UPCOMING CALLS/EVENTS/NOTICES

Ambient Air Quality/EPA/NTAA/Tribes

The Hearth, Patio and Barbeque Association’s Stoves to Homes Initiative’s Donation Program of Remaining Step 1 Wood Heaters and Parts for Tax Deduction is now open until this Friday, May 15, 2020. HPBA reached out to and received official word from EPA that a simple donation program could be set up with qualifying non-profit organizations. These approved non-profit organizations will manage the ownership and distribution of the stoves to identified homeowners who are supported by the organization. 

Wildland Fire Community Engagement and Data Visualization Tools Webinar

Wednesday, May 20, 3-4pm ET. Register here.

This presentation will highlight two wildland fire smoke and health projects. Smoke Sense is a crowdsourcing, citizen science app which engages the public to broaden awareness of wildland fire smoke locally as well as health protective measures and behaviors. This presentation will share findings from the past two wildfire seasons including community engagement and data visualization tools. The Smoke Ready Communities project offers a model and framework to help communities improve their response. It supports collaboration and capacity building and also fosters preparedness and response to wildfire smoke episodes. This presentation will share a solutions-driven approach for helping reduce the public health burden of smoke intrusion at the community level. Participants will learn about how these projects can integrate a community capacity lens with resources specifically related to wildland fire smoke, air quality and health.

Public Hearings on the Proposed Rule: Review of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards for Particulate Matter

EPA has published this proposal in the Federal Register, and the NTAA is developing a full Policy Resource Kit. The proposal states that no changes to the NAAQS for particulate matter will be taken at this time. The deadline to comment is June 29, 2020, and two virtual public hearings will be held on May 20 and May 21.

EPA Tools & Resources Webinar: EPA Expands Research on COVID-19 in the Environment

Wednesday, May 27, 2020; 2-3pm ET

Register Here

EPA scientists are building on a foundation of world-class research by applying their knowledge to reduce the risk of exposure to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. This research will help states & territories, tribes, and local governments, including public health agencies guide homeowners, business owners, and others reduce the risk of exposure. This webinar will highlight research EPA is working on with CDC, including the following:

• Environmental Cleanup and Disinfection
• Wastewater Virus Detection
• Salivary Antibody Assay Development

Tribal Grants Education and Technical Assistance Webinar Series Second Wednesday of Every Month at 1pm ET

For more information, click here!

NTAA Upcoming Calls. The toll-free number is 1-800-309-2350. If you do not need to call toll free, or would like to help conserve NTAA funding, you can call 1-805-309-2350. Both numbers use code 928-523-0526#. Contact Andy.Bessler@nau.edu if you have any questions about any call! *Registration instructions* When you register for the GoToWebinar, please remember to include your Tribe, Region, or Organization in parenthesis after your last name. This allows you to see everyone on the call and prevents us from conducting a roll-call, ultimately saving everyone’s time.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professional’s (ITEP’s) Tribes and Climate Change Calendar includes conferences, trainings, webinars and other events related to tribes and climate change.

Click here for ITEP’s other trainings and events.

Click here for ITEP’s new Tribal Environmental Management and Planning Online Courses. New courses have been added, so check it out!

 ITEP’s FY20 AIAQTP Course Schedule 

Climate Change / Energy

May 13, 20, and 27, Noon (ET) – Ask the Expert

Every Wednesday ENERGY STAR holds a Portfolio Manager “Ask the Expert” session. It’s a live webinar that gives all users an opportunity to ask their questions directly to EPA experts in an open forum. Want to talk to a “real” person? Have a question about how Portfolio Manager calculates your score? Want to learn more about entering Green Power? Join ENERGY STAR, and they’ll answer all your questions about ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager in this public forum.

Register

May 13, 1 PM (ET) – Portfolio Manager 201

Continue to learn about EPA’s ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager Tool with a deeper dive into more advanced functionalities such as: editing property data; correcting and updating property use details; using the data quality checker; and sharing property data.

Register

NEW! Part 2 of ITEP’s Three-Part Cultural Resiliency Webinar Series: Indigenous Framework Approach as a Tool for Cultural Resiliency

Thursday, May 14, 1-2:15pm PT

Click for more info and to register!

NEW! Indigenous Peoples Climate Change Working Group Webinar Series

The Indigenous Peoples Climate Change Working Group (IPCCWG) would like to invite you to join us for a 4-part webinar series that will discuss the future generations of American Indian and Alaskan Native geoscience professionals, educators, and workforce. An in-person IPCCWG meeting will take place at the National Tribal & Indigenous Climate Conference. To register for the May 14 webinar, please click HERE. We also greatly appreciate you sharing within your networks. The webinar schedule is as follows:

• May 14 1pm PT/3pm CT/4pm ET – featured speakers include Dr. Daniel Wildcat – Haskell Indian Nations University, Paulette Blanchard – University of Kansas, and Shereena Baker – University of New Mexico
• June 11 1pm PT/3pm CT/4pm ET
• July 16 1pm PT/3pm CT/4pm ET
• August 13 1pm PT/3pm CT/4pm ET

If you have any questions regarding registration or anything else, please do not hesitate to reach out to Althea Walker at awalker@aihec.org or 480-258-3963.

May 14, 2 PM (ET) – Using ENERGY STAR Recognition in Strategic Energy Management Programs

Helping facilities earn recognition for energy performance can be an effective way to demonstrate the value of Strategic Energy Management (SEM) and build support energy management broadly. ENERGY STAR offers several different recognition opportunities for industrial facilities through the Challenge for Industry and the Find the Treasure Campaign that SEM programs can leverage. Join to learn more about these and other SEM resources.

Register

May 15, 2 PM (ET) – Decarbonizing Electricity: The Critical Role of Firm Low-Carbon Resources

Wind, solar, and batteries will be star players in a 100% carbon-free electricity sector. But reaching zero emissions cost-effectively requires completing the low-carbon team with one or more “firm” low-carbon resources. This webinar will summarize research on deep decarbonization of the electricity sector and the portfolio of solutions needed to reach this key goal at an affordable cost. At the conclusion of a presentation by Jesse Jenkins of Princeton University, there will be opportunity for audience questions.

Presenter: Jesse Jenkins, Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering and Andlinger Center for Energy & Environment, Princeton University

Register

May 19, 1 PM (ET) – Portfolio Manager 301

With a good background on the basic functionality of EPA’s ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager Tool, learn about some advanced features including: using spreadsheet upload templates to update property data; setting goals and targets to plan energy improvements for properties; creating custom reports; and using the Sustainable Buildings Checklist.

Register

May 20, 2 PM (ET) – Tracking GHG Emissions in Portfolio Manager

This webinar will provide a closer look at tracking and reporting your GHG emissions using the EPA’s Portfolio Manager tool.

Attend this webinar if you’re interested in:

• Understanding the Portfolio Manager GHG emissions inventory
• Learning how to track emissions benefits from green power use in Portfolio Manager
• How to use Portfolio Manager’s reporting functionality to track GHG emissions for the properties in your portfolio

Register

May 21, 2 PM (ET) – Renewable Energy Options for Small Businesses and Congregations

Electricity use is often the single largest source of an organization’s emissions and air pollution footprint, not to mention being a significant expense. Making the simple choice to use renewable energy can offer environmental, economic and community benefits. On this webinar, you will learn about the various options available in the market to buy green power through retail purchase, self-generation and direct purchase from a renewable project. You will learn about how to align your desired energy and environmental outcomes to specific green power supply options. You will learn about the role of renewable energy certificates and how they can support your organization meeting its renewable energy and carbon footprint reduction goals. Speaker: James Critchfield, Program Manager, EPA Green Power Partnership

Register

May 27, 1 PM (ET) – Tribal Energy Project Technology Options

The energy landscape continues to evolve rapidly. In many areas, costs continue to drop as technology improvements and other market drivers create greater opportunity for distributed generation. This webinar will provide an overview of several common energy technology options. Hosted by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Indian Energy, the 2020 Tribal Energy Webinar Series will focus on how to accomplish specific tasks related to energy development on tribal lands. Presenters will provide instruction and sharing tools and resources.

Register

May 28, 2 PM (ET) – Strategies for Setting Effective Energy Performance Goals

Are you aiming to set meaningful energy performance goals for your buildings? Join this webinar to hear from three ENERGY STAR partners how to use a technical approach to estimate the energy efficiency improvement potential of a building and set effective goals. Boston Properties will share how they used a scientific method for setting performance goals for targets to make them realistic and achievable. In addition, CommonWealth Partners will talk about how they provide guidance on tracking emissions through ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager to all their properties and established science-based emissions targets. Finally, Hudson Pacific Properties will discuss how they setting performance goals and updating targets for their buildings, and how to incorporate carbon reduction goals into a program.

Speakers:

• Ben Myers, Director, Sustainability, Boston Properties
• Jessica Loeper, Director of Sustainability, CommonWealth Partners
• James Soutter, Vice President, Engineering, Hudson Pacific Properties

Register

June 3, 2PM (ET) – Equity in Action: Heat Planning in Greater Phoenix

This 90 minute webcast will cover how The Nature Conservancy Arizona, Arizona State University, the Maricopa County Department of Public Health, and other partners developed the Heat Action Planning Guide for Neighborhoods of Greater Phoenix. This team worked directly with community members using a participatory process to identify challenges and create community driven solutions to mitigate and adapt to future heat. Specific cooling solutions include revitalizing vacant lots with trees and vegetation, and increasing shade along transit routes and at bus stops. The process was designed to develop awareness, agency, and social cohesion in underserved communities.

Speakers:

• Victoria Ludwig, U.S. EPA Heat Island Reduction Program
• Melissa Guardaro, Arizona State University
• David Crummey, Retail, Arts, Innovation & Livability Mesa

Register

Registration Is Now Open: National Tribal & Indigenous Climate Conference

August 31-September 3, 2020, St. Paul, Minnesota

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) is honored to host the United States’ first Biennial National Tribal and Indigenous Climate Conference (NTICC) along with support from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Tribal Resilience Program. The NTICC is open to all US tribal nations and Indigenous Peoples from throughout the world, with an emphasis on including our Elders and

Youth. The NTICC will convene experts on climate change and will include a balance of Traditional Indigenous Knowledges and Western Science. We invite people to submit proposals before May 29, 2020, discussing climate-related impacts, assessments, tools, adaptation planning, mitigation and actions in one or more of the following tracks:

• Indigenous Knowledges
• Air, Health & Well-Being
• Land
• Water
• Relocation
• Infrastructure
• Energy Systems
• Food Sovereignty
• Ecosystems and Biodiversity

South Central Climate Adaptation Science Center: Earth to Sky Workshop

Earth to Sky is a partnership between NASA, NPS, and USFWS that enables and encourages informal educators to access and use relevant NASA science, data, and educational and outreach products in their work. The partnership’s focus is on climate change science and communication. Join us for three days of training with native informal educators from across the South Central region who recognize the importance of teaching climate change. The workshop will take place July 15-17 in Sulphur, OK. Learn more here.

