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INTRODUCTION
i
The COVID-19 pandemic made 2020 a difficult year for the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and for all Americans. But
as I reflect on the past year, there remains much to be proud of
and thankful for. December brought the EPA's 50th Anniversary,
and with it, an opportunity to look back and see all the EPA has
accomplished this year, over the last four years, and in half a
century.
The country showed tremendous resilience in the face of this year's
adversity, as did the EPA, which, both as an institution made up
of people and as an environmental regulator, responded to the
pandemic with fortitude and transparency. The agency's hard work
and persistence ensured that environmental protections continued
throughout the country during 2020.
No matter the challenges we face, that labor can never be halted,
for we have been given a great gift to care for. The United States is
a beautiful country. The health of our people and our environment
is a grave responsibility, one I have been grateful to help carry as
EPA administrator. As I consider that task, I am reminded of what
one of our Founding Fathers said of this land. John Jay wrote in
Federalist No. 2:
Providence has in a particular manner blessed it with
a variety of soils and productions, and watered it with
innumerable streams, for the delight and accommodation
of its inhabitants. A succession of navigable waters forms
a kind of chain round its borders, as if to bind it together;
while the most noble rivers in the world, running at
convenient distances, present them with highways for the
easy communication of friendly aids.
Our waters, our air, this earth, is an inheritance we all share as
Americans, and the EPA works to preserve it as a delight and
blessing to our posterity.
To accomplish this, the work of the EPA, and that of ail regulatory
agencies, must be done with transparency and accountability. This
means acting with deference to Congress, which represents the
American people as the chief instrument of our self-government.
The EPA should not be writing rules that operate just like laws that
Congress didn't pass, or that the Supreme Court didn't uphold.
While Founders like John Jay believed legislative ambition posed

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a future threat to liberty, the danger they saw in the legislature is more evident in executive agencies
today, which were designed to function, for the good reasons of long-term planning and consistency, in
large part without the check of elections. But now, it is all too common that regulatory measures will
extend beyond their original statutory authority given them by our representatives, to other spheres at
the sole discretion of unelected bureaucrats.
Transparency and its other companion, consistency, are hallmarks of good regulation. As administrator,
I have worked to ensure that at every turn EPA's operations and decisions are becoming more and
more transparent, and that its analyses and judgments are becoming more and more consistent. The
American people deserve the chance to understand the why of regulations in addition to the what, and
both should be as clear as possible. From costs and benefits to scientific studies, the foundations of EPA
actions should be available to public scrutiny. Our experiment in representative democracy—our hope to
keep a free republic—demands it.
But the most fundamental why of EPA's work remains this country. I think of the words of my favorite
author, William Shakespeare. In Richard II, a great meditation on government by the greatest master
of the English language, Shakespeare gives words to how we must all feel about the beauty and
magnificence of our country. Of course, he wrote of England, but I feel no hesitation in claiming this, too,
for America.
This other Eden, demi-paradise,
This fortress built by Nature for herself
Against infection and the hand of war,
This happy breed of men, this little world,
This precious stone set in the silver sea,
Which serves it in the office of a wall
Or as a moat defensive to a house,
Against the envy of less happier lands,
This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England.
It is this feeling that moves our work at the EPA. Through the hard work of thousands, spread across the
country in regional offices and research facilities, we protect human health and the environment in the
United States, our own blessed plot.
I'm proud to present in this report a review of accomplishments for a year that, in terms of both policy
and regulatory actions, rivals any year in the agency's history; an extraordinary statement when taking
into account its challenges. These achievements continue four years of successes at EPA, and I hope
herald another half century of responsible and transparent work on behalf of all Americans. Here are
some of them in brief.
AIR
Early in the Trump Administration, EPA promised to complete National Amient Air Quality Standards
(NAAQS) air quality reviews within a 5-year time frame, as specified in the Clean Air Act.
In April, EPA proposed to retain current NAAQS for particulate matter (PM) including both fine particles
(PM2.5) and coarse particles (PM10), and the agency finalized these rules in December. The decision
maintains standards that were set by the Obama-Biden Administration. EPA also finalized the 2015
ozone NAAQS review by the end of the year, marking only the second time in its history the agency has
met the 5-year timeframe.
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This attention to air quality has been a major benefit to the health and welfare of tens of millions
of Americans and is a testament to EPA's persistent focus on protecting human health and the
environment.
In June, we published a report documenting the remarkable improvements in America's air quality since
the agency's founding a half century ago.
Between 1970 and 2019, the combined emissions of six key pollutants fell by 77 percent while the
economy grew 285 percent. Since the Trump Administration entered office, combined air pollution
emissions have fallen more than 7 percent, even as the economy continued to grow.
And since 2017, EPA has redesignated more than 55 non-attainment areas around the country to
attainment. These redesignations help communities economically and represent improved health
outcomes for several million citizens living within these areas.
In March, EPA published its final Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles Rule, which increased
vehicle emissions standards 1.5 percent through 2026. In April, the agency corrected flaws in the
Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) for coal- and oil-fired power plants.
EPA has taken numerous steps to clarify and improve New Source Review (NSR) permitting
requirements, alleviate unnecessary burdens on the oil and natural gas industry, and streamlined
existing fuel regulations to curb unnecessary regulatory burdens on refiners.
EPA finalized a rule in December establishing requirements to ensure consistent, high-quality analyses
of benefits and costs for significant rules under the Clean Air Act.
EPA also proposed the first greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions standards for aircraft and finalized
amendments to the national marine diesel engine program to address the lack of available Tier 4 marine
diesel engines for high-speed commercial vessels.
WATER
We took action to finalize the Navigable Waters Protection Rule (NWPR), giving clarity to landowners,
farmers, and ranchers as to what waters on or near their property are federally regulated.
Regarding water quality and water infrastructure, EPA has provided $6 billion in credit assistance to
help finance more than $16 billion in water infrastructure through the Water Infrastructure Finance and
Innovation Act (WIFIA), which began giving out grants in 2018.
All told, through a combination of WIFIA and other funding vehicles like the State Revolving Loan Fund
Program, EPA has invested more than $40 billion in water infrastructure since the start of the Trump
Administration.
EPA has worked diligently to ensure the safety of drinking water for children and young adults by
overhauling the Lead and Copper Rule for the first time in nearly 30 years. This rule provides a
comprehensive approach to reducing lead in the nation's drinking water to better protect families and
children across the United States.
EPA also implemented the Federal Action Plan to Reduce Childhood Lead Exposure and finalized the
Use of Lead-Free Pipes, Fittings, Fixtures, Solder, and Flux for Drinking Water Rule to significantly limit
the lead content in plumbing materials.

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LAND
In the past several years, EPA has reinvigorated teh Superfund program—cleaning up America's most
contaminated sites and bringing them back into productive use.
This year, EPA deleted all or part of 27 sites from the National Priorities List for the second consecutive
year, which was the largest number of deletions in a single year since FY 2001, bringing the total number
of full and partial Superfund site deletions in the past four years to 82.
In September, EPA announced the Office of Mountains, Deserts and Plains as a way to focus on the
complex and unique issues related to the cleanup of hardrock mining sites west of the Mississippi River.
And under the Trump Administration, EPA's Brownfield and Land Revitalization Program has provided
about $295 million directly to communities for cleanup, redevelopment, job creation, and economic
development. Since 1995, communities that are part of the Brownfields Program have been able to
attract more than $33 billion in cleanup and redevelopment funding.
EPA has also reinvigorated the federal government's role in promoting recycling. We established the
annual America Recycles Day Summit in November in 2018 and organizing the America Recycles Pledge,
which more than 250 organizations have signed promising to work together to improve the American
recycling system.
At the third annual America Recycles Day Summit in November 2020, EPA unveiled America's newest
National Recycling Goal to increase the national recycling rate to 50 percent—up from roughly 32
percent—by 2030.
CHEMICALS & PFAS
The agency made progress in finalizing the risk evaluation for the first 10 high priority chemicals as
directed by Congress and reducing the use of animal testing, including hosting the Second Annual
Conference on the State of the Science on Development and Use of New Approach Methods for
Chemical Safety Testing.
The agency has aggressively addressed per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that have been
persistent in the environment for decades with too little attention given the issue. In February, EPA
celebrated the first year of progress under the PFAS Action Plan by releasing the first-ever PFAS Action
Plan Program Update, and in December we issued a memo detailing the interim National Pollution
Discharge Elimination (NPDES) permitting strategy for PFAS.
ENFORCEMENT
Starting in 2018, the agency reversed the downward trend in new criminal cases opened that began in
2011.
Over the last four years, EPA's enforcement and compliance actions resulted in over $5.7 billion in
combined civil penalties, criminal fines, and restitution collected, and the investment of $32.2 billion in
actions and equipment that achieve compliance.
COMMUNITIES
In September, I delivered a speech at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum that included
a vision for how EPA can help communities become healthier in a more comprehensive way through
"community-driven environmentalism."
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In this speech, I noted that political neglect is a form of harm involving communities that have suffered
from past industrial pollution, and I charged EPA's Office of Policy with initiating a series of actions to
better serve communities in need.
As one example, we're creating a one-stop shop to make it easier for communities to access available
funding and other agency resources by expanding our Water Finance Clearinghouse, which was
launched in 2017. This Clearinghouse will now provide available funding and financing for land and air,
as well as water.
On December 2, EPA hosted a virtual event to celebrate its 50th anniversary, where we unveiled the
new Ruckelshaus Conference Center at EPA headquarters in honor of EPA's first administrator, William
D. Ruckelshaus. The event presented remembrances from several former administrators and deputy
administrators and tributes to the seven charter employees who have been working at EPA for the entire
50-year period.
We helped celebrate our 50th anniversary by creating special award programs with the Boy and Girl
Scouts helping to train the next generation of conservationists.
The list of the agency's accomplishments over the last 50 years is extraordinary; our accomplishments in
2020, as we sought to continue that legacy, have been remarkable as well.
I expect the next half century to be full of challenges for EPA, and I have great confidence they will be
met with the same skill and resolve that helped this agency overcome every challenge it faced in the last
50 years. It is a grave responsibility to protect the health of the American people and our environment. It
requires the EPA to pursue its work with transparency, accountability, and consistency before Congress,
the law, and the public. But at bottom, it requires gratitude for this land, our blessed plot of earth, set in
magnificent waters beneath an endless sky. America is great because it is beautiful, and the life, liberty,
and happiness of our country is planted in this fertile soil.
Andrew R. Wheeler
~~~~~
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[table of contents]
COVID-19	7
EPA at 50	10
Air	11
Water	21
Land	28
Chemicals	36
Enforcement	40
Office of Policy	44
International & Tribal Affairs	47
Research & Development	53
PFAS	56
Children's Health	60
Lead	62
Public Engagement & Environmental Education	65
Agriculture	66
General Counsel	68
Office of Continuous Improvement	71
Office of Mission Support	72
Office of the Chief Financial Officer	73
Risk Communication	74
Region 1	75
Region 2	77
Region 3	79
Region 4	80
Region 5	82
Region 6	83
Region 7	85
Region 8	87
Region 9	89
Region 10	91
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COVID-19
Since the declaration of the public health
emergency, EPA has aggressively worked to
ensure that Americans are aware of and have
access to effective surface disinfectant products
to use against SARS-CoV-2. These actions
include:
Quickly Providing Consumers with Options for
COVID-19 Disinfectants
EPA has the responsibility to approve
disinfectants for use on surfaces. In January,
the agency activated—for the first time ever—
its Emerging Viral Pathogens Guidance for
Antimicrobial Pesticides. Under this guidance,
manufacturers provide the agency with data, even
in advance of an outbreak, to show their products
are effective against harder-to-kill viruses.
Through this guidance and the agency's review of
newly registered products, EPA's list of products
that meet the agency's criteria for use against
SARS-CoV-2 (known as List N) includes more than
500 products. In many cases, the agency was
able to approve claims in as little as 14 days, as
opposed to the historical two to three months.
US EPA'S LIST N
500+
TOTAL APPROVED
DISINFECTANTS
FIND OUT MORE:	vvEPA
Infographic demonstrating the growth of List N:
Disinfectants for Coronavirus (COVID-19)
In July, EPA began expediting applications from
companies requesting to add electrostatic sprayer
use directions to products intended to kill SARS-
CoV-2. Electrostatic spraying has gained interest
because of the public health emergency and the
need to disinfect large indoor spaces or areas
with many surfaces.
Addressing Supply Chain Disruptions
In response to reports of shortages of active
ingredients used in the surface disinfectants
that are effective against SARS-CoV-2, EPA took
important actions.
In April, EPA eased some routine reporting
requirements to enable products to reach
consumers faster without waiting for EPA
approval. And in March, April, and May, EPA
implemented changes to its regulatory processes
to allow disinfectant manufacturers to source
certain ingredients from alternate suppliers,
helping to address supply chain disruptions and
ensure the continued availability of disinfectants.
Providing Flexibilities in Response to the Public
Health Emergency
In response to stakeholder requests, EPA
provided flexibilities for agricultural employers in
annual worker protection training, for states in
administering pesticide applicator certification
programs, and for addressing respiratory
protection equipment shortages. EPA encouraged
employers to provide pesticide safety training
outside, in smaller than usual groups with
well-spaced participants, as well as remotely.
In addition, EPA allowed for certain temporary
changes to certification programs to be pre-
approved and implemented to help ensure worker
protection while supporting business continuity.
Approving First Ever Long-Lasting Antiviral
Product for Use Against COVID-19 and Issued
Guidance for Long-Lasting Claims
In August, EPA announced a groundbreaking
development in the Trump Administration's
efforts to combat the novel coronavirus. In a
first-of-its kind step, EPA issued an emergency
exemption to the State of Texas permitting it to
allow American Airlines and Total Orthopedics
Sports & Spine to use a new product that kills
pathogens like the SARS-CoV-2 virus on surfaces
for up to seven days. This product provides longer-
lasting protection in public spaces, increasing
consumer confidence in resuming normal air
travel and other activities. While traditional
disinfectants only kill viruses and bacteria that
are on the surface at the time they are used,
surfaces treated with residual antimicrobial

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products kill pathogens that come into contact
with the surface for days, weeks, or years after
the product is applied.
In October, EPA announced another major step
forward in the Trump Administration's efforts to
ensure that all Americans have access to such
disinfectants for both commercial and household
use. Through new draft guidance EPA released,
companies are now able to demonstrate that
their products have "long-lasting" or "residual"
effectiveness on surfaces against viruses like
SARS-CoV-2, This provides an expedited path for
our nation's manufacturers and innovators to get
cutting-edge, long-lasting disinfecting products
into the marketplace as safely and quickly as
possible.
Administrator Wheeler views an American Airlines
disinfecting demonstration with SurfaceWise 2.
Helping Communities Address the Pandemic
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, EPA
made $2 million in grant funding available
to states, local governments, tribes, and U.S.
territories through the State Environmental
Justice Cooperative Agreement Program. These
funds went to projects designed to address
environmental justice concerns and issues
related to COVID-19.
In addition to the agency's work on disinfectants,
EPA also worked to provide clarity in the midst of
the pandemic. For example, EPA recognized the
extraordinary situations the agriculture industry
has faced since the beginning of the COVID-19
outbreak and has worked across our program
offices to ensure continuity in the food supply.
Through temporary policies on facility inspections,
offering resources for carcass disposal
management, and addressing PPE shortages
for pesticide application, EPA is listening to the
agriculture community to learn what's happening
locally and is working with additional agencies
and the White House to determine the best
course of action. EPA's Office of Enforcement and
Compliance Assurance's National Agriculture
Center served as a critical resource to assist
producers with regulatory and non-regulatory
information.
Cutting-Edge Agency COVID-19 Research
In Spring 2020, EPA's Office of Research and
Development (ORD) began research designed to
help understand and reduce the risk of exposure
to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
This research is helping states, tribes, local, and
territorial governments, including public health
agencies, homeowners, business owners, and
workplace managers design and implement
actions that reduce the risk of exposure to SARS-
CoV-2.
•	EPA researchers are studying SARS-CoV-2
aerosols including fate and airborne transport,
and opportunities to reduce exposure in an
office environment and mass transit settings.
The agency is also evaluating potential
aerosol disinfection device technologies in
various scenarios.
•	EPA researchers developed an approach for
monitoring SARS-CoV-2 levels in wastewater
and are working on a method that may be
used to determine if there is potential for
infection from SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater.
•	Reducing the risk of exposure to SARS-
CoV-2 relies on effective cleaning and
disinfection, along with continued social
distancing practices. EPA researchers
have developed a Rapid Viability - Reverse
Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction - a
quick, dependable, and accurate analytical
method for detecting live or viable SARS-
CoV-2 in environmental surface samples. The
researchers are also evaluating microbial
disinfectants and application methods for
*

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surfaces and objects that are frequently
touched by multiple people.
• EPA researchers developed a non-invasive
salivary antibody assay for COVID-19 infection.
Using nearly 200 volunteers, researchers are
currently testing the assay's efficacy.
criminal charges.
• Issuing a compliance advisory to provide
consumers with information about products
claiming to kill or be effective against SARS-
Cov-2 and an additional compliance advisory
with information on UV lights that claim to be
effective against viruses and bacteria.
In addition to research, ORD also transferred
over 22,000 personal protective items including
gloves, respirators, protective suits, booties,
and lab coats from its laboratories in Athens,
Georgia; Research Triangle Park, North Carolina;
Ada, Oklahoma; and Corvallis, Oregon, to Federal
Emergency Management Agency to support the
battle against COVID-19. These efforts were
matched in EPA regions; for example Region
5 collected, prepared, and transferred almost
10,000 surplus PPE items to partner response
organizations.
Protecting Consumers During the Pandemic
through Robust Enforcement
EPA has protected consumers from fraudulent
claims related to the novel coronavirus by taking
action the under Federal Insecticide, Fungicide,
and Rodenticide Act(FIFRA), including taking
447 civil enforcement actions (including stop
sale, use or removal orders, notices of refusals
of admission for imports, and administrative or
judicial cases), opening approximately 60 criminal
enforcement cases, and providing compliance
information to businesses, consumers, and
federal agencies. These actions include:
•	Issuing Stop Sale, Use, or Removal Orders to
11 e-commerce retailers, including Amazon
and eBay, to prevent further distribution
of multiple unregistered and misbranded
pesticides and devices.
•	Working closely with U.S. Customs and Border
Patrol (CBP) to prevent the importation of
more than 8 million units of illegal products
and over 700,000 pounds of bulk product into
the U.S.
•	Working closely with the U.S. Department
of Justice (DOJ) and other federal agencies
to increase deterrence through arrests and
• Developing a new webpage on FedCenter.gov,
in collaboration with other federal agencies,
on federal, agency-specific, and non-federal
guidance and recommendations released
by various organizations with respect to
COVID-19.
EPA always has a major role working with federal,
tribal, state, and local government partners to
help communities prepare for and respond to
hurricanes and other natural disasters. This year,
we rose to the challenge to not only meet the
needs of communities across the country during
a challenging hurricane season, but also during
an unprecedented public health crisis.
r.
6 Steps for Safe & Effective
Disinfectant Use
Step 1: Check that your product
is EPA-approved
Find the EPA registration number on the product. Then, check to
see if it is on EPA's list of approved disinfectants at: epa.gov/listn
Step 2: Read the directions
Follow the product's directions. Check "use sites" and "surface types" to
see where you can use the product. Read the "precautionary statements."
Step 3: Pre-cleari the surface
Make sure to wash the surface with soap and water if the directions
mention pre-cleaning or if the surface is visibly dirty.

Step 4: Follow the contact time
You can find the contact time in the directions. The surface should
remain wet the whole time to ensure the product is effective.
Step 5: Wear gloves and wash your hands
For disposable gloves, discard them after each cleaning. For
reusable gloves, dedicate a pair to disinfecting COVID-19. Wash
your hands after removing the gloves.
m)
I
Step 6: Lock it up
Keep lids tightly closed and store out of reach of children.
coronavirus.gov
Infographic from EPA and CDC guidance to help
facility operators and families properly clean
and disinfect spaces, such as homes, businesses,
schools, and more.

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In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, EPA
took action to ensure that decisions about new
or ongoing cleanup activities at sites across the
country were made with the health and safety of
communities, state and tribal partners, EPA staff,
and contractors as the priority. Our guidance
focused on decision-making at emergency
response and longer-term cleanup at sites where
EPA was the lead agency or had direct oversight
of, or responsibility for, the cleanup work. This
included, but was not limited to, Superfund
cleanups, Resource Conservation and Recovery
Act (RCRA) corrective actions, Toxic Substance
and Control Act (TSCA) polychlorinated biphenyls
(PCB) cleanups, Oil Pollution Act spill responses,
and Underground Storage Tank Program actions.
EPA also shared this guidance with states to
take into consideration as they encounter similar
issues at state-lead RCRA cleanup sites.
Children's Health & Schools
In September, EPA issued a press release to
encourage schools and universities to use EPA-
approved products and disinfectants to keep
students safe. As part of the efforts to safely
reopen schools, EPA continues to work closely
with states, local governments, and the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to
provide up-to-date information to protect public
health as school districts, private schools, and
universities develop and implement COVID-19 re-
entry plans for their students, staff, and parents.
EPA also hosted a webinar, "Addressing Disease
Mitigation in Schools, Daycare Centers, and
Universities with Sanitizers and Disinfectants,"
in October, which discussed best management
practices for cleaning and disinfecting schools,
daycares, and universities.
In August, Pediatric Environmental Health
Specialty Units (PEHSU) received funding from the
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
(ATSDR) to lead national efforts to educate health
professionals and families on safe disinfectant
use and COVID-19 risk-reduction practices. This
initiative will provide leadership, instructional
content, and technical support to guide target
audiences to reduce the spread of COVID-19, with
special attention given to groups that are most at
risk of poor health outcomes.
~~~~~
EPA AT 50
This year, EPA celebrated our 50th anniversary
with monthly themes highlighting progress across
each of the agency's program areas, culminating
in a virtual celebration at EPA's headquarters.
Since EPA was founded In 1970, criteria air
pollutants and their precursors have declined
77 percent; over 92 percent of community water
systems meet all health-based standards, all
the time; and once contaminated areas are
being cleaned up in record numbers under the
Superfund program.
EPA's new Ruckelshaus Conference Center
On Dec. 2, 2020, Administrator Wheeler
addressed an audience from EPA's new
Ruckelshaus Conference Center, which was
dedicated to the late EPA Administrator William
Ruckelshaus during the 50th anniversary
celebration.
"In late 1970, at the time of Ruckelshaus'
appointment by President Richard Nixon,
an environmental crisis was unfolding
across America.
"Smog was at unhealthy - even deadly
- levels in many cities, rivers were so
polluted they were catching fire, and lead

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was an ingredient in many products such
as paint and gasoline that were being
used by millions of Americans every day.
"Ruckelshaus, who was working for the
Justice Department at the time and had
experience as an environmental regulator
in his home state of Indiana, had to create
the agency from scratch.
"Up until that point, environmental
programs were scattered throughout the
Federal government, and didn't properly
support the states in their environmental
efforts. This left an enormous gap in the
protections necessary to complete the
agency's compelling mission, which was
and remains, to protect human health
and the environment. EPA's job, as the
country's new environmental enforcement
agency, was to 'clean up America,' an
enormous task if ever there was one.
"So, Ruckelshaus went to work, and in
a short period of time, he compiled an
impressive list of accomplishments,
including:
•	creation of the first air quality
standards under the Clean Air Act;
•	the development of clean-water-
permit requirements for cities and
industries;
•	the building of the agency's
enforcement arm; and
•	establishment of standards for lead-
free gasoline.
"All in less than three years.
"And he returned to the agency in the early
1980s during the Reagan Administration for
another stint as Administrator, making him
both the 1st and the 5th Administrator of the
EPA, the only individual to hold the position
twice.
"Through his efforts, Ruckelshaus established
a set of core values that continue to guide the
agency a half century later: respect for the law
and the statutes governing EPA, adherence to
the highest quality science, and transparency.
"And now, 50 years later, the United States
has the cleanest air, water, and land in living
memory."
~~~~~
[air]
Improving Air Quality
This year, EPA released "Our Nation's Air -
EPA Celebrates 50 Years!" which documents
remarkable improvements in air quality across
America since 1970, and particularly over the
last few years under President Trump. The
report shows that, between 1970 and 2019,
the combined emissions of six key pollutants
dropped by 77 percent while the economy grew
285 percent. Since 2017, the emissions of these
pollutants dropped 7 percent.
As a result of these falling emissions, in 2019
we saw a significant improvement in air quality.
From 2017 to 2019, the number of days listed as
unhealthy for sensitive groups in the Air Quality
Index dropped by 34 percent as the amount of
criteria pollutants in our air continued to fall.
Carbon monoxide fell 10 percent.
Lead (3-month average) fell 28 percent.
• Since 2010, lead concentrations in the
air have fallen by 85 percent.
Ozone fell 4 percent.
N02 (annual) fell 4 percent.
Large particulates (24-hour) fell 22 percent.
Fine particulates (24-hour) fell 12 percent.
Sulfur dioxide fell 10 percent.
The U.S. now has some of the lowest fine
particulate matter levels in the world.
Five times below the global average.
Seven times below Chinese levels.
20 percent lower than France, Germany
and Great Britain.

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Exposure to fine particle pollution has improved
significantly for people with low socioeconomic
status living in monitored counties. Based on the
most recent monitoring data, over 80 percent of
that population is breathing air that meets EPA's
2012 annual or 2006 24-hour PM2.5 National
Ambient Air Quality Standards, compared to only
43 percent in 2008.
¦
From 2017 to 2019, the combined emission of criteria
pollutants and their precursors dropped 7°7o:
Down
16°fo
Working with States and Local Communities to
Improve Public Health and the Environment
From 2019 to 2020, EPA acted on more than
430 State Implementation Plans (SIPs), including
211 backlogged SIPs. In January 2013, the SIP
backlog was 699. By July 2020, the SIP backlog
had fallen to 350, a roughly 50 percent decrease.
During this same period, the historic backlog
(SIPs backlogged as of 2013) has decreased from
699 to 68 — a 90 percent decrease.
Over the past three years, the agency has
taken action on over 1200 SIPs, both new and
backlogged. EPA has made a concerted effort to
convert previously issued Federal Implementation
Plans (FIPs) into SIPs. Since January 1, 2017,
EPA has converted 20 FIPS to SIPs. Since 2016,
Region 6 alone has reduced the number of
backlog SIP revisions from 46 to 22.
During this same period, EPA has finalized 57
redesignation actions - moving communities
from non-attainment into attainment of national
air quality standards. These redesignations mean
cleaner air, improved health outcomes, and
greater economic opportunities for cities and
communities across the country. EPA continues
to work with state partners and is on track to
redesignate at least 25 additional areas by 2022.
Finalizing National Ambient Air Quality Standards
for Ozone and Particulate Matter
EPA is following the principles established in
the earliest days of the Trump Administration
to streamline the National Ambient Air Quality
Standards (NAAQS) review process and to
fulfill the statutory responsibility to complete
the NAAQS review within a 5-year timeframe.
EPA finalized the 2015 ozone NAAQS review
in December 2020 - marking only the second
time the agency has met the 5-year timeframe
in its history. This is a needed departure from
the previous administration's failure to meet
statutory deadlines, often taking twice as long
to promulgate updated standards. Over the
years, the process for reviewing the NAAQS
strayed from the required 5-year timeframe to an
unpredictable timeline.
EPA is focused on reviewing the NAAQS within the
Clean Air Act 5-year timeframe. Because of the
potentially significant impacts of a NAAQS revision
on economic activity, state agency planning
resources, public health, and the environment, it
is important that these reviews are completed in
a timely, efficient, and transparent manner.
Maintaining the PM NAAQS
In December—at a virtual press conference
with West Virginia Governor Jim Justice,
U.S. Congressman Alex Mooney (WV-02),
West Virginia Department of Environmental
Protection Secretary Austin Caperton, and Senior
Deputy Attorney General Douglas Buffington—
Administrator Wheeler announced the agency's
final decision to retain the existing NAAQS for
particulate matter (PM) set by the Obama-Biden
Administration without changes. The decision to
retain existing standards, which applies to the
NAAQS for both fine and coarse particulate matter
(PM2.5 and PM10), came after careful review
and consideration of the most recent available
scientific evidence and technical information;
consultation with the agency's independent
scientific advisors; and consideration of more
than 60,000 public comments on the proposal.
"I am very proud to join Administrator
Wheeler for this important announcement
for our whole country. The fact that the

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U.S. has the most vibrant economy in the
world, and yet our particulate matter is five
times lower than the global average, is a
testament to the leadership of President
Trump, the U.S. EPA, and the entire
Trump Administration," said West Virginia
Governor Jim Justice.
"This is an important announcement for
West Virginia. We need to continue to
support policies that keep our air clean,
while protecting the job producers in our
state. This regulation accomplishes those
goals," said West Virginia Attorney General
Patrick Morrisey.
"Today's announcement by the EPA of the
finalization of the National Ambient Air
Quality Standards rule is a big win for West
Virginia. As crafted this rule well balances
the need for a cleaner environment
with the need for continued economic
development. Under the leadership of
President Trump, America has cleaner
air and is energy independent, with
West Virginia serving as the backbone
for our nation's energy production," said
Congressman AlexX. Mooney (WV-02).
Maintaining the Ozone NAAQS
Also in December, EPA announced its decision to
retain, without changes, the 2015 ozone NAAQS
set by the Obama-Biden Administration. It marks
the second time in Clean Air Act history that the
agency has completed an ozone NAAQS review
within the congressionally mandated five-year
timeframe. The decision to retain the existing
ozone standards comes after careful review
and consideration of the most recent available
scientific evidence and technical information;
consultation with the agency's independent
science advisors; and consideration of more than
50,000 public comments on the proposal.
Improving Active Forest Management
EPA partnered with representatives from The
Wildland Fire Leadership Council (WFLC), U.S.
Forest Service (USFS), U.S. Department of
the Interior (DOI), CDC, and the Coalition of
Prescribed Fire Councils to create a Joint Vision.
The Joint Vision reinforces that prescribed
fire requires collaboration; provides agencies
and partner organizations specific language
that aligns their messaging around smoke
and prescribed fire with the vision and vetted
messages; and enhances the partnerships
around prescribed fire collaboration across
regulatory, public health, and the land and
fire management community in jointly working
towards additional vetted messages.
Consistent with President Donald Trump's
Executive Order, "Promoting Active Management
of America's Forests, Rangelands, and other
Federal Lands to Improve Conditions and Reduce
Wildfire Risk," EPA supports actively managing
these lands through partnerships with states,
tribes, communities, non-profit organizations, and
the private sector.
Commonsense Regulatory Reform
Affordable Clean Energy Rule
In June 2019, EPA issued the final Affordable
Clean Energy (ACE) Rule, replacing the prior
administration's overreaching Clean Power Plan
(CPP) with a rule that restores the rule of law and
empowers states to continue to reduce emissions
while providing affordable and reliable energy for
all Americans.
The final rule comes after a thorough review of
the CPP, which was done in response to President
Trump's Executive Order 13783, "Promoting
Energy Independence and Economic Growth."
The actions also follow challenges from a large
number of states, trade associations, rural
electric co-ops, and labor unions who argued
that the CPP exceeded EPA's authority under the
Clean Air Act, as well as an unprecedented stay of
the CPP by the Supreme Court in 2016.
ACE will reduce emissions of C02 and mercury,
as well as precursors for pollutants like fine
particulate matter and ground-level ozone.
When fully implemented, we expect to see C02
emissions from the electric sector fall by as much
as 35 percent below 2005 levels in 2030.
In 2030, the ACE rule is projected to:
• Reduce C02 emissions by 11 million short

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tons.
•	Reduce S02 emissions by 5,700 tons.
•	Reduce NOx emissions by 7,100 tons.
•	Reduce PM2.5 emissions by 400 tons.
•	Reduce mercury emissions by 59 pounds.
EPA projects that ACE will result in annual
net benefits of $120 million to $730 million,
including costs, domestic climate benefits, and
health co-benefits.
Benefit-Cost Analysis
In December, EPA issued a procedural rule under
the Clean Air Act establishing requirements
to ensure consistent, high-quality analyses of
benefits and costs are provided to the public
for significant rules. This final rule codifies best
practices for benefit-cost analysis in rulemaking
and provides clarity for states, local communities,
and industry regarding EPA's rulemaking
considerations. Also, it will help ensure
transparency in all future EPA rulemakings.
As a part of a larger effort of regulatory reform
under the Trump Administration, EPA has taken
a close look at how to improve the assessment
of benefits and costs that underpin regulatory
decision-making. Many EPA statutes, including
the Clean Air Act, contain language on the
consideration of benefits and costs, but there
are no regulations that ensure that the public is
provided an analysis of the benefits and costs
in a consistent manner across offices. This
rule focuses on providing more consistent and
transparent application of benefit-cost analyses
under the Clean Air Act.
Cleaning Up Our Transportation Fleet with
Common-sense, Cost Saving Policies and
Reform
EPA Finalizes First Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Standards for Aircraft
In December, EPA finalized emissions standards
for airplanes used in commercial aviation and
large business jets. This action will align U.S.
standards with the international carbon dioxide
emissions standards set by the International
Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), ensuring
domestically manufactured aircraft remain
competitive in the global marketplace. This final
rulemaking also sets a precedent with the Trump
Administration being the first to regulate GHG
emissions from aircraft.
