ouncil
\
Milestones
Key Milestones in the Development of the US EPA Tribal Science Council
May 1999
Norine Noonan [former Assistant Administrator for the Office of
Research 8c Development (ORD)] was asked to address the Tribal
Caucus of the Tribal Operations Committee regarding ORD's
efforts to include tribes in their science programs. She suggests the
formation of a Tribal Science Council (TSC) that would provide a
structure for tribal involvement in the Agency's science efforts.
December 1999
Hal Zenick (ORD) reiterates Norine Noonan's commitment to
forming a TSC and asks for Tribal Caucus assistance in determining
what such an organization would look like and how it would
operate. The Tribal Caucus designated Larry Wawronowicz to work
with ORD on the development of a TSC.
December 1999 - March 2000
Agency staff meet to develop a model for the TSC and reported
progress to the Tribal Caucus in their March meeting.
June 2000
Norine Noonan and Chuck Fox (former Assistant Administrator for
EPA's Office of Water) send memorandum to EPA Assistant
Administrators and Regional Administrators to solicit EPA
representatives to serve on the TSC.
August 2000
Claudia Walters (ORD) addresses the Tribal Caucus and updates
them on the status of the Agency's progress in identifying members
to serve on the TSC. At this same meeting, Tribal Caucus members
volunteer to participate in the further development of the TSC
concept. Tribal Caucus volunteers included: Larry Wawronowicz,
Steve Terry, Margaret Cook, Derrith Watchman Moore, Ronda
Azure, and Reggie Ward.
November 2000
EPA representatives to the TSC meet with the Tribal Caucus
volunteers at the Miccosukee Reservation in Miami to discuss the
mission, goals, and possible structure of the TSC. Based on the
results of this meeting, Claudia Walters and Steve Terry work to
refine a draft mission and goals for the group to review.
Spring 2001
The TSC planning team (consisting of the Tribal Caucus volunteers
and the EPA TSC representatives) meet via conference calls to
refine the mission and goals and to develop an information flow
diagram that illustrates how information and priority science issues
will be brought before the TSC.
June 2001
Hal Zenick, Larry Wawronowicz, and Claudia Walters meet with the Tribal
Caucus and present the draft mission, goals, and information flow diagram for
consideration and approval. The Tribal Caucus endorses the documents and
recommends that they be sent to all tribes as a form of consultation and that a
separate letter be sent to the Regional Tribal Operations Committees
(RTOCs) to solicit tribal scientists to participate as members of the TSC. The
Tribal Caucus agrees that, at least initially, tribal membership should be
limited to one member per EPA Region.
July 2001
Hal Zenick briefs the Tribal Operations Committee on the TSC, and it is
endorsed by EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman and Deputy
Administrator Linda Fisher. The Tribal Caucus sends consultation letters
informing all tribes of the status of the formation of the TSC. The Tribal
Caucus also sends letters soliciting tribal membership to the RTOCs.
September 2001
Tribes identify their Regional representatives to serve on the TSC. Agency
and tribal representatives hold an initial call with these new tribal
representatives to brief them on how the TSC was formed. TSC holds its first
full conference call with all Agency and tribal members.
December 2001
The first in-person TSC meeting with all Agency and tribal members is held
December 11-13 at the Ak-Chin and Gila River Indian communities in
Arizona. Discussion topics focus on key issues, including: tribal perspectives
on traditional knowledge, EPA and Regional perspectives/capabilities
regarding tribal science issues, and examples of current EPA programs that
integrate tribal science issues. The TSC identifies the following four
substantive tribal science issues on which to focus their efforts initially: quality
assurance (QA), subsistence, data access, and inventorying existing tribal
science information/activities.
January - April 2002
The TSC continues monthly calls to follow up on action items from its
December meeting. Subcommittees are formed to address priority issues such
as QA, data access, and subsistence. The QA Subcommittee establishes a
subgroup to work on QA tribal issues on a Regional level. The group includes
several QA Officers, which meet to discuss the tribal issues identified at the
TSC meeting in December and answer QA questions from tribes within the
Regions. The subcommittee also works with Headquarters QA staff to make
the Agency's training course on Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP)
development more relevant to tribal communities. The Data Access
Subcommittee works with EPA's Office of Pollution, Prevention, and Toxic
Substances and Office of General Council on the issue of data access.
April 2002
The TSC Co-chairs address the Tribal Caucus on April 25, providing a
history of the TSC and its activities to date as well as a brief explanation of
the mechanics of how the TSC functions. Specific issues relating to TSC
tribal representatives, including a request to include an additional TSC tribal
representative from Alaska on the Council, potential budgetary and financial
needs of the TSC tribal representatives, and the establishment of ongoing
coordination and communication between the TSC and Tribal Caucus are
discussed.
-------
June 2002
The Council participates in the June National Tribal Conference on
Environmental Management (NTCEM) and the National Tribal
Environmental Council (NTEC) annual conferences. TSC members
present on a number of issues, including: tribal subsistence and risk
assessment issues; endocrine disrupter science; and the TSC, its mission,
goals, and activities. The TSC QA Subcommittee works in conjunction
with EPA's QA staff to sponsor a short course on QAPP development at
the NTCEM conference.
The TSC holds its second in-person meeting in association with the
NTCEM and NTEC conferences in Reno, Nevada on June 3 &.S.