Save the Date: Southwest Tribal Climate Resilience Camp

Date: July 26-31, 2020

Location: Navajo Technical University – Crownpoint, NM

The Tribal Climate Resilience Camp will support teams of Tribal Leaders, climate change coordinators, planners, and program managers to build skills, gather information, and develop Tribal policies and plans needed for Tribal Nations to address climate change impacts. Information about travel, lodging, and registration will be available soon. You may contact Althea Walker, Tribal Climate                                                   Science Liaison, at AWalker@aihec.org or (480) 258-3963 with questions.

SEEKING TRIBAL DELEGATES

We are currently recruiting 10 Southwest Tribes to participate in the 2020 Camp. Each Tribe should identify three delegates per Tribe. The delegates must participate for the entire week curriculum. Delegates may include climate change staff, tribal policy leaders, Tribal Council, natural resource and environmental managers and staff, administrators, department staff from health, public works, education, housing, and other relevant departments that should engage in climate change planning. FOR APPLICATIONS Visit this link.

Save the Date: Shifting Seasons Summit 3, October 6-8, 2020, Keshena, WI

Contingency dates: March 2021

The Shifting Seasons Summit is a gathering that focuses on climate resilience planning and implementation within Tribes and across Tribal ceded territories in the Northeast Region. This summit will also include network-building opportunities and initiatives developed outside of the Northeast by capacity building organizations, academic institutions and Tribes. Visit www.NICRN.org for more details.

ITEP’s Climate Change Adaptation Training Courses registration is online! Learn more about the courses and register here.

Toxics/Mobile Sources

NEW! Managing Road Dust webinar series

Webinar #1: Introduction to Managing Road Dust, May 28, 2020 at 10am (AKDT)

Register here!

Road dust from unpaved roads is a major air quality concern in many tribal communities. Dust (also called Particulate Matter (PM)) has negative impacts on health, road safety and quality of life. This webinar is the first of a series of four webinars to help tribal environmental and transportation staff to manage road dust, resulting in improved air quality. Presenters from US Environmental Protection Agency, University of Alaska, Alaska Department Environmental Conservation, Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium and the Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals will provide information to help tribal environmental and transportation staff create community partnerships to:

1. Assess current roads.
2. Develop community education messages leading to behavioral changes.
3. Develop plans to improve road design.
4. Consider appropriate use of dust suppressants
5. Continue with air quality assessments.
6. Create a dust management plan.
7. Identify potential funding sources.

Participants will also be introduced to a variety of online resources to help with planning for road dust management. Training Certificates will be available for everyone who completes all 4 webinars. Webinar recordings will be available to anyone registered for the webinars.

1. Webinar #1 – Introduction to Managing Road Dust
2. Webinar #2 – Introduction to Dust Suppressants (palliatives)
3. Webinar #3 – Engaging Community Leaders in Road Dust Management
4. Webinar #4 – Case Studies on Road Dust Management

Contact Mansel.Nelson@nau.edu with questions.

Tribal Consultation Period Extended for EPA’s Draft Plan for the Federal Certification of Applicators of Restricted Use Pesticides within Indian Country

Extended through August 3, 2020

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP) – Office of Pesticide Programs is provide notice to federally-recognized tribes that EPA’s Tribal Consultation on the Draft EPA Plan for the Federal Certification of Applicators of Restricted Use Pesticides within Indian Country is extended through August 3, 2020 to accommodate a recent tribal request. The timeline for the consultation and consultation period will extend from February 10–August 3, 2020. During this period, a third consultation session will be conducted. To participate, the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP) invites you and/or your designee to join us during the following consultation session:

• Session 3: Wednesday, July 15th from 12:00pm-2:00pm ET

Conference Line: 866-299-3188; Code: 202-566-0603

Adobe Connect: https://epawebconferencing.acms.com/draftepaplan3

Postponed: Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the West Coast Collaborative Partners Meeting has been postponed until August 24-26, 2020

After careful consideration of the growing public health concerns associated with the coronavirus (COVID-19), the Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the US EPA West Coast Collaborative is postponing our GTSE | WCCPM event until

August 24 – 26, 2020, at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center in Tacoma, WA.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) and the Green Transportation Summit & Expo (GTSE) have partnered to provide 25 complimentary full-conference passes to the Green Transportation Summit & Expo. The GTSE is the Pacific Northwest’s premier clean fleet and transportation event, focusing on fleets, fuels, technologies, policy & practice, with a regional focus and a national scope. We will provide you the opportunity to see, touch, drive, and learn about new transportation technologies firsthand, such as electric, hydrogen, natural gas and propane-powered heavy-duty vehicles, off-road utility vehicles, generators, and others. Workshops on DERA, VW funding, other federal funding opportunities, and alternative fuels will be presented. Please join us at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center for the 10^th annual GTSE to learn about clean transportation, how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, pollutants, and costs in your fleet operations. To learn more about the conference, check out our website. To receive the code for the complimentary passes, please contact ITEP’s Dara Marks Marino at Dara.Marks-Marino@nau.edu.

NEW! Strategies to Reopen Tribal Casinos 100% Smokefree webinar

Friday, May 15, 2020, 11am-12pm MST

Register here!

The National Native Network, the Americans for Nonsmokers’ Rights Foundation, Black Hills Center for American Indian Health, and the Southwest Navajo Tobacco Education Prevention Project have partnered to present a webinar titled: Strategies to Reopen Tribal Casinos Smokefree There will not be any CEUs offered for this event. There will be an intriguing and informative lineup of speakers from multiple industries that will all be contributing to the conversation around the need for Tribal gaming to implement 100% smokefree environments.

Indoor Air Quality

Be sure to subscribe to CodeTalk, HUD’s Office of Native American Programs newsletter, for webinars and opportunities!

UPCOMING CALLS/EVENTS/NOTICES

Ambient Air Quality/EPA/NTAA/Tribes

NEW! Hopi Food Sovereignty through Farming and Coalitions

A webinar hosted by the Indigenous Foods Knowledges Network

Join us on Thursday, May 7th, 10 am AKDT/11 am PDT & AZT/12 pm MST/1 pm CDT 2 pm EDT to hear presentations by Terri Honani (Hopi and Tewa) and Dr. Michael Kotutwa Johnson (Hopi). Honani will present about the Natwani Coalition and how the non-profit organization’s initiatives help to preserve Hopi farming traditions, strengthen the local Hopi food system and develop innovative sustainable strategies to promote wellness through “itam naapyani” or “doing the work ourselves.” Dr. Johnson will be presenting about the resiliency of Hopi agriculture and how conservation programs can reinforce American Indian Identity and culture. Registration is required. Questions: Contact Mary Beth Jager- jager@arizona.edu or Noor Johnson- noor.johnson@colorado.edu.

Tribal Lands and Environment Forum (TLEF) is accepting proposals for TLEF: A Virtual Gathering

Deadline: May 8, 2020

As announced a few weeks ago, we will not be conducting an in-person Tribal Lands and Environment Forum this year due to the pandemic. However, we are offering a special TLEF: A Virtual Gathering that will take place this August! This series of events will feature live online events, on-demand prerecorded sessions, and virtual field trips, and we’re also designing opportunities to join online and live group discussions with mentors, presenters and colleagues.

We are now accepting proposals from you! Please check out the TLEF website at www.nau.edu/tlef and click on the Proposal tab for more information and the online submission form. And do note, the deadline is May 8.

These are very uncertain times, when many are facing not only serious health concerns but economic, social, and psychological challenges as well. And yet we all find strength in working with one another. Those of you who have been to past TLEFs know how powerful and inspiring it is to share stories – successes and challenges! – and rekindling our relationships. So we do look forward to seeing your proposals for case studies, virtual tours of your sites and facilities, strategies you’re using to protect your lands and communities. We’ll be sending out additional information over the next few weeks, but in the meantime be sure to visit www.nau.edu/tlef. We wish all of you peace and good health.

Draft Guidance: Interpretation of “Begin Action Construction” Under the NSR Preconstruction Permitting Regulations

Comments due: May 11, 2020

EPA is providing an opportunity for interested stakeholders to review and comment on the draft guidance titled, Interpretation of “Begin Actual Construction” Under the New Source Review Preconstruction Permitting Regulations. This guidance addresses EPA’s interpretation of “begin actual construction” under the regulations implementing the New Source Review (NSR) permitting program. In this draft guidance, EPA is adopting a revised interpretation that is more consistent with the regulatory text. Under this revised interpretation, a source owner or operator may, prior to obtaining an NSR permit, undertake physical on-site activities – including activities that may be costly, that may significantly alter the site, and/or are permanent in nature – provided that those activities do not constitute physical construction on an emissions unit. EPA will accept comment on this draft guidance through Monday, May 11, 2020. The draft guidance, and a link for submitting comments, is available at: https://www.epa.gov/nsr.

NEW! NCAI’s Forum “COVID-19: Economic Impacts and Implications for Indian Country”

May 12, 1:00-2:15 p.m. ET

To register for the forum, please click here.

Part of NCAI’s ongoing COVID-19 Virtual Events series, this forum will document the data and other evidence emerging from Indian Country about the nature and gravity of the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on tribal nations, and their necessary implications for tribal governmental action and federal funding support.

E-Enterprise National Meeting: Envisioning the Future of Environmental Protection

EE2020 is the latest in a long-running series of meetings sponsored by E-Enterprise for the Environment and the National Environmental Information Exchange Network. On May 12-14, 2020, EE2020 will bring together a broad community of attendees from state, tribal, and local environmental agencies, U.S. EPA, vendors, and other stakeholders with an interest in improving the productivity and responsiveness of the environmental protection enterprise. The meeting integrates content on information technology, program modernization, and process improvement. Click here to learn more about EE2020, the benefits of attending, and ways to get involved.

Wildland Fire Community Engagement and Data Visualization Tools Webinar

Wednesday, May 20, 3-4pm ET

Register here.

This presentation will highlight two wildland fire smoke and health projects. Smoke Sense is a crowdsourcing, citizen science app which engages the public to broaden awareness of wildland fire smoke locally as well as health protective measures and behaviors. This presentation will share findings from the past two wildfire seasons including community engagement and data visualization tools. The Smoke Ready Communities project offers a model and framework to help communities improve their response. It supports collaboration and capacity building and also fosters preparedness and response to wildfire smoke episodes. This presentation will share a solutions-driven approach for helping reduce the public health burden of smoke intrusion at the community level. Participants will learn about how these projects can integrate a community capacity lens with resources specifically related to wildland fire smoke, air quality and health.