The ICAO standards were developed with
significant input from EPA, the Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA), and U.S. and international
aviation industries. Typically, three out of four
aircraft manufactured in the U.S. are sold
overseas. These standards will help ensure
consistent standards across the world, and most
importantly, allow U.S. manufactured planes,
such as commercial and large passenger jets, to
continue to compete in the global marketplace.
Improving Safety and Reducing Consumer Costs
Across the Auto Industry
Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles
Rule
In March 2020, the U.S. Department of
Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA) and EPA released
the final SAFE Vehicles Rule setting corporate
average fuel economy (CAFE) and C02 emissions
standards for model years 2021-2026 passenger
cars and light trucks.
The final rule will increase stringency of CAFE and
C02 emissions standards by 1.5 percent each
year through model year 2026, as compared with
the standards issued in 2012, which would have
required about 5 percent annual increases. This
is important in light of the fact that the majority of
automakers were not meeting the 2012 standard
without resorting to the use of credits. This rule
fixed the CAFE standards set by the Obama-Biden
Administration that forced many companies to
pay costly penalties - projected to equal over
it

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a billion dollars by 2025 - instead of reducing
carbon dioxide. Such penalties are ultimately
borne by hardworking Americans.
At a time of sudden economic uncertainty, the
SAFE Vehicles Rule provides help for millions of
American workers and thousands of businesses
in the auto sector and related industries by
cutting costs and increasing sales of safe new
vehicles.
Tier IV Marine Diesel Engines: Relief for American
Pilot Boats and Lobster Fishermen
In August, EPA finalized amendments to the
national marine diesel engine program to address
the lack of available certified Tier 4 marine
diesel engines for use in certain high-speed
commercial vessels. This final rule provides much
needed regulatory relief to boat builders and
manufacturers of lightweight and high-power
marine diesel engines.
By the Numbers
The final rule will increase stringency of CAFE and
C02 emissions standards by 1.5 percent each
year through model year (MY) 2026.
Overall Impact:
•	Lower costs, thousands of lives saved, and
minimal impact to fuel consumption and
the environment.
•	$200 billion reduction in total costs over
the lifetimes of vehicles through MY 2029,
including the value of increased safety.
•	$100 billion reduction in regulatory costs.
•	$1,400 reduction of total consumer cost of
ownership per new vehicle.
•	More than $1,000 reduction in sales price
per new vehicle.
•	2.7 million additional new vehicles
sold (because new vehicles are more
affordable).
Safety:
•	3,300 fewer crash fatalities.
•	46,000 fewer hospitalizations after serious
crashes projected over the lifetimes of
vehicles built through MY 2029.
•	397,000 fewer injuries.
•	1.8 million fewer vehicles damaged in
crashes.
Environment:
All new vehicles will continue to be subject to the
strict pollution standards of the Clean Air Act, and
new vehicles will be subject to higher pollution
standards than the older vehicles that will be
retired because of this rule.
I
In Kennebunkport, Maine EPA Administrator Wheeler
finalized amendments to the national marine diesel
engine program, providing relief for lobster
fishermen and pilot boats.
Without this regulatory relief, boat builders
would be unable to build these types of high-
speed vessels, leaving those in the market for a
new boat the choice between either purchasing
underpowered, unsuitable vessels or using
existing vessels with older, dirtier engines.
"This is great news for the First District
and our ports. This rule will ensure bar
pilots in Savannah and Brunswick are able
to get the boats they need to do their jobs.
Without this change to the rules, the pilots
could have been forced to scale back their
critical work which is required for every
ship to enter and exit both the Ports of
Savannah and Brunswick. The ports could
have been devastated without this rule
change. Instead, they will now be able to
keep cargo traffic moving. I thank the EPA
~

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for their hard work on this issue."
- U.S. Congressman Earl L. "Buddy"
Carter (GA-Ol)
"We appreciate the EPA listening to and
addressing the concerns of hard working
Lobstermen and boatbuilders from Maine.
Delaying the implementation of the Tier
4 requirements for Commercial Fishing
boats allows the industry to better address
safety and availability issues."
- Maine Lobstermen's Association
President Kristan Porter
"Due to the unique design of Maine
lobster boats, at this time there are
not Tier 4-compliant diesel engines
available on the market that can safely
fit in these types of vessels. This delay
in the implementation of the Tier 4
emission standards for commercial
lobster-style boats should provide engine
manufacturers time to design and certify
engines that will both comply with Tier 4
emission standards and work safely and
efficiently in these boats. It also prevents
lobstermen from being burdened by
requirements that are impossible to meet
with the currently available technology. We
are pleased to have worked together with
the EPA to find a commonsense solution
that supports Maine boat builders and
lobstermen."
- U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus
King U.S. Representatives Chellie Pingree
and Jared Golden
Automotive Trends Report
In March, EPA released its annual Automotive
Trends Report, which provides the public with
information about new light-duty vehicle GHG
emissions, fuel economy, technology data, and
auto manufacturers' performance in light of the
agency's GHG emissions standards.
This report provides insights into consumer
choice and current market trends. Once again we
see marginal improvements in fuel economy, but
they are yet a far cry from the unfeasible Obama-
Biden Administration's standards. MY 2018
vehicle fuel economy was 25.1 miles per gallon,
slightly higher than the 24.9 miles per gallon MY
2017. Since MY 2004, when the fleet averaged
19.3 miles per gallon, fuel economy and C02
emissions have improved in 12 out of 14years.
The report also assesses compliance
performance for individual automakers, and for
the U.S. fleet as a whole, with GHG emissions
standards for light-duty vehicles. Once again,
only three large manufacturers complied with
MY 2018 standards based on the technology
levels of their vehicles alone. However, when
accounting for credits, the report shows all
large manufacturers are in compliance. Most
large manufacturers used banked credits, along
with technology improvements, to maintain
compliance in MY 2018.
Reducing Emissions and Compliance Costs for
Heavy-Duty Vehicles
Cleaner Trucks Initiative
EPA continues to take concrete steps to
advance the Cleaner Trucks Initiative (CTI),
which Administrator Wheeler first announced
in November 2018. The CTI rulemaking will
establish new, more stringent emission standards
for oxides of nitrogen and other pollutants for
highway heavy-duty engines. Administrator
Wheeler announced in January an Advance
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking input
from the public and interested stakeholders and
the agency anticipates issuing a proposal soon.
The trucking industry touches nearly every part
of our economy. A strong and resilient trucking
industry is imperative to maintaining a strong and
resilient economy. Through this initiative, we will
modernize heavy-duty truck engines, improving
their efficiency, and reducing their emissions,
which will lead to a healthier environment. This
initiative will also ensure the U.S. continues to
make major reductions in NOx emissions, while
spurring innovative new technologies, ensuring
heavy-duty trucks are clean, and remain a
competitive method of transportation
Heavy-Duty Engines Technical Amendments
EPA has finalized changes to the test procedures
for heavy-duty engines and vehicles to improve
&

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accuracy and reduce testing burden. This
rulemaking modifies existing test procedures
for heavy-duty engines and vehicles. These
test procedure changes improve accuracy and,
in some cases, reduce test burden. These
amendments also streamline the regulations,
which will reduce industry costs, increase
compliance flexibility, clarify and harmonize with
other requirements, and correct errors.
Diesel Emissions Reduction Act Grant Funding
In April, in conjunction with the 50th anniversary
of Earth Day, EPA awarded $11.5 million to
replace 580 older diesel school buses. The
funds are going to 157 school bus fleets in
43 states and Puerto Rico, each of which will
receive rebates through EPA's Diesel Emissions
Reduction Act (DERA) funding.
A BUS
*
EPA Awards $11.5 Million to Replace or
Retrofit 580 School Buses in 43 States
¦SiEllEZr
Learn more about Diesel Emissions Reduction Act Funding:
EPA.gov/dera
In September 2020, EPA also announced that
over $73 million in grants and funding expected
to be awarded to support numerous clean
diesel programs and projects across the country
at the state and local level. Over $50 million
in DERA National Grants Program funding is
expected to be awarded to implement projects
aimed at reducing diesel emissions from the
nation's existing fleet of old, dirty engines and
vehicles. Additionally, EPA anticipates providing
approximately $23.5 million under DERA's
2020 State Grants program to 48 states and
four territories to implement their own diesel
emissions reduction programs.
Highlights include:
• $359,238 specifically for clean diesel
projects in Michigan and an additional
$1.2 million for clean diesel projects in the
Midwest.
•	$3.5 million in grant funding to state and
local partners in Colorado and Utah to
reduce harmful diesel emissions from
school and transit buses, trucks and
construction equipment.
•	$547,440 specifically for clean diesel
projects in Ohio.
•	$2.23 million to nine organizations in Iowa,
Kansas and Missouri.
•	$1.1 million to Georgia Ports Authority.
Alleviating Burdens on Domestic Manufacturers
and Industrial Sources
In April, the agency corrected flaws in the 2016
Supplemental Cost Finding for the Mercury and
Air Toxics Standards (MATS) for coal- and oil-
fired power plants, consistent with a 2015 U.S.
Supreme Court decision. EPA also completed
the Clean Air Act-required residual risk and
technology review (RTR) for MATS. Power plants
are already complying with the standards that
limit emissions of mercury and other hazardous
air pollutants (HAPs), and this final action leaves
those emission limits in place and unchanged.
According to a 2018 report from the United
Nations, based on 2015 emissions estimates
after implementation of MATS, the U.S. accounts
for less than 2 percent (1.64 percent) of global
mercury emissions, while China accounts for
more than 25 percent of global emissions,
India emits 9 percent, and the European Union
accounts for 4 percent.
EPA's revised cost finding for MATS follows the
law and was prompted by a flaw identified by the
U.S. Supreme Court, which found that the agency
had not properly taken the cost of compliance
into account when proposing regulation of HAP
emissions from coal- and oil-fired power plants
in 2012. After losing at the Supreme Court, the
Obama-Biden EPA then failed again to properly
apply cost-benefit principles in 2016. This final
action re-evaluated how costs and benefits
should have been considered and concluded that
the projected compliance costs of MATS outweigh
the projected monetized HAP-specific benefits by
three orders of magnitude.
ik

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After properly evaluating the compliance cost
to coal- and oil-fired power plants (costs that
the EPA estimated range from $7.4 to $9.6
billion annually) and the benefits attributable
to regulating HAP emissions from these power
plants (of which the projected quantified benefits
range from $4 to $6 million annually), the
agency determined that it is not "appropriate
and necessary" to regulate HAP emissions from
power plants under section 112 of the Clean Air
Act. However, with this final action, EPA is not
removing coal- and oil-fired power plants from the
list of affected source categories for regulation
under section 112 of the Clean Air Act, consistent
with existing case law. Those power plants remain
subject to and must comply with the mercury
emissions standards of the MATS rule, which
remains fully in effect notwithstanding the revised
cost-benefit analysis.
In addition, EPA has completed the required RTR
for MATS and determined no changes to the rule
are needed - satisfying statutory requirements
set out by Congress in the Clean Air Act.
Continued New Source Review Permitting Reform
Under the Trump Administration, EPA has taken
numerous steps to clarify and improve New
Source Review (NSR) permitting requirements.
The NSR program has actually resulted in
facilities delaying or not installing pollution control
equipment, creating adverse environmental
outcomes. EPA's steps to mitigate this include
instituting guidance to:
•	communicate how EPA would apply and
enforce the Actual-to-Projected Actual
Emissions Applicability Test;
•	clarify the meaning of "Common
Control" and "Adjacent" in the context
of determining the scope of a stationary
source;
•	identify additional circumstances under
which an area may be excluded from
"Ambient Air";
•	provide PM2.5 and Ozone Significant
Impact Level (SIL) guidance; and
•	provide guidance on plantwide applicability
limits.
EPA has also issued final actions to complete
the reconsideration of prior agency actions on
project aggregation and reasonable possibility
in the context of Clean Air Act permitting and
to streamline tribal oil and gas permitting
activities. All of these actions will improve
regulatory certainty and remove unnecessary
obstacles to projects aiming to improve the
reliability, efficiency, and safety of facilities while
maintaining air quality standards.
In August we finalized guidance on the use of
plantwide applicability limits (PALs) to clarify
and enhance the flexibilities available under the
existing PALs regulatory provisions.
EPA also finalized a rulemaking to implement the
withdrawal of "Once in, Always in" policy. This
rule added regulatory text that provides a clear
language reading of the Clean Air Act section
112, allowing a "major source" of hazardous air
pollutants to reclassify as an "area source" after
acting to limit emissions.
In October, EPA issued a Project Emissions
Accounting proposal to clarify whether a NSR
preconstruction permit is needed when a major-
emitting facility plans to make changes or
expand.
In November 2019, EPA issued a proposed
rule-the NSR Error Corrections Rule-to correct
noncontroversial, non-substantive errors that
have cropped up in our NSR rules over time and
to make conforming changes to address the
1990 Clean Air Act Amendments.
We are also working to develop NSR training
modules to address the training needs of state
and local air agencies. Once complete, these
trainings will be posted to our NSR website for
easy access.
Alleviating Burden on the Oil and Natural Gas
Industry
In August, EPA announced two final rules for
the oil and natural gas industry that removes
ineffective and duplicative requirements while
streamlining others. These rulemakings will
reduce regulatory burdens for oil and natural
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gas entities while protecting human health and
the environment. Combined, the two final rules
are estimated to yield net benefits of $750 to
$850 million dollars from 2021 to 2030, the
annualized equivalent of about $100 million a
year.
"I applaud Administrator Wheeler for taking
decisive action today and continuing to replace
the destructive and burdensome bureaucratic
policies of the Obama Administration with
commonsense policies," said Deputy Secretary
of Energy Mark W. Menezes. "I am proud to join
the Administrator in Pennsylvania, a state that
will greatly benefit from these actions taken by
the EPA today. These new rules will provide relief
to American energy companies by reducing the
massive cost of complying with unnecessary
overregulation from the federal government,
allowing them to instead spend their resources on
job creation and energy development."
Administrator Wheeler tours the Energy Innovation
Center with President and CEO Richard DiClaudio, Deputy
Secretary Menezes, and Congressman Reschenthaler.
"As someone born and raised in southwestern
Pennsylvania, 1 have seen firsthand the
impact of the natural gas renaissance on our
communities, including tremendous job creation
and unprecedented wage growth," said U.S.
Congressman Guy Reschenthaler (PA-14). "The
rules announced today by Administrator Wheeler
will remove burdensome regulations while
continuing to provide for cleaner and healthier air.
Thank you to the Trump Administration for taking
action and for their longstanding commitment to
supporting Pennsylvania gas and oil operators,
fighting for American energy independence, and
W
fostering economic opportunities for workers and
families."
Fuels Streamlining: Finalized Cost-Saving Updates
to Existing Fuels Regulations
At the Monroe Energy LLC Trainer Refinery, EPA
announced the final Fuels Streamlining Rule.
The finalized rule will streamline and modernize
EPA's existing regulations for gasoline, diesel,
and other fuels by eliminating costly duplication
and hundreds of pages of regulatory text. Under
these updates, fuel standards will remain just as
stringent, while reducing compliance costs for
industry and EPA, ultimately saving consumers
money.
Reducing Regulatory Burden and Emissions from
Liquid Storage Tanks
In October, Administrator Wheeler announced
a proposal that offers regulatory flexibility
to petroleum, chemical, and coal products
manufacturing facilities, as well as petroleum
bulk stations and terminals, by amending Clean
Air Act regulations to allow an alternate, less
cumbersome mode of inspection for certain liquid
storage vessels (tanks). This proposal would offer
flexibility for more than 3,500 storage vessels to
conduct "in-service" rather than out-of-service
inspections. The agency estimates this proposal
could save from $768,000 to $1,091,000 in
regulatory costs annually and reduce emissions
of volatile organic compounds by as much as 83
tons per year.
The current inspection method sometimes
required under New Source Performance
Standards (NSPS) Subpart Kb is expensive,
labor intensive, and results in volatile organic
compound air emissions and other pollutants
from venting and flaring. The proposed
amendments will both reduce burdens for these
businesses and reduce emissions.
The proposal would allow owners and operators
of certain large tanks known as Volatile
Organic Liquid Storage Vessels to conduct less
cumbersome "in-service" inspections of the
tanks, without emptying and degassing the
storage tank. Since 2018, EPA has received
more than 300 requests from facilities seeking

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permission to conduct rooftop, also known
as in-service, inspections to demonstrate
compliance with a 1987 Clean Air Act regulation.
These one-off requests are time consuming and
burdensome for both tank owners and operators
and for EPA. Further, EPA understands that in
recent months inspecting these large tanks from
the inside has become more challenging because
there is a significant increase in the need for
liquid storage capacity (particularly crude and
petroleum products), due to slower consumer
demand.
Ethylene Oxide
As EPA pursues its mission to protect public
health and the environment, addressing ethylene
oxide is a major priority for the agency. EPA has
taken steps to address ethylene oxide emissions
since EPA's National Air Toxics Assessment,
issued in 2018, found that ethylene oxide
emissions may be contributing to potentially
elevated cancer risk in some areas around the
country. EPA has been taking a two-pronged
approach to reduce these emissions. First,
the agency is reviewing existing Clean Air Act
regulations for industrial facilities that emit
ethylene oxide. Second, because the process for
revising regulations takes time, EPA is supporting
our state and local air agency partners to
gather additional information on ethylene oxide
emissions to determine whether more immediate
reduction steps may be warranted.
In May 2020, EPA issued a notice of final
rulemaking for the chemical plants rule, which
strengthened the National Emission Standards
for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) for
Miscellaneous Organic Chemical Manufacturing.
The final rule will achieve hazardous air pollutant
emission reductions of 107 tons per year, which
includes a 93 percent reduction in ethylene
oxide emissions from covered processes and
equipment.
EPA is also working on a second rule, the
NESHAP for Commercial Sterilization Facilities. In
December 2019, EPA took three important steps
as part of its review of the rule. Specifically, the
agency published an Advance Notice of Proposed
Rulemaking to solicit information from industry
and the public on strategies for further reducing
ethylene oxide emissions from these facilities;
issued a mandatory data survey to more than
40 facilities to collect data on their operations;
and invited small businesses, governments,
and not-for-profit organizations to participate as
Small Entity Representatives providing advice
and recommendations to a legally required Small
Business Advocacy Review Panel. EPA expects to
issue a proposed rule for Commercial Sterilization
Facilities in the months ahead.
EPA continues to work with states to learn more
about emissions from specific facilities, identify
opportunities for early reduction, and further
support and coordinate outreach to communities.
In September 2020, the agency announced the
selection of 11 air toxics monitoring projects
to receive $5 million in funding under the
agency's Community-Scale Air Toxics Ambient
Monitoring grants program. Several of these
projects involve the collection of ethylene oxide
data. These grants will also help monitor and
provide important information to communities
on air toxics, including chloroprene, benzene,
1,3-butadiene, and toxic metals.
Approving the Use of Phosphogypsum in
Government Roadways
EPA approved a petition from The Fertilizer
Institute to allow phosphogypsum to be used
in government road construction projects. By
finding a new way to use phosphogypsum, EPA is
helping create a sustainable path to improve the
environment while allowing for responsible reuse
and recycling of a valuable byproduct.
"TFI strongly supports and appreciates EPA's
science-based review and decision to allow the
limited use of phosphogypsum, a by-product of
phosphate fertilizer manufacturing. This decision
strengthens the industry's sustainability efforts
and long-term environmental stewardship," said
TFI President & CEO Corey Rosenbusch.
~~~~~
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WATER
Modernizing Our Regulatory Programs
Restoring Regulatory Certainty Through the
Navigable Waters Protection Rule (NWPR)
By finalizing NWPR, EPA and the Department of
the Army (Army) delivered on President Trump's
promise to finalize a revised definition for "waters
of the United States" that protects the nation's
navigable waters while supporting economic
growth across the country. This rule represented
the final step in a multi-step effort to clarify the
definition of "waters of the United States." The
rule went into effect in June 2020.
The Rulemaking Process
•	Step 1: In November 2019, EPA finalized
a rule that repealed the 2015 Rule that
illegally expanded the definition of "waters
of the United States" under the Clean Water
Act (CWA). As part of the repeal, the agencies
recodifed the longstanding and familiar
regulatory text that existed prior to the 2015
Rule, ending a regulatory patchwork across
the United States.
•	Step 2: The second step in the rulemaking
process is NWPR, which protects the
environment while clearly delineating where
federal regulations apply and giving state
and local authorities more flexibility to
determine how best to manage waters within
their borders. NWPR also streamlines the
definition of "waters of the United States"
so that it includes four simple categories
of jurisdictional waters, provides clear
exclusions for many water features that
traditionally have not been regulated, and
defines terms in the regulatory text that have
never before been defined before. Congress,
in the CWA, explicitly directed EPA and the
Army (the agencies) to protect "navigable
waters." NWPR regulates these waters and
the core tributary systems that provide
perennial or intermittent flow into them.
~
NAVIGABLE WATERS PROTECTION RULE
Implementation: The agencies are striving for
consistent implementation that is understandable
to the public and will continue the longstanding
practice of evaluating waters based on the weight
of evidence from the best available sources of
information for that waterbody.
To make sure that EPA and Army staff were
prepared to implement NWPR, the agencies held
a training series for staff to thoroughly review
key features of the final rule. The agencies then
hosted a five-part webinar training series for our
state and tribal co-regulators, which included
time for questions and answers.
Recognizing that other federal agencies may be
subject to the CWA or have specific roles under
the Act, the agencies provided two webinar
trainings for our federal partners. The agencies
also developed four memoranda to ensure
consistent implementation of the final rule and
to identify further training needs. The memos
include guidance on permitting issues involving
ditches, coordinating on certain jurisdictional
determinations, and collaborating with the U.S.
Department of Agriculture (USDA) on areas of
intersection on wetlands.
Mapping Waters of the United States
There are currently no comprehensive maps or
datasets through which the agencies can depict
the universe of federally regulated waters under
the CWA. To fill this gap, EPA and the Army have

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engaged the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and
established a technical working group to develop
strategies that can address CWA mapping
needs. Mapping water resources is an important
initiative that will be of great benefit to our
agencies, states, tribes, and the regulated public
for purposes of identifying "waters of the United
States" as well as for many other CWA programs.
Modernizing the Clean Water Act Permitting
Process
Updating EPA's CWA Section 401 Implementing
Regulations
Section 401 of the CWA provides states and
authorized tribes with an important tool to help
protect water quality within their borders in
collaboration with federal agencies. EPA finalized
a rule to provide greater clarity and regulatory
certainty regarding the CWA Section 401 water
quality certification process, consistent with
President Trump's Executive Order 13868,
"Promoting Energy Infrastructure and Economic
Growth." Prior to the Trump Administration's
efforts, the rules governing Section 401 authority
had not been updated in nearly 50 years, and
evolving case law and outdated agency guidance
caused confusion and resulted in delays in
certain infrastructure projects with potentially
significant national benefits. EPA received and
reviewed over 125,000 public comments on
the proposed rule and finalized the rule in June
2020. The final rule establishes procedures that
promote consistent implementation of CWA's
Section 401 and regulatory certainty in the
federal licensing and permitting process.
Florida Assumption of the CWA Section 404
Program
On December 17, 2020, EPA announced that
the State of Florida is the first state in more than
25 years to apply for and receive approval to
implement a CWA Section 404 program, joining
Michigan and New Jersey as the only states
in the country with such authority. This action
formally transferred permitting authority under
CWA Section 404 from the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers to the State of Florida for a broad
range of water resources within the state. This
action allows the state to more effectively and
efficiently evaluate and issue permits under the
CWA to support the health of Florida's waters,
residents, and economy. Florida's submission
met the standards established under Section
404 of the CWA, and the state's implementation
of the program will ensure the protection of
Florida's aquatic resources equal to or better
than the existing federal permitting program. The
Sunshine State is the first state or tribe to submit
a complete package requesting to administer the
program since 1994.
Region 4 Administrator Walker and FDEP Secretary
Valenstein sign final documents for Florida 404 assumption
with federal partners and members of the Florida
Congressional Delgation.
Admh list 171tor Wheeler made the announcement
at a press conference with Florida Department
of Environmental Protection (FDEP) Secretary
Noah Valenstein, White House Council on
Environmental Quality (CEQ) Chairman Mary
Neumayr; U.S. Representatives Mario Diaz-Balart
(FL-25), Gus Bilirakis (FL-12), Dan Webster (FL-
11), John Rutherford (FL-04), Michael Waltz
(FL-06), and GregSteube (FL-17); EPA Assistant
Administrator for Water Dave Ross; Principal
Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil
Works Ryan Fisher; EPA Region 4 Administrator
Mary S. Walker; FWS Director Aurelia Skipwith;
and DOI Deputy Assistant Secretary for Water and
Science Aubrey Bettencourt.
In August, Regional Administrator Walker
signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA)
with the Florida Department of Environmental
Protection representing the next step, and one
of a number of required elements, for Florida to
assume responsibility for issuing Section 404

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CWA permits. The signing of the MOA followed a
complex rulemaking process at the state level,
including years of discussions with EPA and
constituency groups during the development
process. The agreement is one of only three ever
executed by the EPA and a state or tribe.
Part of the review process included the
development of a comprehensive Biological
Evaluation of more than 200 endangered species
throughout Florida. EPA also consulted with FWS
under Section 7 of the Endangered Species
Act, resulting in the issuance of a Biological
Opinion and Incidental Take Statement related
to the approval and implementation of Florida's
program. EPA also completed consultation under
Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation
Act and entered into a Programmatic Agreement
with FDEP, the State Historic Preservation Officer,
and the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation
to ensure that historic properties and cultural
resource concerns are addressed as part of
Florida's program implementation.
Vessel Incidental Discharge Act
On December 4, 2018, President Trump signed
the Vessel Incidental Discharge Act (VIDA) into
law. VIDA restructures how EPA and the U.S. Coast
Guard (USCG) regulate incidental discharges,
primarily from commercial vessels, into waters
of the United States and the contiguous zone.
On October 26, 2020, EPA published a Notice of
Proposed Rulemaking in the Federal Register that
details specific discharge standards that would
apply to 20 different types of vessel equipment
and systems, as well as general discharge
standards that would apply more broadly to
all types of vessel incidental discharges. The
proposed discharge standards are technology-
based and in the form of numeric effluent limits
and best management practices. The proposed
standards also distinguish among classes, types,
and sizes of vessels and between new and
existing vessels, and they are at least as stringent
as the 2013 Vessel General Permit. The proposed
regulations also incorporate procedures for
states, working through the EPA or the USCG, as
provided for in VIDA, to seek different discharge
requirements, including no-discharge zones for
one or more incidental discharges.
Power Plant Effluent Limitation Guidelines Saving
Money and Reducing Pollution
On August 31, 2020, EPA finalized the Steam
Electric Reconsideration Rule. The rule revises
requirements first promulgated in 2015 for
two specific waste streams produced by steam
electric power plants: flue gas desulfurization
wastewater and bottom ash transport water.
The final rule leverages newer, more affordable
pollution control technologies and will save the
U.S. power sector approximately $140 million
annually while reducing pollution by nearly a
million pounds per year more compared to the
2015 rule.
Investing in America's Infrastructure
Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act
(WIFIA)
WIFIA is providing financial support for water
infrastructure at a critical time as the federal
government, EPA, and the water sector work
together to help mitigate the public health and
financial impacts of COVID-19.
In 2020, the WIFIA program closed 32
transactions totaling over $5.2 billion in loans
to help finance nearly $10.8 billion for water
infrastructure projects across the country.
Borrowers represent 14 states from all regions
of the U.S. In total, these borrowers will save
up to $497 million (compared to typical market
financing) and create approximately 34,000 jobs.
In July 2020, EPA announced the availability
of financing for $5 billion in WIFIA loans in its
fourth selection round and $1 billion under the
first ever state infrastructure financing authority
WIFIA (SWIFIA) program. The SWIFIA program,
WIFIA
I PROGRAM

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which was authorized by Congress as part of the
America's Water Infrastructure Act of 2018, offers
low-interest loans to state water infrastructure
programs (e.g., the State Revolving Funds) that
help finance needed water infrastructure projects
in local communities. WIFIA received 67 letters of
interest and SWIFIA received 3 letters of interest
totaling nearly $10 billion in financing requests.
The WIFIA financing requested exceeds the
$5 billion available in 2020 and is the highest
amount requested since the program began.
Promoting Flexibilities in WIFIA
In 2020, EPA responded to the changing needs
of current and prospective WIFIA borrowers
by developing new strategies to support water
infrastructure financing. For example, the
WIFIA program allowed existing borrowers to
update WIFIA loans to lower interest rates. In
2020, EPA refinanced 7 WIFIA loans, saving
ratepayers an additional $756 million on top of
the original savings secured via WIFIA financing.
In addition, the WIFIA program has developed
and implemented master agreements that allow
borrowers to efficiently finance multiple projects
over an expanded time period.
State Revolving Fund Programs
•	Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF):
In 2019, the CWSRF provided over $6.2
billion in assistance for a wide range of
water infrastructure projects, including
modernizing aging wastewater infrastructure,
implementing water reuse strategies,
and addressing stormwater management
challenges. Since the program's inception, the
CWSRF has provided over $138 billion in low-
cost funding to water quality projects across
the nation. This low-cost financing represents
a savings of more than $43 billion in interest
costs over the life of the program.
•	Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF):
In 2019, the DWSRF provided over $2.8
billion in assistance to water systems for a
wide range of water infrastructure projects,
including transmission and distribution,
system consolidation, and drinking water
treatment facilities. The DWSRF also funded
an additional $178 million for critical activities
including operator certification, water system
capacity development, and source water
protection. Since its inception, the DWSRF
program has funded more than $41.1
billion in infrastructure projects at below-
market interest rates. This low-cost financing
represents a savings of approximately $10
billion in interest costs over the life of the
program.
In 2019, EPA's Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund programs provided $9
billion to support new and revitalized water infrastructure across the country.
Water Infrastructure Improvement for the Nation
Act
The 2016 Water Infrastructure Improvements
for the Nation Act (WIIN Act) addresses,
supports, and improves America's drinking water
infrastructure. In 2020, EPA made available more
than $73 million to support public water systems
for drinking water projects. EPA made available
$26 million to states and territories to support
testing for lead in drinking water at schools and
childcare programs. EPA also announced 10
selected grantees to receive $39.9 million for
projects under the Reduction in Lead Exposure
via Drinking Water program.
Additionally, EPA made more than $28 million
available in 2020 for drinking water projects
in tribal communities. EPA made available $3
million to reduce exposure to lead in drinking
water In tribal communities and has announced
plans to make available more than $20 million
to improve access to safe drinking water for
American Indian and Alaska Native populations.
In July, EPA announced a $4.3 million grant
program to prioritize the testing for lead in
drinking water at tribal schools and childcare
programs. EPA has six recognized tribal consortia
that will receive funding under this grant.
Clean Water
Slate Revolvii^g Fund
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Protecting Human Health
Lead and Copper Rule
Consistent with President Trump's Executive
Order, "Modernizing America's Water Resource
Management and Water Infrastructure," EPA
finalized the first major overhaul to the Lead
and Copper Rule (LCR) in nearly 30 years. This
historic action strengthens every aspect of the
LCR and accelerates actions that reduce lead in
drinking water to better protect children from lead
exposure.
Administrator Wheeler was joined by U.S.
Department of Housing and Urban Development
(HUD) Secretary Ben Carson; Fiint, Michigan,
Mayor Sheldon Neeley; Springfield, Illinois,
Mayor Jim Langfelder; Wisconsin State Senator
Robert Cowles; Pennsylvania State Senator
Camera Bartolotta; and Jefferson County,
Colorado Commissioner Libby Szabo for the
announcement.
EPA's new LCR better protects children and
communities from the risks of lead exposure
by testing drinking water at elementary schools
and child care facilities, getting the lead out of
our nation's drinking water, and empowering
communities through information. Improvements
under the new rule include:
lead in disadvantaged communities and schools;
and prioritizing projects that reduce exposure
to lead under the innovative WIFIA financing
program.
The new Lead and
Copper Rule accelerates
actions to "get the lead
out" of drinking water
The new rule will:
Better locate elevated levels of lead in
drinking water
Jumpstart corrosion control and
replacement of lead service lines
Close loopholes and replace more lead
service lines in their entirety
Additional Priorities
Water Reuse
Safe and reliable water supplies for human
consumption, agriculture, business, industry,
recreation, and healthy ecosystems are critical
to our nation's communities and economy. Due
to various pressures, 40 U.S. states anticipate
freshwater shortages within their borders in the
next decade. Water reuse (also known as water
recycling or reclamation) is a powerful option to
enhance the availability and effective use of our
nation's water resources.
•	using science-based testing to better locate
elevated levels of lead in drinking water;
•	establishing a trigger level to jumpstart
mitigation earlier and in more communities;
•	driving more and complete lead service line
replacements;
•	for the first time, requiring testing in
elementary schools and child care facilities;
and
•	requiring water systems to identify and make
public the locations of lead service lines.