Discussion topics focus on the following issues: ensuring appropriate
access to tribal data under Agency policy, as dictated by the Freedom of
Information Act; discussion and finalization of organizational and
operational issues pertaining to the TSC; and discussion of subsistence,
as it pertains to current activities undertaken by the TSC.
July - August 2002
The Council continues monthly conference calls to follow-up on
subcommittee action items and plans for the upcoming September 2002
TSC meeting. The Subsistence Subcommittee concentrates on
organizing an Endocrine Disrupter Workshop to be held in conjunction
with the September TSC meeting, responding to a high-priority tribal
need to better understand the current state of endocrine disrupter
science at the Agency. The QA Subcommittee assists Region 9 with a
QAPP training CD ROM proposal, providing input to ensure its
relevance to tribes and both regionally and nationally.
September 2002
The third in-person I SC meeting is held September 17-18 in
Washington, DC. \ heTSC identities the following priority science
issues: traditional lifeways, including tribally relevant risk assessment;
endocrine disrupter chemicals; EPA's dioxin reassessment and reference
dose; cumulative impacts; persistent bioaccumulative toxics source
reduction; black mold; pharmaceuticals in wastewater; and tribal
research, including global warming and climate change monitoring
efforts. Additional discussion topics include such key issues as:
administrative support for the TSC tribal representatives, development
of a Tribal Technical Support Center, and TSC review of EPA's
LifeLine project.
In conjunction with the September TSC meeting, the Subsistence
Subcommittee holds an Endocrine Disrupter Workshop on September
19. The workshop brings together Agency officials to provide
information to tribes about EPA's efforts with regard to the state-of-
the-science and policy developments of endocrine disrupter research. It
also creates a forum for tribes to provide the Agency information about
concerns with endocrine disrupters resulting from a subsistence lifestyle.
October 2002 -January 2003
The TSC Tribal representatives continue to work with their Regions to
identity priority science issues. The Council continues monthly
conference calls and begins planning for its next in-person meeting in
February 2003. During the December 2002 conference call,
representatives from EPA's Office of Pesticide Programs discuss the
LifeLine project with the TSC and plan how best to incorporate TSC
review and input.
February 2003
The fourth in-person TSC meeting is held February 18,19, &21 in
Albuquerque, NM. The Council shares updates and information on
upcoming events and opportunities for TSC involvement, including the
EPA Science Forum 2003. ORD staff is present to discuss the status of
ORD's Science to Achieve Results (STAR) Program "Lifestyle and
Cultural Practices of Tribal Populations and Risks from Toxic Substances
in the Environment" proposal solicitation, and the TSC discusses how to
broaden such solicitation efforts and further tribal participation in future
ORD research efforts.
In conjunction with the February TSC meeting, a workshop on risk
assessment and tribal health and well-being is held on February 19-20.
The workshop brings together Agency and tribal representatives to
exchange information regarding risk assessment and tribal lifeways. The
objectives of the workshop are to: (1) gain an understanding of the risk
assessment: paradigm, as interpreted by each of the various EPA Program
Offices, (2) gain insights into the tribal perspective on risk assessment
and the health and well-being paradigm, (3) seek commonalities between
the two viewpoints, and (4) identify how EPA and tribes can best work
together to proceed with the issue.
May 2003
TSC members participate in EPA's Science Forum 2003, which is held
on May 5-7 in Washington, DC. TSC Region 2 tribal representative,
Jim Ransom, is a plenary session speaker. A session titled "Working with
Tribes: Cultural Values and Tribal Liteways Inform Health Assessments"
is held, and includes tour tribal speakers identified by the Council. The
TSC develops a poster and display for the event, one identifying
Regional tribal traditional lifeways and subsistence projects and the other
providing information on the TSC, its mission, goals, and current areas
of focus.
EPA and the tribal representatives ot the TSC co-sponsor the Tribal
Traditional Lifeways: Health &, Well-being Approach Workshop in
Reno, NV, on May 13-15, 2003. The workshop is hosted by the Pyramid
Lake Paiute Tribe. The goals of the workshop are to (1) present the
health and well-being paradigm being developed by the TSC, (2) share
stories about health and well-being topics and the use of traditional
knowledge and science by tribes, and (3) identify approaches for moving
the paradigm forward and opening up the process to wider tribal input:
and involvement.
June 2003
Atter receiving input from the Tribal Operations Committee, the TSC
adds an additional tribal representative to represent Alaska Native tribes.
July 2003
The co-chairs of the Risk Assessment: and Health and Well-being
Subcommittee give a presentation on tribally relevant risk assessment:
and the TSC's activities regarding the health and well-being paradigm to
EPA's Science Advisory Board.
June 2003 - October 2003
The TSC continues to hold monthly conference calls to share
information relating to ongoing subcommittee activities, plan for the
November 2003 TSC meeting, and develop for the next TSC workshop
on the health and well-being paradigm. The QA Subcommittee
continues to assist EPA Region 9 with developing a QAPP training CD
for tribes.'"["he TSC forms a Communications Subcommittee to
strengthen internal communications and improve communication with
outside organizations and entities.
November 2003
'Ihe filth TSC in-person meeting is held November 19-21,2003 in Las
Vegas, NV. The Council discussed a number ol organizational issues and
reviewed and updated the priority science issues that it had identified
during it September 2002 meeting. During the meeting, Nigel Fields ol
EPA ORD gave a presentation on the grant recipients from EPA's
"Lifestyles and Cultural Practices ol Tribal Populations and Risks irorn
Toxic Substances in the Environment" STAR Grant Program.
------- |