NEW! EPA Tools & Resources Webinar: EPA Expands Research on COVID-19 in the Environment

Wednesday, May 27, 2020; 2-3pm ET

Register Here

EPA scientists are building on a foundation of world-class research by applying their knowledge to reduce the risk of exposure to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. This research will help states & territories, tribes, and local governments, including public health agencies guide homeowners, business owners, and others reduce the risk of exposure. This webinar will highlight research EPA is working on with CDC, including the following:

• Environmental Cleanup and Disinfection
• Wastewater Virus Detection
• Salivary Antibody Assay Development

Tribal Grants Education and Technical Assistance Webinar Series Second Wednesday of Every Month at 1pm ET

For more information, click here!

NTAA Upcoming Calls. The toll-free number is 1-800-309-2350. If you do not need to call toll free, or would like to help conserve NTAA funding, you can call 1-805-309-2350. Both numbers use code 928-523-0526#. Contact Andy.Bessler@nau.edu if you have any questions about any call! *Registration instructions* When you register for the GoToWebinar, please remember to include your Tribe, Region, or Organization in parenthesis after your last name. This allows you to see everyone on the call and prevents us from conducting a roll-call, ultimately saving everyone’s time.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professional’s (ITEP’s) Tribes and Climate Change Calendar includes conferences, trainings, webinars and other events related to tribes and climate change.

Click here for ITEP’s other trainings and events.

Click here for ITEP’s new Tribal Environmental Management and Planning Online Courses. New courses have been added, so check it out!

 ITEP’s FY20 AIAQTP Course Schedule 

Climate Change / Energy

NEW! May 6, 13, 20, and 27, Noon (ET) – Ask the Expert

Every Wednesday ENERGY STAR holds a Portfolio Manager “Ask the Expert” session. It’s a live webinar that gives all users an opportunity to ask their questions directly to EPA experts in an open forum. Want to talk to a “real” person? Have a question about how Portfolio Manager calculates your score? Want to learn more about entering Green Power? Join ENERGY STAR, and they’ll answer all your questions about ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager in this public forum.

Register

NEW! May 6, 2 PM (ET) – Portfolio Manager 101

Learn about EPA’s ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager Tool. Attendees will learn how to: navigate Portfolio Manager; add a property and enter details about it; enter energy and water consumption data; and generate template performance reports to assess progress.

Register

NEW! May 7, 2 PM (ET) – Replacing Diesel in an Alaskan Community: Cordova’s New Battery Energy Storage System

Join this webinar with the Cordova Electric Cooperative to learn about its recently installed energy storage system. Cordova installed its 1MW/1MWh utility-scale lithium-ion system in June 2019 to allow the utility to harness more hydropower and reduce reliance on diesel fuel. In this webinar, Cordova Electric will describe how its evaluation, analysis, and modeling led to the installation of the battery. In addition, Cordova Electric will explain the battery’s main functions on its hydropower microgrid and detail the battery’s performance during a 2-day operation last November in which the coop was able to avoid spilling hydro generation capacity. Lastly, the panelists will cover battery operation and project financing.

Register

NEW! May 13, 1 PM (ET) – Portfolio Manager 201

Continue to learn about EPA’s ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager Tool with a deeper dive into more advanced functionalities such as: editing property data; correcting and updating property use details; using the data quality checker; and sharing property data.

Register

NEW! May 14, 2 PM (ET) – Using ENERGY STAR Recognition in Strategic Energy Management Programs

Helping facilities earn recognition for energy performance can be an effective way to demonstrate the value of Strategic Energy Management (SEM) and build support energy management broadly. ENERGY STAR offers several different recognition opportunities for industrial facilities through the Challenge for Industry and the Find the Treasure Campaign that SEM programs can leverage. Join to learn more about these and other SEM resources.

Register

NEW! May 15, 2 PM (ET) – Decarbonizing Electricity: The Critical Role of Firm Low-Carbon Resources

Wind, solar, and batteries will be star players in a 100% carbon-free electricity sector. But reaching zero emissions cost-effectively requires completing the low-carbon team with one or more “firm” low-carbon resources. This webinar will summarize research on deep decarbonization of the electricity sector and the portfolio of solutions needed to reach this key goal at an affordable cost. At the conclusion of a presentation by Jesse Jenkins of Princeton University, there will be opportunity for audience questions.

Presenter: Jesse Jenkins, Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering and Andlinger Center for Energy & Environment, Princeton University

Register

NEW! May 19, 1 PM (ET) – Portfolio Manager 301

With a good background on the basic functionality of EPA’s ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager Tool, learn about some advanced features including: using spreadsheet upload templates to update property data; setting goals and targets to plan energy improvements for properties; creating custom reports; and using the Sustainable Buildings Checklist.

Register

NEW! May 20, 2 PM (ET) – Tracking GHG Emissions in Portfolio Manager

This webinar will provide a closer look at tracking and reporting your GHG emissions using the EPA’s Portfolio Manager tool.

Attend this webinar if you’re interested in:

• Understanding the Portfolio Manager GHG emissions inventory
• Learning how to track emissions benefits from green power use in Portfolio Manager
• How to use Portfolio Manager’s reporting functionality to track GHG emissions for the properties in your portfolio

Register

NEW! May 21, 2 PM (ET) – Renewable Energy Options for Small Businesses and Congregations

Electricity use is often the single largest source of an organization’s emissions and air pollution footprint, not to mention being a significant expense. Making the simple choice to use renewable energy can offer environmental, economic and community benefits. On this webinar, you will learn about the various options available in the market to buy green power through retail purchase, self-generation and direct purchase from a renewable project. You will learn about how to align your desired energy and environmental outcomes to specific green power supply options. You will learn about the role of renewable energy certificates and how they can support your organization meeting its renewable energy and carbon footprint reduction goals. Speaker: James Critchfield, Program Manager, EPA Green Power Partnership

Register

NEW! May 27, 1 PM (ET) – Tribal Energy Project Technology Options

The energy landscape continues to evolve rapidly. In many areas, costs continue to drop as technology improvements and other market drivers create greater opportunity for distributed generation. This webinar will provide an overview of several common energy technology options. Hosted by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Indian Energy, the 2020 Tribal Energy Webinar Series will focus on how to accomplish specific tasks related to energy development on tribal lands. Presenters will provide instruction and sharing tools and resources.

Register

NEW! May 28, 2 PM (ET) – Strategies for Setting Effective Energy Performance Goals

Are you aiming to set meaningful energy performance goals for your buildings? Join this webinar to hear from three ENERGY STAR partners how to use a technical approach to estimate the energy efficiency improvement potential of a building and set effective goals. Boston Properties will share how they used a scientific method for setting performance goals for targets to make them realistic and achievable. In addition, CommonWealth Partners will talk about how they provide guidance on tracking emissions through ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager to all their properties and established science-based emissions targets. Finally, Hudson Pacific Properties will discuss how they setting performance goals and updating targets for their buildings, and how to incorporate carbon reduction goals into a program.

Speakers:

• Ben Myers, Director, Sustainability, Boston Properties
• Jessica Loeper, Director of Sustainability, CommonWealth Partners
• James Soutter, Vice President, Engineering, Hudson Pacific Properties

Register

NEW! June 3, 2PM (ET) – Equity in Action: Heat Planning in Greater Phoenix

This 90 minute webcast will cover how The Nature Conservancy Arizona, Arizona State University, the Maricopa County Department of Public Health, and other partners developed the Heat Action Planning Guide for Neighborhoods of Greater Phoenix. This team worked directly with community members using a participatory process to identify challenges and create community driven solutions to mitigate and adapt to future heat. Specific cooling solutions include revitalizing vacant lots with trees and vegetation, and increasing shade along transit routes and at bus stops. The process was designed to develop awareness, agency, and social cohesion in underserved communities.

Speakers:

• Victoria Ludwig, U.S. EPA Heat Island Reduction Program
• Melissa Guardaro, Arizona State University
• David Crummey, Retail, Arts, Innovation & Livability Mesa

Register

NEW! Registration Is Now Open: National Tribal & Indigenous Climate Conference

August 31-September 3, 2020, St. Paul, Minnesota

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) is honored to host the United States’ first Biennial National Tribal and Indigenous Climate Conference (NTICC) along with support from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Tribal Resilience Program. The NTICC is open to all US tribal nations and Indigenous Peoples from throughout the world, with an emphasis on including our Elders and

Youth. The NTICC will convene experts on climate change and will include a balance of Traditional Indigenous Knowledges and Western Science. We invite people to submit proposals before May 29, 2020, discussing climate-related impacts, assessments, tools, adaptation planning, mitigation and actions in one or more of the following tracks:

• Indigenous Knowledges
• Air, Health & Well-Being
• Land
• Water
• Relocation
• Infrastructure
• Energy Systems
• Food Sovereignty
• Ecosystems and Biodiversity

South Central Climate Adaptation Science Center: Earth to Sky Workshop

Earth to Sky is a partnership between NASA, NPS, and USFWS that enables and encourages informal educators to access and use relevant NASA science, data, and educational and outreach products in their work. The partnership’s focus is on climate change science and communication. Join us for three days of training with native informal educators from across the South Central region who recognize the importance of teaching climate change. The workshop will take place July 15-17 in Sulphur, OK. Learn more here.

Save the Date: Southwest Tribal Climate Resilience Camp

Date: July 26-31, 2020

Location: Navajo Technical University – Crownpoint, NM

The Tribal Climate Resilience Camp will support teams of Tribal Leaders, climate change coordinators, planners, and program managers to build skills, gather information, and develop Tribal policies and plans needed for Tribal Nations to address climate change impacts. Information about travel, lodging, and registration will be available soon. You may contact Althea Walker, Tribal Climate                                                   Science Liaison, at AWalker@aihec.org or (480) 258-3963 with questions.

SEEKING TRIBAL DELEGATES

We are currently recruiting 10 Southwest Tribes to participate in the 2020 Camp. Each Tribe should identify three delegates per Tribe. The delegates must participate for the entire week curriculum. Delegates may include climate change staff, tribal policy leaders, Tribal Council, natural resource and environmental managers and staff, administrators, department staff from health, public works, education, housing, and other relevant departments that should engage in climate change planning. FOR APPLICATIONS Visit this link.

Save the Date: Shifting Seasons Summit 3, October 6-8, 2020, Keshena, WI

Contingency dates: March 2021

The Shifting Seasons Summit is a gathering that focuses on climate resilience planning and implementation within Tribes and across Tribal ceded territories in the Northeast Region. This summit will also include network-building opportunities and initiatives developed outside of the Northeast by capacity building organizations, academic institutions and Tribes. Visit www.NICRN.org for more details.