In addition to LCR, the agency has taken a
number of actions to implement the Federal
Action Plan to Reduce Childhood Lead Exposure,
including finalizing the Use of Lead Free Pipes,
Fittings, Fixtures, Solder, and Flux for Drinking
Water Rule to significantly limit the lead content
allowed in plumbing materials (e.g., pipes, fittings,
and fixtures); providing grant funding to reduce
it
In February 2020, Administrator Wheeler,
joined by federal, state, tribal, and water sector
partners, announced the release of the National
Water Reuse Action Plan (WRAP): Collaborative
Implementation. The Action Plan supports the
Presidential Memorandum on Promoting the
Reliable Supply and Delivery of Water in the West
and will help advance water reuse technology
that has the potential to ensure the viability of our
water economy for generations to come.
With 37 actions and over 200 implementation
milestones across 11 strategic themes, the WRAP
adopts a proactive approach to strengthening
the security, sustainability, and resilience of
our nation's water resources. The actions are
led by 29 unique action leaders and over 80
collaborating partners across the water sector
dedicated to action implementation. Since the
WRAP'S release, action leaders and partners
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have collectively completed 115 milestones and
ongoing activities have translated to nearly 600
action updates.
The WRAP continues to grow and adopt new
actions that address challenges and barriers and
fulfill state, tribal, and water sector needs related
to water reuse. EPA highlights implementation
progress through the WRAP Online Platform,
which reflects the current status of each action.
WRAP quarterly updates showcase expeditious
and meaningful advancements that leaders and
partners have made to further the consideration
of water reuse.
Working with federal agencies and state, local,
and tribal partners, the Initiative will highlight the
vital work of the water workforce and serve as a
catalyst to encourage the choice of water careers
through education and public outreach. The
Initiative reflects the Trump EPA's commitment
to ensuring that our water workforce is prepared
to help meet 21st century water demands
while operating and maintaining our nation's
critical water infrastructure investments. The
Initiative includes three goals: (1) provide federal
leadership to create national momentum and
coordinate efforts, (2) partner to build the water
workforce of the future, and (3) bolster education
and outreach to make water a career of choice.
Water Sector Workforce
On October 5, 2020, EPA announced the next
step in the agency's effort to help address
workforce challenges faced by America's drinking
water and wastewater utilities. EPA's America's
Water Sector Workforce Initiative (Initiative)
outlines actions that the public and private
sector are committing to that will help recruit and
retain the next generation of the water workforce
through workforce planning, technology training,
and collaboration across the federal government
and the water sector. These actions will support
workforce resiliency for water utilities and help
ensure that Americans can continue relying on
safe drinking water and the vital wastewater
services that protect public health and the
environment.
EPA is collaborating with several agencies —
including the U.S. Department of Labor, USDA,
U.S. Department of Education, U.S. Department
of Veterans Affairs, and Bureau of Indian Affairs
-to coordinate expertise and resources through
the Initiative. EPA will also continue to work
with other essential partners across the water
sector, including states and tribes, utilities and
associations, and technical assistance providers.
Reducing Excess Nutrients in the Nation's Waters
Excess nutrients can lead to challenging
environmental problems in surface waters,
including algae blooms, hypoxic zones, and
other water quality concerns. Under the Trump
Administration, EPA is focusing its attention
on reducing nutrient losses through traditional
approaches - including the first update in
almost 20 years to water quality criteria
recommendations for nutrients in lakes and
reservoirs - and enhanced federal and state
coordination, stakeholder engagement and the
use of market-, incentive-, and community-based
programs.
Market-based and community-based programs,
such as water quality trading, have a long history
of being used in the water sector to enable point
sources, such as publicly owned treatment works,
to meet applicable water quality-based effluent
limitations by more cost-effective means. Market-
based approaches may also foster stronger
working relationships between point and non-
point source dischargers, and local governments
Collaborative Implementation (Version 1)
National Water Reuse
Action Plan
Improving the Security. Sustalnablltty. and Resilience of
Our Nation's Water Resources
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by encouraging cooperation to reduce excess
nutrients in waters.
EPA began modernizing its approach to market-
based programs, identifying six market-based
principles in its February 2019 Memorandum
titled Updating the Environmental Protection
Agency's Water Quality Trading Policy to Promote
Market-Based Mechanisms for Improving Water
Quality. Subsequently, in September 2019, EPA
began to build out policy options around one of
the principles in the February 2019 Memorandum
titled Incorporating Flexibility into Baseline
Concepts. The notice proposed several policy
options, solicited comment on those options,
and explained how existing regulatory tools,
including variances and compliance schedules,
can be used to facilitate compliance with effluent
limitations in market-based programs.
EPA has also developed technical guidance on
implementing trading programs on a watershed
scale and has been developing a proposed
a regulation to clarify that National Pollutant
Discharge Elimination System permitting
authorities are authorized under the CWAto use
market-based approaches, such as water quality
trading, in permit conditions to meet applicable
water quality-based effluent limitations.
Additionally, EPA issued revised ambient water
quality criteria recommendations under the CWA
for nutrients in lakes and reservoirs as part of the
agency's ongoing efforts to support states and
authorized tribes in adopting numeric nutrient
criteria into their water quality standards to
protect their designated uses from the harmful
effects of nutrient pollution. EPA published the
draft criteria recommendations in Spring 2020
and intends to publish final criteria by early 2021.
These recommendations replace EPA's previously
recommended ambient nutrient criteria for lakes
and reservoirs that were published in 2000
and 2001. Using statistical stressor-response
relationships that incorporate data collected
from approximately 1,800 lakes, these criteria
recommendations represent the latest scientific
knowledge regarding the concentrations of
nitrogen and phosphorus that are protective
of drinking water sources, recreational uses,
~
and aquatic life in lakes and reservoirs. EPA
developed national statistical models that provide
a flexible approach for identifying appropriately
protective numeric nutrient criteria. States and
authorized tribes can incorporate local data into
the national models to help develop numeric
nutrient criteria that are consistent with national
relationships while accounting for unique local
conditions. EPA stands ready to assist states
and authorized tribes to add their data into the
models through the Nutrient Scientific Technical
Exchange Partnership & Support program.
Water Subcabinet
On October 13, 2020, President Trump signed an
Executive Order 13956 "Modernizing America's
Water Resource Management and Water
Infrastructure." This historic action ensures
federal coordination on water policy is standard
practice, now and into the future, by formally
establishing a Water Subcabinet (WSC) of senior
Federal agency officials to facilitate efficient and
effective management and modernization of our
water supplies and systems while also eliminating
duplication between agencies.
President Trump's WSC consists of six agencies
that collectively manage and direct our nation's
water resources. Represented by agency officials
at the assistant secretary and administrator-
level, the WSC is directed to coordinate and
collaborate on cross-cutting issues impacting
water supply, water quality, water infrastructure,
water forecasting, flood control, and water sector
workforce, among other critical topics. EPA co-
chairs the WSC with DOI.
The WSC Executive Order also includes directives
to promote integrating planning, accelerate
market-based mechanisms to achieve positive
environmental outcomes, ensure water reuse's
role in meeting the needs of the 21st century
water economy, improve geospatial mapping tools
of the nation's water resources, and a variety of
other directives that will ensure EPA's mission of
protecting public health and the environment is
coordinated with the major federal agencies with
water equity and investment capacity.
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Hypoxia Task Force
EPA has promoted public-private collaboration by
providing strong leadership in the Gulf of Mexico
Hypoxia Task Force (HTF), which is comprised
of five federal agencies (that are also members
of the WSC) and officials from 12 states. The
HTF engages with public and private partners to
improve water quality throughout the Mississippi
River Basin and reduce the oxygen-deprived
"dead" zone in the Gulf of Mexico.
Building on a rich federal-state dialogue started
at a WSC Nutrient Roundtable in May 2019, EPA
helped convene seven new HTF workgroups in
February 2020, made up of federal and state HTF
members. The workgroups were charged to make
progress on issues that HTF states identified as
most important to helping them make progress
on their nutrient reduction strategies, including
critical research needs and support for adoption
of innovative conservation practices. Additionally,
in September 2020, EPA gave presentations on
opportunities for the HTF states to use traditional
EPA funding, (e.g., CWA Section 319 grants and
SRFs) to support market-based programs that
help further reduce excess nutrients in surface
water, including the use of 319 funds to purchase
verified water quality credits.
Working with the HTF's communications
workgroup, EPA also led the effort to
institutionalize strong stakeholder education and
public awareness efforts to showcase ongoing
state efforts to reduce excess nutrients. For
example, EPA issued a quarterly newsletter to
spotlight state successes and published a web-
based story map of 28 successful state efforts.
In 2019 and 2020, EPA also provided targeted
and flexible funding to the Task Force states to
help them implement their nutrient reduction
strategies in ways that work best for each state to
catalyze stakeholder effort in their communities.
~~~~~
Superfund
Under President Trump, we have reinvigorated
EPA's Superfund program, which celebrated its
40th anniversary this year, by prioritizing cleaning
up America's most contaminated sites and
bringing them back into productive use. Over the
last four fiscal years, EPA has fully or partially
deleted 82 sites from the National Priorities List
(NPL)-matching the site total over two terms
of the previous administration. For the second
consecutive year, EPA deleted all or part of 27
sites from the NPL in Fiscal Year (FY) 2020, which
was the largest number of deletions in a single
year since FY 2001. This represents the fourth
year in a row that EPA has significantly increased
the number of sites deleted from the NPL,
helping communities move forward in reusing
and redeveloping the land by making it clear that
cleanup is complete.
In FY 2020, recognizing that only EPA can
delete a site from the NPL, EPA employees
initiated a project to evaluate and improve the
deletion process. The result of this initiative
is consolidation of the rulemaking process to
streamline the administrative steps involved
in deleting sites from the NPL, which has been
an obstacle to completing site deletions. Going
forward, this improvement is expected to reduce
workloads, shorten process lead times, and lower
program costs, resulting in sites ready for deletion
being deleted rather than being caught in a
burdensome administrative process.

FY20T7
EPA deletes 27 full arid partial sites
from the National Priorities List
For the 2nd year, EPA shows accelerated progress in cleaning up our nation's land.
iiiil
FYH013
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EPA deletes sites or parts of sites from the NPL
when no further cleanup is required to protect
human health or the environment. While EPA
encourages site reuse throughout the cleanup
process, deletions from the NPL can help
revitalize communities and promote economic
growth by signaling to potential developers and
financial institutions that cleanup is complete.
The agency's FY 2020 deletions include 14 full
sites and parts of 13 sites.
Fully Deleted Sites from the NPL;
1.	FMC Corp. (Dublin Road Landfill), Town of
Shelby, New York
2.	Hormigas Ground Water Plume, Caguas,
Puerto Rico
3.	First Piedmont Corp. Rock Quarry (Route
719), Pittsylvania County, Virginia
4.	Fairfax St. Wood Treaters, Jacksonville,
Florida
5.	Red Panther Chemical Company,
Clarksdale, Mississippi
6.	Dupage County Landfill/Blackwell Forest,
Warrenville, Illinois
7.	Fridley Commons Park Well Field, Fridley,
Minnesota
8.	Scrap Processing Co., Inc., Medford,
Wisconsin
9.	Cimarron Mining Corp., Carrizozo, New
Mexico
10.	Tulsa Fuel and Manufacturing, Collinsville,
Oklahoma
11.	Annapolis Lead Mine, Annapolis, Missouri
12.	JASCO Chemical Corp., Mountain View,
California
13.	American Crossarm & Conduit Co.,
Chehalis, Washington
14.	Northside Landfill, Spokane, Washington
Partially Deleted Sites from the NPL:
1.	Industri-Plex, Woburn, Massachusetts
2.	Macalloy Corp., Charleston, South Carolina
3.	Redstone Arsenal U.S. Army/NASA,
Huntsville, Alabama
4.	Allied Chemical & Ironton Coke, Ironton,
Ohio
5.	Douglass Road/Uniroyal Inc., Landfill
Mishawaka, Indiana
6.	Fort Wayne Reduction Dump, Fort Wayne,
Indiana
7.	Southeast Rockford Ground Water
Contamination, Rockford, Illinois
8.	U.S. Smelter and Lead Refinery, Inc., East
Chicago, Indiana
9.	Omaha Lead, Omaha, Nebraska
10.	Anaconda Co. Smelter, Anaconda, Montana
11.	Idaho Pole, Co., Bozeman, Montana
12.	Libby Asbestos Site, Libby, Montana
13.	Queen City Farms, Maple Valley,
Washington
r>(.vriopnrn!
The Macalloy Corp Superfund site in Charleston, South
Carolina was partially deleted in FY 2020 and holds
economic opportunities for future redevelopment.
Administrator Emphasis List
EPA released the eighth, ninth, and tenth updates
to the Administrator's Emphasis List (AEL) of
Superfund sites targeted for immediate, intense
action. The list makes visible EPA's commitment
to facilitating progress at Superfund sites by
resolving longstanding issues at cleanup projects
across the country. The valuable management
tool has repeatedly demonstrated efficacy in
helping sites that have been challenged to
overcome hurdles, in some cases for many years,
clear those hurdles and move forward. The list
is comprised of sites identified by EPA regional
offices that will benefit from the administrator's
immediate attention or action to move site
cleanups forward and meet milestones.
Since the creation of the AEL in 2017, 20 sites
have been removed from the list after achieving
critical milestones that furthered site cleanup or
solved issues slowing the pace of cleanups. This
year's updates included:
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•	The Carter Carburetor Site in St. Louis,
Missouri—a long-abandoned factory that
was a blight on the inner-city neighborhood
— has been remediated and will be handed
over to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater St.
Louis, which operates a club next door. The
Gateway PGA Reach Foundation will help
with the redevelopment and aims to start an
academy there, which — in addition to golf
activities — will provide after-school resources,
mentoring, and "a path to college education,"
for neighborhood youth.
•	The USS Lead site in East Chicago, Indiana is
a formerly heavy industrial area that is now
a mostly residential and commercial area.
Cleanup of lead and other contaminants was
completed for many residential properties
with 671 mostly residential properties recently
deleted from the NPL. Other areas undergoing
cleanup are primed for redevelopment.
•	Petroleum Products in Pembroke Park, Florida
had once been a used oil processing facility
where large quantities of contaminated used
oil and an estimated 50,0000 cubic yards of
contaminated oily sludge was disposed of just
above an aquifer that is the source of drinking
water for nearby communities. Prior remedial
approaches over the last 20 years were
unable to remove most of the contamination,
but with the focus of the AEL, EPA has
proposed a remedial plan that will finally be
able to remove the sludge and protect this
vital drinking water source.
EPA monitors sites removed from the list to
ensure that significant progress continues and
cleanups move towards completion. One example
is the Madison County Anschutz Mine site in
Fredericktown, Missouri, where implementation
of the property-wide cleanup of historical, surficial
mine waste contamination is underway. Since the
site was removed from the AEL, the site's lessee,
Missouri Cobalt, has completed construction of
its tailings reprocessing facility on the site and
started recovering metals from on-site waste
mine tailings, creating new jobs in the area.
CERCLA Section 108(b)
In 2020, under the authority of the
Comprehensive Environmental Response,
Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) Section
108(b), EPA finalized its rulemakings on financial
responsibility requirements for the Electric Power
Generation, Transmission and Distribution;
Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing; and
Chemical Manufacturing industries. Following
a detailed analysis of the financial risk to the
federal Superfund program, EPA determined
no new financial assurance requirements were
merited for production, transportation, treatment,
storage, or disposal of hazardous substances
in these industries. This included evaluating the
history of cleanups under Superfund, modern
industry practices, applicable federal and state
regulations, the industries' financial health and
economic trends, and the risk of taxpayer-funded
cleanups of facilities in these industries. This is
consistent with EPA's interpretation of the statute,
which was unanimously upheld by the D.C.
Circuit Court of Appeals in litigation challenging
the agency's hardrock mining final action not
requiring additional financial assurance. EPA's
final rulemakings do not remove any existing
requirements; rather they do not impose
additional, new requirements.
Section 108(b) of CERCLA addresses potential
requirements for financial responsibility to cover
the costs associated with cleaning up releases
or threatened releases of hazardous substances
from facilities. In the 40 years since CERCLA
became law, other state and federal requirements
have been promulgated, so EPA has not needed
to use this statutory authority to impose
additional financial assurance requirements on
classes of facilities to address the potential risk
of releases of hazardous substances.
Office of Mountains, Deserts and Plains
In September, Deputy Associate Administrator
Doug Benevento and Assistant Administrator
for the Office of Land and Emergency
Management (OLEM) Peter Wright joined Region
8 Administrator GregSopkin in announcing the
Office of Mountains, Deserts and Plains at the
Western Museum of Mining and Industry in
Colorado Springs, Colorado.
~
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EPA established the Office of Mountains, Deserts
and Plains to assume oversight responsibilities
for federal hardrock mining cleanup sites west
of the Mississippi River; serve as a central
contact for other federal agencies, states and
tribes with responsibility for or impacted by these
sites; and develop innovative technologies and
adaptive management approaches to address
legacy pollution. The office reports to the
Assistant Administrator for Land and Emergency
Management in Washington, D.C., but the office
is located in Denver, Colorado. Additionally,
the office supports efforts of conservation
organizations to voluntarily undertake projects to
improve conditions at abandoned mines (Good
Samaritan projects).
Born out of lessons learned at sites across the
country such as the Bonita Peak Mining District in
Colorado and Silver Bow Creek Superfund site in
Butte, Montana, EPA developed this new office to
focus on the complex and unique issues related
to hardrock mining cleanup and the communities
in which they are located. The office seeks to
improve EPA's ability to respond to the range of
special issues and unique needs associated with
Western mining sites in EPA Regions 6, 7, 8, 9,
and 10. The new office will drive accountability,
streamline cleanup efforts, and better facilitate
coordination with states, local and tribal
partners. It is the primary point of integration,
communication, and coordination with federal
land management agencies that oversee
the federal lands where many of the current
abandoned mines exist. By realigning existing
resources and teaming up staff with expertise
it
in these distinct ecosystems, the new Office of
Mountains, Deserts and Plains will accelerate
positive outcomes for Western communities and
the environment.
Brownfields and Opportunity Zones
Under the Trump Administration, EPA's
Brownfield and Land Revitalization Program has
provided approximately $295 million directly
to communities and nonprofits for cleanup and
redevelopment, job creation, and economic
development. These grants allow communities
to leverage additional investment and provide
communities with an opportunity to transform
contaminated sites into community assets that
attract jobs and achieve broader economic
development outcomes. To date, communities
participating in the Brownfields Program have
been able to attract more than $33.6 billion
in cleanup and redevelopment funding after
receiving Brownfields Program funds.
A brownfield is a property where the expansion,
redevelopment, or reuse may be complicated
by the presence or potential presence of a
hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant.
There are estimated to be more than 450,000
brownfields in the U.S.
In May, EPA announced the selection of 155
grants for communities and tribes totaling over
$65.6 million in EPA brownfields funding through
the agency's Assessment, Revolving Loan Fund,
and Cleanup Grant Programs. These EPA grant
programs support community revitalization in
under-served and economically disadvantaged
communities.
Of the communities selected this year, 118 can
potentially assess or clean up brownfield sites in
census tracts designated as federal Opportunity
Zones. An Opportunity Zone is a designated
economically distressed census tract where new
private investment, under certain conditions,
may be eligible for preferential tax treatment.
Nearly 30 percent of the communities selected
are receiving brownfields funding for the first
time. The combined power of Brownfield Program
funding and its ability to leverage other funding
and jobs combined with Opportunity Zone
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incentives have yielded impressive results in a
short amount of time. Since June 1, 2018, EPA
brovvnfields funding of just under $29 million in
Opportunity Zones has led to accomplishments
at 1,255 properties, which have leveraged over
$403 million in additional funding and in excess
of 1,500 jobs.
Communities that previously received brownfields
grants used these resources to fund assessments
and cleanups of brownfields and successfully
leveraged 8.5 jobs per $100,000 of EPA
brownfield grant funds spent. This has led to
over 170,724 jobs in cleanup, construction, and
redevelopment.
Highlights:
In Pottstown, Pennsylvania, Administrator
Wheeler announced $6.9 million in supplemental
funding for 25 current successful Brownfields
Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) grantees at the
former Mercury Newspaper headquarters. The
RLF supplemental funds are being provided to
communities that have demonstrated success in
using their Revolving Loan program to clean up
and redevelop brownfield sites. The funds will be
used to continue their progress in reusing vacant
and abandoned properties and turning them into
community assets such as housing, recreation
and open space, health facilities, social services,
and commerce opportunities.
The supplemental funds announced went to
communities including the City of Pawtucket,
Rhode Island; Camden Redevelopment Agency
(New Jersey); the City of New York, New York;
Montgomery County, Pennsylvania; the City
of Atlanta, Georgia; Indiana Finance Authority
(Indiana); the City of Tulsa, Oklahoma;, the
City of Springfield, Missouri; Snowy Mountain
Development Corporation (Montana); and
Humboldt County, California, which have
demonstrated success in using their RLF funds
to clean up and redevelop brownfields sites. All
communities receiving supplemental funds have
census tracks designated as federal Opportunity
Zones within their jurisdiction.
The former Mercury Newspaper site, located at
the center of Pottstown, was remediated using
an RLF loan. Redevelopment of this prominent
building at the center of the borough will create
the first boutique hotel in the borough creating
jobs and tax revenue and support the downtown's
burgeoning business and entertainment venues.
Grants awarded by EPA's Brownfields Program
provide communities across the country with an
opportunity to transform contaminated sites into
community assets that attract jobs and achieve
broader economic development outcomes while
taking advantage of existing infrastructure.
For example, Brownfields Program grants have
been shown to increase local tax revenue and
residential property values.
•	A study of 48 brownfields sites found that
an estimated $29 million to $97 million in
additional local tax revenue was generated
in a single year after cleanup. This is two to
seven times more than the $12.4 million EPA
contributed to the cleanup of these sites.
•	Another study found that property values
of homes near revitalized brownfields sites
increased between 5 percent and 15 percent
following cleanup.
Recycling
U.S. EPA
America Recycles
In November, Administrator Wheeler unveiled a
modern, ambitious National Recycling Goal at
the third annual America Recycles Day Summit
to increase the national recycling rate to 50
percent by 2030. The most recent recycling data
show that the national recycling rate, after being
fairly stagnant for 20 years, peaked in the mid-
30 percent range but dipped to 32 percent in
2018. The nation's recycling infrastructure has
not kept pace with the current material stream.
Just before the third annual America Recycles
¦fa
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Day Summit, EPA released a draft National
Recycling Strategy for public input in preparation
for America Recycles Week. The draft National
Recycling Strategy identifies strategic objectives
and actions needed to create a stronger, more
resilient U.S. municipal solid waste recycling
system.
The draft National Recycling Strategy was
developed as part of EPA's continued leadership
in addressing the challenges facing the U.S.
recycling system and builds on EPA's 2019
National Framework for Advancing the U.S.
Recycling System. The strategy organizes high-
level actions around three strategic objectives
to improve the U.S. recycling system: 1) reduce
contamination, 2) increase processing efficiency,
and 3) improve markets.
1
Strategies to achieve National
Recycling Goal of 50°7o by 2030:
Reduce Contamination in Recycling
Reducing the percentage of the wrong materials in the
recycling stream helps ensure clean recyclable materials,
such as paper, glass or plastic, can be processed and made
into new products.

¥
Recognizing the importance of recycling and the
great potential for improvement, Administrator
Wheeler hosted the first America Recycles Day
Summit on November 15, 2018. Since then,
more than 250 organizations have signed the
America Recycles Pledge, promising to work
collaboratively to improve the American recycling
system. This year in addition to the Summit, EPA
hosted the second America Recycles: Innovation
Fair to showcase entrepreneurs from across the
recycling system online via virtual exhibit halls
and demonstrate their state-of-the-art products,
services, outreach, and technologies. The virtual
Innovation Fair featured more than 40 exhibitors
advancing recycling technology through strategies
such as: deploying artificial intelligence robots
to enhance operations at recycling facilities;
using hard-to-recycle plastics in 3D printing
materials; installing small system sorting units
in stadiums and small communities; creating
new construction materials from hard-to-recycle
plastics; and using automated machines and
recycled glass bottles from restaurants to create
new glassware.
A view of the virtual lobby for the second America Recycles
Innovation Fair.
¦

Recycling is a critical component of the U.S.
economy, providing approximately 700,000 jobs
and $37 billion in wages; however, stressing the
system are factors such as:
•	confusion about what materials can be
recycled;
•	recycling infrastructure that has not kept
pace with today's diverse and changing waste
stream;
•	reduced markets for recycled materials; and
•	varying methodologies to measure recycling
system performance.
Emergency Response and Natural Disasters
This year, EPA participated in and coordinated
102 emergency response removal actions that
addressed the many hurricanes and wildfires that
impacted the country and communities over the
past year.
This year, EPA responded to Tropical Storms
Marco and Laura by helping communities in
the Gulf Coast area stay prepared against the
threat of flooding and releases of wastewater
from sanitary sewers. Together, with state and
local agencies, EPA actively worked to monitor
facilities that reported spills, as well as conducted
outreach and provided technical guidance to all
wastewater facilities in the flood-impacted areas.
EPA emergency responders from across the
agency supported the efforts led by EPA Regions
9 and 10 to help communities devasted by
wildfires by removing hazardous materials left
Bai»niaii3
Welcome to the Amencs Recycles
Innovation Fair awl Summit!
Education &
Commufticatiw
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behind by the fire's destruction of homes and
other structures. This is a critical first step in
helping communities recover and rebuild.
For example, in eight Oregon counties devasted
by fires, 17 EPA field recovery teams, working 12-
hour days, seven days a week, have retrieved and
removed household hazardous waste from over
2,300 fire-ravaged parcels. In addition, EPA teams
stabilized and consolidated ash and debris from
more than 230 parcels along Oregon waterways
- including five miles of the Bear Creek riparian
area in Jackson County - protecting water quality
from toxic runoff. In all, EPA mobilized over 250
responders, both virtually and in the field, from all
over the country to support response operations.
In California, EPA-led teams completed household
hazardous waste removal from 2,644 properties
in seven counties that experienced severe fire
damage.
Waste
Coal Combustion Residuals
In 2020, EPA took action to stabilize coal ash
regulations for the power-producing utilities
that Americans rely on every day. These actions
included proposed revisions and flexibilities to the
regulations for the management of coal ash from
electric utilities, increased flexibility by allowing
for more site-specific management of coal ash
so long as the impoundments demonstrate
no reasonable probability of adverse effects
to human health and the environment, and
regulatory action on the closure regulations for
coal ash storage that enhance protections for
public health while giving electric utilities enough
time to retrofit or replace unlined impoundment
ponds.
In July 2020, EPA finalized several changes to the
regulations for coal combustion residuals, known
as CCR or coal ash, to implement the court's
vacatur of certain closure requirements as well
as adding provisions that enhance the public's
access to information about the management of
coal ash at electric utilities.
In October 2020, EPA finalized the alternate liner
demonstration procedures for unlined surface
impoundments of CCR, allowing for more site-
specific management of coal ash so long as
the impoundments demonstrate no reasonable
probability of adverse effects to the human health
and the environment.
Following the approval of the first-in-the-nation
state coal ash permitting program for Oklahoma
in 2018 and the second for Georgia in 2019,
EPA proposed a streamlined, efficient, federal
permitting program for the disposal of CCR.
Additionally, EPA has proposed approval of
the State of Texas's permit program for the
management of CCR in landfills and surface
impoundments this year. If finalized, it will
make Texas the third state in the nation with an
approved coal ash permit program.
Reducing Food Waste
In 2020, EPA worked to build upon past success
in garnering attention to address food loss and
waste. EPA has taken significant steps to highlight
the need to reduce food waste nationally. In
October 2018 and December 2020, EPA, the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and USDA
signed a formal agreement to align efforts across
the federal government to educate consumers,
engage stakeholders, and develop and evaluate
solutions to food loss and waste. In May 2020,
the agencies updated the federal interagency
strategy by listing contributing efforts in each of
the priority action areas.
1.	Priority Area 1: Enhance Interagency
Coordination
2.	Priority Area 2: Increase Consumer
Education and Outreach Efforts
3.	Priority Area 3: Improve Coordination
and Guidance on Food Loss and Waste
Measurement
4.	Priority Area 4: Clarify and Communicate
Information on Food Safety, Food Date
Labels, and Food Donations
5.	Priority Area 5: Collaborate with Private
Industry to Reduce Food Loss and Waste
Across the Supply Chain
6.	Priority Area 6: Encourage Food Waste
Reduction by Federal Agencies in their
Respective Facilities

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EPA and USDA 2030 Food Loss and Waste
Champions
In 2020, the EPA and USDA welcomed 10
new businesses and organizations to the
2030 Champions. Champions have made the
commitment to reduce food loss and waste by
50 percent in their own operations by 2030. The
list of 2030 Champions includes Ahold Delhaize,
Amazon, Aramark, Blue Apron, Bon Appetit,
Browns Superstores, Campbells, Compass Group,
ConAgra, Farmstead, General Mills, Giant Eagle,
Hello Fresh, Hilton, Kellogg's, Kroger, Las Vegas
Sands, Marley Spoon, Meijer, MGM Resorts,
Mom's Organic Market, PepsiCo, Sodexo, Sprouts,
The Wendy's Company, UNFI, Unilever, Walmart,
Walt Disney World, Wegmans, Weis, Whitsons,
and Yum! Brands.
Administrator Wheeler visits the food waste reduction
operations at Three Square Bank with MGM officials.
Administrator Wheeler also went on several
food waste related tours in 2020. In January, he
traveled to MGM's Aria Resort in Las Vegas to see
their food loss and waste prevention measures in
place. He then toured Three Square Food Bank's
facilities after receiving an overview of how the
food bank reuses and repurposes food donations
from MGM. In October, he toured Wait Disney
World Resort and discussed with their team how
industry leaders can help the public significantly
reduce their food waste footprint.
In 2019, Administrator Wheeler toured the
FreshDirect facility, one of the east coast's largest
online grocery stores, and later participated
in a U.S.-New York City Food Waste Reduction
Roundtable discussion with CEOs and other
leaders from EPA Region 2, City Harvest, ReFED
and PepsiCo, a U.S. Food Loss and Waste 2030
Champion. While in the Big Apple, Administrator
Wheeler also joined Syd Mandelbaum with the
Rock and Wrap It Up! organization to serve lunch
to local residents at Woodycrest United Methodist
Church with food diverted from nearby Yankee
Stadium. Rock and Wrap It Up! is an EPA 2018
Food Recovery Challenge regional award winner
and has received this award for several years
running.
In addition to U.S. Food Loss and Waste 2030
Champions, EPA has engaged with local, tribal,
and territorial governments interested in making
a commitment to food waste reduction by signing
the agency's Reducing Food Waste pledge.
Pledge signers include: Arkansas
Department of Energy and Environment,
Division of Environmental Quality;
Association of State and Territorial
Solid Waste Management Officials;
City of Baltimore, Maryland; City of
Burnsville, Minnesota; City of Greensburg,
Kansas; City of Orlando, Florida; City of
Philadelphia, Department of Prisons;
Delaware Department of Agriculture;
Florida Department of Agriculture and
Consumer Services; Iowa Department of
Natural Resources; Iowa Waste Reduction
Center; Jackson County, Mississippi;
Jefferson County, Colorado; Jefferson
County, Texas; Kentucky Department
of Agriculture; Kentucky Department
of Environmental Protection; Louisiana
Department of Environmental Quality;
Maine Department of Environmental
Protection; Maryland Department of the
Environment; Minnesota Pollution Control
Agency; Missouri Department of National
Resources; Montgomery County, Maryland;
National Association of State Departments
of Agriculture; National League of
Cities; North Carolina Department
of Environmental Quality; Nebraska
Department of Environmental Quality;
New Mexico Department of Agriculture;
New Mexico Environment Department;
Oklahoma Department of Environmental
Quality; Oregon Department of
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Environmental Quality; Ramsey County,
Minnesota; Rhode Island Department
of Environmental Management; Town of
Auburn, New Hampshire; U.S. Conference
of Mayors; and Washington Department of
Ecology.
THE PLEDGE: We, the undersigned
governmental organizations, pledge to
work together with our federal partners
to build upon new or existing efforts to
address food loss and waste in the United
States. Our signatures indicate the interest
and willingness of our governmental
organizations to participate in ongoing
dialogue to identify specific actions we can
take collectively and within our respective
organizations to reduce food waste
nationally.
~~~~~
[chemicals]
Accelerating Progress on Chemical Safety
Since Day 1 of the Trump Administration, EPA
has continued aggressive implementation of the
2016 Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for
the 21st Century Act, which amended the Toxic
Substances Control Act (TSCA). Over the past
four years, the agency has set up the processes,
policies, and resources to review the over 41,000
existing chemicals in the marketplace and any
new chemicals that companies want to bring to
market. Through tireless efforts of expert career
staff, the agency has taken the necessary time to
do this work in a way that increases transparency,
produces high-quality assessments using
sound science, and ensures that Americans are
protected from unreasonable risks. This work
will benefit public health and the environment
and facilitate innovation in chemistry for years to
come.
