\vEPA AIEO Newsletter EPA-160-N-24-001 January 2024 Volume 2, Issue 1 EPA's American Indian Environmental Office EPA AlEO's Releases Revised Guidance Last month AIEO released revised guidance: EPA Policy on Consultation with Indian Tribes and the companion Guidance for Discussing Tribal Treaty or Similar Rights. EPA has long been at the forefront of developing policy that ensures consideration of Tribal interests in making agency policy and managing environmental programs affecting Indian country. In 2011, EPA was among the first federal agencies to issue a Tribal consulta- tion policy and has since conducted more than 900 Tribal consultations. In 2016, EPA developed the Guidance for Discussing Tribal Treaty Rights, the first of its kind for any federal agency. Successful implementation of EPA's Consultation Policy is a top priority for the Agency. The finalized policy and guidance reflect valuable input from Tribal offi- cials and Tribal partnership groups. EPA's revisions also include standards developed by the White House and interagency workgroups to promote uniformity in the way the federal government conducts consultation with federally recognized Tribal governments. Key revisions include: Guiding principles addressing the consideration of Indigenous Knowledge and information regarding sacred sites; Additional specificity on consultation timing, notification, coordina- tion, participants, and follow-up; => A section titled "Consultation Process Review" providing a means to resolve Tribal concerns of the sufficiency, timing and agency compli- ance with consultation policy requirements; and i=* Expanded scope of the Guidance for Discussing Tribal Treaty Rights to include additional instruments of federal law and to apply to national EPA actions. On Monday, January 29 at 2pm ET, EPA will hold a webinar for Tribes providing an overview of the newly revised guidances. Register for the webinar at: https://events.gcc.tearns.microsoft.com/event/817bc9b9-b5dd-4elf- ac4a-0b4e71e504fd@88b378b3-6748-4367-acf9-76aacbeca6a7 INSIDE THIS ISSUE White House Tribal Nations Summit Climate Corner ActiveTriba! Consultations 4 Funding Opportunities 5 AIEO Program Updates 6 New to AIEO 6 ------- 2023 White House Tribal Nations Summit The White House Tribal Nations Summit (Summit) took place at the U.S. Department of Interior in Washing- ton, DC on Wednesday, December 6 and Thursday, December 7, 2023. Each federally recognized Tribe was invited to send one representative to the Summit, and hundreds of organization partners, Native youth, and Tribal leaders attended. This year's Summit brought Tribal leaders and top Administration officials together to discuss some of the important issues facing Tribal communities, which included protecting Tribal homelands in an era of climate change, and Indigenous foods. EPA Deputy Administrator Janet McCabe participated in a panel titled "Federal Processes for Conservation and Habitat Protection" with White House Senior Advisor John Podesta, other agency officials, and a Tribal Chairman. Deputy Administrator McCabe spoke about a variety of issues, including the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act Contaminated Lands Initiative, as well as a mobile app pi- lot program in Navajo Nation to address contaminated disposal issues. At the Summit, President Biden focused on several topics, including: an online "Access to Capital Clearing- house" that will serve as a searchable repository for an up-to-date list of ali federal funding opportunities available to Tribal Nations and Native businesses; the release of the Sacred Sites "Best Practices Guide for Federal Agencies Regarding Tribal and Native Hawaiian Sacred Sites," which provides best practices, proce- dures and guidance for the management, treatment and protection of sacred sites; and a new Executive Or- der to reform the federal funding system for Tribes, entitled Reforming Federal Funding and Support for Tribal Nations to Better Embrace Our Trust Responsibilities and Promote the Next Era of Tribal Self- Determination (fact sheet here). Six people across a stage at the White House Tribal Na- tions Summit in Tribal ceremonial dress. The cover of the Sacred Sites Best Practices Guide with buffalo grazing on grass in plains setting. BEST PRACTICES GUIDE for Federal Agencies Regarding Tribal and Native Hawaiian Sacred Sites - 2 ------- CLIMATE CORNER: AIEO WORKING WITH THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION NETWORK About a year ago, the Environmental Protection Network (EPN) and the American Indian Environmental Office (AIEO) signed an Memorandum of Understanding and began working closely together to deliver free technical assistance to Tribes based on Tribally identified climate related needs. EPN is an organiza- tion with a network of over 600 former EPA employees who volunteer their time to provide technical as- sistance to communities disproportionately impacted by environmental and health issues. The partner- ship has been very successful because AIEO hears directly from Tribes about capacity assistance needs related to climate change and EPN has a wealth of knowledge, connections, and expertise to address those needs. EPN also have a robust pro bono Capacity-Building Technical Assistance Program, which any Tribe can utilize at any time. Throughout the partnership, AIEO & EPN have collaborated on webinars, EPN has attended many Tribal conferences and RTOCs to speak directly to Tribes and build relationships, and now we're focused on in- teractive workshops. Our last workshop in December focused on Climate Pollution Reduction Grants as- sistance and was attended by over 30 Tribes. We will be hosting another workshop later in the winter on a climate related topic. Through our joint efforts, EPN is now working directly with over 20 Tribes on their unique climate and en- vironmental needs. The bulk of this assistance is currently focused on grants, from application reviews to implementation assistance, in addition to working with AIEO, EPN will be involved with the Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Centers (EJ TCTACs) recently selected by EPA and the Department of Energy . This will be an excellent opportunity