ITEP’s Climate Change Adaptation Training Courses registration is online! Learn more about the courses and register here.

Toxics/Mobile Sources

NEW! Tribal Consultation Period Extended for EPA’s Draft Plan for the Federal Certification of Applicators of Restricted Use Pesticides within Indian Country

Extended through August 3, 2020

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP) – Office of Pesticide Programs is provide notice to federally-recognized tribes that EPA’s Tribal Consultation on the Draft EPA Plan for the Federal Certification of Applicators of Restricted Use Pesticides within Indian Country is extended through August 3, 2020 to accommodate a recent tribal request. The timeline for the consultation and consultation period will extend from February 10–August 3, 2020. During this period, a third consultation session will be conducted. To participate, the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP) invites you and/or your designee to join us during the following consultation session:

• Session 3: Wednesday, July 15th from 12:00pm-2:00pm ET

Conference Line: 866-299-3188; Code: 202-566-0603

Adobe Connect: https://epawebconferencing.acms.com/draftepaplan3

Postponed: Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the West Coast Collaborative Partners Meeting has been postponed until August 24-26, 2020

After careful consideration of the growing public health concerns associated with the coronavirus (COVID-19), the Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the US EPA West Coast Collaborative is postponing our GTSE | WCCPM event until

August 24 – 26, 2020, at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center in Tacoma, WA.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) and the Green Transportation Summit & Expo (GTSE) have partnered to provide 25 complimentary full-conference passes to the Green Transportation Summit & Expo. The GTSE is the Pacific Northwest’s premier clean fleet and transportation event, focusing on fleets, fuels, technologies, policy & practice, with a regional focus and a national scope. We will provide you the opportunity to see, touch, drive, and learn about new transportation technologies firsthand, such as electric, hydrogen, natural gas and propane-powered heavy-duty vehicles, off-road utility vehicles, generators, and others. Workshops on DERA, VW funding, other federal funding opportunities, and alternative fuels will be presented. Please join us at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center for the 10^th annual GTSE to learn about clean transportation, how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, pollutants, and costs in your fleet operations. To learn more about the conference, check out our website. To receive the code for the complimentary passes, please contact ITEP’s Dara Marks Marino at Dara.Marks-Marino@nau.edu.

Indoor Air Quality

NEW! Cleaning Schools to Control for Viruses and Bacteria: Maintaining Healthy Indoor Learning Environments

Save the Date: Thursday, May 7, 2020; 2:00-4:30pm EDT

Register here.

Cleaning for health, using effective and efficient products, policies and practices, has always been the first line of defense for schools when it comes to controlling the spread of infectious disease and providing healthy, safe and productive indoor learning environments. This webinar is designed to help school district facilities and custodial staff put action plans in place to meet modern day environmental health challenges, while maintaining good indoor environmental quality, ensuring staff safety and protecting occupant health.

Be sure to subscribe to CodeTalk, HUD’s Office of Native American Programs newsletter, for webinars and opportunities!

UPCOMING CALLS/EVENTS/NOTICES

Ambient Air Quality/EPA/NTAA/Tribes

NEW! Environmental Relations & Management in North America Post COVID-19 webinar and panel discussion

Friday, May 1, 2020, 12:00pm MST

Webinar Link   

Over time, environmental relations between the United States and its northern and southern neighbors, have waxed and waned in addressing water quality and quantity issues, air pollution and protecting environmental resources. Diplomatic, technical and scientific endeavors have all played a role in moving forward a robust policy agenda to mitigate environmental problems between the three countries. During this webinar, we will discuss 1) the state of policy play in US-Mexico environmental relations before the pandemic hit; 2) what impacts is the COVID-19 crisis having on policy dynamics; and 3) what strategies do we need to be thinking about as we push policy forward in an altered, post-COVID-19 world? Panelist will discuss water management on the U.S.-Mexico border region, diplomatic efforts related to environmental policymaking and how the climate change policy agenda is being impacted by the pandemic and what we might want to think about for the post-COVID period in terms of border environmental management.

AirNow’s 2020 Air Quality Awareness Week

May 4-8, 2020

The theme for this year is Better Air, Better Health! Our goal is to promote events that increase air quality awareness and encourage people to check the Air Quality Index (AQI) daily. We plan to focus on the following daily topics this year, featuring one each day on the AQAW website (which will be released on May 4, the first day of AQAW):

• Monday – Wildfires & Smoke
• Tuesday – Asthma & Your Health
• Wednesday – Where’s Your AQI Coming From?
• Thursday – Air Quality Around the World
• Friday – Shout-out of state and local events (Send us yours! See examples at the link below.)

Stay tuned here for more information!

U.S. EPA would also like to share with you a new student engagement activity that was developed this year, Why I Care about Clean Air (instructions found in link), that can easily be distributed and completed from home. With Air Quality Awareness Week coming up soon May 4-8, they hope this activity will prompt students of all ages to express themselves creatively as well as think about how air quality issues impact their own lives on a personal level.

NEW! Tribal Lands and Environment Forum (TLEF) is accepting proposals for TLEF: A Virtual Gathering

Deadline: May 8, 2020

As announced a few weeks ago, we will not be conducting an in-person Tribal Lands and Environment Forum this year due to the pandemic. However, we are offering a special TLEF: A Virtual Gathering that will take place this August! This series of events will feature live online events, on-demand prerecorded sessions, and virtual field trips, and we’re also designing opportunities to join online and live group discussions with mentors, presenters and colleagues.

We are now accepting proposals from you! Please check out the TLEF website at www.nau.edu/tlef and click on the Proposal tab for more information and the online submission form. And do note, the deadline is May 8.

These are very uncertain times, when many are facing not only serious health concerns but economic, social, and psychological challenges as well. And yet we all find strength in working with one another. Those of you who have been to past TLEFs know how powerful and inspiring it is to share stories – successes and challenges! – and rekindling our relationships. So we do look forward to seeing your proposals for case studies, virtual tours of your sites and facilities, strategies you’re using to protect your lands and communities. We’ll be sending out additional information over the next few weeks, but in the meantime be sure to visit www.nau.edu/tlef. We wish all of you peace and good health.

Draft Guidance: Interpretation of “Begin Action Construction” Under the NSR Preconstruction Permitting Regulations

Comments due: May 11, 2020

EPA is providing an opportunity for interested stakeholders to review and comment on the draft guidance titled, Interpretation of “Begin Actual Construction” Under the New Source Review Preconstruction Permitting Regulations. This guidance addresses EPA’s interpretation of “begin actual construction” under the regulations implementing the New Source Review (NSR) permitting program. In this draft guidance, EPA is adopting a revised interpretation that is more consistent with the regulatory text. Under this revised interpretation, a source owner or operator may, prior to obtaining an NSR permit, undertake physical on-site activities – including activities that may be costly, that may significantly alter the site, and/or are permanent in nature – provided that those activities do not constitute physical construction on an emissions unit. EPA will accept comment on this draft guidance through Monday, May 11, 2020. The draft guidance, and a link for submitting comments, is available at: https://www.epa.gov/nsr.

E-Enterprise National Meeting: Envisioning the Future of Environmental Protection

EE2020 is the latest in a long-running series of meetings sponsored by E-Enterprise for the Environment and the National Environmental Information Exchange Network. On May 12-14, 2020, EE2020 will bring together a broad community of attendees from state, tribal, and local environmental agencies, U.S. EPA, vendors, and other stakeholders with an interest in improving the productivity and responsiveness of the environmental protection enterprise. The meeting integrates content on information technology, program modernization, and process improvement. Click here to learn more about EE2020, the benefits of attending, and ways to get involved.

NEW! Wildland Fire Community Engagement and Data Visualization Tools Webinar

Wednesday, May 20, 3-4pm ET

Register here.

This presentation will highlight two wildland fire smoke and health projects. Smoke Sense is a crowdsourcing, citizen science app which engages the public to broaden awareness of wildland fire smoke locally as well as health protective measures and behaviors. This presentation will share findings from the past two wildfire seasons including community engagement and data visualization tools. The Smoke Ready Communities project offers a model and framework to help communities improve their response. It supports collaboration and capacity building and also fosters preparedness and response to wildfire smoke episodes. This presentation will share a solutions-driven approach for helping reduce the public health burden of smoke intrusion at the community level. Participants will learn about how these projects can integrate a community capacity lens with resources specifically related to wildland fire smoke, air quality and health.

Tribal Grants Education and Technical Assistance Webinar Series Second Wednesday of Every Month at 1pm ET

For more information, click here!

NTAA Upcoming Calls. The toll-free number is 1-800-309-2350. If you do not need to call toll free, or would like to help conserve NTAA funding, you can call 1-805-309-2350. Both numbers use code 928-523-0526#. Contact Andy.Bessler@nau.edu if you have any questions about any call! *Registration instructions* When you register for the GoToWebinar, please remember to include your Tribe, Region, or Organization in parenthesis after your last name. This allows you to see everyone on the call and prevents us from conducting a roll-call, ultimately saving everyone’s time.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professional’s (ITEP’s) Tribes and Climate Change Calendar includes conferences, trainings, webinars and other events related to tribes and climate change.

Click here for ITEP’s other trainings and events.

Click here for ITEP’s new Tribal Environmental Management and Planning Online Courses. New courses have been added, so check it out!

 ITEP’s FY20 AIAQTP Course Schedule 

Climate Change / Energy

April 29, Noon (ET) – Ask the Expert

Every Wednesday ENERGY STAR holds a Portfolio Manager “Ask the Expert” session. It’s a live webinar that gives all users an opportunity to ask their questions directly to EPA experts in an open forum. Want to talk to a “real” person? Have a question about how Portfolio Manager calculates your score? Want to learn more about entering Green Power? Join ENERGY STAR, and they’ll answer all your questions about ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager in this public forum.

Register

April 29, 11 AM (MT) – Developing your energy vision: what do you want your tribe’s energy vision to be?

Once the low-hanging fruit of energy efficiency has been addressed, longer-term planning on future energy needs and energy options is needed. If you don’t identify where you want to go, you can’t plot the course to get there. This webinar will explore how tribes can develop a vision for their energy future.

Register

NEW! ITEP’s Cultural Resiliency Webinar, Part 1: Dr. Tommy Begay

Tuesday, May 5^th, 1-2:15pm (PDT)

Please join us for part 1 of a 3-part cultural resiliency webinar series: Addressing Mental Health Impacts due to Climate Change. Part one is titled Sacred Wisdom: The Path to Balance and Natural Order, featuring Dr. Tommy Begay.