Finalizing the Risk Evaluations for the First 10
High Priority Chemicals
Under TSCA, EPA is required to evaluate the risks
associated with exposure to existing chemicals
in commerce, using the best available science,
then take action to address any unreasonable
risks identified. In 2016, EPA published a list of
the first 10 chemical substances that are the
subject of the agency's initial risk evaluations
under amended TSCA. EPA released the scope
documents for these 10 risk evaluations in 2017,
the problem formulation documents in 2018,
and started releasing draft risk evaluations for
the chemicals in November 2018. By the end of
the term, EPA issued the final risk evaluations
for all ten chemicals (1-Bromopropane, Carbon
Tetrachloride, Cyclic Aliphatic Bromide Cluster,
Methylene Chloride, Trichlorethylene, Asbestos,
Part l:Chrysotile Asbestos, 1,4-dioxane,
N-Methylpyrrolidone, Perchloroethylene, and
Pigment Violet 29).
Ensuring Scientific Rigor and Enhancing
Transparency of the Risk Evaluation Process
In 2020, the TSCA Science Advisory Committee
on Chemicals (SACC) held four meetings to
provide EPA with an independent review of
the science underlying the agency's draft risk
evaluations for the first 10 high priority chemicals.
EPA is using the scientific advice, information
and recommendations from the SACC, as well
as public comments, to inform the final risk
evaluations.
Started Risk Management for Final Risk
Evaluations
In September, EPA kicked off a robust
engagement and outreach effort on ways to
address unreasonable risks identified in the
agency's final TSCA chemical risk evaluations.
EPA hosted public webinars, engaged with
businesses of all sizes, and consulted with tribal
and environmental justice communities about
risk management for the final risk evaluations
issued so far.
Reduced the Backlog of New Chemicals Reviews
In January 2017, the backlog of chemicals under
review for greater than 90 days had grown to
over 500. Since that time, EPA has put policies
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and procedures in place to reduce the number of
chemicals under review for over 90 days to 184
while completing the review of more than 3,000
new chemical submissions.
that risk evaluations are not warranted at this
time for these chemicals. This action is the result
of a rigorous, transparent, and scientifically
sound process to ensure chemicals in commerce
do not pose unreasonable risks. This final list
of low-priority chemicals will allow EPA to focus
its risk evaluation efforts on the chemicals that
could significantly impact public health and the
environment.
Proposed Revisions to TSCA Fees Rule to
Increase Flexibility and Reduce Burden
In December, EPA issued proposed revisions
to the TSCA fees rule by the end of 2020. The
revisions will narrow the broad scope of current
requirements, significantly reducing burden
on potentially thousands of companies while
increasing flexibility for businesses subject to
TSCA fees. The proposal is the product of open,
transparent dialog with stakeholders and ensures
EPA's TSCA program continues to protect public
health and the environment without causing
unnecessary burden on American businesses.
Since the passing of the Lautenberg
Chemical Safety Act in 2016,
the agency has completed
3,000+ NEW CHEMICAL
SUBMISSION REVIEWS
AND REDUCED THE NUMBER
OF CHEMICALS UNDER REVIEW
FOR OVER 90 DAYS FROM
500 —~ 184
Initiating the Risk Evaluation Process for the Next
20 High Priority Chemicals
In December 2019, EPA announced the list of
the next 20 chemical substances to undergo
risk evaluation under TSCA. EPA released the
scope documents for these 20 risk evaluations
in September 2020 and anticipates issuing the
problem formulation documents in 2021.
Exercising Agency's First Ever Use of New of Test
Order Authority
The Lautenberg Act amendments to TSCA
expanded the agency's authority to require the
development of new information on chemicals
via issuance of Section 4 Test Orders. In 2020,
EPA exercised this authority for the first time ever
by issuing test orders to obtain additional data
on PV-29 and on nine of the next 20 chemicals
undergoing risk evaluation. The information
obtained through these orders will help ensure
EPA's risk evaluations for these chemicals are
robust, credible, and use the best available data.
Designating First 20 Low Priority Chemicals
In February, EPA published a list of 20 chemical
substances identified as low priority, meaning
Hiring Critically Needed Scientists
In an effort to ensure that the agency has the
necessary scientific expertise for the TSCA and
pesticide risk assessment program, the Office
of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention
(OCSPP) hired 18 scientists to support TSCA
implementation efforts and 17 scientists to
support its pesticides work at OCSPP's first-ever
established presence in Research Triangle Park,
North Carolina. In addition, OCSPP's Office of
Pollution Prevention and Toxics is undertaking an
aggressive effort to compete and fill more than
50 existing positions over the next year to deliver
on our important statutory mandates.
Celebrating 30 Years of Preventing Pollution
In November, EPA celebrated the 30th
anniversary of the Pollution Prevention (P2)
Act. The Act gave the agency new tools to join
with states, tribes, and communities to prevent
pollution before it happens. It also marked a shift
in the paradigm of environmental protection,
which had been mostly focused on end-of-pipe
pollution control and clean-up strategies. One
of the Act's most impactful and collaborative
programs is EPA's P2 Grants Program. Through
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the 2020 Pollution Prevention (P2) and Source
Reduction Award (SRA) grants, EPA has formed
innovative partnerships and collaborations that
enable the agency to prevent pollution before it
begins.
P2 grants provide technical assistance to
awardees working to reduce or eliminate
pollutants from entering any waste stream or
otherwise being released into the environment
prior to recycling, treatment, or disposal. In
September, EPA awarded approximately $9.3
million to 42 organizations (including states,
academic institutions, and federally recognized
tribes) in 39 states, supporting pollution
prevention across the country.
SRA grants fund innovative, cost-effective,
replicable source reduction approaches,
enabling grant recipients and others to save
energy and water, reduce pollution, and improve
public health. In November, EPA awarded 11
organizations across nine states $1.16 million
in grant funding to support pollution prevention
activities.
EPA Published 2019 Annual Toxics Release
Inventory
In January 2021 EPA released its 2019 Toxics
Release Inventory (TRI) National Analysis, which
showed that between 2018 and 2019 total
releases of TRI chemicals decreased by 9 percent
— proof that economic growth and an improved
environment can go hand in hand. Other notable
trends included for the first time in five years,
industrial and federal facilities reported an
increased number of new source reduction
activities that aim to reduce or eliminate the
amount of chemical-containing waste facilities
create. Facilities also avoided releasing 89
percent of the chemical-containing waste they
created and managed during 2019 into the
environment by using preferred practices such as
recycling, treatment, and energy recovery.
Addressing Persistent, Bioaccumulative, and
Toxic Chemicals
In December, EPA finalized five rules to reduce
exposures to certain chemicals that are
persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic (PBT).
These chemicals build up in the environment
over time and can therefore have potential risks
for exposed populations. Under EPA's final rules,
the agency will restrict or prohibit manufacture
(including import), processing, and distribution in
commerce for many uses of four PBT chemicals,
and institute a ban on intentional uses of five
chemicals.
Providing Growers with Tools and Certainty
Innovation in agricultural tools is critical to a
healthy environment, healthy workers, and
vibrant crops. In 2020, EPA registered 16 new
active ingredients many of which were classified
as lower risk biopesticides, one new import
tolerance, 163 new uses of existing pesticides,
and rthe agency e-registered over 50 existing
pesticides products. Many of these are providing
additional tools to help growers meet their pest
management needs as well as advancing the
best available scientific support for the agency's
work.
In addition, EPA registered several new and
innovative products to meet critical pest
management needs. One such product is
Nootkatone, which was register in partnership
with the CDC in August. A new active ingredient
responsible for the characteristic smell and taste
of grapefruit, Nootkatone is used to develop new
insect repellents and insecticides. Additionally,
in September, EPA approved two new products
that contain a new active ingredient called
Pseudomonas fluorescens strain ACK55. These
products can be used for targeted application on
invasive, noxious grasses often associated with
wildfires.
In October, EPA approved new five-year
registrations for two dicamba products and
extended the registration of an additional
dicamba product. All three registrations include
new control measures to ensure these products
can be used effectively while protecting the
environment, including non-target plants,
animals, and other crops not tolerant to dicamba.
These registrations are only for use on dicamba-
tolerant cotton and soybeans and will expire in
2025, providing certainty to American agriculture
for the upcoming growing season and beyond.
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Administrator Wheeler announces the agency's 2020
registration decision for dicamba at a farm in Georgia,
m	m
Advancing Biotechnology in Agriculture
Under President Trump's Executive Order on
Modernizing the Regulatory Framework for
Agricultural Biotechnology Products, EPA, in
coordination with USDA and FDA, launched a
unified website in January that provides a one-
stop-shop for information about the actions
the federal government is taking to oversee
the development of agricultural biotechnology
products, in September, EPA released a draft
proposal to improve current insect resistance
management strategies for pests affecting
Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) corn and cotton
plant-incorporated protectants (PIPs). This draft
proposal seeks input on an Integrated Risk
Management framework that could help farmers
prolong the durability of Bt PIPs from pests.
Additionally, in September, EPA continued to
remove barriers to biotechnology innovation
by proposing exemptions under the Federal
Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act
(FIFRA) and the Federal Food, Drug, and
Cosmetic Act for certain PIPs created through
biotechnology. PIPs are pesticidal substances
produced by plants and the genetic material
necessary for the plant to produce the pesticidal
substance. EPA's proposed exemptions for
PIPs created through biotechnology seek to
facilitate the development of new tools for
American farmers to protect their crops and
control agricultural pests. By reducing antiquated
regulations that restrict access to the market
for biotechnology products, science-based
innovations to agriculture will become far more
accessible to American farmers.
In November, EPA released updated draft
guidance for plant biostimulants for a second
round of public comment. Plant biostimulants are
a relatively new but growing category of products
containing naturally occurring substances and
microbes. Their increasing popularity arises from
their ability to enhance agricultural productivity
through stimulation of natural plant processes
using substances and microbes already present
in the environment. Plant biostimulants can also
reduce the use of synthetic chemical fertilizers,
making it an attractive option for sustainable
agriculture and integrated pest management
programs. When finalized, EPA's Plant
Biostimulants Guidance will provide sought-after
certainty and transparency for this growing area
of the economy.
OCSPP Assistant Administrator Alex Dunn with a cotton
farmer in Georgia in 2020.
Improving the Endangered Species Act Process
for Pesticides
In March, EPA announced improved methods
for conducting biological evaluations under the
Endangered Species Act to assure that pesticide
registration review actions under FIFRA do not
jeopardize endangered species. The methods
were developed with dedicated collaboration
from USDA, DOI, U.S. Department of Commerce's
National Marine Fisheries Services, and CEQ. The
updated methods ensure that - when available
- the agency will use high-quality historical data
that reflects where and how certain pesticides
are used. The revised method will better protect
and promote the recovery of endangered species
while ensuring pesticide registration review
decisions are conducted in a timely, transparent
manner and based on the best available science.
EPA released the draft biological evaluations for
4r
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the triazines, methomyl, carbaryl, and glyphosate
this year, applying the new methods.
Improving Worker Safety
In October, EPA finalized improvements to
requirements for the pesticide application
exclusion zone (AEZ), the area surrounding
pesticide application equipment that exists only
during outdoor production pesticide applications.
EPA's targeted changes improve the enforceability
and workability of the AEZ requirements,
decrease regulatory burdens for farmers, and
maintain critical worker protections.
In November, EPA announced the selection of the	Advancing Sustainable Pest Control in Agriculture
Association of Farmworker Opportunity Programs	In January 2021, Administrator Wheeler
(AFOP) to receive up to $500,000 annually	announced a new $2 million dollar initiative that
to conduct pesticide safety training across	encourages smart, sensible, and sustainable
the country over the next five years. With EPA	pest control in agriculture. The initiative, which
funding, AFOP will administer this grant to provide	is an extension of EPA's Pesticide Environmental
occupational health and safety trainings to	Stewardship Program (PESP), expects to
migrant and seasonal farmworkers in more than	award grantees up to $200,000 to implement
25 states through a network of over 200 trainers.	sustainable pest management practices.
Increased Outreach on Importance of Pollinator
Protection
In 2020, Administrator Wheeler signed a
proclamation designating the week of June
22 as National Pollinator Week, the first such
proclamation in 50-year history of the agency.
During this week, the agency also renewed its
memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the
Pollinator Partnership, a nonprofit organization
that facilitates actions that benefit pollinator
habitats. Later in the year, the agency kicked
off a popular webinar series regarding ongoing
work to promote pollinator health and habitat
that reached over 2,100 attendees. Finally, in
September, EPA co-hosted the Pollinator State
of Science Workshop webinar with the USDA.
The goal of the webinar was to identify outcome-
based strategies to mitigate the potential impact
of multiple stressors influencing pollinator
declines. Participants, representing a wide range
of stakeholders, discussed USDA research to
identify ways to improve pollinator health through
collaborative efforts across a wide range of
government, industry, growers, academia, and
other stakeholders.
~~~~~
ENFORCEMENT
Over the last four years, EPA has focused on
priority environmental risks and non-compliance
issues to address the most egregious violations
and ensure that the regulated community
understands and complies with the law.
Using all of its tools, EPA has taken actions
that meaningfully increase compliance with
environmental laws and deter noncompliance.
From 2017 to 2020 EPA's enforcement and
compliance and assurance actions resulted in:
•	over $5.7 billion in combined civil penalties,
criminal fines, and restitution collected;
•	voluntary disclosure and certified correction
of violations at over 5,300 facilities;
•	investment of $32.27 billion in actions and
equipment that achieve compliance with the
law and control pollution;
~
EPA makes
first-ever
POLLINATOR
PROCLAM4J
in agency's
50-year history
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•	661 criminal cases opened;
•	486 criminal defendants charged;
•	commitments of $2.9 billion for new site
cleanup work and more than $572 million
in reimbursement of EPA's costs, as well
as collection of more than $399 million in
oversight costs; and
•	advancement of cleanup and redevelopment
at over 415 sites through use of Superfund
enforcement tools.
EPA achieved these results by:
•	aligning its enforcement and compliance
resources with the Agency's Strategic Plan,
through National Compliance Initiatives
(NCIs);
•	enhancing shared accountability between the
EPA and states with authorized environmental
programs;
•	expanding enforcement and compliance
assurance tools;
•	reinvigorating the Superfund Enforcement
Program;
•	improving oversight and management of
EPA's enforcement and compliance assurance
programs;
•	improving design and management of sewer
overflow consent decrees; and
•	adeptly responding to new situations, like
the COVID-19 public health emergency,
throughout EPA's enforcement and
compliance assurance programs.
In FY 2020, EPA:
•	Protected the public from air pollution by:
•	resolving 31 civil tampering and
aftermarket defeat device cases, more
than in any prior year in the agency's
history;
•	preventing 18.2 million pounds of
pollutants from entering the air by
preventing, reducing, treating, or
eliminating emissions from vehicle and
engine air sources;
•	reducing emissions of nearly 27 million
pounds of volatile organic compounds
(VOCs) through the Creating Cleaner Air
for Communities NCI; and
•	reducing emissions of over 2.8 million
pounds of hazardous air pollutants
ir
through the Creating Cleaner Air for
Communities NCI.
•	Protected water quality by reducing the
quarterly rate of significant non-compliance
with Clean Water Act discharge permits to
16.4 percent, continuing progress towards
cutting the significant non-compliance rate in
half by FY 2022.
•	Protected communities from chemical
management risks by resolving 169 cases
to correct noncompliance with EPA's Risk
Management Program.
•	Resolved priority violations at 3,177 drinking
water systems, including protecting users
of drinking water systems in Indian Country
by taking four enforcement and compliance
assistance actions against the Bureau of
Indian Affairs and the Indian Public Health
Service.
•	Gave hope to communities burdened by
toxic waste by securing commitments from
responsible parties to perform or fund $636
million worth of cleanup actions.
Spotlight on 2020
Vehicle Manufacturer Defeat Devices: Daimler AG
and Mercedes Benz USA
On September 14, 2020, EPA, DOJ, and California
announced a settlement resolving allegations
that Defendants had violated the Clean Air Act
and California law. Defendants will pay a $875
million penalty ($3,500 per vehicle); establish
a recall program; perform a project to mitigate
the harm to the nation's air; and implement new
corporate compliance measures to discourage
future cheating. The total value of the settlement
is approximately $1.5 billion - the second largest
civil penalty in the history of the Clean Air Act.
Daimler and Mercedes-Benz installed undisclosed
software functions and defeat devices in over
250,000 vehicles. The undisclosed software
functions and defeat devices cause the vehicles'
emission control systems to perform differently,
and less effectively, during normal driving
conditions than on federal emission tests,
resulting in increased emissions of oxides of
nitrogen during typical vehicle operation.
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Addressing VOC Emissions in Ozone
Nonattainment Area: K.P. Kauffman Company
In April 2020, the EPA, DOJ and Colorado
agreed to a settlement to resolve allegations
that Kauffman violated the Clean Air Act and
state law by emitting VOCs from its condensate
storage tanks and associated vapor control
systems, identified beginning in 2013. Under
the terms of the settlement, Kauffman will
implement pollution control measures resulting
in a reduction of VOC emissions of over 400
tons per year. Additionally, the company will
complete three mitigation projects that will
provide additional VOC emission reductions of
approximately 131 tons per year and pay a civil
penalty of $1 million, which will be split between
Colorado and the United States.
Resolving Thirteen-Year Old Case: Simplot, Rock
Springs, Wyoming
In July 2020, EPA settled one of the oldest
cases on its docket, involving claims related to
violations of RCRA by the fertilizer manufacturer,
Simplot, at its Rock Springs, Wyoming facility.
Under the settlement, Simplot will continue to
operate and recover and reuse the phosphate
content of phosphogypsum to avoid disposal
in the gypstack. The settlement also provides
for protective closure when operations cease
and provides the financial assurance to ensure
this happens. As a result of this settlement,
approximately 1.6 billion pounds of waste will be
properly managed.
National Compliance Initiatives (NCIs)
EPA's enforcement and compliance assurance
program is now aligned with the Agency's
Strategic Plan, focusing on improving air quality,
providing clean and safe water, ensuring
chemicals are properly managed, and protecting
vulnerable communities.
By making aftermarket defeat devices a national
priority, EPA is addressing a significant air
pollution problem. According to a study by EPA's
Air Enforcement Division of the impacts of known
sales of defeat devices for diesel trucks, those
devices would result in more than 570,000 tons
of excess NOx and 5,000 tons of particulate
matter over the lifetime of the trucks.
By working with states to make significant
noncompliance with Clean Water Act (CWA)
permits a national priority, EPA has helped
reenergize state CWA enforcement programs.
For example, between 2017 and 2020, state
formal enforcement actions increased by nearly
39 percent, and between 2017 and 2019, state
inspections increased by over 25 percent.
By making safe drinking water a national priority,
EPA is rebuilding its drinking water enforcement
and compliance assurance program. EPA will
soon have credentialed drinking water inspectors
in every EPA region and is developing close
working relationships with states.
Shared Accountability
Over the past four years, EPA has increased its
partnerships with authorized states and tribes.
In July 2019, EPA issued the Partnership Policy
that ensures continuing significant cooperation
between EPA and authorized states in
enforcement and compliance assurance matters.
As a result, all EPA regions conduct joint work
planning with authorized states or tribes, notify
authorized states before conducting inspections
or taking enforcement action, and provide
opportunities for states and tribes to participate
in these activities, increasing capacity.
To improve communication of state enforcement
and compliance activities, EPA is updating the
state information available on Enforcement and
Compliance History Online, completing updates
of the Air Stationary Source Dashboard and
Hazardous Waste Dashboard and working on
updates of the remaining dashboards. These
dashboards are important to communicate
the fact that states take the vast majority of
actions in authorized programs and the fallacy
of focusing on EPA actions only. For example, the
water dashboard shows that authorized states
inspected 29,805 facilities with water discharge
permits in FY 2020.
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Expanded Enforcement and Compliance
Assurance Tools
Over the past four years, EPA has expanded its
enforcement and compliance assurance tools.
•	EPA launched a Circuit Rider Program
to provide technical assistance to small
community wastewater and drinking water
systems and tribal environmental programs.
The Circuit Riders provide one-on-one
coaching to small system and tribal operators.
•	EPA is providing smart mobile tools for field
inspectors. These tools move away from
paper-based documentation to an electronic
suite of tools expected to improve the quality,
consistency, and timeliness of environmental
field inspections.
•	EPA provided guidance to consistently track
off-site compliance monitoring activities. In
FY 2020, EPA conducted nearly 5,000 such
activities, a significant increase over all prior
years.
•	EPA is expanding the reach of federal and
state inspection programs by working with
states to develop remote video partial
compliance evaluations. In April 2020,
EPA established an EPA/State workgroup
to explore ways to use remote video
technology for our inspectors to conduct non-
comprehensive reconnaissance observations
to assess continuing compliance of regulated
facility operations or establish priorities for on-
site inspections.
•	EPA is improving the effectiveness of
its compliance monitoring activities by
developing inspection targeting tools.
Reinvigoratingthe Superfund Enforcement
Program
Over the past four years, EPA has implemented
recommendations of the Superfund Task Force to
reinvigorate the Superfund enforcement program.
Actions between 2017 and 2020 include issuing
or updating policies on:
•	"common elements" of the Superfund
statutory landowner liability protections for
bona fide prospective purchasers, contiguous
property owners, and innocent landowners;
•	"comfort/status letters" to respond to
interested parties looking to acquire
contaminated property;
~
•	local government acquisition to address
liability concerns;
•	separating (bifurcating) RD/RA negotiations
and expediting the negotiations process with
PRPs for cleanup starts;
•	using special accounts as a settlement
incentive;
•	elevating settlement issues relating to federal
Potentially Responsible Parties (PRPs) at
private sites;
•	encouraging third-party investment to
facilitate cleanup and reuse of contaminated
property;
•	advance monitoring technologies and
approaches to support long-term stewardship;
and
•	coordination with states regarding cleanup
and oversight at Superfund sites.
Improvements also include focusing management
attention on sites that are moving too slowly,
through use of the Administrator's Emphasis List.
Successes include:
•	Centredale Manor, Rhode Island: Following
an April 2019 settlement, the $100 million
cleanup is underway at this site, which has
been on the NPL since 2000.
•	Kalamazoo River, Mississippi: Under a
December 2020 settlement, responsible
parties will conduct $226 million in cleanup
work at this site, which has been on the NPL
since 1990.
•	Westlake Landfill, Missouri: Under a
September 2018 settlement, remedial design
is finally underway at this site that has been
on the NPL since 1990.
•	Portland Harbor, Oregon: Agreements have
finally been reached to design the remedy for
the in-river portion of this site, which has been
on the NPL since 2000.
Improving Oversight and Management
Over the past four years, EPA has improved
oversight and management of EPA's enforcement
and compliance assurance programs. EPA has:
•	Taken steps to address the problem of
languishing civil and criminal enforcement
actions by adopting:
• a measure to reduce the number of
civil judicial cases that are older than
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2.5 years, increasing management
focus and accountability and attaining
environmental benefits more swiftly; and
• a measure to determine the disposition
of a criminal lead within 45 days.
•	Improved the dispute resolution process for
Federal Facility Superfund Sites, thereby
expediting cleanup, by increasing the
frequency of outreach to involved parties
and emphasizing the dispute resolution
timeframes. In FY20, EPA resolved 13
Superfund disputes at federal facility sites.
•	Improved the consistency of on-site
inspections through a rule that establishes
procedures for on-site civil inspections.
•	Expedited identification and correction of
noncompliance through a measure that
requires 75 percent of inspection reports to
be shared with the regulated entity within 70
days of the inspection.
•	Adopted a goal to complete Superfund
cleanup negotiations that had been
languishing longer than two years.
•	Updated its policies on tampering with vehicle
emission controls that dated from the 1970s.
Improving Design and Management of Sewer
Overflow Consent Decrees
Over the past four years, EPA has modernized its
approach to sewer overflow consent decrees.
•	EPA now allows an adaptive management
approach for designing and implementing
sewer overflow control measures, as
demonstrated in the March 2020 approval of
the Kansas City Unified Government long term
control plan.
•	EPA has expanded the opportunities for
communities to rely on green infrastructure
to control overflows, as evidenced by the
May 2020 modification of the 2008 consent
decree with Allegheny County Sanitary
Authority (allowing this Pennsylvania sewer
authority and its customers to swap out gray
infrastructure for green) and the December
2020 lodging of a consent decree with Peoria,
Illinois (approving an approach that allows
Peoria to rely on green infrastructure to
control overflows).
•	EPA has improved its methods of tracking
its consent decrees to ensure benefits are
achieved.
Finally, EPA is updating its 1997 Financial
Capability Assessment policy to recognize
impacts on low income families when
evaluating a community's capability to invest
in control measures.
~~~~~
[policy]
The Office of Policy (OP) works with every EPA
office to support and align agency priorities
and enhance decision-making. OP provides
multi-disciplinary analytic skills, management
support, and special expertise in the following
areas: regulatory policy and management,
environmental economics, community
revitalization, environmental justice, climate
adaptation, environmental permitting, voluntary
standards, and sector-based stakeholder
engagement.
Regulatory Reform
In 2020, EPA continued to lead administration-
wide efforts to implement President Trump's
Regulatory Reform Executive Order (EO 13777)
and the "two-for-one" Executive Order (EO
13771), which requires two deregulatory actions
for every new regulatory action issued. Since
January 2017, EPA has finalized more than five
deregulatory actions for every new final regulatory
action. In calendar year 2020 alone, EPA finalized
28 deregulatory actions, saving Americans an
estimated $92 billion in regulatory costs. EPA
has an additional 32 deregulatory actions in
development expected to save billions more.
Overall, under the Trump Administration,
the EPA's 78 final deregulatory actions
we saved Americans nearly $100 billion it
regulatory costs.
At the same time, all environmental indicators
across the board have improved, demonstrating
that you can decrease regulatory burdens and
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improve the environment.
EPA has also advanced significant regulatory
process reforms in 2020. As directed by President
Trump's Executive Order on Improved Guidance
Documents (EO 13891), OP created an online
public portal for agency guidance documents in
February. This portal marked the first time the
public was provided access to all active guidance
documents in an easily searchable database - a
major milestone for government transparency.
OP led a comprehensive cross-agency review
of all guidance documents, some dating back
to EPAs origins, and ultimately identified over
9,000 active guidance documents. At the same
time, the agency rescinded over 1,000 outdated
guidance documents. In conjunction with the
guidance portal, OP finalized its first rulemaking
in September that formally established
procedures for the issuance of new guidance as
well as a public petition process.
"Today's action is perhaps the biggest change
in administrative procedures in a generation
and one of the five pillars of EPA reform under
President Trump," said EPA Administrator Andrew
Wheeler. "This historic rule guarantees the
transparency the public deserves when engaging
with the agency. This is a massive step forward
for EPA bringing these legal documents into the
light."
National Environmental Policy Act
2020 marks the 50th anniversary of both the EPA
and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).
OP played a critical role in the development of
CEQ's first comprehensive update to its NEPA
Regulations in over 40 years, providing detailed
technical reviews of the February proposal and
July final rule. OP has subsequently led training
efforts to ensure smooth implementation of
the NEPA Modernization Rule across EPA. OP is
also working to update our NEPA procedures,
consistent with CEQ's final rule. In December
2020, OP submitted our proposed regulatory
update to EPA's NEPA Implementing procedures
to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
for interagency review.


Environmental Economics
In December 2020, EPA finalized SAGE, the first
economy-wide model the agency has developed
for economic analyses. SAGE, which is available
to the public, will allow the agency to conduct
more comprehensive and informative analyses
of the benefits and costs of EPA's regulations
by tracing out how regulatory impacts ripple
throughout the economy.
In 2020, OP also hit a major milestone towards
issuing the first major update of EPA's Guidelines
for Preparing Economic Analysis in over a decade.
A panel of the Science Advisory Board (SAB)
completed its peer review and submitted it to the
chartered SAB for a quality review in September
2020. Once finalized, this update will ensure
that the Guidelines, which the agency uses to
analyze the economic impact of our regulatory
actions, are current with all the advances made
in economics since that time.
Support to Distressed Communities
To advance this "community-driven
environmentalism" approach, the administrator
charged OP with initiating a series of actions
to better serve communities in need. As one
example, in December, we announced the launch
of the Clearinghouse for Environmental Finance
(Clearinghouse), an online database of land,
air, and water information to aid communities in
their efforts to improve environmental conditions.
The Clearinghouse catalogues available funding,
financing, and instructional resources from
the agency's air, water, and land programs. OP
collaborated with the Office of Water to create the
Clearinghouse by expanding the existing Water
it
FIRST
UPDATE TO
NEPA IN 40
YEARS
A new streamlined approach will make
the NEPA process less bureaucratic
and less burdensome
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Finance Clearinghouse, which was launched in
2017 for communities looking for ways to fund
and finance water infrastructure needs.
In addition, OP worked with the Local Government
Advisory Committee (LGAC) to convene three
workgroups in October 2020 to discuss a draft
charge on community-based environmentalism
approach and to learn how EPA may improve
outcomes in underserved and rural communities.
The LGAC accepted the formal charge at their
meeting in December.
Targeted Assistance for Opportunity Zones
In 2020, EPA provided grants, technical
assistance, tools, and training to support
economically distressed communities, and
prioritized those communities with Opportunity
Zones in support of the White House Opportunity
and Revitalization Council and President Trump's
Executive Order 13853. Highlights of our work in
this area include:
• OP delivered 29 new technical assistance
projects to communities with Opportunity
Zones. To ensure continuity of our support to
communities during the COVID-19 pandemic,
the Office of Community Revitalization
deployed virtual meeting platforms to ensure
effective distance-based technical assistance
workshops.
"You all have been fabulous - much
better virtual workshop than I could have
imagined. This is actually getting us to a
place of making a real difference in our
community."
- Laura Kirk, Glenwood (Colorado)
Downtown Development Authority
"The (EPA) workshop did everything
to confirm my suspicions that there's
a powerful network of folks out there
wanting to connect and discuss more
about the possibility of local foods as a
resiliency plan for Springfield."
- Piero Taico of the Illinois Stewardship
Alliance
Helping underprivileged communities develop
and strengthen their local food economy.
Local Foods. Local Places.
1 B6jE ''
GROWm

epa.gov
SEPA
In partnership with USDA, OP selected 16
communities to receive assistance under
Local Foods, Local Places, a program that
helps develop and strengthen their local food
economy and boost economic opportunities
for local farmers, while promoting clean air,
safe water, open space, and healthy food
choices.
"EPA is excited to work with our
Woonsocket partners once they're ready to
switch their focus from COVID-19 impacts
back to developing a more robust local
food economy. Our Local Foods, Local
Places program has shown impressive
results helping communities to support
their local farmers and food producers by
maximizing local economic opportunities."
- EPA New England Regional Administrator
Dennis Deziel
In partnership with the USFS and Northern
Border Regional Commission, EPA delivered
technical assistance to 10 rural communities
through the Recreation Economies for Rural
Communities program to help communities
revitalize downtown areas and Main Streets
through outdoor recreation.
"What a wonderful program and a truly
inspirational week. All things considered
I'm not sure how it could have gone any
better...1 had no understanding of how
beneficial this workshop could be for our
community and county. Thanks again to
your team and their support as well. It
must be fun to work with such a dynamic
crew. I look forward to our continued
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conversations and I'm excited to see what
comes of our collaboration."
- Ray Brown, Executive Director, Sanders
County Community Development Corp.
(Thompson Falls, Montana)
On Environmental Justice (EJ), we awarded 12
EJ Small Grants and 18 Collaborative Problem-
Solving Cooperative Agreements, including
awards with additional funds received last
Spring; revived the State Environmental Justice
Cooperative Agreements and included a special
emphasis on COVID-19 projects; hosted two
NEJAC meetings, including a two-day in-person
meeting in Jacksonville that led to meaningful
feedback to the administrator and agency
leaders.
Smart Sectors
In the Spring of 2020, OP released eight new
interactive, web-based "sector snapshots," a
tool designed to provide the public easy access
to historical environmental and economic
performance data on a sector basis over 20
years. These snapshots covered the following
sectors: aerospace, agriculture, cement
and concrete, construction, electronics and
semiconductor manufacturing, mining, paper
and wood products, and ports and maritime
transportation sectors.
Interactive snapshot for the Ports
& Maritime Transportation Sector.
What they are saying:
"The EPA's new sector snapshot for U.S.
agriculture highlights the ability of farmers and
ranchers to use innovative new technologies to
generate renewable energy, sequester carbon
in the soils, and operate with a smaller carbon
footprint," said American Farm Bureau Federation
Chief Economist John Newton. "EPA's snapshot
offers conservative estimates, and when you
consider that agricultural productivity has nearly
tripled over the last 50 years while resource
use has remained flat, the success story of U.S.
farmers and ranchers is unparalleled."
"Mining is the foundation of our economy and
the beginning of the supply chain for everything
we use in modern society, and we appreciate
EPA's initiative to showcase the industry's
performance," said American Exploration and
Mining Association Executive Director Mark
Compton. "Our members' commitment to the
environment is unmatched, and we look forward
to continued, meaningful collaboration with the
EPA, which we believe will lead to continuous
improvement for the industry as well as the
Agency."
OP subsequently published a comprehensive
data update for all 13 sector snapshots in
October. OP also hosted a series of virtual events
with sectors partners and Administrator Wheeler,
while regional Smart Sectors programs held
multiple events to sustain relationships with
sector partners despite challenges presented by
the COVID-19 pandemic.
The total visits to the Smart Sectors
program homepage and snapshots in
2020 was 33,500.
The total visits to the Smart Sectors
program homepage and snapshots since
program inception is 102,611.
