Tribal Section, Land Division January 2016 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105 800-EPA-WEST • www.epa.gov/region9/tribal vvEPA U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Pacific Southwest, Region 9 Serving Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, the Pacific Islands, and 148 Tribes U.S. EPA PACIFIC SOUTHWEST TRIBAL SECTION NEWSLETTER SPOTLIGHT ON GOVERNMENT GRANTS ¦( lean Air Act Grants ($2.5 million). EPA is funding the development of tribal air pollution control programs and capacity. Activities conducted under these grants may include: identifying and investigating air pollution sources; developing air pollution control regulations and ordinances; providing community education and outreach on air quality issues; conducting needs assessment and outreach on indoor air and asthma issues; and providing community education on climate change issues. EPA anticipates awarding about 30 grants to federally recognized tribes in Region 9. The awards are expected to range from $50,000 to $120,000. Projects will be funded for fiscal year 2017, between October 1, 2016, and September 30, 2017. For more information, visit http://go.usa.gov/cBpqe. DEADLINE Friday, February 19, 2016, 6 p.m. Pacific Time. Submit proposals electronically at R9tribalairfunding@epamail.epa.gov. CONTACT: Lauren Maghran, maghran.lauren@epa.gov or 415-947-4107. IIH Rural Energy for America Program FY16 ($50 million). The U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development office is funding audits and renewable energy development assistance grants. Grant recipients help rural small businesses and agricultural producers by conducting and promoting energy audits, and providing renewable energy development assistance. For more information, visit http://go.usa.gov/cBmNz. DEADLINE Monday, February 1, 2016. Get an application from your state energy coordinator, at http://go.usa.gov/cBmRF. CONTACT. State energy coordinator (see above). ¦¦ Emergency Community Water Assistance Grants (variable). The USD A Rural Development office is providing up to $150,000 for repairs, partial replacement, or significant maintenance of established water systems damaged directly by the drought, as well as $500,000 for the construction of a new water source, intake and/or treatment facility, waterline extensions, tanks, and equipment replacement, among others. The program helps California's rural communities get or keep adequate water sources if they have a significant decline in the quality or quantity of drinking water due to the drought. For more information, visit http://go.usa.gov/3uvNV. DEADLINE Open. For applications, contact a USDA Rural Development office; for a list of offices and staff contact information, visit http://go.usa.gov/3emXV. ------- ¦Community Facilities Direct Loan and Grant Program. The USDA is funding essential community facilities in rural areas. Essential facilities eligible for funding may include hospitals, courthouses, day care centers, and police stations. Funds can be used to purchase, construct, and/or improve essential community facilities, buy equipment, and pay related project expenses. Awards can be either direct loans, grants, or both. For more information, visit: http://go.usa.gov/cBmnA. APPLICATIONS: Contact a Rural Development office. For a list of offices, visit http://go.usa.gov/cBmnJ. DEADLINE. Applications accepted year-round. CONTACT: Nancy Veres, Community Programs Director, USDA Rural Development, 602-280-8747. £ TRAININGS & MEETINGS Tribal Resource Forum. This event is tailored to tribes and Native American organizations with the Multi- Agency Tribal Infrastructure Collaborative. Representatives from more than 25 organizations will be on hand to share funding, technical assistance/training, and other resources available for tribal development projects. WHEN & WHERE: Wednesday, January 20, 2016, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., NAU North Valley Campus, 15451 N. 28th Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85053. REGISTRATION: Visit http://go.usa.gov/cBVtT. CONTACT Deborah Broermann, 602-379-7198 or Deborah.s.broermann@hud.gov-1754. S JOBS & INTERNSHIPS WANTED Seeking Hosts for Interns. The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals - Environmental Education Outreach Program at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Ariz., is seeking air-quality-focused offices and programs to host a college student for an eight-week summer internship. Tribal environmental offices, EPA offices, and other tribal environmental organizations are encouraged to apply. APPLICATION. For more information on internships, visit http://www7.nau.edu/itep/main/eeop/Internships/ssi host. DEADLINE: January 22, 2016. CONTACT. Mansel A. Nelson, mansel.nelson@nau.edu or 928-523-1275. ------- ODDS & ENDS // EPA Toughens Ozone Standards to Protect Public Health Based on extensive scientific evidence on effects