• Webinar Announcement Click Here
• Flyer Click Here
• Registration Link Click Here

Deadline Extended! Call for Proposals: National Tribal & Indigenous Climate Conference August 31-September 3, 2020, St. Paul, Minnesota

Proposals now due: May 29, 2020

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) is honored to host the United States’ first Biennial National Tribal and Indigenous Climate Conference (NTICC) along with support from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Tribal Resilience Program. The NTICC is open to all US tribal nations and Indigenous Peoples from throughout the world, with an emphasis on including our Elders and

Youth. The NTICC will convene experts on climate change and will include a balance of Traditional Indigenous Knowledges and Western Science. We invite people to submit proposals discussing climate-related impacts, assessments, tools, adaptation planning, mitigation and actions in one or more of the following tracks:

• Indigenous Knowledges
• Air, Health & Well-Being
• Land
• Water
• Relocation
• Infrastructure
• Energy Systems
• Food Sovereignty
• Ecosystems and Biodiversity

CC 202 Online Course: Tribal Hazard Mitigation Planning

Application deadline extended to May 1

Course dates: October 2020-September 2021

Course goal: To support Tribe’s hazard mitigation planning through peer-to-peer learning and knowledge exchanges in a facilitated cohort focused on the process of developing or updating a Tribal Hazard Mitigation Plan, which looks “at natural hazards that may affect tribal governments and suggests actions to reduce losses from those hazards” (FEMA Tribal Mitigation Planning Resources). The course will be based around FEMA’s hazard mitigation plan requirements and will connect participants to resources, tools, information, and additional specialized expertise on a variety of topics including, but not limited to, various natural hazards, climate change in the context of natural hazards, FEMA’s four-phases of emergency management (mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery), cultural considerations, Tribal/Indigenous Knowledges, community outreach and engagement, hazard identification and risk assessment, asset inventorying, and developing and implementing an action plan. Follow this link to find out more information and to register. Contact Karen.Cozzetto@nau.edu with questions.

South Central Climate Adaptation Science Center: Earth to Sky Workshop

Earth to Sky is a partnership between NASA, NPS, and USFWS that enables and encourages informal educators to access and use relevant NASA science, data, and educational and outreach products in their work. The partnership’s focus is on climate change science and communication. Join us for three days of training with native informal educators from across the South Central region who recognize the importance of teaching climate change. The workshop will take place July 15-17 in Sulphur, OK. Learn more here.

Save the Date: Southwest Tribal Climate Resilience Camp

Date: July 26-31, 2020

Location: Navajo Technical University – Crownpoint, NM

The Tribal Climate Resilience Camp will support teams of Tribal Leaders, climate change coordinators, planners, and program managers to build skills, gather information, and develop Tribal policies and plans needed for Tribal Nations to address climate change impacts. Information about travel, lodging, and registration will be available soon. You may contact Althea Walker, Tribal Climate                                                   Science Liaison, at AWalker@aihec.org or (480) 258-3963 with questions.

SEEKING TRIBAL DELEGATES

We are currently recruiting 10 Southwest Tribes to participate in the 2020 Camp. Each Tribe should identify three delegates per Tribe. The delegates must participate for the entire week curriculum. Delegates may include climate change staff, tribal policy leaders, Tribal Council, natural resource and environmental managers and staff, administrators, department staff from health, public works, education, housing, and other relevant departments that should engage in climate change planning. FOR APPLICATIONS Visit this link.

Save the Date: Shifting Seasons Summit 3, October 6-8, 2020, Keshena, WI

Contingency dates: March 2021

The Shifting Seasons Summit is a gathering that focuses on climate resilience planning and implementation within Tribes and across Tribal ceded territories in the Northeast Region. This summit will also include network-building opportunities and initiatives developed outside of the Northeast by capacity building organizations, academic institutions and Tribes. Visit www.NICRN.org for more details.

ITEP’s Climate Change Adaptation Training Courses registration is online! Learn more about the courses and register here.

Toxics/Mobile Sources

EPA is postponing the Toxic Substances Control Act Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals (SACC) peer review virtual meeting scheduled for April 27-30, 2020, due to recent changes in the availability of members for this peer review. While the Agency does not anticipate extending the written public comment period on the draft risk evaluation past the June 2, 2020, due date, as needs arise EPA will review and respond appropriately. All written comments received by June 2nd will be provided to the SACC for their review prior to the meeting. Once EPA has selected a new date for the meeting, the Agency will provide an update on public commenting, including registering to provide oral public comments during the SACC meeting. EPA remains committed to completing this process as expeditiously as possible. To find information about the SACC meeting, and links to related documents, visit the TSCA SACC website at https://www.epa.gov/tsca-peer-review/peer-review-draft-risk-evaluation-asbestos.

Postponed: Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the West Coast Collaborative Partners Meeting has been postponed until August 24-26, 2020

After careful consideration of the growing public health concerns associated with the coronavirus (COVID-19), the Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the US EPA West Coast Collaborative is postponing our GTSE | WCCPM event until

August 24 – 26, 2020, at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center in Tacoma, WA.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) and the Green Transportation Summit & Expo (GTSE) have partnered to provide 25 complimentary full-conference passes to the Green Transportation Summit & Expo. The GTSE is the Pacific Northwest’s premier clean fleet and transportation event, focusing on fleets, fuels, technologies, policy & practice, with a regional focus and a national scope. We will provide you the opportunity to see, touch, drive, and learn about new transportation technologies firsthand, such as electric, hydrogen, natural gas and propane-powered heavy-duty vehicles, off-road utility vehicles, generators, and others. Workshops on DERA, VW funding, other federal funding opportunities, and alternative fuels will be presented. Please join us at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center for the 10^th annual GTSE to learn about clean transportation, how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, pollutants, and costs in your fleet operations. To learn more about the conference, check out our website. To receive the code for the complimentary passes, please contact ITEP’s Dara Marks Marino at Dara.Marks-Marino@nau.edu.

Indoor Air Quality

NEW! 2020 National Home Performance Conference

Live sessions begin April 27, 2020

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Indoor airPLUS program is a proud sponsor of the 2020 National Home Performance Conference (HPC), which is newly virtual. Connect with the Indoor airPLUS team next week and hear from indoor air quality and home performance experts. The 2020 National Home Performance Conference helps keep businesses on the cutting edge of what’s successful right now in the home performance world. This online conference offers educational content on a variety of topics, networking with thousands of industry peers, and the space to connect with sponsors and exhibitors from across the country. Interested in attending? There is still time to register for the HPC virtual conference!

Be sure to subscribe to CodeTalk, HUD’s Office of Native American Programs newsletter, for webinars and opportunities!

UPCOMING CALLS/EVENTS/NOTICES

Ambient Air Quality/EPA/NTAA/Tribes

The NTAA Requests Photos of Air Quality Work from Member Tribes

The NTAA is putting out a request for Member Tribes to send in photos to use on the cover of the 2020 Status of Tribal Air Report (STAR) that highlight work being done to improve air quality. Photos may include air monitoring equipment, staff completing assessments, education/outreach, clean energy development, clean mobility efforts, or any other air quality related image. Please include photo credit and send images to Dara.Marks-Marino@nau.edu by April 23.

EPA’s EnviroAtlas Training Webinar:

Helping Users Capture Nature’s Benefits, Map a Sustainable Future

April 28, 2020 at 2:00 to 3:30 PM ET

As follow-up to the January EPA Tools & Resources Webinar on EnviroAtlas, EPA’s Office of Research and Development will provide a more in-depth training webinar on EnviroAtlas. Register and join the webinar. If you do not have an EPA ID, please register as a guest. How do environmental managers and public health officials identify the benefits that local forests, parks, wetlands and other natural areas provide to their local communities? One way is through EnviroAtlas. EPA’s EnviroAtlas provides users with a host of interactive tools, geospatial data and resources for exploring the benefits people derive from nature and potential stressors that might impede their provision.

AirNow’s 2020 Air Quality Awareness Week

May 4-8, 2020

The theme for this year is Better Air, Better Health! Our goal is to promote events that increase air quality awareness and encourage people to check the Air Quality Index (AQI) daily. We plan to focus on the following daily topics this year, featuring one each day on the AQAW website (which will be released on May 4, the first day of AQAW):

• Monday – Wildfires & Smoke
• Tuesday – Asthma & Your Health
• Wednesday – Where’s Your AQI Coming From?
• Thursday – Air Quality Around the World
• Friday – Shout-out of state and local events (Send us yours! See examples at the link below.)

Stay tuned here for more information!

U.S. EPA would like to share with you a new student engagement activity that was developed this year, Why I Care about Clean Air (instructions found in link), that can easily be distributed and completed from home. With Air Quality Awareness Week coming up soon May 4-8, they hope this activity will prompt students of all ages to express themselves creatively as well as think about how air quality issues impact their own lives on a personal level.

Draft Guidance: Interpretation of “Begin Action Construction” Under the NSR Preconstruction Permitting Regulations

Comments due: May 11, 2020

EPA is providing an opportunity for interested stakeholders to review and comment on the draft guidance titled, Interpretation of “Begin Actual Construction” Under the New Source Review Preconstruction Permitting Regulations. This guidance addresses EPA’s interpretation of “begin actual construction” under the regulations implementing the New Source Review (NSR) permitting program. In this draft guidance, EPA is adopting a revised interpretation that is more consistent with the regulatory text. Under this revised interpretation, a source owner or operator may, prior to obtaining an NSR permit, undertake physical on-site activities – including activities that may be costly, that may significantly alter the site, and/or are permanent in nature – provided that those activities do not constitute physical construction on an emissions unit. EPA will accept comment on this draft guidance through Monday, May 11, 2020. The draft guidance, and a link for submitting comments, is available at: https://www.epa.gov/nsr.

E-Enterprise National Meeting: Envisioning the Future of Environmental Protection

EE2020 is the latest in a long-running series of meetings sponsored by E-Enterprise for the Environment and the National Environmental Information Exchange Network. On May 12-14, 2020, EE2020 will bring together a broad community of attendees from state, tribal, and local environmental agencies, U.S. EPA, vendors, and other stakeholders with an interest in improving the productivity and responsiveness of the environmental protection enterprise. The meeting integrates content on information technology, program modernization, and process improvement. Click here to learn more about EE2020, the benefits of attending, and ways to get involved.

Save the Date: Tribal Lands and Environment Forum on August 17-20, 2020

This year’s Tribal Lands and Environment Forum: A National Conversation on Waste and Response Strategies, will take place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, August 17-20, 2020. Registration, session proposal forms, travel information, and field trip announcements will all be coming soon. Stay tuned! www.nau.edu/TLEF

Tribal Grants Education and Technical Assistance Webinar Series Second Wednesday of Every Month at 1pm ET

For more information, click here!