~~~~~
CInternational &
TRIBAL AFFAIRS
Preventing and Reducing Marine Litter
In 2020, EPA led an interagency effort to develop
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The U.S. Federal Strategy for Addressing the
Global Issue of Marine Litter (Strategy), which was
released in October at an event in Boca Raton,
Florida. This strategy outlines a comprehensive
approach the Trump Administration is leading and
the U.S. push for action to address marine litter
internationally.
OCTOBER 2020
The United States Federal Strategy for
Addressing the Global Issue of Marine Litter
One of EPA's highest priorities is preventing trash,
litter, and garbage—including plastics—from
entering marine and freshwater environments.
Five countries in Asia account for over half of
the plastic waste input into the ocean: China,
Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, and
Vietnam. The majority of marine litter comes
from land-based sources such as littering and
the mismanagement of waste, and the most
effective way to combat marine litter is to prevent
and reduce land-based sources of waste from
entering our oceans. To tackle these issues, the
U.S. provides a critical global leadership role in
improving waste management and recycling.
The strategy provides a model to prevent and
reduce land-based sources of waste from
entering our oceans in the first place. It is based
on four pillars that define the U.S. approach:
1.	Building capacity for waste and litter
management systems.
2.	Incentivizing the global recycling market in
partnership with the private sector.
3.	Promoting research and development for
new solutions and technology.
4.	Promoting marine litter removal, including
litter capture systems in seas, rivers, and
inland waterways.
In the U.S., EPA's Trash Free Waters program
works directly with states, municipalities, and
businesses to prevent trash from entering
waterways and capture trash when it has reached
the water. We're taking what we have learned
and expanded the Trash Free Waters Program
internationally to communities in Central America,
the Caribbean, and South America. For example,
in Panama through a local non-governmental
organization (NGO), EPA supported a community
level pilot project to increase awareness on
solid waste impacts on the community's river
and the purchase a biobarda (bio fence) to
collect the trash in the river and minimize the
marine litter impacts. And under the EPA/Brazil
Ministry of Environment (MMA) Memorandum of
Understanding signed by Administrator Wheeler
and his counterpart in early 2020, EPA and
MMA have held three webinars for more than 75
participants to address various aspects of marine
litter management. Moving forward, EPA will be
exploring opportunities to share Trash Free Water
principles with partners in Asia.
Strengthening America through Fair Free Trade
On July i, 2020, the United States-Mexico-
Canada (USMCA) Free Trade Agreement and its
parallel Environmental Cooperation Agreement
(ECA) entered into force. This trade agreement
represents the most advanced environmental
provisions to date in a U.S. trade agreement and
will help EPA and other U.S. Government entities
expand environmental cooperation through
trade mechanisms. EPA played a key role in the
creation and early work of the USMCA Interagency
Environment Committee for Monitoring and
Enforcement, which is tasked with overseeing
implementation by Canada and Mexico of their
USMCA environmental obligations on, for example
marine litter and air quality. EPA has also detailed
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an agency official as an environmental attache to
the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City to help ensure
environmental provisions of the agreement are
fully implemented. The USMCA text is the model
for environmental provisions being developed
through the U.S.-United Kingdom and U.S.-Kenya
free trade agreement negotiations.
Section 821 of the United States-Mexico-Canada
Agreement Implementation Act authorized and
directed EPA in coordination with eligible public
entities, such as the International Boundary and
Water Commission, State of California, Indian
Tribes, local governments, the Army Corps of
Engineers, the Customs and Border Patrol, and
the U.S. State Department, to carry out the
planning, design, construction, and operation
and maintenance of high priority treatment
works in the Tijuana River watershed to treat
wastewater (including stormwater), nonpoint
sources of pollution, and related matters resulting
from international transboundary water flows
originating in Mexico. Title IX appropriated
$300,000,000 in State and Tribal Assistance
Grants for architectural, engineering, planning,
design, construction, and related activities in
connection with the construction of high priority
wastewater facilities in the area of the United
States-Mexico Border, after consultation with the
appropriate border commission.
Since March 2020, EPA has:
•	Developed the USMCA strategy that will, in
general, be implemented through the Border
Water Infrastructure Program, building on
a successful program history of working
collaboratively with partners and communities
to address urgent public health and
environmental needs along the U.S.-Mexico
border.
•	Initiated the value engineering technical
assessment to identify a comprehensive
suite of projects to holistically address
transboundary flows. This ongoing technical
assessment provides needed engineering and
financial data, increases confidence in the
selection of optimal and effective solutions,
and improves the defensibility of the selection
process.
•	Established a comprehensive stakeholder
engagement process, including: (1) the
Eligible Public Entity Coordinating Group
(EPECG), comprised of the eligible public
entities, as defined in Section 821 of the
USMCA; (2) a technical expert consultation
process comprised of EPA technical staff,
EPA's contractor, and the North American
Development Bank (NADB) (which engages
with other federal, state, and local technical
experts as appropriate); and (3) regular public
information meetings. The EPECG convened
in June, July, October, and November. The
technical expert consultation process is
ongoing, and the group meets regularly.
EPA has now hosted two public information
meetings, one in June and one in November.
•	Finalized the evaluation criteria, incorporating
feedback received from the administrator
as well as from the EPECG. Shared final
criteria with the EPECG and the California
congressional delegation.
•	Sought feedback and recommendations from
the EPECG on a suite of 10 projects covering
range of pollution types and entry points into
the U.S. that will be assessed through the
value engineering analysis process.
EPA has been working diligently to develop
activities that can address the U.S.-Mexico Border
water infrastructure problem comprehensively,
expeditiously, and in close cooperation with
all of our border stakeholders. Our goal is to
make sure that the infrastructure we construct
is a total solution to address the Tijuana River
transboundary pollution issues faced in the San
Diego area and Tijuana River Valley.
Over the next year, EPA will conduct a value
engineering process to evaluate project options in
the San Diego-Tijuana region. While we anticipate
that a large portion of the $300 million will be
•4r
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allocated to projects in the San Diego/Tijuana
region, the final determination will be made once
the collaborative value engineering process is
complete.
Leading the Way in the G20
EPA led the U.S. engagement in the annual
G20 Environment Ministers Meeting and
also participated with colleagues at the U.S.
Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department
of State on water issues at this year's special G20
Agriculture and Water Ministers Meeting. The
G20 Environment Ministers Meeting focused on
two critical issues: addressing land degradation
and conserving coral reefs.
In 2020, EPA also led the charge to launch the
G20 Dialogue on Water, which showcases and
facilitates the sharing of information on water
management and water, sanitation, and hygiene
(WASH) best practices. EPA highlighted four areas
of best practices and innovations that highlight
the WASH priority, the Safe Drinking Water
Act (SDWA), Water Quality Management Plan
and innovative approaches to financing water
infrastructure such as WIFIA.
Screenshot of the virtual G20 Agriculture and Water
Minister Meeting.
Commission for Environmental Cooperation
The Commission for Environmental Cooperation
(CEC) facilitates cooperation among the United
States, Canada, and Mexico to conserve, protect,
and enhance the North American environment,
promote sustainable development, and support
the environmental goals and objectives of the
USMCA. In June 2020, Administrator Wheeler,
along with the environment ministries from
Canada and Mexico, finalized and approved
the 2021-2025 Strategic Plan for the CEC,
which marks a renewed commitment by the
three countries to work together on pressing
regional and global issues related to trade and
the environment within the framework of a
new trilateral free trade agreement—and a new
ECA. The Strategic Plan supports the objectives
established by the parties in the USMCA and
ECA, which recognize the role of environmental
cooperation and public participation in promoting
mutually supportive trade and environmental
policies. In June 2020, Administrator Wheeler
assumed the chairmanship of the CEC Council.
EPA also works alongside our North American
neighbors, Canada and Mexico, through the CEC
on projects focused on border watersheds at both
the U.S./Canada border and U.S./Mexico border
and inland waterways to address land-based
sources of marine litter. Results in 2020 include
the development of a toolkit and training guide
for decision makers. These materials are based
on the stakeholder engagement process used in
our Trash Free Waters program. The project also
launched a critically needed Public Awareness
Toolkit with ready-to-use, adaptable materials for
municipalities, NGOs, educational institutions,
and other organizations to deliver litter prevention
programs and public awareness campaigns.
These materials are designed to help inland
communities, including urban areas.
CAFTA-DR
Since 2007 and under the framework of the
U.S.-Central America and Dominican Republic
Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR), EPA has
provided technical assistance to CAFTA-
DR countries on key environmental issues,
including: wastewater management, air quality,
environmental enforcement and compliance,
environmental impact assessment, and solid
waste management. This year, the first Regional
Guidelines on Public Participation in the
Environmental Impact Assessment Process for
CAFTA-DR countries was completed.
The Regional Guide was created through
consensus building and public consultation
and a comment process led by a Regional

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Technical Working Group consisting of multiple
stakeholders from each country (government
ministries, business sector, and civil society
groups). Additionally, EPA assisted CAFTA-DR
countries to create country specific "Citizen's
Guides to Environmental Permitting" to
educate the public on the environmental
permitting process and their right to be involved
in environmental reviews, monitoring, and
enforcement.
Ministry of Environmental Protection - Israel
EPA and the Israeli Ministry of Environmental
Protection (MoEP) have a long-standing
relationship, dating back to 1991, with the
signing of our first MOU. In October 2018, a new
five-year MOU between EPA and MoEP was signed
at EPA with the objective to work towards shared
environmental goals. Key focus areas include
the clean-up of contaminated sites in Israel,
developing an Energy-Star like program in Israel,
and increasing Water Reuse in the U.S.
Following the administrator's trip to Israel in
November 2019 and to advance EPA's 2018 MOU
with MoEP, Israel has committed to an Action
Item within the National Water Reuse Action
Plan, which includes presenting lessons learned
in implementing an 85 percent water reuse rate
to over 350 practitioners at the Water Reuse
Association Symposium in September 2020
and hosting 20 of them for a Study Tour in May
2021. As a follow up to the symposium, Israel will
present water reuse lessons learned to interested
U.S. States.
U.S.-Taiwan Environmental Partnerships
During a virtual meeting in December,
Administrator Wheeler and Taiwan's Minister of
Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu committed to extending
the International Environmental Partnership
between EPA and Taiwan, through the American
Institute in Taiwan (AIT) and the Taipei Economic
and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO), and
to supporting a new Indo-Pacific Marine Litter
Initiative with Taiwan's Oceans Affairs Council and
Environmental Protection Administration.
As we look to the future, EPA's close collaboration
with Taiwan will continue to grow stronger and
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Taiwan's environmental leadership will continue
to be recognized through the International
Environmental Partnership (IEP). EPA commends
Taiwan for its commitment to global leadership
and celebrate our joint environmental initiatives.
In addition, the U.S.-Taiwan IIEP provides a
platform to strengthen capacity to address
regional environmental challenges. Since its
establishment, over 50 countries from Asia,
Pacific Islands, Africa, Latin America, and North
America have participated in many IEP programs,
including Site Remediation, Environmental
Law Enforcement, E-waste Management,
Mercury Monitoring, Air Quality Management;
Environmental Education, Circular Economy, and
more recently, Renewable Energy, Pesticides and
Chemicals Management, Children's Health, and
Marine Litter.
For example, the South & Southeast Asia-Air
Improvements in the Region (SSEA-AIR) program
prepared and released the Air Quality Action
Plan template to plan ways to address specific
air quality issues. And the Asia-Pacific Mercury
Monitoring Network has expanded mercury
monitoring and data sharing to more countries
in the Asia-Pacific region to assist them in the
implementation of the Minamata Convention.
The IEP was recently renewed until 2022, with
new program areas such as children's health
and marine litter and additional partners
including Ministry of Health and Welfare,
Ocean Conservation Administration, Ministry
of Education, and Ministry of Economic Affairs.
EPA's framework with Taiwan is one of the most
expansive and comprehensive of any U.S. federal
agency in terms of interagency collaboration on a
day-to-day basis.
Tribal Consultations
EPA continues its record of achievements in
leading efforts to meaningfully engage tribal
governments on a wide range of agency
actions including rules, permits, policies, and
other decisions that may affect tribal interests
through implementation of EPA's Policy on Tribal
Consultation and Coordination. In 2018, EPA
met a significance milestone in the history of
EPA-tribal relationships having completed its
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SOOth tribal consultation since the policy was
enacted. In 2020, EPA continues consultation
achievements completing 113 separate tribal
consultations in fiscal year 2020—the highest
level of consultations for any year.
Delegation of Regulatory Authority to Tribes
EPA approved 11 regulatory treatment in a similar
manner as a state (TAS) applications from tribes
in 2020 under the Clean Air Act and Clean Water
Act, a record number for any calendar year since
TAS regulations were enacted beginning in the
mid-1990s. TAS approvals allow for tribes to play
essentially the same role in Indian country that
states do within state lands for implementing and
managing certain environmental programs.
This successful high number of approvals
follows several years of work to implement
EPA's new web-based resource that makes
accessible all TAS regulatory, administrative,
and grant approvals for tribes - many of which
include delegation of federal authority to a tribe
for implementation of federal environmental
programs in Indian country. The new centralized
location for TAS information responds to requests
from tribal governments and key stakeholders for
more transparency on processing applications
and notification of tribal TAS approvals. Prior to
publishing the confirmed list of approvals on
EPA's Tribal Program web page, information that
was previously unavailable to the public.
EPA and Tribal Government Meetings
In 2020, the Director of American Indian
Environmental Office (AIEO), along with OITA
and AIEO management, participated in a
record number of EPA RTOC meetings. RTOCs
are the forum by which regional tribal leaders
and regional EPA leadership come together to
discuss policy matters related to tribal capacity
building, program development, and program
implementation in Indian country. In line with
EPA's past pledge to make EPA tribal program
leadership directly available to tribal leaders and
environmental staff, EPA attended 13 in-person
or virtual Regional Tribal Operations Committee
(RTOC) meetings, numerous individual and group
tribal leaders virtual meetings and visits, as well
as EPA tribal partnership group meetings.
Showcasing Tribal Success Stories under GAP
In FY 2020, EPA launched the Indian
Environmental General Assistance Program (GAP)
Success Story National Pilot, which included the
creation of a GIS story board highlighting tribal
environmental capacity building progress toward
protecting the environment and human health in
Indian country to audiences such as Congress,
OMB, tribal governments, and the public.
The initial 10 success stories represent tribal
programs from across the country that are using
GAP to address air, water, and land issues.
Creating Tangible Environmental Results With Tribes
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A screenshot of OITA's GAP GIS story board.
EPA Tribal Environmental Agreement
AIEO continued to advance the implementation
of EPA-Tribal Environmental Plans (ETEPs) in
Indian country throughout 2020, including the
completion of 500 separate ETEP agreements
with tribal governments. ETEPs are strategic
planning documents that clarify EPA and tribal
roles and responsibilities for achieving multi-
program goals. EPA uses ETEPs when negotiating
workplans, providing training to tribes, and
conducting periodic joint review of ETEPs. In
FY 2020, AIEO completed over 2000 ETEP
implementation actions.
Solid and Hazardous Waste Cleanups Funded
under GAP
Through the Indian Environmental GAP, EPA
supported tribal solid and hazardous waste-
related issues across Indian country including
approving eight requests to clean up illegally
disposed household waste, appliances, tires, and
abandoned autos and related activities. Over the
past four years, EPA has approved a total of 40
requests to fund much needed cleanups of illegal
dumps in Indian country.

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EPA and Indian Health Service Interagency
Agreement to Support Tribal Solid Waste Code
Development
EPA negotiated a new Interagency Agreement
(IA) in 2020 with the Indian Health Service (IHS)
solidifying opportunities for continuing EPA-IHS
work under a MOU between the agencies to
"improve open dump data, solid waste projects,
and programs in Indian country." A long-standing
area of focus is the joint AIEO-IHS tribal solid
waste laws/codes development training project
funded through the IA. To support this effort,
EPA previously collaborated with IHS to provide
targeted training and technical assistance to
tribes implementing solid waste management
programs resulting in 30 of 44 tribes who
received training either adopting, or close to
adopting, protective tribal solid waste laws.
~~~~~
EPA's Office of Research and Development
(ORD)—the strong scientific and technical
foundation of the agency—continued to help
program offices, states, tribes, and others
address their most pressing environmental and
related public health challenges.
Strengthening Transparency in Regulatory
Science
At the end of 2020, EPA finalized the
Strengthening Transparency in Regulatory
Science Rule. The American public has a right
to know the scientific justification behind a
regulation. This final rule bring much needed
sunlight into our regulatory process. This action
ensures that the pivotal science underlying final
significant regulatory actions is publicly available
in a manner sufficient for independent validation.
The rule was first proposed in 2018, and in
March 2020 EPA announced a supplemental
~
notice of proposed rulemaking that made some
clarifications to the proposed rule. In September
2020, EPA submitted the final rule to OMB for
Executive Order 12866 review.
Reducing the Use of Animal Testing
Since Administrator Wheeler issued his 2019
directive calling for the agency to eliminate
mammal testing and funding by 2035, EPA has
taken significant steps to reduce, replace, and
refine testing requirements.
Launched New Approach Methodologies Website
and Issued Work Plan
In January, EPA launched an EPA New Approach
Methodologies (NAMs) website - a one-stop
shop for getting updates about agency efforts
to reduce the use of animal testing. EPA will
continue to lead the way among federal agencies
in the United States and internationally.
In June, EPA released the NAMs Work Plan,
which outlines the objectives, strategies and
deliverables that are important guideposts in
reaching the 2035 animal testing goal. Any
mammal studies requested or funded by EPA
after 2035 will require administrator approval
on a case-by-case basis. EPA also convened a
meeting of the Science Advisory Board to offer
advice on using NAMs to help reinvent the cancer
bioassay.
In 2020, EPA continued building on past
successes to reduce animal testing with the
draft Strategic Plan to Promote the Development
and Implementation of Alternative Test Methods
released in March 2018 and $4.25 million
in funding to five universities to research the
development and use of alternative test methods
and strategies that reduce, refine, and/or replace
vertebrate animal testing in September 2019.
Second Annual Conference on Animal Testing
Alternatives
In October, Administrator Wheeler kicked off the
agency's Second Annual Conference on the State
of the Science on Development and Use of NAMs
for Chemical Safety Testing. More than 1,000
experts from EPA, other governmental agencies,
academia, and industry gathered virtually to hear
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presentations about scientific advancements in
the NAMs field, enabling participants to develop
a better understanding of the state of the science
and develop scientific confidence in alternative
test methods.
PETA Honors Administrator Wheeler
In October, the People for the Ethical
Treatment of Animals (PETA) honored
Administrator Wheeler for his leadership on
animal testing. PETA honored him with the
creation of the Pat C. Wheeler Scholarship—a
tribute to his late mother, a lifelong advocate
for the humane treatment of all animals.
This first-of-its-kind PETA research grant
will support scientists seeking to develop
effective methods for testing chemicals
without harming animals.
"In the face of flawed reliance on unreliable
animal tests, Andrew Wheeler took action,"
says Dr. Amy Clippinger, director of PETA's
Regulatory Testing Department. "PETA's
grant honors the administrator and his team
for pioneering a shift toward superior, non-
animal testing approaches—and enables
scientists to bring them to fruition."
Also in October, White Coat Waste Project
honored Administrator Wheeler with the first-ever
Greenbaum Policy Pioneer award for his visionary
leadership in ending requirements for and
funding of testing on mammals by 2035.
Reduced Pesticide Testing on Birds and Fish
In February, EPA released a new science policy
reducing testing on birds when the agency has
enough other information to safely register
outdoor pesticides. Going forward, when the
agency has enough information showing that
a pesticide registration decision is protective
of public health and the environment, it will no
longer require unnecessary animal testing. The
adoption of this guidance is expected to reduce
the number of birds tested by approximately
720 birds per year. In July, EPA issued similar
guidance for fish, saving an estimated 240 more
test animals per year as well as agency, industry,
and laboratory resources.
Reducing the Use of Animal Testing Under TSCA
As required under TSCA Section 4, EPA regularly
maintains and updates a list of NAMs and plans
to release a draft proposal for selecting which
NAMs will be included on future versions of the
list. This draft proposal will be released for public
comment in early 2021.
Harmful Algal Blooms
Harmful algal blooms (HABs) are a major
environmental problem. Red tides, blue-green
algae, and cyanobacteria are examples of HABs
that can have severe impacts on human health,
aquatic ecosystems, and the economy.
Last year, EPA released the Cyanobacteria
Assessment Network mobile application to
identify harmful algal blooms in more than 2,000
U.S. lakes and reservoirs. In partnership with
National Aeronautics and Space Administration,
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration, and USGS, EPA worked to develop
this early warning system using historical and
current satellite data to help lake managers,
water quality managers, and people swimming,
fishing, or boating in lakes more quickly identify
when there may be a bloom forming and avoid
any potential health impacts to people, pets,
livestock or the environment.
In September 2020, EPA took another step to
address the environmental challenges posed by
harmful algal blooms by announcing $6,487,188
in funding to seven institutions to research how to
prevent and control HABs using current and new
technologies.
Next Gen Fertilizer Challenges
EPA uses challenges and competitions to help
address EPA priorities. EPA has launched nearly
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40 challenges that have resulted in development
and use of innovative solutions and strategies
with measurable results. EPA has launched
challenges focused on technology-development
and market-stimulation, software and algorithm
development and communication.
In August, EPA partnered with USDA to launch
the joint EPA-USDA partnership and competition
on Next Gen Fertilizers to Advance Agricultural
Sustainability in the U.S. Along with EPA and
USDA, the competition is in collaboration with
The Fertilizer Institute, the International Fertilizer
Development Center, the Nature Conservancy,
and the National Corn Growers Association.
The competition includes two challenges that
seek proposals for new and existing fertilizer
technologies to maintain or improve crop yields
while reducing the impacts of fertilizers on the
environment.
Wildfire Research
EPA has been exploring the impacts of both short-
term and long-term exposure to wildfire smoke on
human health. In 2018, EPA released an updated
version of the Smoke Sense app (originally
launched in 2017), a mobile application that lets
users learn about wildland fires and smoke health
risks in their area and report health symptoms
they experience. More recently, EPA revised the
Wildfire Smoke Guide, which is intended to help
health care professionals and asthma educators
understand the health effects associated with
wildfire smoke and steps to advise patients to
take before and during a wildfire to reduce smoke
exposure.
Integrated Science Assessments
EPA is committed to developing scientifically
robust Integrated Science Assessments (ISAs) in
a timely, efficient, and transparent manner. ISAs
provide the scientific foundation necessary for
the review of ecological effects associated with
the secondary NAAQS for these three criteria
pollutants under the Clean Air Act. In October
2020, EPA finalized the ISA for Oxides of Nitrogen
(NOx), Oxides of Sulfur (SOx), and Particulate
Matter (PM) - Ecological Criteria (Final Report).
It is a comprehensive evaluation and synthesis
of the most policy relevant science aimed at
characterizing the ecological effects caused by
NOx, SOx, and PM.
Integrated Risk Information System
Between 2017 and 2020, EPA released several
Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS)
assessment plans and draft assessments.
2020 activity included the release of the draft
document, Systematic Review Protocol for
the Methylmercury (MeHg) IRIS Assessment
(Preliminary Assessment Materials), for public
comment; the release of the draft document,
IRIS Assessment Plan (IAP) for Oral Exposure to
Vanadium and Compounds (Scoping and Problem
Formulation Materials) for public comment;
and the release of the Staff Handbook for
Developing Integrated Risk Information System
(IRIS) Assessments, or IRIS Handbook, for public
comment.
State Support and Engagement
ORD has developed critical partnerships with
state environmental and health agencies
through the Environmental Council of the States
(ECOS) and its research arm, the Environmental
Research Institute of the States (ERIS), and
the Association of State and Territorial Health
Officials (ASTHO) to ensure its research meets
state environmental research needs. These
collaborative efforts include EPA hosted visits
from state environmental agency directors
and staff to discuss topics of interest to states
and related science needs, and shared ORD
capabilities and EPA research to support states.
Since 2016, ORD has hosted 15 meetings with
states and regions to discuss the states' top
science needs.
Recently, ORD initiated a Science Training
webinar series to provide in-depth overviews and
step-by-step tutorials on popular EPA models,
tools and software. Over 3,300 people joined
training webinars in FY 2020, including reps from
50 states, 2 territories and 46 tribes.
Over the past two years, ORD has worked to build
partnerships with emergency management and
natural resource agencies as well. This includes
developing partnerships with state agency
emergency responders through the National
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Emergency Management Association, the ASTHO
Preparedness team and the Association of Public
Health Laboratories to share ORD's emergency
response research. In March 2019, ORD became
a member of the Association of Fish and Wildlife
Agencies.
Supporting Small Business and Students
EPA continues to support small businesses
across the country through its Small Business
Innovation Research (SBIR) program. This funding
helps small businesses develop innovative
environmental technologies for the marketplace.
In 2020, EPA awarded $5.3 million to 33 small
businesses in Phase I and Phase II contracts
to develop and commercialize solutions for
environmental issues in the areas of clean
and safe water, air quality, land revitalization,
homeland security, sustainable materials
management, and safer chemicals.
In 2020, EPA's People, Prosperity, and the Planet
Program awarded over $1.1 million to teams
of undergraduates and graduates students
from across the country to develop sustainable
technologies to solve current environmental
and public health challenges in the areas of Air
Quality, Safe and Sustainable Water Resources,
Sustainable and Healthy Communities, and
Chemical Safety. Specifically, EPA provided
$574,054 in Phase I funding for 32 student
teams and $594,424 in Phase II funding for eight
student teams.
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PFAS
Aggressively addressing per- and polyfluoroalkyl
substances (PFAS) continues to be an active and
ongoing priority for EPA. PFAS are a large group of
man-made chemicals used in consumer products
and industrial processes. In use since the 1940s,
PFAS are resistant to heat, oils, stains, grease,
and water—properties that can contribute to their
persistence in the environment.
In carrying out EPA's mission to protect human
health and the environment, in 2020 the agency
continued to lead a national effort to better
understand PFAS and reduce public health risks.
In February 2020, EPA celebrated the first year of
progress under the PFAS Action Plan by releasing
the first-ever PFAS Action Plan Program Update.
This document highlighted the momentum that
was sustained from the launch of the PFAS Action
Plan throughout its first year of implementation.
In the program update, Administrator Wheeler
called on the agency - and the nation - to
redouble and refine efforts to address this
chemical of concern:
"Addressing this challenge will require action
from all levels of government - federal,
state, local, and tribal which is why this
year I put a new emphasis on identifying
funding opportunities for PFAS research and
mitigation efforts."
And in 2020, EPA delivered on the administrator's
commitment - continuing the momentum under
the plan and reaching key milestones under
the agency's first multi-media, multi-program,
national research, management, and risk
communication plan to address a challenge like
PFAS. This year's accomplishments were wide-
ranging and reflect the agency's commitment to
working collaboratively - both inside and outside
the agency - to reduce risk and protect public
health. Progress was made in the following areas:
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EPA's Scientific Leadership and Providing Support
and Technical Assistance to States
Additional information about PFAS chemicals is
needed to better understand the risk associated
with this class of substances, and EPA continues
to place a strong emphasis on research. Some
highlights of this work in 2020 include:
•	In 2020, EPA created its PFAS Innovative
Treatment Team (PITT). The PITT undertook
a six-month effort to assess current and
emerging destruction methods. This included
exploring how well these methods work to
destroy PFAS while considering their potential
to create harmful byproducts and evaluating
feasibility in terms of cost and performance.
This information is providing states, tribes,
and local governments with data on viable
approaches for destruction/disposal of PFAS,
which will lead to increased confidence in
cleanup operations and safer communities.
•	In July 2020, EPA completed an update to its
Drinking Water Treatability Database with new
treatment options and scientific references for
PFAS.
•	In July 2020, EPA publicly released updates
to the CompTox Chemical Dashboard,
including new data and predictive models for
PFAS that will help prioritize PFAS for further
testing, help inform categorization efforts,
and ultimately help the agency determine
the true risk of potential exposure to these
substances. The Dashboard is a one-stop-
shop for information on not just PFAS
chemicals, but also hundreds of thousands of
other chemicals.
•	In October 2020, EPA, U.S. Department
of Defense (DoD), USDA, and U.S. Health
and Human Services engaged the National
Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and
Medicine's (NASEM) Workshop on Federal
Government Human Health PFAS Research.
This workshop put on display the extensive
and coordinate PFAS research ongoing
across the federal government. Most
importantly NASEM will offer its advice on
the government's research portfolio and any
ir
potential gaps.
• EPA has also formed partnerships with states,
tribes, and local communities across the
country. These joint projects, which include
partnerships with more than 30 states, allow
EPA to take the knowledge of its world class
scientists and apply it in a collaborative
fashion where it counts most. For example,
the data reports that EPA provided to the
State of Michigan represent just two of 27
recent data reports ORD has delivered to
states across the country, providing the
results of analyses of PFAS in water, soil,
sediment, air emissions, vegetation, and other
media. In all, these 27 data reports provide
results on just under 1,000 samples collected
in conjunction with states and analyzed by
EPA.
•	In conjunction with the New Hampshire
Department of Environmental Services
(NHDES), EPA analyzed PFAS in air
emissions, char, and dispersants at an
industrial site, along with PFAS in water
(surface/ground) and soil collected
in proximity to this site. NHDES used
the results to inform air permitting
requirements for the site.
•	At the request of West Virginia
Department of Environmental Protection
(WVDEP), EPA scientists analyzed
PFAS samples collected during air
emission testing at an industrial facility
near Parkersburg. The results helped
demonstrate the effectiveness of
emissions controls for GenX and other
legacy Perfluorinated Carboxylic Acids
(PFCAs) and allowed the WVDEP to make
the appropriate informed decisions.
•	EPA researchers have been working
with Region 2 and the New York
State Department of Environmental
Conservation (NYDEC) to sample
emissions to characterize potential
PFAS air releases from a facility in
Hoosick Falls, New York. In December
2019, NYDEC reported EPA's findings
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to the mayor and the community that
emissions are free of Perfluorooctanoic
acid (PFOA) and other long-chain legacy
Perfluorinated carboxylic acids (PFCAs).
EPA is also funding research to generate
science-based recommendations for
managing PFAS in rural and agricultural
areas and to expand the understanding of
environmental risks posed by PFAS in water
and waste streams. Over the course of the
year, EPA provide more than $15 million
in research grants, including in August
2020, almost $5 million for new research
on managing PFAS in rural and agricultural
communities. This funding went to Indiana
University, Purdue University, and University of
Georgia.
In conjunction with multiple co-sponsors, EPA
initiated the Innovative Ways to Destroy PFAS
Challenge, asking solvers to submit detailed
plans for a non-thermal way of destroying
PFAS in concentrated film forming foam,
while creating the least amount of potentially
harmful byproducts.
In November 2019, EPA released the draft
document Systematic Review Protocol for the
PFAS (PFBA, PFHxA, PFHxS, PFNA, and PFDA)
IRIS Assessments for public comment. In
July 2020, EPA announced the release of an
update to the Systematic Review Protocol for
the PFBA, PFHxA, PFHxS, PFNA, and PFDA IRIS
Assessments in response to public comments.
Protecting the Nation's Drinking Water
As part of EPA's efforts under the PFAS Action
Plan, the agency is following through on its
commitment to address PFAS in drinking water.
•	In December 2019, EPA accomplished a
key milestone in the PFAS Action Plan by
publishing a new validated method to test
for 11 additional PFAS in drinking water. To
date, EPA has established validated testing
methods to effectively identify 29 unique
PFAS compounds in drinking water and has
provided this information to states and local
public health agencies.
•	In February 2020, EPA took another important
step in implementing the PFAS Action Plan by
proposing to regulate perfluorooctanesulfonic
acid (PFOS) and PFOA in drinking water. The
agency is currently reviewing and considering
over 11,000 public comments on this action
and plans to issue the Final Regulatory
Determinations for PFOA and PFOS in January
2021. EPA is also gathering and evaluating
information to determine if regulation is
appropriate for other chemicals in the PFAS
family.
•	In July 2020, EPA transmitted the Unregulated
Contaminant Monitoring Rule 5 proposal to
OMB for interagency review. By the end of
2020, EPA anticipates proposing nationwide
drinking water monitoring for PFAS using new
methods that will be able to detect PFAS at
lower concentrations than previously possible.
•	Based on public comments received in
January 2019, EPA is making updates to
the draft GenX assessment including the
incorporation of new dose-response studies
and the initiation of a National Institute of
Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)
National Toxicology Program Pathology
Working Group review of slides from a critical
study. After developing the draft assessment
through coordination within EPA and NIEHS,
the agency will continue to engage with
federal partners and perform a second
external peer review to finalize this effort.
New grants going to PFAS
research in agriculture and
rural communities
Part of the Trump Administration's
aggressive efforts to address PFAS
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•	In December 2020, issued a memo detailing
an interim National Pollutant Discharge
Elimination System permitting strategy
for PFAS. EPA also provided an update on
progress made, in collaboration with DoD, on
developing analytical methods to test for up to
40 PFAS in wastewater and in other locations.
Together, these actions help ensure that
wastewater monitoring for PFAS can begin
when appropriate analytical methods are
finalized.
Moving forward, EPA is examining available
information about PFAS in discharges to
surface water to identify industrial sources
that may warrant further study for potential
regulation. Initial analyses of industrial sources
and discharges of PFAS were included in EPA's
Preliminary Effluent Guidelines Plan 14 that was
released in October 2019.
