RCRA Public Participation Manual - Tools
AEPA
EPA-530-F-20-001 | https://www.epa.gov/rcra
RCRA Community Engagement Checklist
This checklist will help industry, agencies and community organizations understand how to work together and independently on
community engagement for communities located near Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)-regulated businesses
and facilities. This checklist is organized in three steps: 1) Understand the desired outcomes of community engagement; 2)
Develop goals for community engagement; and 3) Decide which community engagement tool to use.
Step 1. Be Clear About the Outcomes of Community Engagement
For Agencies:
•	Effective interaction with citizens, groups, regulated industry, states, tribes, press, and elected officials.
•	In conjunction with states, effective oversight of required community engagement activities conducted by regulated industry.
For Industry:
•	Effective interaction with citizens, groups, elected officials, local/state/federal agencies, and tribes.
•	Satisfy regulatory community engagement requirements.
•	Successful public outreach and education and effective community meetings.
For Public:
•	Successful outreach to and involvement of the community near the facility and other local groups.
•	Successful gathering of information and data.
•	Successful interaction with elected officials, federal and state agencies, regulated industry and news media.
•	Maximize impact of community engagement activities provided by industry or agencies.
Step 2: Develop Goals for Community Engagement
Comply with federal and state community engagement requirements and decide what level of public participation is
appropriate for the community and circumstances.
The Spectrum of Community Engagement
Increasing Level of Public Engagement


1

Inform
Consult
Involve
Collaborate
Sustain
Community
Engagement
Goal/Need
Provide the public
with balanced and
objective information
to assist them in
understanding the
problem, alternatives,
opportunities and/ or
solutions.
Obtain public
feedback on analysis,
alternatives and/or
decisions.
Work directly with
the public throughout
the process to make
sure public concerns
and aspirations
are consistently
understood and
considered.
Partner with the
public in each aspect
of the decision,
including the
development of
alternatives and the
identification of the
preferred solution.
Maintain public
engagement
overtime, satisfy
commitments made.
Community
Engagement
Tools
Fact sheets, web
sites, frequently
asked questions,
public notices,
presentations,
information
repositories, news
releases.
Public comment periods,
public meetings, focus
groups, surveys/ polls,
community interviews,
community involvement
plans, door to door
canvassing.
Availability sessions/
open houses,
workshops.
Community advisory
committees,
consensus building.
Public meetings,
availability sessions,
open houses,
workshops, web sites,
mailings, reports.
Adapted from the International Association for Public Participation (IAP2): http://www.iap2. org.
RCRA Public Participation Manual - Tools
RCRA Community Engagement Checklist

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SEPA	RCRA Public Participation Manual - Tools
https://www.epa.gov/rcra
Agencies, facility staff or community groups may want to consider expanded public participation activities at priority
facilities, controversial facilities or at facilities that may pose greater risk to surrounding communities. Those in charge of
community engagement should ask themselves the following questions to help determine the goal of specific community
engagement activities and the corresponding best techniques to satisfy their goals.
Have there been community complaints regarding the facility or its impacts? If yes, consider using an 'inform,
"consult/ 'involve,' or 'collaborate' technique from the table above.
Is information available indicating potential health or environmental threats to the community near a RCRA facility?
If yes, consider using an 'inform, "consult/ 'involve/ or 'collaborate' technique from the table above.
Is there a legal requirement for public involvement such as during RCRA permit, corrective action or other processes?
If yes, at a minimum, follow the required engagement activities.
Have previous attempts at involving the public (if any) been successful? If not, why? In this situation, agencies, facility
staff or public interest groups may wish to seek input from other stakeholders to help determine better methods and
approaches to public participation activities.
Do you have adequate time and resources (both people and money) to set up and run the type of process desired? If
not, do not choose that type of process.
RCRA Public Participation Manual - Tools
RCRA Community Engagement Checklist