NTAA Upcoming Calls. The toll-free number is 1-800-309-2350. If you do not need to call toll free, or would like to help conserve NTAA funding, you can call 1-805-309-2350. Both numbers use code 928-523-0526#. Contact Andy.Bessler@nau.edu if you have any questions about any call! *Registration instructions* When you register for the GoToWebinar, please remember to include your Tribe, Region, or Organization in parenthesis after your last name. This allows you to see everyone on the call and prevents us from conducting a roll-call, ultimately saving everyone’s time.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professional’s (ITEP’s) Tribes and Climate Change Calendar includes conferences, trainings, webinars and other events related to tribes and climate change.

Click here for ITEP’s other trainings and events.

Click here for ITEP’s new Tribal Environmental Management and Planning Online Courses. New courses have been added, so check it out!

 ITEP’s FY20 AIAQTP Course Schedule 

Climate Change / Energy

April 22 and 29, Noon (ET) – Ask the Expert

Every Wednesday ENERGY STAR holds a Portfolio Manager “Ask the Expert” session. It’s a live webinar that gives all users an opportunity to ask their questions directly to EPA experts in an open forum. Want to talk to a “real” person? Have a question about how Portfolio Manager calculates your score? Want to learn more about entering Green Power? Join ENERGY STAR, and they’ll answer all your questions about ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager in this public forum.

Register

Women of Renewable Industries and Sustainable Energy (WRISE): Dealing with Burnout and Mental Health in the Workplace

April 23, 2020, 2pm-3pm ET. Register here.

If you feel like sometimes life is moving at hyper-speed and you aren’t always able to keep up – you are not alone. Now more than ever, we each need to unlock our capacity to remain resilient and flourish in the face of uncertainty and great challenge. Join us for an interactive discussion on understanding the impact of climate change on mental health, recognizing the signs of burnout, and cultivating resilience. In these uncertain times, learn ways to build your personal resiliency by fostering a positive attitude, practicing healthy habits and using self-care to stay mindful.

April 29, 11 AM (MT) – Developing your energy vision: what do you want your tribe’s energy vision to be?

Once the low-hanging fruit of energy efficiency has been addressed, longer-term planning on future energy needs and energy options is needed. If you don’t identify where you want to go, you can’t plot the course to get there. This webinar will explore how tribes can develop a vision for their energy future.

Register

Deadline Extended! Call for Proposals: National Tribal & Indigenous Climate Conference August 31-September 3, 2020, St. Paul, Minnesota

Proposals now due: May 1, 2020

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) is honored to host the United States’ first Biennial National Tribal and Indigenous Climate Conference (NTICC) along with support from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Tribal Resilience Program. The NTICC is open to all US tribal nations and Indigenous Peoples from throughout the world, with an emphasis on including our Elders and

Youth. The NTICC will convene experts on climate change and will include a balance of Traditional Indigenous Knowledges and Western Science. We invite people to submit proposals discussing climate-related impacts, assessments, tools, adaptation planning, mitigation and actions in one or more of the following tracks:

• Indigenous Knowledges
• Air, Health & Well-Being
• Land
• Water
• Relocation
• Infrastructure
• Energy Systems
• Food Sovereignty
• Ecosystems and Biodiversity

CC 202 Online Course: Tribal Hazard Mitigation Planning, application deadline extended to May 1

Course dates: October 2020-September 2021

Course goal: To support Tribe’s hazard mitigation planning through peer-to-peer learning and knowledge exchanges in a facilitated cohort focused on the process of developing or updating a Tribal Hazard Mitigation Plan, which looks “at natural hazards that may affect tribal governments and suggests actions to reduce losses from those hazards” (FEMA Tribal Mitigation Planning Resources). The course will be based around FEMA’s hazard mitigation plan requirements and will connect participants to resources, tools, information, and additional specialized expertise on a variety of topics including, but not limited to, various natural hazards, climate change in the context of natural hazards, FEMA’s four-phases of emergency management (mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery), cultural considerations, Tribal/Indigenous Knowledges, community outreach and engagement, hazard identification and risk assessment, asset inventorying, and developing and implementing an action plan. Follow this link to find out more information and to register. Contact Karen.Cozzetto@nau.edu with questions.

South Central Climate Adaptation Science Center: Earth to Sky Workshop

Earth to Sky is a partnership between NASA, NPS, and USFWS that enables and encourages informal educators to access and use relevant NASA science, data, and educational and outreach products in their work. The partnership’s focus is on climate change science and communication. Join us for three days of training with native informal educators from across the South Central region who recognize the importance of teaching climate change. The workshop will take place July 15-17 in Sulphur, OK. Learn more here.

Save the Date: Southwest Tribal Climate Resilience Camp

Date: July 26-31, 2020

Location: Navajo Technical University – Crownpoint, NM

The Tribal Climate Resilience Camp will support teams of Tribal Leaders, climate change coordinators, planners, and program managers to build skills, gather information, and develop Tribal policies and plans needed for Tribal Nations to address climate change impacts. Information about travel, lodging, and registration will be available soon. You may contact Althea Walker, Tribal Climate                                                   Science Liaison, at AWalker@aihec.org or (480) 258-3963 with questions.

SEEKING TRIBAL DELEGATES

We are currently recruiting 10 Southwest Tribes to participate in the 2020 Camp. Each Tribe should identify three delegates per Tribe. The delegates must participate for the entire week curriculum. Delegates may include climate change staff, tribal policy leaders, Tribal Council, natural resource and environmental managers and staff, administrators, department staff from health, public works, education, housing, and other relevant departments that should engage in climate change planning. FOR APPLICATIONS Visit this link.

Save the Date: Shifting Seasons Summit 3, October 6-8, 2020, Keshena, WI

Contingency dates: March 2021

The Shifting Seasons Summit is a gathering that focuses on climate resilience planning and implementation within Tribes and across Tribal ceded territories in the Northeast Region. This summit will also include network-building opportunities and initiatives developed outside of the Northeast by capacity building organizations, academic institutions and Tribes. Visit www.NICRN.org for more details.

ITEP’s Climate Change Adaptation Training Courses registration is online! Learn more about the courses and register here.

Toxics/Mobile Sources

EPA is postponing the Toxic Substances Control Act Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals (SACC) peer review virtual meeting scheduled for April 27-30, 2020, due to recent changes in the availability of members for this peer review. While the Agency does not anticipate extending the written public comment period on the draft risk evaluation past the June 2, 2020, due date, as needs arise EPA will review and respond appropriately. All written comments received by June 2nd will be provided to the SACC for their review prior to the meeting. Once EPA has selected a new date for the meeting, the Agency will provide an update on public commenting, including registering to provide oral public comments during the SACC meeting. EPA remains committed to completing this process as expeditiously as possible. To find information about the SACC meeting, and links to related documents, visit the TSCA SACC website at https://www.epa.gov/tsca-peer-review/peer-review-draft-risk-evaluation-asbestos.

Postponed: Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the West Coast Collaborative Partners Meeting has been postponed until August 24-26, 2020

After careful consideration of the growing public health concerns associated with the coronavirus (COVID-19), the Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the US EPA West Coast Collaborative is postponing our GTSE | WCCPM event until

August 24 – 26, 2020, at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center in Tacoma, WA.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) and the Green Transportation Summit & Expo (GTSE) have partnered to provide 25 complimentary full-conference passes to the Green Transportation Summit & Expo. The GTSE is the Pacific Northwest’s premier clean fleet and transportation event, focusing on fleets, fuels, technologies, policy & practice, with a regional focus and a national scope. We will provide you the opportunity to see, touch, drive, and learn about new transportation technologies firsthand, such as electric, hydrogen, natural gas and propane-powered heavy-duty vehicles, off-road utility vehicles, generators, and others. Workshops on DERA, VW funding, other federal funding opportunities, and alternative fuels will be presented. Please join us at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center for the 10^th annual GTSE to learn about clean transportation, how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, pollutants, and costs in your fleet operations. To learn more about the conference, check out our website. To receive the code for the complimentary passes, please contact ITEP’s Dara Marks Marino at Dara.Marks-Marino@nau.edu.

Indoor Air Quality

Be sure to subscribe to CodeTalk, HUD’s Office of Native American Programs newsletter, for webinars and opportunities!

UPCOMING CALLS/EVENTS/NOTICES

Ambient Air Quality/EPA/NTAA/Tribes

EPA Tools and Resources Webinar: Citizen Science at EPA

April 15, 2020, 3:00 to 4:00 PM ET

To join this webinar, please register here.

With the advent of new technologies for environmental monitoring and tools for sharing information, community volunteers are more engaged than ever before in collecting environmental data, and many environmental agencies are using these data. A major challenge is ensuring the quality of the data collected by citizen science organizations. One of the keys to breaking down this barrier is a Quality Assurance Project Plan. EPA’s Handbook for Citizen Science Quality Assurance and Documentation is for organizations that are starting or growing a citizen science project, and where transparency in the scientific methods for collecting the data are central to the outcome of the project. This webinar will provide an overview of citizen science at the Agency and showcase several EPA citizen science activities that involve partnerships with state, tribal and local governments on a diversity of issues, including 1) monitoring for cyanobacteria in waterbodies, 2) building and operating “real-time,” low-cost water quality sensors in Georgia; 3) demonstration of a new test method for community mapping of radon in Puerto Rico; 4) the Los Angeles Public Library air sensor loan program; and 5) using citizen science to analyze underwater video in the Great Lakes. For more information, visit EPA’s Citizen Science webpage. For registration questions, please email: tools_resources_webinar@epa.gov.

Save the Date & Call for Papers: National Ambient Air Monitoring Conference

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, August 10-13, 2020. Abstracts due April 17, 2020.

EPA in conjunction with the Association of Air Pollution Control Agencies (AAPCA) and the National Association of Clean Air Agencies (NACAA) are pleased to announce the 2020 National Ambient Air Monitoring Conference. Interested in presenting a paper or a poster at the Conference? Great! We want to hear from you. We are interested in receiving proposals related to the following technical topics: PAMS, PM2.5 and Chemical Speciation, Near Road, Air Toxics, Tribal Monitoring, Field Operations, Sensors, Quality Assurance, Data Analysis & Data Visualization, Special Studies and Emerging Issues. This year we are also considering some time on the agenda for “Lightening Talks”.  These would be 5-10 minute maximum time slots for quick presentations on issues/topics related to ambient air monitoring and data analysis. In addition, if you’re planning to present a poster, please indicate if you would be interested in giving a 1-minute lightening talk about your poster. Abstracts are required for technical presentations, technical lightening talks, and posters. Please send your one-page abstract along with a bio to Laurie Trinca (trinca.laurie@epa.gov) no later than April 17, 2020. Registration is expected open in April 2020. Additional details will be available on EPA’s website in the coming months.