Cleaning Up PFAS at Contaminated Sites
EPA supports its federal, state, local, and tribal
partners by providing assistance in efforts to
identify exposures, develop methods to measure
PFAS in the environment, and support cleanup
efforts where PFAS chemicals have been
identified as a risk to public health.
•	In December 2019, EPA issued Interim
Recommendations for Addressing
Groundwater Contaminated with PFOA
and PFOS, which provides guidance, i.e., a
screening level of 40 ppt and a preliminary
remediation goal of 70 ppt, for addressing
PFOS and PFOA contaminated groundwater for
federal cleanup programs. This tool is critical
for our state and local partners to help protect
drinking water resources in communities
across the country.
•	EPA is working on a proposed rule to
designate PFOA and PFOS as hazardous
substances under CERCLA. In the absence of
the rule, EPA has used its existing authorities
to compel cleanups.
•	Some Superfund NPL sites (including federal
facilities) have PFAS detections, often in
addition to the contaminants for which the
sites were originally listed.
• In December, EPA released the Interim
Guidance on the Destruction and Disposal
of PFAS and Materials Containing PFAS.
The guidance provides information on
technologies that may be feasible and
appropriate for the destruction or disposal of
PFAS and PFAS-containing materials. It also
identifies ongoing research and development
activities related to destruction and disposal
technologies, which may inform future
guidance. This action fulfilled the agency's
obligation in the FY 2020 National Defense
Authorization Act to publish within one year
interim guidance on the destruction and
disposal of PFAS.
Ensuring Companies Comply with National Laws
and Regulations
EPA continues to use enforcement tools, when
appropriate, to address PFAS exposure in the
environment and assists states in enforcement
activities. EPA intends to employ an enforcement
strategy that relies first on state and local
authorities and utilizes federal authorities as
appropriate. To date, across the nation EPA has
addressed PFAS in 15 cases using a variety of
enforcement tools under the Safe Drinking Water
Act, TSCA, RCRA, and CERCLA (where appropriate)
and will continue to do so to protect public health
and the environment.
For example, in May 2020, EPA and
Swix Sport USA finalized an agreement
resolving TSCA violations associated
with the company's importation
of noncompliant ski wax products
containing PFAS. Swix violated the TSCA
Pre manufacturing Notice requirements
and Import Certification requirements
when it imported ski wax products
containing six different PFAS chemicals
on at least 83 occasions that were not
included on the TSCA Inventory or were
not otherwise exempt for commercial
purposes. Swix ceased importation of
these products, agreed to pay a civil
penalty of $375,625, and develop an
educational program to raise awareness in

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ski communities about PFAS chemicals in
ski waxes.
Restricting the Manufacture, Import, and Use
of Products Containing PFAS and Providing
Communities with Information on PFAS Releases
in their Environment
EPA is responsible for reviewing new chemical
substances before they enter commerce to help
manage the potential risk to public health and the
environment from chemicals that are new to the
marketplace. In 2020, EPA continued to expand
the agency's efforts under the PFAS Action Plan,
including the agency's work to update the Toxics
Release Inventory (TRI) program to include PFAS
and efforts to finalize a Significant New Use Rule
(SNUR) for PFAS chemicals.
•	In May 2020, EPA took the next step to
implement an important PFAS requirement
of the NDAA by issuing a final rule to officially
add 172 PFAS to the list of chemicals required
to be reported to the TRI. The inclusion of
these 172 PFAS on the TRI list will provide EPA
and the public with important information on
these chemicals.
•	In June, EPA finalized a SNUR for certain PFAS
requiring persons to notify EPA at least 90
days before commencing the manufacture
(including import) or processing of these
chemical substances for significant new uses.
This final rule strengthens the regulation
of PFAS by requiring notice and EPA review
before the use of long-chain PFAS that have
been phased out in the U.S. could begin
again.
•	In December, EPA issued a draft compliance
guide for the PFAS SNUR to provide additional
clarity on what is meant by a "surface
coating," identify which entities are regulated,
describe the activities that are required or
prohibited, and summarize the notification
requirements of the final SNUR.
~~~~~
CHILDREN'S
HEALTH
EPA plays a significant role in protecting children's
health throughout the country, managing
numerous programs that help keep children safe
in the places where they live, learn, and play.
Our environment is cleaner today than any other
recorded point in our nation's history, leading
to positive environmental health outcomes in
communities across the nation.
To kick off this year's Children's Health Month, a
month-long observance of 50 years of progress
in protecting children's health, EPA celebrated
Child Health Day on October 5, 2020. In his Child
Health Day 2020 Proclamation, President Trump
said, "we are reminded of our solemn obligation
to love and protect these precious lives, and
we recommit to helping America's youth reach
their full potential." EPA released the Protecting
Children's Health October 2020 brochure to
celebrate environmental achievements that have
improved children's health in the U.S.
Children's Healthy Learning Environments Grant
Initiative
In April, EPA announced the Children's Healthy
Learning Environments Grant Initiative to support
children's environmental health in schools and
childcare settings. In October, EPA announced
that the New York State Department of Health
and the Community Development Institute
Progress for o Stronger Future
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were selected as awardees. These initiatives
will advance children's environmental health by
providing training and tools for school occupants
and childcare providers, to reduce children's
exposures to environmental hazards.
Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Units
Based at university medical centers in each
of EPA's 10 regions, and supported through
an ongoing partnership between EPA's Office
of Children's Health Protection (OCHP) and
the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease
Registry (ATSDR), Pediatric Environmental Health
Specialty Units (PEHSU) are an interconnected
network of environmental health specialists
who provide medical information and advice
on the prevention, diagnosis, management,
and treatment of environmental conditions that
influence reproductive and children's health. A
5-year PEHSU Network Strategic Plan is under
development in addition to working to meet
program performance measures. The network
exceeded its performance targets for resources
developed, community members educated,
and community consultations in 2020. OCHP is
working with the American Academy of Pediatrics
to evaluate the program performance data from
2014 to 2019.
Pediatric and Reproductive Environmental Health
Scholars Program
Through regular program interactions and
discussions among the National Institute of
Environmental Health Sciences, ATSDR, and EPA,
the Pediatric and Reproductive Environmental
Health Scholars (PREHS) program was created
to bring together shared interests in children's
environmental health and the advancement
of the PEHSU program. The goal of PREHS is
to create of a strong network of healthcare
professionals who possess the skills and
knowledge to address the complexities of
pediatric and reproductive environmental health.
Wildfire Smoke and Children's Health
EPA has set up three workgroups to develop
guidance on masks, school activity, and sensors,
as well as school indoor air quality for the current
fire season. This guidance will be reviewed at the
2021 workshop and will be included in the next
"^T
version of the Wildfire Smoke Guide for Public
Health Officials document. PEHSUs in Regions 8,
9, and 10 are involved in this effort, as are many
federal, state, and local public health officials.
Collaborations
Family, Career; and Community Leaders of
America
In March, EPA signed a MOU with Family, Career,
and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) to
promote safer K-12 school environments. This
partnership will give FCCLA the opportunity to
establish children's environmental health as
a priority issue for youth and will encourage
high school students to use publicly available
EPA environmental education resources in the
planning and implementation of their projects.
Children's Environmental Health Research
OCHP assisted ORD in developing the "Center for
Early Lifestage Vulnerabilities to Environmental
Stressors" request for applications released
in August as part of the Science to Achieve
Results Program. EPA is interested in supporting
a transdisciplinary research center to better
understand potential causal relationships
among cumulative exposures to chemicals and
non-chemical environmental stressors during
early lifestages and modifying factors that
result in adverse developmental health effects.
Developmental health outcomes may include
attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, reduced
IQ, obesity, decreased self-regulatory capacities,
anxiety, depression, attention problems, lower
memory function, or structural changes to the
brain.
ExpoKids
In collaboration with ORD, OCHP developed
ExpoKids, an R-based data visualization tool that
graphically illustrates estimates of relative and
aggregate exposure sources within and across
lifestages for up to 10 different media through
the oral exposure route (e.g., dust, breastmilk,
water, vegetables, etc.)
To use ExpoKids, chemical-specific exposure
information for various media is entered into
EPA's Exposure Factors Interactive Resource for
Scenarios Tool to calculate average daily doses
-------
(ADD) by lifestage. ExpoKids then uses the data
to produce graphs that illustrate aggregate
ADDs and lifetime average daily doses for the
oral exposure route across postnatal childhood
lifestages (from birth to puberty) with adults as a
comparator group.
EPA anticipates that the ExpoKids tool will be
used by risk assessors, risk managers, scientists,
and educators. An article describing the ExpoKids
tool and its uses, using examples, was published
on October 5, 2020, in the Journal of Exposure
Science and Environmental Epidemiology.
~~~~~
[lead]
Throughout this administration, EPA has been
committed to reducing exposure to lead wherever
it is found, whether in water, lead-based paint,
contaminated soil, or polluted ambient air. EPA
has worked to identify lead-exposed children
and communities faster, communicate more
effectively with stakeholders, and support and
conduct clinical research to better understand
and treat the dangers of lead exposure and
related health risks. Through cross-agency
efforts, collaboration with our federal, state, and
local government partners under the December
2018 Federal Action Plan to Reduce Childhood
Lead Exposures and Associated Health Impacts
(Action Plan), and continued prioritization
by Administrator Wheeler, the agency made
tremendous progress in 2020.
EPA Lead Coordination
To enable efficient decision making and
effective collaboration on issues and actions
related to lead, this year EPA finalized the Lead
Coordination Plan. The plan recognizes the
need for an agile and responsive framework
to provide the mechanisms and accountability
required to meet the agency's extensive portfolio
of activities, and it promotes efficiencies across
the agency by leveraging existing structures and
mechanisms while avoiding redundancy created
by organizational silos.
Federal Action Plan to Reduce Childhood Lead
Exposures and Associated Health Impacts
Under the Trump Administration's December
2018 Action Plan, EPA continued to work with
communities and partners to identify and
eliminate lead exposure across the nation,
especially for children who are the most
vulnerable. Through cross-governmental
collaborations, public partnerships, rulemaking
processes, enforcement actions, and targeted
outreach, EPA has made tremendous gains.
Air
In 2020, through EPA's Office of Air and Radiation
(OAR), EPA reduced the number of lead non-
attainment areas to 11. Furthermore, 12 of the
22 initial areas designated non-attainment for the
2008 Lead NAAQS are now in attainment. For the
majority of the remaining non-attainment areas,
lead emissions and monitored concentrations are
declining due to implemented control measures,
and all non-attainment areas have fulfilled air
quality implementation plan requirements.
In early 2020, EPA also released two technical
reports, Model-extrapolated Estimates of
Airborne Lead Concentrations at U.S. Airports and
National Analysis of Populations Residing Near or
Attending School Near U.S. Airports, that evaluate
the impact of lead emissions from aircraft using
leaded aviation fuel under the Clean Air Act.
Drinking Water
Lead can enter drinking water when plumbing
materials that contain the heavy metal corrode.
The most common sources of lead in drinking
water are lead pipes, faucets, and plumbing
fixtures. While the Safe Drinking Water Act
requires lead testing for schools that have their
own water supply, there are approximately
98,000 public schools and 500,000 childcare
facilities that receive drinking water from a
regulated public water system that is not directly
regulated under SDWA. Schools and childcare
centers receiving water from public water systems
may not be conducting independent drinking
water quality testing and often lack resources
fa
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and training needed to develop and implement
drinking water programs. To address this
challenge, ERA'S Office of Water (OW) provides
funding to states to establish or expand school
testing programs through the Lead Testing in
Schools and Child Care Programs Drinking Water
grant.
v>EPA
CONCERNED ABOUT LEAD IN YOUR DRINKING WATER?
Sources of LEAD
in Drinking Water
Reduce Your Exposure To Lead
a 0 ps h
Replace Your Lead Service Line
Identify Other Lead Sources In Your Home
information, visit: epa.gov/safewater
In 2020, EPA awarded a total of nearly $40
million to all 50 states and the District of
Columbia under the WIIN Act. These grants will be
used to assist disadvantaged communities and
schools remove sources of lead in drinking water
by replacing thousands of lead service lines,
eliminating potential sources of lead in hundreds
of schools and childcare facilities across the U.S.
To further reduce the sources of lead in drinking
water, EPA issued the "Use of Lead-Free Pipes,
Fittings, Fixtures, Solder, and Flux for Drinking
Water Final Rule" in September. This rule limits
the lead content allowed in plumbing materials
used in public water systems, homes, schools,
and other facilities in accordance with the
Reduction of Lead in Drinking Water Act of 2011.
w
Since the program's development and throughout
2020, EPA assisted stakeholders implementing
EPA's Training, Testing, and Taking Action
(3Ts) program. The 3Ts help schools, childcare
facilities, states, and water systems implement
voluntary lead-in-drinking-water testing programs.
This included developing resources to guide
facilities to improve drinking water quality during
and after extended closures due to COVID-19.
EPA Region 6's Water Division developed and
directed a voluntary drinking water sampling
initiative under 3Ts guidance to address lead
exposure in Native American children, protecting
more than 4,000 from the harmful effects of lead
exposure.
Lead-Based Paint
Reducing exposure to lead-based paint hazards
in homes and child-occupied facilities has been
part of the long-term collaboration between
EPA's OCSPP and HUD. To better protect children
from the harmful effects of lead exposure, EPA
finalized the Residential Dust Lead Clearance
Level Rule in December. The final rule reduces
the clearance levels for lead in dust on floors and
windowsills after lead removal activities from 40
micrograms (pg) of lead in dust per square foot
(ft2) to 10 |_ig/ft2 for floor dust and from 250 pg/
ft2 to 100 pg/ft2 for window sill dust.
Under the Lead Renovation, Repair, and Painting
(RRP) Rule, individuals and firms conducting
lead-based paint abatement, risk assessment,
or inspection are required to be properly trained
and certified to ensure reliable, effective, and
safe work practice standards. In 2020, EPA
certified 1,982 new RRP firms and trained 4,896
contractors. Furthermore, in partnership with
EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance
Assurance (OECA), OCSPP conducted 516
compliance-assistance activities to increase
the number of RRP-certified firms. The rate of
RRP firm recertifications has declined since
the program was implemented in 2010, when
extensive outreach and publicity surrounding
the RRP regulation brought in a large number of
applicants. Firms certified to conduct lead-safe
work practices protect children from lead-based
paint hazards. By using these best practices,
they reduce dust-lead levels associated with
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renovation, repair, and painting activities that
disturb lead-based paint in target housing and
child-occupied facilities.
In 2020, EPA protected children from exposure
to lead paint by completing 109 civil and criminal
federal enforcement actions addressing non-
compliance with EPA's lead paint rules by
renovation contractors, landlords, realtors, and
others. In December 2020, EPA also lodged a
settlement with Home Depot for nationwide non-
compliance with the RRP Rule by Home Depot-
provided contractors. Under the settlement,
Home Depot will implement system-wide changes
to ensure that contractors who perform work in
homes constructed before 1978 are EPA-certified
and follow lead-safe practices. The record-
breaking penalty of over $20 million will put
other renovation companies on notice that they
too need to ensure their contractors follow these
critical laws that protect public health, deterring
noncompliance.
Soil
Lead can be a relatively common soil
contaminant because of past and current human
activity or industrial uses (e.g. smelters) and
natural occurrence. EPA's Superfund program's
approach is to develop site-specific cleanup
levels that account for total exposure to lead at a
site. Almost 900 Superfund NPL and Superfund
Alternative Approach sites identified lead as a
contaminant of concern, potentially exposed
to children in communities across the country.
Young children often have higher rates of soil and
dust ingestion due to crawling and mouth contact
with hands and objects.
In 2020, EPA completed 56 Superfund cleanup
actions at sites where lead is a contaminant of
concern, significantly exceeding FY 2020 target
of 24; 21 of these actions were at remedial sites
and 35 were under the removal program.
Throughout 2020, EPA regions continued to
partner with ATSDR to conduct Soil Screening,
Health, Outreach and Partnership, an outreach
event to help people learn if their soil is
contaminated with lead and how to reduce
exposures to contaminated soil and produce.
Research
Building on past and current lead research is
important to address critical information gaps
and maximizing and leveraging coordinated
opportunities to collaborate with our federal
partners under the Action Plan. EPA's ORD
accomplished much related to lead during 2020.
Specifically, ORD:
•	Improved blood lead level models for
application to risk mitigation actions
and rulemaking, including the Integrated
Exposure, Uptake, Biokinetic (IEUBK 2.0)
model and the All Ages Lead Model.
•	Continued developing methods
for assessing bioaccessibility and
bioavailability more rapidly and at less
expense.
•	Continued quantifying the bioavailability
of lead from residential sources including
analysis of water, soil, and dust samples
from the American Healthy Homes Survey in
collaboration with HUD.
•	Provided technical assistance to EPA
regions on lead mapping to identify high
lead exposure locations and target potential
exposure sources.
•	Provided technical support to EPA regions
and municipalities on corrosion control
methods to reduce release of lead into
drinking water from water systems sources
and point-of-use filters to mitigate lead in
drinking water.
•	Published research on Evaluation of Lead
Pipe Scale and Orthophosphate Treatment.
•	Published Modeled Impacts of Drinking
Water Lead Reduction Scenarios on
Children's Exposures and Blood Lead
Levels manuscript in Environmental
Science & Technology.
•	As part of the Science to Achieve Results
program, released the Estimating Children's
Soil and Dust Ingestion Rates for Exposure
Science RFA on soil and dust ingestion by
children.
•	Convened the Federal Lead Action Plan
Goal 4 Working Group to continue cross-
federal agency lead research coordination.
~
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Education
EPA's OCSPP collaborated with the National
Tribal Toxics Council and the National EPA-Tribal
Science Council to develop the Lead Awareness
in Indian Country: Keeping our Children Healthy!
curriculum. Developed in partnership with over
200 tribal representatives from 80 different
tribal governments and organizations, partners
provided feedback during development or
evaluated the course after attending one of
seven curriculum pilots hosted by tribes and
tribal organizations, enhancing the materials.
The curriculum includes relevant tribal scenarios
and cultural information to increase lead-risk
awareness and education in Indian country.
Throughout 2020, OCHP in collaboration with
ATSDR, supported awareness of the dangers of
lead exposure through the PEHSUs in all of EPA's
10 regions. Some of the efforts by Region 7 to
combat child lead exposure can act as a typical
example.
Since 2017, Region 7 has worked with the city
of St. Joseph, Missouri, to build and strengthen
relationships with community partners to reach
100 percent of day cares and more than 600
families in the ZIP code with the highest levels
of lead in St. Joseph (among the highest in
Missouri). Region 7 provided Lead Poisoning
Prevention Training to 30 home day care and
child care center teachers. Its communication
efforts included, conducting one-on-one meetings
with day care and nonprofit directors, providing
outreach and education materials to each home
day care and child care center, and holding a
demonstration outreach and education event that
served 75 families and tested 17 children.
~~~~~
PUBLIC
ENGAGEMENT &
ENVIRONMENTAL
EDUCATION
This year, EPA selected 35 organizations
to receive over $3.2 million to support
environmental projects nationwide under the
2020 Environmental Education Grants Program.
The funding, ranging from $50,000 to $100,000,
was given to organizations that provide
environmental education activities and programs.
This year's grantees will conduct project activities
in 35 states and Puerto Rico. Through these
environmental education grants, organizations
will help expand the public's awareness of
environmental challenges, strengthen their
knowledge and understanding of environmental
issues, gain skills to identify and help resolve
challenges, and increase participation in
activities to improve our environment.
2020 was the 4th year of EPA's 5-year teacher
training program—ee360—with the North
American Association for Environmental
Education (NAAEE). Through ee360, NAAEE
reached more than 169,000 formal and
nonformal educators via their website as well
as more than 3,500 educators directly and
more than 300,000 educators indirectly, mostly
through virtual training programming. ee360
conducted more than 22 webinars reaching
more than 6,000 educators on topics ranging
from the basics of environmental education
(EE) to integrating EE and civic education to
understanding the role of EE in developing a
circular economy. Additionally, under the ee360
program more than 26 small grants were
awarded to more than 23 states environmental
education associations and organizations to
strengthen their environmental education
programming.
In partnership with CEQ, EPA recognized seven
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teacher winners and three honorable mentions
from across the country with the Presidential
Innovation Award for Environmental Educators
(PIAEE). Winning educators demonstrated
leadership by integrating environmental
education into multiple subjects and using
topics such as healthy school environments,
environmentally friendly agricultural practices,
reducing ocean litter, gardening, recycling, or
STEM to teach sustainability to K-12 students.
Additionally, 35 students who worked as a
team or individually on 13 projects received
the President's Environmental Youth Award
(PEYA). Their stewardship projects, conducted
in 2019, display a commitment to learning, to
protecting natural resources, and to engaging
their communities in environmental protection.
To acknowledge both PIAEE and PEYA winners,
virtual award ceremonies were conducted
by most regions during which the regional
administrators personally congratulated award
recipients. Some regions, such as Region
7, further engaged with the Regional Tribal
Operations Committee and Kickapoo Nation and
coordinated their event with Native American
Heritage Month to make event even more
meaningful for their PEYA award recipient,
Kickapoo School.
~~~~~
AGRICULTURE
In 2020, EPA continued to listen to the needs
of America's farmers. While navigating unique
challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic,
the agency met with farmers, ranchers, and
stakeholders out in their fields and found new
ways to strengthen our partnership with the first
conservationists of the land.
Administrator Wheeler and EPA took actions to
meet the environmental needs of U.S. agriculture,
while ensuring decisions were clear, transparent,
and based on sound science.
One of the major priorities of this administration
was to engage more effectively with the
agriculture community. We know the importance
of hearing firsthand from producers on the
issues impacting their day-to-day life, which is
why last year, we welcomed over 650 farmers
and ranchers from across the country to visit
EPA Headquarters in 2019—many for the first
time. We have also launched the Smart Sectors
Agriculture program, coordinating work across
our regional offices to engage locally with the
agriculture community and achieve better
environmental outcomes by working together.
Administrator Wheeler speaks to farmers and FFA students
at a farm in Minnesota.
Under President Trump, EPA worked to restore
trust through proactive engagement with the
agriculture community, deliver regulatory relief
and certainty to U.S. agriculture, and provide
environmental support through grants and other
tools.
Finalized Improvements to Pesticide Application
Exclusion Zone (AEZ) Requirements
EPA targeted changes to improve the
enforceability and workability of the AEZ
requirements, decrease regulatory burdens for
farmers, and maintain critical worker protections.
Dicamba
EPA gave growers certainty to make decisions
for the upcoming growing season and beyond,
approving new registrations for two dicamba
products and extending the registration of an
additional dicamba product until 2025.

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Supporting Renewable Fuels
EPA has consistently increased the renewable
volume obligations, supporting farmers through
actions under the Renewable Fuel Standard
Program. EPA worked to ensure a net of 15 billion
gallons of conventional biofuel are blended into
the nation's fuel supply since the program's
inception. EPA moved to deny petitions for small
refinery exemptions for past compliance years
and is engaging with stakeholders across the U.S.
to expand the number of approved fuel pathways,
adding diversity to the biofuel mix. Additionally as
promised, EPA eliminated a significant barrier to
E15 market access, and E15 is now available in
30 states at over 2,000 stations.
Enhancing Domestic Access to Clean Water
through Water Reuse
In February 2020, EPA announced the release of
the National Water Reuse Action Plan. Recycled
water can be utilized in meeting the demands of
water demands while mitigating the risks posed
by droughts.
Ensuring Availability of Crop Protection Tools
EPA is listening to the community, and our Office
of Pesticide Programs continues to approve new
uses for existing pesticides and registering new
active ingredients for farmers to utilize in their
crop plans. This year, we issued 80 draft risk
assessments, 80 proposed interim registration
review decisions, and 110 interim registration
review decisions.
Farm, Ranch and Rural Communities Committee
In June, Administrator Wheeler appointed
32 members to the Farm, Ranch and Rural
Communities Committee. Since then, the
committee has met twice to discuss the charge
topics they received from the administrator. The
committee has been charged to look at how EPA
can create a holistic pesticide program for the
future and how EPA can support environmental
benchmarks with interagency partners on the
topics of (1) water quality and quantity and (2)
food loss and waste.
Protecting Rural Communities from Chemicals of
Concern
EPA expanded efforts to address the potential
~
impacts of PFAS on water quality and availability
in rural communities and agricultural operations
across the U.S. In August 2020, EPA awarded
$4.8 million in grants to research for potential
impacts and treatment of PFAS in rural America
and the agricultural sector.
Agriculture Memoranda of Understanding
EPA has entered into a series of MOUs with
the intent to increase collaboration and
communication with agriculture stakeholders.
These MOUs are meant to continue building
partnerships with the agriculture community,
while promoting sustainability and reaching for
environmental successes in mutually beneficial
and critical areas.
EPA and the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy
In November, Administrator Wheeler signed a
first-time MOU with the Innovation Center for U.S.
Dairy. The MOU between EPA and the Innovation
Center for U.S. Dairy signals a commitment to
collaborate and coordinate in areas of mutual
interest related to environmental stewardship in
the dairy industry.
MOUs signed with EPA Regions:
Through continued engagement in the Regions,
EPA strengthened partnerships at the state level.
The MOUs focus on coordinating education and
outreach efforts, while recognizing environmental
stewardship activities. EPA has signed MOUs with
the following:
•	Alabama Department of Agriculture
•	Delaware Department of Agriculture
•	Florida Department of Agriculture &
Consumer Services
•	Georgia Department of Agriculture
•	Illinois Farm Bureau
•	Kentucky Department of Agriculture
•	Maryland Department of Agriculture
•	Mississippi Department of Agriculture
•	North Carolina Department of Agriculture
•	Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture*
(LOU)
•	South Carolina Department of Agriculture
•	Tennessee Department of Agriculture
•	West Virginia Department of Agriculture
EPA recognizes farmers and ranchers as
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natural allies in EPA's mission to protect human
health and the environment. These MOUs are
meant to continue building partnerships with
the agriculture community, while promoting
sustainability and reaching for environmental
successes in mutually beneficial and critical
areas.
South Carolina Commissioner of
Agriculture Hugh Weathers: "This historic
agreement between EPA and the South
Carolina Department of Agriculture is an
acknowledgment of what farmers have
known for a long time: When it comes to
protecting the environment, agriculture is
part of the solution. We're thrilled to have a
positive foundation for future collaboration
with EPA."
Mississippi Department of Agriculture and
Commerce Commissioner Andy Gipson:
"I appreciate the Trump Administration's
efforts to repeal burdensome regulations
that have hampered agriculture and
commerce in the past. I look forward to
further strengthening the relationship of
the Mississippi Department of Agriculture
and Commerce and the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency through the signing of
this MOU, as we work together to promote
sustainable farms that provide food and fiber
for our communities in a clean environment
for everyone to enjoy."
U.S. Congressman Rodney Davis (IL-13):
"I'm proud of the collaborative efforts
formalized by the EPA and Illinois Farm
Bureau signing a MOU this week in my
district... The type of cooperation signified by
the new MOU is what led to EPA's Dicamba
registration decision that gives soybean
farmers across the Midwest the certainty
they need to do business, while also putting
new safeguards in place to protect the
environment."
~~~~~
: GENERAL
COUNSEL
This was a busy and productive year for EPA's
Office of General Counsel (OGC), which continued
to deliver several significant victories in the
courts, provide outstanding legal counseling
and support to the agency's program offices
and senior leadership, and implement internal
initiatives to increase efficiency and performance.
Courts across the country have continued to
uphold EPA's efforts to adhere to the rule of law,
provide certainty to the regulated community, and
ensure a healthier environment for all Americans.
This trend of achieving favorable rulings for the
agency has persisted, as EPA obtained several
wins in court this year. Specifically, to name a
few, the agency received favorable rulings in suits
challenging EPA's placement of the Rockwell
International Wheel & Trim Site (Grenada,
Mississippi) and Pierson's Creek Site (Newark,
New Jersey), respectively, on the Superfund NPL.
In the first case, Meritor, Inc. v. EPA, No. 18-1325
(D.C. Cir. July 28, 2020), the D.C. Circuit upheld
the agency's application of the Hazard Ranking
System (HRS) to score the Rockwell International
Wheel & Trim Site above the 28.5 numerical
threshold for NPL eligibility. The decision was
significant as it was the first challenge to a
site that was listed based on vapor intrusion
under the Subsurface Intrusion pathway, which
was added to the HRS in January 2017. In Troy
Chemical Corp. v. EPA, No. 14-1290 (D.C. Cir.
Nov.13, 2020), the D.C. Circuit held that Troy
Chemical did not clear the high bar to overturn
EPA's wetland delineation under substantial
evidence review or that the delineation was
undermined by contradictory evidence.
OGC served as the agency lead in negotiating a
favorable settlement with Utah on August 5, 2020
in the matter of Gold King Mine Release in San
Juan County, Colorado on August 5, 2015, MDL
No: l:18-md-02824-WJ (D. N.M.). Pursuant to
the agreement, Utah will dismiss its legal claims
against the EPA and the United States, as well
-------
as EPA's contractors, and EPA will strengthen
Utah's involvement in the agency's work to
address contamination at the Bonita Peak
Mining District Superfund Site, which includes
the Gold King Mine and other abandoned mines.
EPA will also continue to partner with Utah on
other environmental priorities, including the
assessment of abandoned mine sites in Utah
that may be impacting its waters as well as
other projects to improve Utah's water quality.
As part of the agreement, EPA will act on the
Utah Department of Environmental Quality's
application for $3 million in Clean Water Act funds
for various projects, including the development of
water quality criteria for Utah Lake, septic density
studies, nonpoint source pollution reduction
projects, and nutrient management plans
for agricultural sources. EPA will also initiate
Superfund assessments of several abandoned
mine sites in Utah by December 2021.
Utah Attorney General Reyes signs agreement with EPA to
resolve Gold King Mine claims.
Over the past year, courts have also ruled in
favor of EPA in several cases decided under the
Clean Air Act, including California v. EPA, No.
19-17480 (9th Cir. Oct. 22, 2020). In that case,
eight plaintiff States (led by California) sued
EPA alleging that EPA had failed to perform a
nondiscretionary duty to act on a handful of
submitted state landfill emissions plans and
to promulgate a federal landfill emissions plan
by certain deadlines. The court ordered EPA to
approve or disapprove submitted state plans
by a particular date, which EPA did timely. The
court also entered an injunction requiring EPA to
promulgate, by November 6, 2019, regulations
setting forth a federal plan to implement the
Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) Landfill Emission
Guidelines for those states without approved
state plans. On August 26, 2019, EPA finalized
amendments to the MSW Landfill Emission
Guidelines, which revised and extended the
applicable timelines for the submission and
action on state plans, and for EPA's promulgation
of a federal plan. That same day, EPA filed a
motion seeking relief from its injunction to
promulgate regulations establishing a federal
plan by November 6, 2019. The district court
denied the motion. In a unanimous decision, the
Ninth Circuit panel reversed the denial, finding
the district court abused its discretion when it
refused to modify its injunction after EPA revised
the underlying regulations providing the basis
for the mandatory duty suit. The Ninth Circuit
remanded the case to the district court with
instructions to modify the injunction consistent
with its opinion.
A favorable decision was handed down in
Menominee Tribe of Wisconsin v. EPA, et al.,
No. 18-C-108 (E.D. Wis. Oct. 20, 2019), aff'd
Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin v. EPA,
et al, No. 19-1130 (7th Cir. Jan. 27, 2020).
This case arose out of the refusal by EPA and
Army Corps of Engineers to exercise jurisdiction
over a permit issued pursuant to Section 404
of the Clean Water Act relating to a proposal
to construct a mine in Michigan. The Seventh
Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the district
court's dismissal of the plaintiffs' complaint and
denial of the plaintiffs' motion to amend. The
court held that the agencies' letters stating that
the agencies lacked authority to reconsider the
State of Michigan's authority to issue Section
404 permits for construction of a mine on the
Menominee River did not reflect agency decisions
and held that EPA's decision to withdraw its
objections to the state's proposed permit
was committed to EPA's discretion by law and
therefore unreviewable under the Administrative
Procedure Act.
OGC continued to provide outstanding legal
counseling and support to the agency's program

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offices and senior leadership. In the Clean Water
Act space, OGC provided critical legal support for
implementation of a Presidential Executive Order
directing EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers to
undertake rulemaking to redefine "waters of the
United States" (WOTUS) under the Clean Water
Act, including providing significant support in
the drafting of the final rulemaking documents
supporting the new definition of WOTUS, which
was published in April 2020.
OGC provided critical legal support to the
Department of Justice in dozens of pending
cases challenging a WOTUS rule promulgated
by the agency in 2015, as well as WOTUS rules
promulgated in 2019 and 2020, including
procedural and dispositive motions and motions
for preliminary injunction. Over the summer,
a federal court rejected an initial challenge to
NWPR, EPA's new definition of WOTUS, denying an
attempt by 17 states to stop implementation of
the NWPR nationwide.
changes in current practices. As part of that
effort, OGC ensured that the rule governing
inspections required by the EO provided clear
and consistent direction to EPA inspectors and
advanced the overall goal of greater transparency
and fairness to the regulated community. OGC
has also been the catalyst for ensuring that the
EO will be implemented in a manner that will
result in fundamental and durable changes to
EPA enforcement practices, providing greater
uniformity and transparency to the benefit of
countless members of the regulated community.