to apply the experience they've gained from working with AIEO to a broader audience with the EJ TCTACs. Salmon in a backcountry stream, Katmai Preserve by National Park Service employee Russ Taylor 3 ------- ACTIVE TRIBAL CONSULTATIONS EPA is initiating consultation and coordination with federally recognized Indian Tribes on the proposal to amend the Standards of Performance for New Stationary Sources and Emission Guidelines (EG) for Large Municipal Waste Combustors (LMWCs), pursuant to Clean Air Act (CAA) section 129. The EPA is proposing amendments that would apply to units that have the capacity to combust greater than 250 tons per day of municipal solid waste. The EPA re-evaluated emission standards that apply to LMWCs for all nine pollutants regu- lated under CAA section 129. In this action, the EPA is proposing revisions to all emission limits for new sources and to almost all emission limits for existing sources. The EPA is also proposing to (1) remove exemptions and exclusions for startup, shutdown, and malfunc- tions, (2) add provisions for electronic reporting of certain notifications and reports, (3) re- vise recordkeeping requirements, (4) clarify title V permitting requirements for certain air curtain incinerators, (5) close a 2007 reconsideration action, and (6) provide other tech- nical edits, clarifications, and revisions intended to improve the understanding of the rule and improve consistency with other incineration rules. For more information about this proposed action, please see the EPA rulemaking website: https://www.epa.gov/ stationarysources-air-pollution/large-municipal-waste-combustors-lmwc-new-source- performance. EPA's consultation and coordination period is open now through February 26, 2024, Con- tact Amanda Kaufman at 919-541-2388 or email at kaufman.amanda@epa.gov if you have any questions about this action. Learn more about this consultation and other active tribal consultations at https://tcots.epa.gov/ords/tcotspub/f?p=106:l ------- Funding Opportunities Brownfields Solicitation for FY2024 Technical Assistance to Existing and Potential Brown- fields RLF Grant Recipients (EPA-l-OLEM-OBLR-24-Ol) The purpose of this funding opportunity is to provide EPA Brownfield Revolving Loan Fund-specific technical assistance that focuses on the unique complexities of EPA Brownfield Revolving Loan Fund Grants with the goal of increasing the capacity of EPA-funded Brownfield Revolving Loan Fund Programs nationwide. This funding opportunity is intended to 1) help communities that have not previously engaged in brownfields pro- jects to gain an understanding of requirements for managing a successful EPA Brownfield Revolving Loan Fund Program, and 2) build capacity for existing EPA Brownfield Revolving Loan Fund grant recipients, so that they can better manage their Revolving Loan Fund programs. For this solicitation, EPA anticipates awarding a single cooperative agreement for up to $3,000,000 with a five-year period of performance. The application deadline is March 1, 2024 at 11:59 PM ET. Learn more at: https://www.epa.gov/brownfields/solicitation-fv-2024-technical-assistance-existing-and-potential- brownfields-rlf-grant Grant Funding to Address Indoor Air Pollution at Schools Eligible applicants may submit only one grant application to fund activities in two or more of the four project areas listed below: 1. IAQ and Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Reduction Capacity Building 2. Tribal IAQ and GHG Reduction Capacity Building 3. IAQ and GHG Reduction Training and Education Campaign 4. IAQ and GHG Reduction Research and Demonstration Projects in K-12 schools located in low-income, disadvantaged, and/or Tribal communities. The total estimated funding for this competitive opportunity is $32,000,000. EPA anticipates awarding four to six grants of $5,000,000 to $8,000,000 to support five years of Indoor Air Quality activities. The application deadline is March 19, 2024 at 11:59 PM ET. The Funding Opportunity Number is EPA-R-OAR-APS-24-02. Learn more at: https://www.epa.gov/iaa-schools/grant-funding-address-indoor-air-pollution-schools Climate Pollution Reduction Grants Program: Implementation Grants Competition for Tribes and Territories The Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRG) program funding to develop and implement ambitious plans for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other harmful air pollution. The application deadline is May 1, 2024. The Funding Opportunity Number is EPA-R-QAR-CPRGT-23-09. Eligible Entities: In general, entities eligible to apply for an implementation grant under this announcement are federally recognized tribes, tribal consortia, and territories. Learn more at: https://www.epa.gov/inf1ation -reduction-act/climate-pollution-reduction-grants Please visit https://www.epa.gov/grants for more information on applying for EPA grants as well as other current opportunities at EPA. 5 ------- AMERICAN INDIAN ENVIRONMENTAL OFFICE PROGRAM UPDATES NEW AIEO STAFF Susan Sho AIEO is excited to welcome Susan Shobeiri, an intern assisting the Tribal Capacity Development team with their Climate Adaptation work. Susan is a second-year undergraduate student at Bos- ton University, pursuing dual degrees in Environmental Analysis + Policy and Economics. Her interests lie at the intersection of science, justice, public policy, and envi- ronmental law, with a particular focus on the differ- ences in infrastructure and preparedness across urban, suburban, and rural environments. Originally from Ok- lahoma, Susan now resides in Northern Virginia and Boston. Outside of her studies, she is a goalkeeper on BU's varsity women's soccer team and loves to read and bake. Please join AIEO in welcoming Susan. Susan Shobeiri AIEO PARTNERSHIPS ABOUT AIEO AIEO leads EPA's efforts to protect human health and the environ- ment in Indian country by sup- porting implementation of federal environmental law consistent with the federal trust responsibility and the government-to-government relationship, as found in the EPA Policy for the Administration of En- vironmental Programs on Indian Reservations (1984). Questions for AIEO? Here's our Email: Oita.Contactus(a>epa.gov 6 ------- |