The NTAA Requests Photos of Air Quality Work from Member Tribes

The NTAA is putting out a request for Member Tribes to send in photos to use on the cover of the 2020 Status of Tribal Air Report (STAR) that highlight work being done to improve air quality. Photos may include air monitoring equipment, staff completing assessments, education/outreach, clean energy development, clean mobility efforts, or any other air quality related image. Please include photo credit and send images to Dara.Marks-Marino@nau.edu by April 23.

EPA’s EnviroAtlas Training Webinar:

Helping Users Capture Nature’s Benefits, Map a Sustainable Future

April 28, 2020 at 2:00 to 3:30 PM ET

As follow-up to the January EPA Tools & Resources Webinar on EnviroAtlas, EPA’s Office of Research and Development will provide a more in-depth training webinar on EnviroAtlas. Register and join the webinar. If you do not have an EPA ID, please register as a guest. How do environmental managers and public health officials identify the benefits that local forests, parks, wetlands and other natural areas provide to their local communities? One way is through EnviroAtlas. EPA’s EnviroAtlas provides users with a host of interactive tools, geospatial data and resources for exploring the benefits people derive from nature and potential stressors that might impede their provision.

NEW! AirNow’s 2020 Air Quality Awareness Week

May 4-8, 2020

The theme for this year is Better Air, Better Health! Our goal is to promote events that increase air quality awareness and encourage people to check the Air Quality Index (AQI) daily. We plan to focus on the following daily topics this year, featuring one each day on the AQAW website (which will be released on May 4, the first day of AQAW):

• Monday – Wildfires & Smoke
• Tuesday – Asthma & Your Health
• Wednesday – Where’s Your AQI Coming From?
• Thursday – Air Quality Around the World
• Friday – Shout-out of state and local events (Send us yours! See examples at the link below.)

Stay tuned here for more information!

NEW! U.S. EPA would like to share with you a new student engagement activity that was developed this year, Why I Care about Clean Air (instructions found in link), that can easily be distributed and completed from home. With Air Quality Awareness Week coming up soon May 4-8, they hope this activity will prompt students of all ages to express themselves creatively as well as think about how air quality issues impact their own lives on a personal level.

Draft Guidance: Interpretation of “Begin Action Construction” Under the NSR Preconstruction Permitting Regulations

Comments due: May 11, 2020

EPA is providing an opportunity for interested stakeholders to review and comment on the draft guidance titled, Interpretation of “Begin Actual Construction” Under the New Source Review Preconstruction Permitting Regulations. This guidance addresses EPA’s interpretation of “begin actual construction” under the regulations implementing the New Source Review (NSR) permitting program. In this draft guidance, EPA is adopting a revised interpretation that is more consistent with the regulatory text. Under this revised interpretation, a source owner or operator may, prior to obtaining an NSR permit, undertake physical on-site activities – including activities that may be costly, that may significantly alter the site, and/or are permanent in nature – provided that those activities do not constitute physical construction on an emissions unit. EPA will accept comment on this draft guidance through Monday, May 11, 2020. The draft guidance, and a link for submitting comments, is available at: https://www.epa.gov/nsr.

E-Enterprise National Meeting: Envisioning the Future of Environmental Protection

EE2020 is the latest in a long-running series of meetings sponsored by E-Enterprise for the Environment and the National Environmental Information Exchange Network. On May 12-14, 2020, EE2020 will bring together a broad community of attendees from state, tribal, and local environmental agencies, U.S. EPA, vendors, and other stakeholders with an interest in improving the productivity and responsiveness of the environmental protection enterprise. The meeting integrates content on information technology, program modernization, and process improvement. Click here to learn more about EE2020, the benefits of attending, and ways to get involved.

Save the Date: Tribal Lands and Environment Forum on August 17-20, 2020

This year’s Tribal Lands and Environment Forum: A National Conversation on Waste and Response Strategies, will take place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, August 17-20, 2020. Registration, session proposal forms, travel information, and field trip announcements will all be coming soon. Stay tuned! www.nau.edu/TLEF

Tribal Grants Education and Technical Assistance Webinar Series Second Wednesday of Every Month at 1pm ET

For more information, click here!

NTAA Upcoming Calls. The toll-free number is 1-800-309-2350. If you do not need to call toll free, or would like to help conserve NTAA funding, you can call 1-805-309-2350. Both numbers use code 928-523-0526#. Contact Andy.Bessler@nau.edu if you have any questions about any call! *Registration instructions* When you register for the GoToWebinar, please remember to include your Tribe, Region, or Organization in parenthesis after your last name. This allows you to see everyone on the call and prevents us from conducting a roll-call, ultimately saving everyone’s time.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professional’s (ITEP’s) Tribes and Climate Change Calendar includes conferences, trainings, webinars and other events related to tribes and climate change.

Click here for ITEP’s other trainings and events.

Click here for ITEP’s new Tribal Environmental Management and Planning Online Courses. New courses have been added, so check it out!

 ITEP’s FY20 AIAQTP Course Schedule 

Climate Change / Energy

April 15, 22 and 29, Noon (ET) – Ask the Expert

Every Wednesday ENERGY STAR holds a Portfolio Manager “Ask the Expert” session. It’s a live webinar that gives all users an opportunity to ask their questions directly to EPA experts in an open forum. Want to talk to a “real” person? Have a question about how Portfolio Manager calculates your score? Want to learn more about entering Green Power? Join ENERGY STAR, and they’ll answer all your questions about ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager in this public forum.

Register

April 21, 1 PM (ET) – Portfolio Manager 301

With a good background on the basic functionality of EPA’s ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager Tool, learn about some advanced features including: using spreadsheet upload templates to update property data; setting goals and targets to plan energy improvements for properties; creating custom reports; and using the Sustainable Buildings Checklist.

Register

NEW! Women of Renewable Industries and Sustainable Energy (WRISE): Dealing with Burnout and Mental Health in the Workplace

April 23, 2020, 2pm-3pm ET. Register here.

If you feel like sometimes life is moving at hyper-speed and you aren’t always able to keep up – you are not alone. Now more than ever, we each need to unlock our capacity to remain resilient and flourish in the face of uncertainty and great challenge. Join us for an interactive discussion on understanding the impact of climate change on mental health, recognizing the signs of burnout, and cultivating resilience. In these uncertain times, learn ways to build your personal resiliency by fostering a positive attitude, practicing healthy habits and using self-care to stay mindful.

April 29, 11 AM (MT) – Developing your energy vision: what do you want your tribe’s energy vision to be?

Once the low-hanging fruit of energy efficiency has been addressed, longer-term planning on future energy needs and energy options is needed. If you don’t identify where you want to go, you can’t plot the course to get there. This webinar will explore how tribes can develop a vision for their energy future.

Register

Deadline Extended! Call for Proposals: National Tribal & Indigenous Climate Conference August 31-September 3, 2020, St. Paul, Minnesota

Proposals now due: May 1, 2020

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) is honored to host the United States’ first Biennial National Tribal and Indigenous Climate Conference (NTICC) along with support from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Tribal Resilience Program. The NTICC is open to all US tribal nations and Indigenous Peoples from throughout the world, with an emphasis on including our Elders and

Youth. The NTICC will convene experts on climate change and will include a balance of Traditional Indigenous Knowledges and Western Science. We invite people to submit proposals discussing climate-related impacts, assessments, tools, adaptation planning, mitigation and actions in one or more of the following tracks:

• Indigenous Knowledges
• Air, Health & Well-Being
• Land
• Water
• Relocation
• Infrastructure
• Energy Systems
• Food Sovereignty
• Ecosystems and Biodiversity

CC 202 Online Course: Tribal Hazard Mitigation Planning, application deadline extended to May 1

October 2020-September 2021

Course Goal: To support Tribe’s hazard mitigation planning through peer-to-peer learning and knowledge exchanges in a facilitated cohort focused on the process of developing or updating a Tribal Hazard Mitigation Plan, which looks “at natural hazards that may affect tribal governments and suggests actions to reduce losses from those hazards” (FEMA Tribal Mitigation Planning Resources). The course will be based around FEMA’s hazard mitigation plan requirements and will connect participants to resources, tools, information, and additional specialized expertise on a variety of topics including, but not limited to, various natural hazards, climate change in the context of natural hazards, FEMA’s four-phases of emergency management (mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery), cultural considerations, Tribal/Indigenous Knowledges, community outreach and engagement, hazard identification and risk assessment, asset inventorying, and developing and implementing an action plan. Follow this link to find out more information and to register. Contact Karen.Cozzetto@nau.edu with questions.

South Central Climate Adaptation Science Center: Earth to Sky Workshop

Earth to Sky is a partnership between NASA, NPS, and USFWS that enables and encourages informal educators to access and use relevant NASA science, data, and educational and outreach products in their work. The partnership’s focus is on climate change science and communication. Join us for three days of training with native informal educators from across the South Central region who recognize the importance of teaching climate change. The workshop will take place July 15-17 in Sulphur, OK. Learn more here.

Save the Date: Southwest Tribal Climate Resilience Camp

Date: July 26-31, 2020

Location: Navajo Technical University – Crownpoint, NM

The Tribal Climate Resilience Camp will support teams of Tribal Leaders, climate change coordinators, planners, and program managers to build skills, gather information, and develop Tribal policies and plans needed for Tribal Nations to address climate change impacts. Information about travel, lodging, and registration will be available soon. You may contact Althea Walker, Tribal Climate                                                   Science Liaison, at AWalker@aihec.org or (480) 258-3963 with questions.

SEEKING TRIBAL DELEGATES

We are currently recruiting 10 Southwest Tribes to participate in the 2020 Camp. Each Tribe should identify three delegates per Tribe. The delegates must participate for the entire week curriculum. Delegates may include climate change staff, tribal policy leaders, Tribal Council, natural resource and environmental managers and staff, administrators, department staff from health, public works, education, housing, and other relevant departments that should engage in climate change planning. FOR APPLICATIONS Visit this link.

Save the Date: Shifting Seasons Summit 3, October 6-8, 2020, Keshena, WI

Contingency dates: March 2021

The Shifting Seasons Summit is a gathering that focuses on climate resilience planning and implementation within Tribes and across Tribal ceded territories in the Northeast Region. This summit will also include network-building opportunities and initiatives developed outside of the Northeast by capacity building organizations, academic institutions and Tribes. Visit www.NICRN.org for more details.

ITEP’s Climate Change Adaptation Training Courses registration is online! Learn more about the courses and register here.