Freedom of Information Act
OGC was also successful in defending the
agency in more than 76 Freedom of Information
Act (FOIA) cases, including complex cases with
novel FOIA issues. OGC completed 180 FOIA
administrative appeals and reduced the FOIA
administrative appeal backlog by more than 60
percent for appeals received before this fiscal
year.
In July 2020, OGC finalized a rule to modernize
and streamline EPA's permit review process for
the first time in 27 years. OGC served as the lead
rule writer and legal counselor on this rulemaking
in issuing the proposal, addressing numerous
comments, and developing the final rule. This rule
clarifies the scope of review of the Environmental
Appeals Board, makes permits effective more
quickly by expediting administrative appeals and
provides greater accountability for EPA's permit
appeal process. This rulemaking will have a
critical impact across a number of EPA's programs
and the implementation of several environmental
statutes, as it will govern the issuance of permits
under the CWA, SDWA, Clean Air Act, and RCRA.
OGC also led a cross-agency effort to implement
Executive Order (EO) 13892 - Promoting the Rule
of Law Through Transparency and Fairness in Civil
Administrative Enforcement and Adjudications -
directing agencies, among other things, to take
several measures from providing pre-enforcement
notice and an opportunity to be heard to issuing
rules on procedures for ensuring reasonable
administrative inspections. OGC developed key
interpretations as well as a strategy to implement
the EO broadly as to effectuate significant
EPA's National FOIA Office (NFO), located in OGC,
leads the agency's implementation of the FOIA
and sets EPA's nationwide FOIA policies. This
year, NFO was instrumental in leading the agency
to enhance FOIA performance by centralizing FOIA
request intake, enabling it to improve efficiency,
consistency, and quality of the agency's early
communications with requesters. The initial
review and assignment of all FOIA requests and
first communication with requesters are now
made rapidly, in less than three days on average.
In FY 2020, the NFO performed the intake, initial
review and assignment of 6,891 FOIA requests;
addressed 411 petitions for expedited FOIA
processing; and adjudicated 458 applications for
fee waiver. The NFO also processed and closed
2,121 FOIA requests.
On FOIA requests, EPA brought down the backlog
of overdue FOIA requests to 1,396 at the end of
FY 2020. This is down 732 or 34 percent from
the beginning of FY 2020, when the number
of overdue FOIA requests stood at 2,128.
Specifically, the Administrator's Office achieved
61 percent of the agency-wide reduction in FY
2020.
~
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External Civil Rights Compliance
OGC's External Civil Rights Compliance Office
(ECRCO) made significant strides in achieving its
external civil rights mission. For example, ECRCO
has made substantial progress in performing
its enforcement and oversight functions since
FY 2017, including clearing its overaged cases;
issuing a Strategic Plan, Case Resolution Manual
and Compliance Toolkit; and collaborating with
other parts of the agency to launch compliance
reviews and other proactive initiatives.
~~~~~
OFFICE OF ~~|
CONTINUOUS
improvement!
EPA's Lean Management System (ELMS)—our
agency-wide systemic approach to continuous
process improvement—delivered impressive
results in the past year. With goals of deployment
to 80 percent of agency personnel by the
end FY 2020 and the improvement of 250
processes by the end of the FY 2022, EPA's
Office of Continuous Improvement both met and
surpassed these initial targets. Both goals were
successfully met and surpassed in FY 2020,
with the agency reporting over 500 processes
improved and 83 percent of personnel using
ELMS.
WHAT IS ELMS?
ELMS is based on lean principles used for years
by the private sector and is composed of six
components: visual management, standard
process, cascading performance measures,
problem solving, business reviews and huddles,
and leader behaviors. EPA implementation of
each of these elements has allowed EPA to make
significant improvements to the speed and quality
at which it delivers its services to
the American people.

"I'm extremely proud of this agency's embrace of
lean principles and commitment to continuous
improvement," said Henry Darwin, EPA's chief
operating officer and visionary behind ELMS.
"Setting numeric goals, tracking workflow and
performance, and solving problems using
data and evidence is how I believe this agency
can better protect human health and the
environment. ELMS has given EPA employees
a new way to accomplish our mission and the
results speak for themselves."
Some of the most notable process improvements
that have been made since the system was
implemented include reducing the agency's
backlog of FOIA requests by almost 45 percent,
increasing the number of inspections reports
that are completed on-time and communicated
to the regulated entity from around 49 percent
to 82 percent, and a reduction in the number of
backlogged new permit applications by almost
150.
Noteworthy Process Improvements
•	Region 9 used ELMS to significantly
reduce the time firms and renovators
take to get into compliance with
residential lead-based paint
requirements by 71 percent.
•	Region 2 used ELMS in a cross-
divisional effort to reduce the backlog
in National Pollution Discharge
Elimination System permits in Puerto
Rico by 88 percent.
•	The Office of Water used ELMS to
reduce backlogs of EPA actions taken
on
state-submitted lists of waters not
meeting water quality standards by
96 percent and associated state-
submitted pollution reduction targets
for those waters by 99 percent.
~~~~~
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OFFICE OF~~|
MISSION
L SUPPORT _|
EPA's Office of Mission Support (OMS) leads
the agency's core mission support functions to
improve efficiency, coordination, and customer
experience for internal customers, stakeholders,
and the public. OMS is also responsible for
protecting EPA's facilities and other critical assets
nationwide, acquisition activities (contracts),
grants management, human capital, information
technology, and information management
activities.
HIRING
Virtual Onboarding and Workforce Hiring
EPA continued to focus on increasing the number
of hiring actions to obtain the next cohort
of environmental leaders. As a result of this
action, EPA successfully completed over 2,000
recruitment actions in FY 2020, 40 percent more
than in FY 2019, and reduced the average time-
to-hire average by 11 days.
For the first time in three years, EPA had a net
positive gain in employees in FY 2020 as a result
of external hiring efforts. Specifically, EPA hired
1,450 new employees with over 800 of those
hires made during the COIVD-19 pandemic. The
swift transition to virtual onboarding made this
possible.
TELEWORK
Information Technology
EPA took steps to quickly respond to the
COVID-19 pandemic and successfully adapted
complex and varied operations in order protect
the health and safety of employees while
maintaining mission critical operations. With an
increased and concentrated effort on information
technology modernization during the pandemic,
EPA was prepared and able to rapidly transition
seamlessly to maximum telework posture. As part
of those actions, EPA put in a place a cohesive
process to virtually onboard and remotely
provision IT equipment to new hires.
In early March, OMS worked quickly with service
providers to increase availability and then
address VPN connectivity issues due to increase
telework. To increase remote collaboration and
ensure the workforce was able to stay connected,
OMS rolled out Microsoft (MS) Teams in record
time, and by the end of FY 2020, over 85 percent
of EPA employees were regularly active in MS
Teams.
EPA also accelerated the availability of and
training for MS Teams Live Events broadcasting
service, which allows for up to 10,000 attendees
and saves the agency approximate $1200 per
event.
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Improved EPA FITARA Scorecard
In July 2020, EPA improved its report grade
from a C+ to a B+ on the Federal Information
Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA)
scorecard, where only nine out of 24 agencies
received a score of B+ or higher. FITARA is a
congressional assessment of federal agencies
responsible for risk management, incremental
software development, Chief Information Officer
reporting structure, and more. EPA was later
recognized as one of the "Most Improved" federal
agencies overall by the House Oversight and
Reform Committee.
UNION
Collective Bargaining Agreement
In August, EPA signed a new Master Collective
Bargaining Agreement (MCBA) with EPA's largest
Union, the American Federation of Government
Employees (AFGE). The successful negotiation of
a new agreement is the latest step in an ongoing
effort by the Trump Administration to create an
effective and efficient government.
The new contract resolution comes after
nearly a decade of litigation and unsuccessful
negotiations. During negotiations, EPA offered
a best and final deal, which would have given
employees additional workplace flexibilities. This
was ultimately rejected by the union as they
chose to place a higher value on paying union
~
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leadership with taxpayer dollars to perform union
work and open up new avenues for grievances
over EPA employee workplace flexibilities.
The new MCBA was negotiated at a national
level to streamline the negotiation process and
create consistency across EPA's nationwide
footprint. The agency pursued contract provisions
that will reduce costs, promote government
performance and accountability, and limit the
use of taxpayer-funded union time, consistent
with the requirements of President Trump's
Executive Orders 13836 - Developing Efficient,
Effective, and Cost-Reducing Approaches to
Federal Sector Collective Bargaining; 13837
- Ensuring Transparency, Accountability, and
Efficiency in Taxpayer-Funded Union Time Use;
and 13839 - Promoting Accountability and
Streamlining Removal Procedures Consistent with
Merit System Principles. Collective bargaining is
the preferred, statutorily established method for
employees to participate in making the decisions
that affect their working conditions.
GRANT PROGRAM
Awards
EPA has approximately 100 grant programs
that represent half of the agency's budget
(approximately $4 billion annually). These grants
are key mechanisms EPA uses to partner with
states, local governments, tribes, non-profit
organizations, educational institutions, and other
stakeholders to advance the agency's mission of
protecting human health and the environment.
In FY 2020, EPA made millions of dollars
in competitive awards available to local
governments, tribes, and state governments
to address environmental and public health
challenges exacerbated by COVID-19 in
underserved communities. In addition, EPA
worked to maintain our ability to efficiently
and effectively award grants to meet
environmental priorities during the pandemic
and to maintain grantees ability to properly
manage and administer grants. EPA developed
guidance for the internal and external grants
community—including FAQs, electronic signature
guidance—and issued a competition resulting
in the selection of awards to help communities
~
adversely impacted by COVID-19, including cities
and tribes.
~~~~~
['office of the~|
CHIEF FINANCIAL
OFFICER _J
Continued Excellence, Improved Metrics
EPA's Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO)
oversaw the successful passage of the agency's
21st consecutive clean financial audit—a
substantial achievement. The Office of Inspector
General, who performed the audit, found EPA's
financial statement to be fairly presented and
free of material misstatement.
From an agency operational standpoint, this year,
OCFO spearheaded agency quarterly performance
reviews equipping senior agency leaders to review
performance metrics from across EPA, recognize
achievements worth celebrating, and identify
metrics that indicate additional attention from
management is needed. This better positioned
the agency to meet its long-term performance
goals found in EPA's Strategic Plan.
Innovative Tools & Implementation
This year, OCFO launched two new tools to
enhance the agency's work on WIFIA loans and
payroll. In support of WIFIA, OCFO introduced a
new accounting module in the financial system
to manage over $2 billion in loans. The financial
system is now able to capture detailed and
accurate accounting of all WIFIA loans and reduce
loan credit costs and financial reporting. To
improve payroll management, OCFO launched a
payroll dashboard and a performance dashboard
to increase the availability of information and
strengthen managers' decisions.
OCFO also led EPA's implementation of the new
Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking
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Act of 2018 (Evidence Act), including the cross-
agency development of EPA's first-ever Learning
Agenda (interim) and Capacity Assessment
(interim), submitted to OMB in September 2020.
These interim documents respond to Evidence
Act requirements and specifically advance
plans for foundational fact-finding, rigorous
data analysis, and program evaluation for three
Learning Priorities: workforce planning, drinking
water systems out of compliance, and grant
commitments met.
All OCFO employees have been trained in ELMS
and 30 processes in OCFO have achieved at
least 25 percent improvement; for example the
Superfund billing process was reduced from
100 days to 72 days, improving resources and
opportunities for the agency.
~~~~~
tRISK ~~|
communication!
Since taking the helm of the agency,
Administrator Wheeler has stressed the need for
risk communication throughout every program.
In 2018, EPA launched cross-agency initiatives
to improve risk communication on emerging
contaminant and vulnerable populations. The
historic PFAS Action Plan released in 2019 is
perhaps the best example of this initiative in
action. The PFAS Action Plan outlines more
than 20 key focus areas that include both short
and long-term goals, and it is the agency's
first multi-program, national research and risk
communication plan.
In 2020, EPA deployed the agency's risk
communication training platform. The program
built at the agency encompasses more than
traditional risk communication and encompasses
the latest in science communication, decision
and management sciences, and education
research. This year EPA developed and
launched a premier, scientifically-grounded risk
communication training platform and trained the
first 100 staff participants. The 17.5 hour course
covers governing principles from the science of
science communication and the process for risk
communication at EPA.
About the Course
Each class of the course is structured around
a specific hazard, audience, or agency function
with the goal of building knowledge, skills,
and networks around best practice in risk
communication at the agency. Classes completed
as of December 31, 2020 have included those
focused on community engagement in land and
emergency management, the hazard of lead,
and PFAS. Future classes are planned on topics
including: community partnership in the context
of environmental justice, wildfires and wildfire
smoke, and improving tribal partnerships. By
structuring courses topically, it builds linkages
across EPA for risk communication practice to
be supported and improved. Staff have been
chosen to participate based on their roles
communicating risk on these issues and topics
and have included staff from every office and
region with a strong focus on staff who do direct
community engagement as a part of their roles.
Future plans include cross-training partners from
other agencies whether federal, state, local, or
tribal.
Each training class includes four outside experts
who work with participants in small groups to
improve their ability to convey risk communication
messaging improve partnership building and to
generally better meet the needs of the American
public. Outside experts who have participated
so far are representatives from EPA's audiences
including community members impacted by
environmental hazards, journalists, state and
local government officials, environmental policy
experts, and public health officials.
This project has embedded plans to do a deeper
evaluation to learn about impact and improve
delivery overtime.
~~~~~
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REGION 1
Alongside six states and 10 tribal nations,
Region 1 works to protect public health and
the environment throughout New England. EPA
New England has made significant progress
supporting communities as they reinvest in
their local economies, deploy new public health
protection programs, and develop innovative
approaches to promoting clean air and water.
Clean Air
In 2020, New England saw a continued decline
in the number of unhealthy air quality days.
Based on data collected between March and
September 2020, Region 1 tallied only 18 days
with unhealthy levels of ozone. By contrast, in
2019 there were 23 such days, and in 1983,
there were 118 such days.
To further improve air quality, EPA recently
loaned nine air sensors to the Massachusetts
Department of Environmental Protection.
Working with local leadership, these sensors will
be placed throughout the community and will
help the commonwealth plan for a permanent
monitoring site.
In Rhode Island, the Port of Providence was
one of 11 sites selected by EPA to launch a
community-scale air toxics monitoring program,
designed to characterize toxic emission risks
to the surrounding community, including local
schools and hospitals.
Across New England, the region continued to
build upon the success of its 2018-launched
initiative helping refrigeration facilities improve
compliance with the General Duty Clause of
Section 112(r) of the Clean Air Act at small
ammonia refrigeration systems.
In 2020, Region 1 celebrated several diesel
engine emission reduction grants; these projects
typically include retrofitting or replacing vehicles
with legacy engines (such as buses, locomotives,
port equipment, cranes, or marine vessels) with
new, cleaner technologies. This year, the Region
~
issued $4,835,644 in grants to fund projects and
programs that will help reduce diesel emissions
in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode
Island.
In addition to these national grant awards, EPA
has allocated, under the 2020 State Grants
Program, $2,672,263 to the six New England
states to support their diesel emissions reduction
efforts.
Region 1 Smart Sectors: Supporting Clean
Ports
Under EPA's Smart Sectors program, Region 1
has been finding innovative solutions to pollution
challenges in the Food & Beverage, Outdoor
Recreation, and Maritime Industries Sectors.
EPA's DERA grants and community air toxics
programs, which directly help port facilities
measure and mitigate pollution, are part of this
effort.
I Regional Administrator Dennis Deziel celebrates DERA
grants with Massports Port Director Mike Meyran at
Conway Terminal.
'	t	¦
Supporting Science and Innovation
In 2020, Region 1 supported several new
pollution prevention programs across New
England. In Maine, New Hampshire, Connecticut,
and Rhode Island, EPA is supporting technical
assistance and on-site training in the food and
beverage industry, helping private enterprises
reduce energy and water demand, while also
finding ways to eliminate hazardous chemical use
in manufacturing.
Region 1 continued its support for the Trump
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Administration's PFAS Action Plan. In Vermont,
EPA launched a new project with the state to help
metal manufacturers and aerospace facilities
reduce PFAS levels in process wastewater. In
New Hampshire, EPA researchers made progress
tracking PFAS from Merrimack-area sources,
including local air emissions. Along with ORD,
Region 1 also held a "State of the Science"
webinar series on critical scientific PFAS updates
to 470 professionals from state and tribal
government partners.
In support of park and campground managers
across New England, as part of the region's
Outdoor Recreation Smart Sectors initiative, EPA
held a webinar series exploring best practices
for tick and mosquito prevention and control
reaching more than 650 land managers.
Clean Water
Through its two flagship State Revolving Fund
(SRF) programs, Region 1 provided over $200
million to the six New England States in 2020.
Through the CWSRF, funds can be used for
a wide range of needs, including wastewater
infrastructure and water reuse. The DWSRF
helps fund treatment systems, remove lead
lines, and improve system resiliency. Since the
launch of these programs, Region 1 has provided
approximately $5.5 billion for SRF programs,
leveraging over $16 billion in additional financial
assistance for clean water and drinking water
infrastructure regionwide.
Through the WIIN Act, EPA also helped finance
several projects to improve drinking water testing
and safe water access in schools and child care
facilities. And under WIFIA, Region 1 announced
a $190 million loan to the Narragansett Bay
Commission for use improving resiliency at a
coastal wastewater facility.
In 2020, across New England's watersheds and
waterways, Region 1 helped foster important
advances in clean water. In the Long Island
Sound watershed, Regions 1 and 2 announced
$3.8 million in funding for projects targeted at
improving ecosystem health and water quality.
Though the Southeastern New England Program,
EPA announced $1.8 million in new funding
aimed at helping local communities meet their
clean water goals. Over the past six years, $30
million in such grants made dozens of innovative
projects across Massachusetts and Rhode
Island possible. In Vermont's Lake Champlain,
a similar program is helping tackle stormwater
management planning and control invasive
species.
This year, Region 1 also proudly finalized a new
dredged material placement site off the coast
of New Hampshire, finalized over a dozen new
CWA permits, proposed improved language
in two stormwater general permits affecting
hundreds of communities across two states, and
announced the finalization of an alternative total
maximum daily load (TMDL) for the Mystic River.
The region also celebrated Vermont's completion
of the first phase of the Lake Champlain TMDL
implementation plan.
Community Revitalization
In 2020, Region 1 launched a new initiative
to support remediation and reuse of historic
mills. Leveraging Brownfields funds, Opportunity
Zones incentives, Superfund removal program
assistance, and other technical assistance
programs, historic mills around the region are
being rebuilt to provide new housing, jobs, and
industries. In Biddeford, Maine, reuse of historic
mills saw $10 million in EPA funds generate over
$224 million in private investment.
RA Deziel tours the Woonsocket, Rhode Island
historic mill district.
In FY 2020, Region 1's Brownfields program
awarded $7.2 million in grants to support
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communities cleaning up contaminated sites.
Since the program was first launched, almost
$460 million in Brownfields funding to New
England communities drove over $3.62 billion
in additional public and private investment
and created over 22,800 remediation and
redevelopment jobs.
Progress was also made at several key Superfund
sites, especially in Massachusetts. In Wilmington,
EPA released a proposed $45 million cleanup
plan to address soil, surface water, and
groundwater contamination at the Olin Chemical
site, one of the facilities on the AEL. And in New
Bedford Harbor, after 17 years of dredging, the
region completed subtidal harbor remediation
after removing 1 million cubic yards of sediment
contaminated with PCBs.
The region also reached an historic milestone
for PCB remediation work needed in the
Housatonic River. In February 2020, EPA, General
Electric, five Berkshire towns, and a host of
other interested parties finalized a settlement
agreement resolving long-running litigation over
plans for remediation of this "Rest of River" site.
Pursuant to that settlement agreement, EPA is in
the process of finalizing public review of cleanup
plans.
Revitalization in Portland, Maine
In August 2020, Administrator Wheeler visited
Portland, Maine to celebrate a series of
successful waterfront revitalization projects.
Located in an Opportunity Zone, EPA joined the
Maine Port Authority to tour the site of a planned
new cold storage and seafood processing facility
where a former manufactured gas plant had
operated for several decades.
At Thompson's Point, a former railyard, $1.8
million in Brownfields funds leveraged over
$30 million in additional private investments in
redevelopment, opening the door for several new
enterprises and providing the community with an
ideal new location for the Children's Museum and
Theatre of Maine.
Under President Trump, EPA has awarded $12.2
million in competitive Brownfields grants to the
~
State of Maine. During that same time period,
EPA grantees have assessed 206 sites and
cleaned up 26 sites across the state. Long term
EPA investment in Maine has resulted in 192
properties being made ready for reuse, $453
million in additional leveraged funds, and 3,777
jobs.
~~~~~
[region §]
Serving New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, the
U.S. Virgin Islands, and eight Indian nations,
Region 2 saw numerous successes in waste
management and land revitalization this
year. Challenges ranged from hurricane and
earthquake damage in the Caribbean to chemical
contamination of residential, commercial, and
industrial sites in the urban northeast.
In 2020, Region 2 had particular success playing
its part in implementing the EPA's Brownfields
program, cleaning and transforming once-vacant
properties into community assets, often for
economically disadvantaged neighborhoods.
New York
In New York, nine counties or municipalities
were selected to receive more than $3 million to
assess and clean up contaminated properties
through Brownfields Program grants. Six of
them received Brownfields Assessment Grants,
which will be used to inventory and identify sites
for assessment, to assess sites for hazardous
substances, to complete cleanup and reuse
plans, and to carry out community outreach
activities.
The Broome County Industrial Development
Agency received a Brownfields Assessment
Grant targeting a former tannery and industrial
waste dump, a former shoe factory, and a former
auto dealership in the Susquehanna Innovation
Corridor. The City of Glens Falls received a
grant targeting the city's Gateway Industrial
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Corridor, which is home to at least 12 vacant and
underused paper, cement, and pigment factories,
and more than 20 shuttered service businesses.
For Brownfields Cleanup Grants, EPA gave
the City of Rochester $408,000 to clean up
petroleum contamination at two locations. In
addition to the cleanup, grant funds will be used
to complete a groundwater monitoring program
to evaluate the effectiveness of the cleanup
and to develop community outreach activities.
The Sullivan County Land Bank Corporation
also received $500,000 to clean up a 5.6-acre
site contaminated with petroleum from leaking
aboveground and underground storage tanks,
inorganic contaminants, and heavy metals.
Wayne County was given $600,000 Brownfields
Assessment Coalition Grant targeting former
industrial, manufacturing, and utility businesses
in the Towns of Arcadia and Lyons and the Village
of Newark. Over 200 years of heavy industry in
the areas have left a legacy of contamination,
including a 157-acre former fuel storage and
maintenance shop and a former photo etching
company. Coalition partners are the Wayne
County Regional Land Bank, the Wayne Economic
Development Corporation, the Towns of Arcadia
and Lyons, and the Village of Newark. Grant
funds will be used to inventory and identify sites
for assessment, to assess sites for hazardous
substances, to complete cleanup and reuse
plans, and to carry out community outreach
activities.
Regional Administrator Pete Lopez tours local Brownfields
in Herkimer County, New York.
New Jersey
In October 2020, EPA selected the Newark Board
of Education to receive nearly $7.5 million in
federal funds to combat lead in Newark schools.
This grant will help fund the Newark Safe
Water Initiative, which improves public health
by reducing sources of lead in school drinking
water to benefit more than 36,000 students in
pre-Kindergarten through 12th grade and nearly
6,000 employees in 64 schools.
In May 2020, the New Jersey Economic
Development Authority, the City of Camden,
Cooper's Ferry Partnership, Inc., and the City of
Jersey City were selected to receive more than
$2 million to assess and clean up contaminated
properties. New Jersey Economic Development
Authority received an $800,000 Brownfields
Revolving Loan Fund Grant to provide low-
interest loans and sub-grants to carry out
cleanup activities at Brownfields sites in 12
communities. The City of Camden will use a
$500,000 Brownfields Cleanup Grant to clean
up heavy metal and semi-volatile and volatile
organic compound contamination at the former
Borden Chemical Site at 1625 Federal Street.
EPA also selected Cooper's Ferry Partnership
Inc. in Camden, New Jersey, for nearly $300,000
to assess properties in the North Camden
neighborhood within the City of Camden, which
includes 80 acres of suspected Brownfield sites
along the waterfront. Jersey City plans to use a
$500,000 Brownfields Cleanup Grant to clean up
Mill Creek at the southern end of Jersey Avenue.
The Caribbean
In August 2020, top EPA officials traveled to
the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI) and Puerto Rico
to highlight EPA's commitment to supporting
recovery in the Caribbean and award $10
million in critically needed funding EPA to USVI
for hazardous and solid waste management
assistance.
Officials then visited Puerto Rico, where they
announced new EPA Circuit Rider assistance
for community systems. They joined NGOs and
local partners at the Canaboncito and Pedro
Calixto Community Water Systems in Caguas to
announce technical support for 45 community-
~
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owned drinking water systems in rural Puerto
Rico. Even before the 2017 hurricanes and
subsequent earthquakes, these systems faced
severe economic and technical challenges
providing water to their communities.
Toa Alta, Puerto Rico was selected to receive
$300,000 to assess and clean up contaminated
properties under the agency's Brownfields
Program. Toa Alta will use the grant to target
the 35-acre former Industrial Zone, including
four vacant and hurricane-damaged former
industrial sites and a vacant gas station. Grant
funds will be used to inventory and identify sites
for assessment, to assess sites for hazardous
substances, to complete cleanup and reuse
plans, and to carry out community outreach
activities.
~~~~~
REGION 3
From cleanup milestones atSuperfund sites
and communities benefitting from Brownfields
redevelopment to significant air and water quality
improvements, EPA Region 3 and its partners
marked EPA's 50th Anniversary in 2020 with
sustained actions to promote cleaner land, air,
and water. Perhaps most closely associated with
the beauty and resources of the Chesapeake
Bay, Region 3 includes Delaware, the District of
Columbia, Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and
West Virginia.
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay Program is observing the
highest rate of attainment with water quality
standards in more than 30 years. Consequently,
underwater grasses are thriving, the blue crab
population is healthy and sustainable, and overall
water quality has improved. Recent aquatic
surveys confirm that the efforts of EPA and its
partners, along with other factors, have helped
to reduce the bay's anoxic dead zone in 2020
to one of the smallest in 35 years. There is still
~
much to do to reach our goal of a restored bay.
However, as a result of EPA's expertise and major
financial and technical support over the years, the
environmental health of the Chesapeake Bay has
seen real improvement.
Superfund & Brownfields Revitalization
During July's 50th Anniversary theme of "Cleaning
up our Nation's Lands," Region 3 partnered with
local representatives in Portsmouth, Virginia, to
host an event at the Atlantic Wood Industries
(AWI) site. The event provided an opportunity for
local leaders, EPA, state, and non-profit partners
to tout the incredible cleanup progress at the site,
which has resulted in valuable land reuse and job
creation. Alongside the successful redevelopment
of the AWI, Region 3 also celebrated the
rehabilitation of the former Nansemond Ordnance
Depot site in Virginia.
Regional Administrator Cosmo Servidio and
Portsmouth, Virginia Mayor John Rowe celebrate the
federal, state, and local work done to cleanup the
Atlantic Woods Industries Superfund Site.
By the end of September, the Region 3
Brownfields program issued more than $121
million in grants to communities; assessed
over 1,600 sites; cleaned up more than 110
contaminated properties; created more than
15,600 jobs; and leveraged close to $4.5 billion
in additional public and private investment.
Clean Air Toolkit
After two years of intense evaluation, application
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of Lean management continual process
improvement, and collaboration with state, local,
tribal, and private stakeholders, a team of Region
3 Air Division employees developed a user-friendly
toolkit to reduce the processing time involved in
reviewing and completing action on state plans to
comply with the Clean Air Act. Unveiled recently by
EPA to state and local partners nationwide, what
is formally called the SIP Lean Toolkit provides a
highly accessible collection of curated guidance,
helpful checklists, and document templates.
It ultimately equips multiple end-users with
an important resource to ensure Clean Air Act
regulations are met.
u
Regional Administrator Cosmo Servidio joins West
Virginia Governor Jim Justice and West Virginia
Department of Environmental Protection Secretary
Austin Caperton to celebrate the attainment of statewide
NAAQS for the first time since 1978.
~~~~~
REGION 4
Region 4 serves Alabama, Florida, Georgia,
Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South
Carolina, Tennessee, and six tribes. The
southeastern United States is a fast-growing
region and home to 20 percent of the nation's
population. Much of Region 4's work focuses
on the health and safety of the Gulf of Mexico
watershed within the continental U.S.
Gulf of Mexico Division and Water Division
Every year, an estimated 11 to 28 billion pounds
of waste ends up in the ocean, harming marine
life and coastal economies. Since the Trash Free
Waters program began, EPA has awarded $5.35
million for 14 projects in communities across
the Southeast. Some remarkable results have
been achieved, including the removal of more
than 24,500 pounds of trash from Gulf waters
and watersheds. In FY 2020, Region 4's Gulf of
Mexico Division awarded more than $7.8 million
in grant funding to 17 recipients for innovative
projects focused on reducing the amount of trash
in waterways through trash prevention and/
or removal. In October 2020, EPA announced
an award of $200,000 to the Mississippi Band
of Choctaw Indians to install a Bandalong litter
trap for the Kentawka Canal—the first Trash Free
Waters grant awarded to a tribe.
The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians received a
$200,000 Trash Free Waters grant to keep trash out of
the Kentawa Canal.
EPA's Farmer to Farmer program is designed to
support farmer-led or farm focused organizations
working to reduce nutrient pollution resulting
from excess nitrogen and phosphorous in our
water and air. Since 2017, EPA has awarded
over $9.5 million to projects with a variety of
partners to show nutrient reduction progress in
the Mississippi-Atchafalaya River Basin. In FY
2020, EPA's investment is $10 million with an
anticipated 12 recipients.
Since 2015, the Resources and Ecosystems
Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived
Economies of the Gulf Coast States (RESTORE)
Council has approved 60 projects valued at
$361.98 million. These projects address a variety
of coastal issues affecting the five Gulf Coast
states of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi,
and Texas, including nutrient pollution, habitat
fragmentation, and degradation along the
coastline.
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EPA funding for restoration work through the
South Florida Geographic Initiative has greatly
increased—more than doubling from 2019 to
2020—from $1.5 million to $4.8 million. Since
2016, the EPA South Florida Geographic Initiative
has awarded more than $6 million to state
and local governments; universities, and non-
governmental organizations for water quality,
corals and seagrass monitoring programs; coral
disease response; developing outreach activities
such as boater education and citizen monitoring
programs; and management plan development to
improve water quality in residential canals.
Superfund and Emergency Management
Through programs like the Superfund
Redevelopment Initiative, EPA Region 4 helps
communities reclaim cleaned-up Superfund
sites. On-site businesses and organizations
at current and former Region 4 Superfund
sites provide an estimated 19,622 jobs
and contribute an estimated $1.3 billion in
annual employment income. Sites in reuse
and continued use in Region 4 generate $10
million in annual property tax revenues for local
governments. A great example is the City of
Orlando's successful partnership with federal,
state, and local stakeholders at the former
Naval Training Center (NTC) Orlando. Having
served as an Army and Navy air training facility
since the 1940s, this 2,000-acre site closed in
1999 under the Base Realignment and Closure
program. The team's efforts in promoting public
and private investments resulted in a renewed
area consisting of a mixed-use, master-planned
community, industrial facility and recreational
spaces. Due to collaborative efforts, the former
NTC Orlando site has become an economic
asset to the City of Orlando and the partnership
between agencies was awarded an EPA 2020
National Federal Facility Excellence in Site Reuse
Award.
NPL deletions pave the way for accelerated
cleanups and reuse at Superfund sites across the
Southeast. Region 4 continues to lead the nation
in site deletions each year. Between 2018 and
2020, the region exceeded the deletion target of
seven and fully or partially deleted 17 sites from
NPL
Region 4's Brownfields program consistently
performs in the top tier of this critical assessment
and cleanup program across the nation. Since
2017, Region 4 remains at the top among the
10 EPA regions in Brownfields assessments
completed and in returning land to beneficial
reuse. For five out of the past six years, Region 4
has leveraged over $500 million annually.
Region 4 partnered with the Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA) and other state,
federal and university partners to support
physical and economic recovery in the Florida
Panhandle following Hurricane Michael.
Through EPA's support of FEMA's Recovery
and Resiliency Partnership Project, the North
Florida communities of Quincy, Springfield,
Chattahoochee, Marianna, Parker, and Mexico
Beach received technical assistance to develop
strategies and design concepts that bolster
resiliency to stormwater impacts, improve quality
of life, and support sustainable redevelopment.
These efforts will help advance each city's vision
for long-term economic recovery by developing
design concepts and strategies that integrate
recreation, stormwater management, community
connectivity, and downtown development.
Administrator Wheeler, Regional Administrator Mary
Walker, and the Florida Department of Environmental
Protection celebrate Florida's attainment of statewide
NAAQS.
Improving Air Quality
Region 4 had another successful year in reducing
emissions with DERA grants. The program
completed four grants that involved almost $5
million worth of federal funding and leveraged
almost $18 million in matched contributions to
replace 241 school buses. The lifetime reduction
~
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in emissions will help to continue to protect
children's health in the communities across the
southeast.