that ground- level ozone pollution, or smog, has on public health and welfare, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has strengthened the National Ambient Air Quality Standards for ground-level ozone to 70 parts per billion (ppb) from 75 ppb to protect public health. The updated standards will reduce Americans' exposure to ozone, improving public health, particularly for at-risk groups including children, older adults, and people of all ages who have lung diseases such as asthma. Ground-level ozone forms when nitrogen oxides (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) react in the air. To ensure that people are alerted when ozone reaches unhealthy levels, EPA is extending the ozone-monitoring season for 32 states and the District of Columbia. This is particularly important for at-risk groups, including children and people with asthma, because it will provide information so families can take steps to protect their health on smoggy days. EPA also is strengthening the "secondary ozone standard" to 70 ppb, which will improve protection for trees, plants, and ecosystems. The Clean Air Act provides states with time to meet the standards. Depending on the severity of their ozone problem, areas would have until between 2020 and 2037 to meet the standards. The Clean Air Act requires EPA to review the ozone standards every five years to determine whether they should be revised in light of the latest science. This action comes after a thorough review and public comment process. The agency received more than 430,000 written comments on the proposed standards and held three public hearings. More information: http://go.usa.gov/cBmUh. To view the video: http s: //m. you tub e. com/watch? v=Y 6chlLb 5 9z A. "Put simply - ozone pollution means it hurts to breathe for those most vulnerable: our kids, our elderly and those suffering from heart and lung ailments/' said EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy, shown signing the bill into law in October 2015. ------- Winter's Here: All About Woodstoves, Reducing Wood Smoke i^Woodstoves: Learn about woodstove heating and how to use Low Income Home Energy Assistance (LIHEAP) funds to repair or replace woodstoves in a webinar hosted by the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation and the Oglala Sioux Tribe, in partnership with the U.S Department of Health and Human Services and EPA. The November webinar highlighted tribes' ability to use LIHEAP funds for activities such as upgrading woodstoves, constructing individual household woodsheds, performing stove repair and maintenance, operating a chimney cleaning program, providing low-moisture fuel, and education and outreach to promote clean-burning practices. To listen to the recorded webinar, visit http://ow.ly/WrfPL. ^Funding available: LIHEAP pays for woodstove change-outs, low-moisture fuel, woodsheds, and more. LIHEAP coordinators administer these funds in tribal communities. The list of LIHEAP tribal contacts is at http://go.usa.gov/c9MQ3. hi Burn Wise. Use EPA's tips for burning wisely in wood heaters. A properly installed, correctly used woodstove should be smoke-free. If you see or smell smoke, you may have a problem because breathing smoke is unhealthy. Follow these guidelines to "Burn Wise" in your appliance and reduce smoke inside and outside your home. Burn Wise is a voluntary partnership program of the U.S. EPA that emphasizes the importance of burning the right wood, the right way, in the right appliance to protect your home, health, and the air we breathe. For more information, visit http://go.usa.gov/c9MV Y. Help Available for Healthy Homes: The Indian Health Services has a program to provide safe drinking water and sewer systems to Native American families. The Sanitation Facilities Program is available to all Native Americans who own affected property. There are no income requirements. The Health Services will design the water or sewer system, hire and pay the contractor, and install the facilities. A variety of services are offered, including drilling a new well, installing water filters, making connections to existing community water and sewer systems, and installing on-site sewer systems to existing and new homes. CONTACT For applications and more information about the program, contact your local Indian Health Service Office. For a list of offices, visit http://go.usa.gov/c9Buh. Public Launch of Indian Country Leaking UST Map Service: EPA's Underground Storage Tank Section and GIS Team have introduced a public map service that displays every leaking UST cleanup site in Region 9 Indian Country. This new feature makes closure letters and other key information about nearly 300 cleanups on tribal land more accessible than ever before. The map service can be found at: http://go.usa.gov/cBmPP [Burn ONLY DRY, SPLIT, well- seasoned wood. Properly seasoned WOOD IS DARKER, WEIGHS LESS, AND SOUNDS HOLLOW WHEN HIT AGAINST ------- |