woonsocket, the owner, of the sewage sludge incineration (SSI) unit in the Woonsocket Wastewater Treatment Facility will pay a civil penalty of $373,660 and take measures to bring the facility into compliance with Clean Air Act operating and emission limits designed to reduce the amount of air pollution emitted from the SSI unit.

“This proposed settlement provides important benefits for communities in and around Woonsocket,” said EPA New England Acting Regional Administrator Deb Szaro. “Historically, urban areas like Woonsocket may have had more air emissions due to industrial and transportation sources. EPA is committed to enforcing environmental laws and addressing Environmental Justice concerns. Clean air regulations reduce air pollution and improve public and environmental health protection, which benefits everybody.”

The Woonsocket Wastewater Treatment Facility processes sewage waste from the City of Woonsocket and the adjacent communities Bellingham, Blackstone, and North Smithfield. The facility’s sewage sludge incineration unit reduces the volume of sewage sludge, but in doing so emits a variety of air pollutants. Under Clean Air Act rules implemented in 2016, an owner and operator of an SSI must meet emissions standards for air pollutants including mercury, lead, cadmium, dioxins and furans, carbon monoxide, particulate matter, and nitrogen oxides.

The proposed settlement advances EPA Administrator Michael Regan’s direction that EPA strengthen enforcement of environmental statutes in communities disproportionately impacted by pollution, with a special focus on achieving remedies with tangible benefits for the community.

More information:

The proposed consent decree, lodged in the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island on December 13, 2021, is subject to a 30-day public comment period and approval by the federal court. To view the proposed consent decree or to submit a comment during the public comment period, visit: usdoj.gov/enrd/Consent_Decrees.html

Requirements for sewage sludge incinerators: epa.gov/stationary-sources-air-pollution/sewage-sludge-incinerators-final-standards-performance-new

Clean Air Act enforcement: epa.gov/enforcement/air-enforcement

Effects of mercury pollution: epa.gov/mercury/basic-information-about-mercury

Environmental Justice: epa.gov/environmentaljustice

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Originally Appeared Here