~~~~~
REGION 5
The Great Lakes form the largest surface
freshwater system on Earth. EPA leads U.S.
efforts to restore and maintain the quality and
ecosystems of the Great Lakes watershed, and
Region 5 is dedicated to safeguarding both a
healthy environment and healthy economy for the
Great Lakes region.
In FY 2020, Region 5 worked hard to provide
regulatory certainty to businesses, tribes, and
governments throughout the Region's six states
of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio,
and Wisconsin. Certainty from regulators gives
the American public the ability to do what they
do best: innovate, create, and produce cleaner
and safer technologies. FY 2020 was filled with
accomplishments for Region 5 as leadership and
staff continued the efforts of the last four years
to achieve cleaner air, water, and land, while also
promoting economic revitalization in the Great
Lake states.
Restoring the Great Lakes Watershed
A highlight of the year that demonstrated
significant success in restoring our Great Lakes
was the official delisting of the Lower Menominee
River Area of Concern in August. This was the
fifth area of concern to be delisted in our nation's
history—and the first in Wisconsin. Contaminated
river sediment and degraded habitat had
impaired public benefits such as healthy fisheries,
uncontaminated shipping channels, and wildlife
habitats. Over $170 million was invested in
the restoration effort. Great Lakes Restoration
Initiative (GLRI) funding provided $28 million for
habitat and sediment projects, leveraging $15
million from non-federal sponsors.
E
AGLE»HERALD
Marinette.A. Menominee
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 12, 2020
TWO SECTIONS
A rehabbed river
Feds remove Menominee River from concern list
44
Front page of the Eagle Herald in Marinette, Wisconsin
highlights the delisting of the Lower Menominee River on
August 12,2020.
In FY 2020, EPA Region 5 removed eight
beneficial use impairments at seven areas
of concern in five states. A beneficial use
impairment removal signifies a reversal in the
environmental degradation that caused these
areas to be designated as an area of concern,
and it signals that a site is one step closer to
delisting. With this year's actions, cumulative
beneficial use impairment removals since the
start of the GLRI in 2010 have now reached a
total of 87.
Reducing excess nutrients and sediment
throughout the Great Lakes Basin is a major
priority for EPA and our partners. To make
progress towards that goal, while also promoting
innovation and best practices, Region 5 awarded
nearly $11 million in GLRI funding for 20 nutrient-
reduction projects. This included the very first
EPA competitive grant opportunity for innovative
market-based projects under the GLRI program
designed to accelerate nutrient reduction efforts
in the Great Lakes Basin.
cPA. ann°unces
„ -JuneJ&i1
EPA awards first Trash Free Waters grant for
the Milwaukee Great Lakes
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In another major accomplishment, through
its work in the Great Lakes National Program
Office, Region 5 helped execute Administrator
Wheeler's Great Lakes Trash Free Waters
Program by awarding seven grants totaling almost
$2.1 million. These investments will support
community efforts to remove trash from Great
Lakes beaches and waterbodies.
Attainment Redesignations
While region leadership is proud of their
achievements in cleaner water, nowhere was
Region 5's accomplishments more impactful on
human health than in its contributions to cleaner
air. In 2020 alone, Region 5 completed nine
air quality redesignations, more than a third of
the nation's total. By implementing the Region
5 Clean Air Strategy, almost 800,000 Midwest
residents are now breathing cleaner air. With
these improvements, local businesses in these
communities will face a more straightforward
permitting process that will pave the way for
economic development and job creation. This
administration has prioritized these efforts, with
an understanding that a healthy environment,
especially clean air, is a precursor to a healthy
economy.
Revitalizing Land
Through partnerships with state and local
agencies and clear coordination and
communication with industry partners, Region
5 continued to help lead the nation in site
cleanups that allow land to be repurposed and
reused in more productive ways. This year,
Region 5 exceeded all of its EPA Brownfields
program goals, which translates to preparing
188 properties to meet ready-for-anticipated
use requirements, assessing 417 properties,
and cleaning up 17 properties. The region also
invested $9 million in Opportunity Zones through
the Brownfields program. This funding will spur
economic and redevelopment opportunities is
some of the most underserved communities in
the region.
Through its effective partnerships, Region 5 was
able to successfully delete eight sites off the
NPL and complete work at the Fox River site in
Green Bay, Wisconsin, the largest Superfund
~
sediment cleanup project. At the request of
Illinois EPA, Region 5 assumed the lead of the
DePue Superfund site this year as well. Despite
work delays due to COVID-19, remediation was
completed at all public spaces, including a
school and parks, and approximately 100 priority
residential homes.
Partnering with the Agriculture Community
During 2020, Regional Administrator Kurt Thiede
sat down in machine shops in every Region 5
state to hear directly from Farm Bureaus and
farmers about challenges and successes. These
opportunities resulted in better partnerships,
and a commitment to sharing information about
conservation practices. These best practices
allow farmers to protect their environment and
communities, while simultaneously operating
their farms in a more efficient manner.
~~~~~
[region 6]
Serving the south-central United States, Region 6
continued to do the important work of protecting
the environment and human health despite
the challenges responding to a busy hurricane
season. Region 6 represents the states of
Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and
Texas, as well as 66 tribal nations.
This year, Region 6 prepared well in advance of
hurricane season and other emergency situations
to overcome the unique challenges of COVID-19.
During Hurricane Laura, Region 6 held virtual
Regional Incident Coordination Team meetings
and virtually staffed the Regional Emergency
Operations Center (REOC) in Dallas, Texas, the
FEMA Regional Response Coordination Center in
Denton, Texas, and the Interim Operating Facility
in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. In Louisiana, the
incident management team (IMT) and REOC staff
virtually managed deployment of the Airborne
Spectral Photometric Environmental Collection
Technology (ASPECT) aircraft to conduct air
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monitoring at the BioLab facility fire; deployed the
Region 7 Mobile Drinking Water Lab to support
state and local officials with water analyses; and
deployed four EPA Drinking Water and Wastewater
Subject Matter Experts to Baton Rouge to assist
FEMA. In Texas, the IMT and REOC staff virtually
managed deployment of the ASPECT aircraft and
the Trace Atmospheric Gas Analyzer bus, along
with ground teams, to conduct air monitoring in
communities near impacted industrial facilities.
u s7E^">nmen:
protection A9el* V
Region 6
Region 6 mobile command post on deployment.
Cleaner Land
Region 6 had a number of other successes in
emergency management and site cleanups in
2020.
Region 6 completed an extensive cleanup at
the former B.F. Goodrich Asbestos site in Miami,
Oklahoma, addressing approximately 24,000 tons
of asbestos-containing materials. In addition, EPA
removed waste oils, hydraulic fluids, thousands
of fluorescent bulbs, and an assortment of other
hazardous materials.
Region 6 also executed a Bona Fide Prospective
Purchaser Agreement for the Conroe Creosoting
Superfund site in Conroe, Texas. The final
agreement paved the way for a massive Home
Depot distribution center to be built on the 147-
acre former wood treating site. The distribution
center will create hundreds of construction
jobs, employ approximately 50 permanent jobs,
and pump more than $80 million into the local
economy.
Over the past four years, EPA has awarded 36
Brownfields grants totaling over $14 million
to Region 6 states, tribes, and local entities.
This funding enabled improvements to spaces
that were underutilized, allowing communities
to make long-desired improvements. The Hall
Davidson Building became the AC Hotel in Little
Rock, Arkansas. A run-down area in Louisiana
became Shreveport's Cultural District. A property
that received a Phase I environmental site
assessment, enabling it to be donated for a
Salvation Army shelter for Women and Children
in Austin, Texas. The 40-acre Upper Scissortail
Park was developed on a former industrial area in
Oklahoma City.
The Evans-Fintube site was a scourge on the
City of Tulsa. Evans-Fintube was used as a steel
foundry and forge from 1939 through 1962. The
23-acre property had a concrete reservoir, forge,
welding, and fabrication shops. This blighted
property included asbestos, polychlorinated
biphenyls (PCBs), lead, and soil and groundwater
contamination. Redevelopment is finally occurring
on this property. EPA invested $950,000 in this
property and anticipates leveraging approximately
$23 million once the project is completed.
Action at the Border
Serving Texas and New Mexico, Region 6 plays an
important part in managing our nation's southern
border. Over the past four years the imports
program received 44,891 Notice of Arrivals
(NOAs). Of these NOAs, 85 Notice of Refusal of
Admissions (NORAs) and 13 Compliance Actions
were filed. These enforcement actions ensured
2,005,290 pounds of pesticidal products either
entered U.S. commerce legally or were prevented
from entering the country. Two of these NORAs
(170,086 lbs) were specifically for products
claiming effectiveness against the coronavirus,
specifically SARS-CoV-2.
Since 2017, the U.S.-Mexico Border Program
awarded $928,000 in grant funds, supporting 20
projects along the Texas and New Mexico border
communities (including Chihuahua, Coahuila,
Nuevo Leon, and Tamaulipas) benefitting more
than 15 million border residents. This program
was able to provide for clean air, reliable drinking
water and sanitation, and safe handling of
hazardous waste through use of best available
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technologies to improve human health and
environment in both sides of the border.
This year, Region 6 completed a challenging
sediment remedy at the Donna Canal Superfund
Site in South Texas near the U.S. border with
Mexico on-time and under-budget, despite the
onset of the COVID-19 pandemic halfway through
the project. The project involved the excavation of
24,788 tons of contaminated sediment from the
Donna canal system. The sediment was removed
from a half-mile section of the canal with the
highest concentration of PCBs.
Region 6 also completed construction of three
U.S.-Mexico Border projects to address drinking
water and wastewater infrastructure and
disbursed nearly $7 million to assist U.S.-Mexico
Border communities with water infrastructure
needs, which will result in over 16,000 border
residents receiving reliable wastewater collection
and treatment.
Air and Radiation
In September 2020, Region 6 completed its
four-year long ambient air monitoring program for
chloroprene in the neighborhoods surrounding
the Denka Performance Elastomer, LLC (DPE),
facility in LaPlace, Louisiana. Since March 2018,
following the implementation of emission controls
being installed by DPE, chloroprene emissions
have been reduced by 85 percent and EPA air
monitoring data have shown corresponding
significant reductions of chloroprene
concentrations in the community.
Wastewater Compliance Pilot Project
Region 6 and OECA partnered with the Arkansas
Department of Energy and Environment
(ADEE, formerly ADEQ) as part of the pilot for
the wastewater treatment plant Circuit Rider
Assistance Program. The EPA and contracted
Circuit Riders support this National Compliance
Initiative by providing direct technical compliance
assistance to operators of small wastewater
facilities in 10 Arkansas communities.
~~~~~
~
REGION 7
Region 7 protects human health and the
environment in our nation's agricultural
heartland. Its responsibilities encompass the
Sandhills of Nebraska, Flint Hills of Kansas,
Mississippi river, prairies and plains of Iowa, and
forests and river delta of Missouri, as well as the
lands of nine tribal nations.
St. Louis Carter Carburetor Superfund Site
Cleanup
Over 100 years have passed since the Carter
Carburetor Corporation opened its doors as
a manufacturing plant in St. Louis. In 1984,
following a shift in the automotive industry,
the facility shuttered for good. The property
sat vacant for years until the EPA addressed
environmental contamination at the site. What
was once an environmental hazard will now
serve the Boys & Girls Club as a youth golf
training and mentoring facility. The 10-acre site
sat idle for 30 years before cleanup work began
in 2013. Contaminants found at the Superfund
site included PCBs, trichloroethylene (TCE),
and asbestos. Demolition and removal of the
buildings began in 2015. EPA and ACF Industries,
the potentially responsible party, completed site
work in May 2020.
)YS & aaLS CLUBS
OF GREf if. LOUIS
Administrator Wheeler, Regional Administrator Gulliford,
Congressman Lacy Clay (MO-Ol), Boys & Girls Club of
Greater St. Louis president Flint Fowler, St. Louis Cardinals
Hall of Famer Ozzie Smith celebrate cleanup at the Carter
Carburetor Superfund site.
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Combatting Harmful Algal Blooms
In Region 7, HABs pose a significant threat to
waterways and the region has identified two main
priority areas to address the issue. First, Region
7 will conduct and support research on HABs
to better predict and prevent their occurrence.
This will provide information to the public and
agricultural stakeholders on how to identify
and report them and allow the agency to better
respond rapidly to state, tribal, and community
requests for technical assistance. Second, the
region will seek, develop and support nutrient
reduction strategies and practices, including
market-based approaches such as water quality
trading.
Region 7 has been involved in numerous
partnerships to address the problem. This
includes a partnership with scientists at the
University of Kansas (KU) to study these blooms
in Kansas, which has some of the most toxic
blooms in the region. Together with scientists
from Kansas Biological Survey and the University
of Missouri, EPA scientists collaborated on
the Milford Blooms Tank Research Project at
the KU Field Station in Lawrence, Kansas. By
observing the blooms they hope to better learn
how to predict them in the future. Accurate bloom
prediction helps scientists warn the public about
potential health risks and increases the amount
of time available for treating affected areas
before blooms grow out of control.
Additionally, Region 7 scientists traveled to
Milford Lake in north-central Kansas in late July
2020, in coordination with the State of Kansas,
to conduct a peroxide treatment. Peroxide breaks
apart the cyanobacteria cells but maintains the
health of other species in the lake.
Partnership with Faith-Based Organizations
In response to a request for assistance from
Administrator Wheeler, Region 7 joined forces
with Region 5, the Office of Environmental
Justice, Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics,
and local utilities to provide St. Louis area faith-
based organizations with information on energy
efficiency and eco-friendly practices in houses of
worship.
The interagency workgroup developed and
presented a three-part webinar series in
September 2020, garnering participation from
nearly 50 churches and faith organizations
in the St. Louis area. Topics included energy
conservation strategies, local energy conservation
resources and funding opportunities, and indoor
environmental health concerns.
In offering this free webinar installment, EPA
provided faith-based organizations with tangible
actions that will help them lower their utility
bills, conserve energy, and promote safe and
eco-friendly building maintenance. Many houses
of worship were built decades or even over a
century ago and may benefit from upgraded,
energy-efficient technology. They may also
contain environmental conditions that pose
increased risks to the health of congregants and
staff. Region 7 staff are now leading follow-up
discussions with participants regarding additional
steps that can be taken to address environmental
and health concerns in places of worship.
Administrator Wheeler meets with faith leaders in
St. Louis, Missouri in September 2020.
Des Moines Superfund Site
In Iowa, decades of blight and uncertainty are
coming to an end as the City of Des Moines
agreed to take ownership of the Des Moines
TCE Superfund Site, known locally as the Dico
site. This agreement is a major milestone
that continues protection for the city's water
supply and moves the site one step closer to
productive reuse for the citizens of Des Moines.
As a signatory to the settlement, the City of Des
Moines will accept the property title, and Dico
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will transfer the property at no cost to the city. In
exchange for the property, the city will operate
and maintain the groundwater remediation
system; maintain the asphalt cap (or enhance
the existing cap with the addition of several
feet of clean fill material); and implement land
use controls to protect those on-site from any
potential exposures.
The settlement represents a win, not just for EPA,
but also for Des Moines citizens and American
taxpayers. After almost a decade of contentious
litigation, the U.S. will receive $11.5 million from
Dico/Titan in a settlement of the judgments owed
to the U.S. With the funds, a special account
will be established with $2.9 million for EPA
to conduct necessary site cleanup work. The
remaining $8.6 million will go to the Hazardous
Substance Superfund.
The Dico site is appropriate for various types of
reuse, which the city will ultimately decide. The
remedies in place and institutional controls on
the site will ensure protection from potential
exposures. EPA will work closely with the city
to ensure the protectiveness of the planned
reuse and ensure that it is compatible with the
environmental protection remedies in place.
Kansas City, Kansas, Combined Sewer
Operation
In 2020, EPA, the Unified Government of
Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas,
and the State of Kansas reached agreement on
a novel and innovative adaptive management
approach to sewer overflow remedial work.
This groundbreaking settlement is the first of
its kind. This win-win approach to structuring
these massive infrastructure improvement
settlements provides flexibility to the Unified
Government to redesign and swap projects over
the 25-year life of the deal as it learns and as
technology changes, while ensuring through
performance criteria that environmental progress
is maintained. Under the settlement, raw sewage
discharges will be reduced by 85 percent
(millions of gallons per year) at an estimated cost
of $900 million.
~~~~~
[region |]
Working on and in the shadow of the Rockies,
Region 8 is the land of mountains and plains.
Serving the communities of Colorado, Montana,
North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming, and
28 tribal nations, Region 8 saw major progress
in 2020, especially in cleaning Brownfields and
Superfund sites.
Brownfields Program Accomplishments
In 2020, Region 8 enabled 82 underutilized
and contaminated Brownfield properties to be
made Ready for Anticipated Use. Across Region
8, leveraged $290 million in local investments in
support of Brownfields initiatives. Representing
four Region 8 states, 82 percent of competitive
Brownfield grants awarded include Qualified
Opportunity Zones. Region 8 also completed eight
Brownfields cleanups on tribal lands. Moreover,
Region 8 completed 115 Targeted Brownfields
Assessments (TBAs) this year in support of 29
separate communities. More than 50 percent of
TBAs were performed in Indian country. The TBA
program also supports non-profit organizations
focused on developing affordable housing and
food banks. Six TBAs advanced the siting of
new community gardens; these included urban
gardens in the Denver area and a vegetable
garden at a tribal assisted living facility.
In May 2020, the City of Kalispell, Montana
and EPA removed canopies, fuel dispensers,
underground storage tanks, and associated
piping and sampled the soil to address
contamination and begin the transformation
of the former CHS Country Store. The project is
among $1.4 million in EPA Brownfields property
assessment and clean-up activities that are
helping the city advance its transformative
Kalispell Core and Rail Redevelopment Plan.
In June 2020, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe
completed the cleanup of asbestos and mold
contamination at the Old Sitting Bull College
in Fort Yates, North Dakota. The tribe used a
$200,000 EPA Brownfields grant to pay for
the cleanup. The tribe will safely demolish the
ic
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building to make way for redevelopment.
Superfund Accomplishments
On October 23, 2020, EPA, along with the U.S.
Department of Justice, and in collaboration
with Montana Department of Environmental
Quality (DEQ), announced the lodging of the
2020 Partial Consent Decree for the Anaconda
Smelter Superfund site with the U.S. District
Court. This document provides for the continued
cleanup of copper smelting-related contamination
to protect public health and the environment
in Anaconda-Deer Lodge County. The consent
decree requires Atlantic Richfield to take actions
to remediate surface water and smelter slag piles
at the Anaconda site. Earlier in October, EPA also
announced the partial deletion of three operable
units from the NPL site after completing cleanup
and establishing development guidelines that
allow these sites to be reused.
EPA Deputy Associate Administrator Doug Benevento,
Senator Steve Daines (R-MT), and Anaconda/Deer
Lodge County Chief Executive Bill Everett participate in
a groundbreaking ceremony in Anaconda, Montana in
October 2020.
After more than 20 years in operation as
EPA's field office in Libby, Montana, the Libby
Information Center closed in October. This action
reflects the significant progress that has been
made to complete actions and agreements that
address asbestos exposure and protect human
health and the environment, including the
removal of a total of more than one million cubic
yards of contaminated soil from the community
and nearby areas since 1999. On May 26, 2020,
EPA announced the deletion of Operable Unit (OU)
1 from the NPL. This is the second deletion of an
operable unit at the Libby Asbestos Site from the
Superfund list in two years, reflecting continued
progress. In another major step forward, the
Remedial Action Completion Reports for the
residential and commercial areas of Libby and
Troy, OUs 4 and 7, were signed on June 25, 2020.
On September 16, 2020, the Federal District
Court of Montana approved a motion to enter
the Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit consent
decree and supporting documents, finalizing a
long-awaited agreement on final remedial actions
to be accomplished over the next several years in
Butte and Walkerville, Montana. The agreement
secures more than $150 million in cleanup
actions from Atlantic Richfield, which, along with
the amended Record of Decision for the site, will
advance the Superfund site deletion process
for the Silver Bow Creek and Butte Area site by
2024. New aspects of the Butte Priority Soils
cleanup will remove contaminated tailings at the
Northside and Diggings East Tailings areas and
along Silver Bow and Blacktail Creeks, will treat
more contaminated stormwater and groundwater
to keep that water out of the creeks, and will cap
and revegetate additional mine waste areas on
Butte Hill. The consent decree also sets aside
120 acres for connected greenways in Butte —
natural park spaces with reconstructed wetlands,
flowing water, abundant native plants, wildlife
habitat, play areas, and interpretive features.
Cleaner Air Milestones in Utah
Regional Administrator Greg Sopkin joins Utah
Governor Gary Herbert and Utah Department
of Environmental Quality Director Scott Baird to
celebrate air attainment in Utah.
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On November 6, 2020, EPA and the State of
Utah celebrated a clean air milestone with EPA's
proposal to approve redesignation requests
for the Salt Lake City and Provo fine particle
nonattainment areas. These redesignations, if
finalized, will mean that the Wasatch Front will
no longer be classified as a non-attainment area
after exceeding the standard for fine particulate
pollution for 13 years. Over the past decade,
EPA has awarded over $12 million in grants to
the Utah Department of Environmental Quality
for projects to help reduce particulate forming
pollutants. EPA's proposed redesignations include
a proposed approval of maintenance plans and
specific measures that will ensure the areas
remain in attainment.
Earlier in the year, EPA recognized another air
quality achievement for another criteria air
pollutant, PM10, when the agency finalized the
approval of redesignation requests for the Salt
Lake County, Utah County, and Ogden City PM10
nonattainment areas. These approvals mean the
Wasatch Front in Utah has attained the PM10
NAAQS based on certified air quality monitoring
data from 2016 to 2018.
Cleaning Our Water
In March 2020, EPA Region 8 met with the Crow
Tribe to discuss a long-standing non-compliant
wastewater overflow near the Wyola community
on the Crow Reservation. The overflow resulted
from a failing wastewater lift station with
inoperable pumps, a facility requiring electrical
upgrades, and a lack of resources for facility
upkeep. With direction and support from Regional
Administrator GregSopkin, the Region 8 Water
Division and the Enforcement and Compliance
Assurance Division set up weekly meetings with
the Crow Tribe leadership and representatives
to find solutions to these concerns. As a result,
the parties identified a 3-phase, team-based
approach for a permanent fix to the wastewater
facility, including a full renovation of the Wyola lift
station, scheduled for completion in early 2021.
EPA Region 8 is supporting an innovative
approach to reduce lead in drinking water for
Denver Water's 1.4 million customers. When
Denver Water exceeded the drinking water lead
action level in 2012, the utility needed to take
concrete steps to meet Safe Drinking Water
Act requirements and control lead corrosion.
In 2020, EPA approved Denver Water's
combined use of alternative treatment, lead
service line replacements, and customer filters
and developed reporting requirements and
metrics that would help the utility measure the
effectiveness of the approach overtime. Denver
Water estimates this approach will result in the
permanent removal of approximately 64,000 lead
service lines, protecting future generations of
children. Lead levels are expected to be reduced
by 40 to 50 percent overall and by 90 percent
or more for homes where lead service lines are
replaced. This alternative approach will also
prevent an estimated 570,000 pounds per year
of phosphorus from entering the watershed.
~~~~~
REGION 9
From the deserts of Nevada to the reefs and
tropical forests of Hawaii, EPA Region 9 protects
human health and the environment for the 50
million Americans who call the Pacific Southwest
home—including 148 tribes and residents of the
territorial islands.
U.S.-Mexico Border
Administrator Wheeler and Regional Administrator
John Busterud visit the San Diego sector of the U.S.
Border Patrol to discuss transboundary pollution and
sewage /sues.
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Focused on protecting the air, water, and soil
of an important part of the U.S.-Mexico border,
Region 9 this year identified two projects to
address Tijuana River transboundary pollution
and engaged with stakeholders on additional
projects pursuant to the U.S.-Mexico-Canada
Trade Agreement. The region completed a $10
million rehabilitation of the Poniente Collector
and $13 million improvement to the Tijuana River
Diversion and Pump Station to end dry weather
transboundary flows. It also completed $12
million in wastewater treatment plant upgrades
in southern Arizona. Under the Border 2020
initiative, Region 9 also awarded $530,000 for
eight additional projects.
Air and Water
In pursuit and protection of cleaner air, 2020
saw Region 9 act on 121 SIP submittals, which
resulted in reduction of a SIP backlog from 181
to 140. It also finalized six Clean Air Act Tribal
New Source Review permits. Additionally, regional
efforts funded more than 3,000 cleaner pieces
of equipment and managed $100 million in clean
air technology projects.
To care for Region 9's water, EPA reduced the new
Underground Injection Control permit backlog by
50 percent, with six permits issued in California.
After developing a Drinking Water Action Plan
to reduce health-based violations, the region
achieved a 13 percent reduction. Region 9 also
awarded more than $500 million in grants to
states, tribes, and territories. This included $7.3
million for lead testing at school and child care
facilities, and $339 million to State Revolving
Fund programs, $42 million of which went to
California fire disaster relief.
Land Management and Emergency Response
As part of EPA's Superfund efforts, Region 9
completed 13 removal actions and continued
longer term work to safeguard human health and
the environmetn at a number of NPL sites. To
protect a critical water resource for 2.4 million
people in 22 cities, EPA added the Orange County
North Basin Superfund site to the NPL.
Responding to an unprecedented 2020 wildfire
season in California, where over 9,000 wildfires
burned more than 4 million acres, Region
9 responded swiftly to identify and remove
household hazardous waste from over 2,500
property parcels, a task completed by the end of
December.
In other 2020 land management efforts,
Region 9 cleaned up more than 565 leaking
underground storage tanks, including two
cleanups on tribal lands. EPA assessed 254
Brownfields sites, cleaned up 69 of them, and
readied 162 for reuse. It also completed 20 PCB
site cleanups. Additionally, 2020 saw Region 9
finalize a 10-year plan to address abandoned
uranium mines on Navajo Nation lands.
Enforcement Success
Region 9 obtained 92 enforcement and
compliance case conclusions in 2020, which
reduced or prevented 33 million pounds of
pollution. Actions obtained $1 billion in injunctive
relief, $20 million in penalties, and $1.7 million
in work done via Supplemental Environmental
Projects. The Region took nine Clean Air Act
112(r) actions, resulting in $684,000 in
penalties and reducing pollution by 309 tons. It
concluded six defeat device cases, including the
largest regional Clean Air Act settlement, which
garnered a $20 million penalty and reduced
more than 7 million pounds of pollution. Action
was taken against nine facilities discharging
industrial stormwater into coastal habitats,
yielding $509,000 in penalties and $326,000
in injunctive relief. Region 9 also negotiated
an $800,000 FIFRA settlement for sale and
distribution of unregistered pool disinfectants.
Conducting audits at 60 facilities, it acted against
seven entities failing to close cesspools in Hawaii
with settlements to close 33 illegal cesspools.
Partnerships with Tribes and Territories
In 2020, Region 9 completed 10 Treatment as a
State approvals. It also awarded more than $25
million to 38 tribal water infrastructure projects
and completed 63 sanitary surveys at tribal water
systems. Region 9 issued emergency orders
against two drinking water systems and provided
alternate water to more than 2,000 residents.
There were 115 tribal capacity-building grants
awarded in 2020, supporting: 43 EPA-Tribal
~
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Environmental Plans, 58 Integrated Solid Waste
Management Plans, 31 air quality programs,
and 26 water quality programs. Region 9 also
completed a RCRA permit at the Evoqua carbon
regeneration facility.
Region 9 is also responsible for stewardship
of the U.S. Pacific Islands. In 2020, it awarded
$39 million to territorial utilities for water
infrastructure, including more than $9 million
for typhoon disaster relief in the Commonwealth
of the Northern Mariana Islands. Region 9
awarded six grants totaling more than $8 million
to territorial efforts and managed contracts and
Interagency Agreements totaling $4 million.
Enforcement actions secured a $400,000 penalty
and $1 billion in injunctive relief from Guam
Power Authority to reduce emissions of hazardous
air pollutants and sulphur dioxide by 99 percent.
~~~~~
[region io]
From Bristol Bay to Puget Sound to the Columbia
River, EPA Region 10 protects the environment
and people of the Pacific Northwest. Region 10
is responsible for the land, waters, and air of
Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington, and 271
tribal nations.
Cleaning Hazardous Waste
This year, Region 10 invested $3 million in
funding for the Backhaul Alaska Program,
providing hazardous waste transportation
services to 160 remote, rural communities
throughout Alaska that would otherwise have
to burn their waste or dispose of it in unlined
landfills. During the pilot phase, 73,000 pounds
of material was safely removed, with an additional
150,000 pounds expected by the end of the pilot.
As a result of the program's training and capacity
building efforts, 25 communities developed
strong waste backhaul programs. The program
helps these communities by removing wastes
like lead acid batteries, fluorescent lamps, and
waste electronics, which would otherwise remain
uncontrolled in the community, posing risks to
people's health and the environment.
In 2020, EPA drove significant progress toward
cleanup at the Portland Harbor Superfund Site.
Responsible parties signed nine agreements
and EPA issued two orders to complete cleanup
engineering design for approximately 75 percent
of this heavily contaminated 10-mile stretch of
the Willamette River. By early 2021, we expect
to sign the final agreement for the remaining
25 percent, meaning 100 percent of the site
will be in active cleanup design. Several of
the parties have already begun active in-river
design work to kickstart the work. Region 10
is conducting oversight of the cleanup design
work, while working with many actively engaged
stakeholders including the Oregon Department of
Environmental Quality, multiple federal agencies,
six Native American Tribes, and community
groups and nonprofits.
Region 10's Emergency Response Program
deployed staff and contractors to the former
Kaiser Aluminum Smelter site in Mead,
Washington, to prevent toxic runoff from materials
left at the aging site. With the goal of completing
the emergency cleanup operations before the
winter rains began, the On-Scene Coordinators
(OCSs) and legal team navigated technical
issues as well as complications brought on by
the COVID-19 pandemic. After securing two legal
agreements, in July and August the OSCs, one
Potentially Responsible Party, and contractors
implemented two time-critical removal actions
to clean up source material containing PCBs,
polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and asbestos.
Ponds on the property had accumulated PCBs
and were transporting contaminants to a tributary
of the Little Spokane River, which has been
designated as an impaired water body under
the Clean Water Act due to PCBs detected in fish
tissue. The field work lasted 18 weeks with an
average of 30 staff per day on site to dismantle
and/or remove approximately 5,300 tons of
green mill waste; 318,000 square feet of PCB
siding; 14,400 linear feet of failing asbestos
covered piping; and more than 5,000 chemical
containers.
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Protecting Our Water
The Columbia River Basin is home to over 8
million people who depend on its resources for
their health and livelihood. This year Region
10, with assistance from Region 8, launched
the inaugural Columbia River Basin Restoration
Program grants program by awarding $2 million to
14 different entities spanning the entire Columbia
Basin and four states.
In addition, Region 10 continued to invest in
efforts to protect and restore Puget Sound, the
largest estuary by water volume in the U.S. In
2020, Region 10 awarded $30 million in grants
to work on the priorities of Orca and salmon
recovery, healthy shellfish beds, and stormwater
pollution reduction and prevention.
Regional Administrator Chris Hladick visits Puget
Sound to see the improvement of harvestable
shellfish beds indicating an improvment in water
quality in the watershed.
EPA's investments have totaled over $100 million
over the years and have resulted in:
•	seeding groundbreaking research on toxins;
•	helping establish a stormwater research
center;
•	helping reopen hundreds of acres of
previously closed shellfish beds;
•	removing thousands of traps and nets; and
•	restored miles of shoreline, acres of wetlands,
and upstream river systems.
Emergency Response
In the aftermath of the fires in Oregon, FEMA
issued Mission Assignments to EPA to assist the
State of Oregon. The primary Mission Assignment
for $21.8 million asked EPA to address hazardous
materials on burned properties and implement
emergency erosion control measures to prevent
damage to drinking water systems and critical
endangered species habitat. Region 10 is also
providing critical technical assistance to the
Oregon Health Authority to assess impacts
to drinking water and wastewater systems
throughout the impacted area. At the height of
the response operations, over 200 EPA staff
and contractors were working in the field and
supporting the field operations in a virtual
Incident Management Team.
Reducing Diesel Emissions
This year, Region 10 awarded more than $6
million in grants for diesel pollution reduction
projects across the region. This includes more
than $2 million to our four states to support
ongoing efforts as well as $2 million to tribal
governments and $2 million to ports and non-
profit groups working across sectors to reduce
harmful diesel pollution in the Pacific Northwest.
Region 10 also awarded more than $16.5 million
for woodstove change-out programs in Alaska
and Oregon aimed at cutting harmful particulate
pollution and helping these areas meet national
air quality standards.
In September 2020, EPA submitted a Report
to Congress titled Remote Areas of Alaska:
Affordable and Reliable Options for Meeting
Energy Needs and Reducing Emissions.
This report presents options for the federal
government to assist remote areas of Alaska with
meeting the energy needs of those areas in an
affordable and reliable manner using existing
emissions control technology or other technology
that achieves similar emissions reductions. The
report discusses measures such as replacement
of older diesel generators with lower-emitting
generators, fuel switching, and community
collaboration, as well as existing federal
government programs that assist these remote
areas.
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EPA PUBLICATION NUMBER: 100K21001
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