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RCRA Public Participation Manual - Tools
&EPA
https: //www. e pa. go v/rcra
Step 3: Decide Which Community Engagement Tools to Use
The table below describes specific community engagement tools and their benefits for industry, government agencies
and community organizations. Note that this list of tools is an illustration, but is not exhaustive.
Community Engagement Tools
CE Tool
Brief Description
Industry
Agencies
Community
Organizations
Community Profile
Outlines local issues,
events and players.
Helps fine-tune
communication strategy
to specific community.
Helps fine-tune
communication strategy
to specific community.
Allows information
received by industry
or agencies to be
appropriate for the
specific community.
Community Interviews
One-on-one interviews
to gather information
about community needs.
Provides industry with
knowledge of specific
community needs,
interests and concerns.
Provides agencies with
knowledge of specific
community needs,
interests and concerns.
Allows community
members to be heard
and to articulate needs,
interests and concerns.
Communication
Strategies
Strategy on how to
inform community.
Provides road map for
communication to clearly
articulate message.
Allows message
and audience to be
determined and agencies
to adjust their role.
Provides clear
message that is easily
understandable to
community members.
Facilitation or Conflict
Resolution
Neutral support for
meeting, conflicts and
dialogue.
Allows for more
constructive dialogue in
contentious situations.
Allows for more
constructive dialogue in
contentious situations.
Allows for more
constructive dialogue in
contentious situations.
Fact Sheets, FAQs
Summary of information
in plain English.
Mechanism for
industry to disseminate
information in a
user-friendly way.
Mechanism for
agencies to disseminate
information in a
user-friendly way.
Provides information in
an accessible format for
community members.
Information Repository
Local location of all
documents related to the
Site.
Provides a location for
community access to all
site related documents.
Provides a location for
community access to all
site related documents.
Provides a local location
to access all site related
documents.
Public Comment
Periods
Time period during
which agency accepts
comments on draft
document.
Allows time for
documents to be
commented on.
Allows community
comments to be received
and responded to.
Provides time frame to
submit comments on
a draft document and
opportunity to review
proposed actions.
Public Meetings
A forum where interested
persons can ask
questions.
Provides a setting to
deliver information to a
large number of people.
Provides a setting to
deliver information to a
large number of people.
Enables community
members to learn and to
voice their concerns.
Public Notices
Advertisement of public
comment periods.
Method for advertising
a public comment period.
Provides notice to
community members
about public comment
period.
Provides notice on public
comment period.
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RCRA Community Engagement Checklist

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SEPA
RCRA Public Participation Manual - Tools
https://www.epa.gov/rcra
CE Tool
Brief Description
Industry
Agencies
Community
Organizations
Public Participation
Plans
Outlines community-
specific strategy for
responding to identified
community concerns
(note that
concerns are ongoing,
not limited to the small
prism of interview
information collected
such as during Te
Assistance Needs
Assessments (TANAs).
Attempts to ensure that
all concerns that have
been expressed are
adequately addressed
through design of a CE
approach for short-term
and/or long-term actions.
Attempts to ensure that
all concerns that have
been expressed are
adequately addressed
through design of a CE
approach for short-term
and/or long-term actions.
Provides road map for
addressing community
concerns and keeping
the public meaningfully
engaged.
Education of Public,
Workshops
Seminar or other
methods to provide
education.
Provides tool to educate
community members
and time for active
engagement among all
participants.
Provides opportunity for
agencies to educate
community members
and time for active
engagement among all
participants.
Provides opportunity
for learning about
site-specific issues and
the process in general,
also time to actively
engage with facility
and regulator
representatives.
For a full description of different community engagement options and information on when and how to best implement
these tools, see the RCRA Public Participation Manual.
RCRA requirements mandate public involvement during cleanup processes at hazardous waste facilities, known
as corrective action. Public involvement is also required during RCRA permitting, renewal and permit modification
processes. The permit applicant and the permitting agency have different community engagement responsibilities. For
a full list of public involvement actions required, see Chapter 3 (permitting and permit modification process) and see
Chapter 4 (corrective action process) of the RCRA Public Participation Manual.
RCRA and other statutes support community engagement via these requirements, but to help implement more robust
CE, one may choose to go beyond compliance. The reason for this is that community engagement plays an important role
in the planning and delivery of environmental services.
Resources
•	2016 Edition of the RCRA Public Participation Manual
•	EPA Office of International and Tribal Affairs. Public Participation Guide
RCRA Public Participation Manual - Tools
RCRA Community Engagement Checklist

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