Toxics/Mobile Sources

NEW! Environmental Law Institute’s webinar: Aftermarket Defeat Devices: Enforcing & Mitigating Mobile Air Pollution

April 21, 2020, 12pm-1:30pm Eastern Time

More information on the content of this webinar can be found here. This event is open to the public but you must register (there is a $50 fee for those who are not members of ELI). Please REGISTER HERE by APRIL 17. If you are unsure if you are an ELI member, contact mcmurrin@eli.org PRIOR to registering (or go HERE to join before registering).

Postponed: Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the West Coast Collaborative Partners Meeting has been postponed until August 24-26, 2020

After careful consideration of the growing public health concerns associated with the coronavirus (COVID-19), the Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the US EPA West Coast Collaborative is postponing our GTSE | WCCPM event until

August 24 – 26, 2020, at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center in Tacoma, WA.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) and the Green Transportation Summit & Expo (GTSE) have partnered to provide 25 complimentary full-conference passes to the Green Transportation Summit & Expo. The GTSE is the Pacific Northwest’s premier clean fleet and transportation event, focusing on fleets, fuels, technologies, policy & practice, with a regional focus and a national scope. We will provide you the opportunity to see, touch, drive, and learn about new transportation technologies firsthand, such as electric, hydrogen, natural gas and propane-powered heavy-duty vehicles, off-road utility vehicles, generators, and others. Workshops on DERA, VW funding, other federal funding opportunities, and alternative fuels will be presented. Please join us at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center for the 10^th annual GTSE to learn about clean transportation, how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, pollutants, and costs in your fleet operations. To learn more about the conference, check out our website. To receive the code for the complimentary passes, please contact ITEP’s Dara Marks Marino at Dara.Marks-Marino@nau.edu.

Indoor Air Quality

New Radon Testing and Mitigation Standards Webinars – April 14^th and 16^th

Join members from the American Association of Radon Scientists and Technologists (AARST), Conference of Radon Control Program Directors (CRCPD), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for two free webinars on the new radon testing and mitigation standards. The April 14^th webinar is primarily designed for CRCPD members and the April 16^th webinar is geared towards AARST members; however anyone interested in learning more about the new testing and mitigation standards is welcome to join either webinar. In 2019, EPA issued guidance on the use of voluntary consensus standards (VCS) for state indoor radon grant recipients. The guidance recommends that all State Indoor Radon Grant recipients reference the most current VCS when implementing their radon programs. These standards undergo a rigorous development and a periodic review process to include new science, new technology, and marketplace evolution. EPA is encouraging the use of current codes and standards to help ensure public health protection. Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas that can cause lung cancer. EPA estimates that radon is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers and is responsible for about 21,000 lung cancer deaths every year. Learn more about radon and how to address it.

• Radon Testing and Mitigation Standards for CRCPD Members; April 14, 2020. 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. EST
• Radon Testing and Mitigation Standards for AARST Members and NRPP-Certified Professionals; April 16, 2020. 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. EST; Register.

Be sure to subscribe to CodeTalk, HUD’s Office of Native American Programs newsletter, for webinars and opportunities!

UPCOMING CALLS/EVENTS/NOTICES

Ambient Air Quality/EPA/NTAA/Tribes

Tribal Consultation Announced on $8B Coronavirus Relief Fund for Tribes

The U.S. Department of the Interior and U.S. The Department of Treasury announced today through a Dear Tribal Leader Letter from the Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs that they will be holding at least two Tribal Leader Consultations to determine how to distribute $8 billion in funds set aside for tribal governments and tribal entities in the Coronavirus Relief Fund within The CARES Act. In addition to attending these Consultations, Tribal Leaders are encouraged to provide their input in writing no later than April 13 by emailing consultation@bia.gov and tribal.consult@treasury.gov.

Call for Nominations: TAMS Steering Committee

The TAMS Center is announcing a call for nominations for one (1) position on the TAMS Steering Committee. The positon will serve from October 2020 to September 2023. Further information and the nomination forms are online and can be accessed at: TAMS Steering Committee Nomination Form. The deadline to submit a nomination is April 14, 2020. We sincerely appreciate your time to consider submitting a nomination. For further information, please contact either Farshid Farsi, TAMS-EPA Codirector (Farsi.Farshid@epa.gov or 702-784-8263), or Christopher Lee, TAMS-ITEP Codirector (Christoper.Lee@nau.edu or 702-784-8278).

Save the Date & Call for Papers: National Ambient Air Monitoring Conference

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, August 10-13, 2020. Abstracts due April 17, 2020.

EPA in conjunction with the Association of Air Pollution Control Agencies (AAPCA) and the National Association of Clean Air Agencies (NACAA) are pleased to announce the 2020 National Ambient Air Monitoring Conference. Interested in presenting a paper or a poster at the Conference? Great! We want to hear from you. We are interested in receiving proposals related to the following technical topics: PAMS, PM2.5 and Chemical Speciation, Near Road, Air Toxics, Tribal Monitoring, Field Operations, Sensors, Quality Assurance, Data Analysis & Data Visualization, Special Studies and Emerging Issues. This year we are also considering some time on the agenda for “Lightening Talks”.  These would be 5-10 minute maximum time slots for quick presentations on issues/topics related to ambient air monitoring and data analysis. In addition, if you’re planning to present a poster, please indicate if you would be interested in giving a 1-minute lightening talk about your poster. Abstracts are required for technical presentations, technical lightening talks, and posters. Please send your one-page abstract along with a bio to Laurie Trinca (trinca.laurie@epa.gov) no later than April 17, 2020. Registration is expected open in April 2020. Additional details will be available on EPA’s website in the coming months.

EPA Tools and Resources Webinar: Citizen Science at EPA

April 15, 2020, 3:00 to 4:00 PM ET

To join this webinar, please register here.

With the advent of new technologies for environmental monitoring and tools for sharing information, community volunteers are more engaged than ever before in collecting environmental data, and many environmental agencies are using these data. A major challenge is ensuring the quality of the data collected by citizen science organizations. One of the keys to breaking down this barrier is a Quality Assurance Project Plan. EPA’s Handbook for Citizen Science Quality Assurance and Documentation is for organizations that are starting or growing a citizen science project, and where transparency in the scientific methods for collecting the data are central to the outcome of the project. This webinar will provide an overview of citizen science at the Agency and showcase several EPA citizen science activities that involve partnerships with state, tribal and local governments on a diversity of issues, including 1) monitoring for cyanobacteria in waterbodies, 2) building and operating “real-time,” low-cost water quality sensors in Georgia; 3) demonstration of a new test method for community mapping of radon in Puerto Rico; 4) the Los Angeles Public Library air sensor loan program; and 5) using citizen science to analyze underwater video in the Great Lakes. For more information, visit EPA’s Citizen Science webpage. For registration questions, please email: tools_resources_webinar@epa.gov.

EPA’s EnviroAtlas Training Webinar:

Helping Users Capture Nature’s Benefits, Map a Sustainable Future

April 28, 2020 at 2:00 to 3:30 PM ET

As follow-up to the January EPA Tools & Resources Webinar on EnviroAtlas, EPA’s Office of Research and Development will provide a more in-depth training webinar on EnviroAtlas. Register and join the webinar. If you do not have an EPA ID, please register as a guest. How do environmental managers and public health officials identify the benefits that local forests, parks, wetlands and other natural areas provide to their local communities? One way is through EnviroAtlas. EPA’s EnviroAtlas provides users with a host of interactive tools, geospatial data and resources for exploring the benefits people derive from nature and potential stressors that might impede their provision.

Draft Guidance: Interpretation of “Begin Action Construction” Under the NSR Preconstruction Permitting Regulations

Comments due: May 11, 2020

EPA is providing an opportunity for interested stakeholders to review and comment on the draft guidance titled, Interpretation of “Begin Actual Construction” Under the New Source Review Preconstruction Permitting Regulations. This guidance addresses EPA’s interpretation of “begin actual construction” under the regulations implementing the New Source Review (NSR) permitting program. In this draft guidance, EPA is adopting a revised interpretation that is more consistent with the regulatory text. Under this revised interpretation, a source owner or operator may, prior to obtaining an NSR permit, undertake physical on-site activities – including activities that may be costly, that may significantly alter the site, and/or are permanent in nature – provided that those activities do not constitute physical construction on an emissions unit. EPA will accept comment on this draft guidance through Monday, May 11, 2020. The draft guidance, and a link for submitting comments, is available at: https://www.epa.gov/nsr.

E-Enterprise National Meeting: Envisioning the Future of Environmental Protection

EE2020 is the latest in a long-running series of meetings sponsored by E-Enterprise for the Environment and the National Environmental Information Exchange Network. On May 12-14, 2020, EE2020 will bring together a broad community of attendees from state, tribal, and local environmental agencies, U.S. EPA, vendors, and other stakeholders with an interest in improving the productivity and responsiveness of the environmental protection enterprise. The meeting integrates content on information technology, program modernization, and process improvement. Click here to learn more about EE2020, the benefits of attending, and ways to get involved.

Save the Date: Tribal Lands and Environment Forum on August 17-20, 2020

This year’s Tribal Lands and Environment Forum: A National Conversation on Waste and Response Strategies, will take place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, August 17-20, 2020. Registration, session proposal forms, travel information, and field trip announcements will all be coming soon. Stay tuned! www.nau.edu/TLEF

Tribal Grants Education and Technical Assistance Webinar Series Second Wednesday of Every Month at 1pm ET

For more information, click here!

NTAA Upcoming Calls. The toll-free number is 1-800-309-2350. If you do not need to call toll free, or would like to help conserve NTAA funding, you can call 1-805-309-2350. Both numbers use code 928-523-0526#. Contact Andy.Bessler@nau.edu if you have any questions about any call! *Registration instructions* When you register for the GoToWebinar, please remember to include your Tribe, Region, or Organization in parenthesis after your last name. This allows you to see everyone on the call and prevents us from conducting a roll-call, ultimately saving everyone’s time.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professional’s (ITEP’s) Tribes and Climate Change Calendar includes conferences, trainings, webinars and other events related to tribes and climate change.

Click here for ITEP’s other trainings and events.

Click here for ITEP’s new Tribal Environmental Management and Planning Online Courses. New courses have been added, so check it out!

 ITEP’s FY20 AIAQTP Course Schedule 

Climate Change / Energy

NEW! April 8, 15, 22 and 29, Noon (ET) – Ask the Expert

Every Wednesday ENERGY STAR holds a Portfolio Manager “Ask the Expert” session. It’s a live webinar that gives all users an opportunity to ask their questions directly to EPA experts in an open forum. Want to talk to a “real” person? Have a question about how Portfolio Manager calculates your score? Want to learn more about entering Green Power? Join ENERGY STAR, and they’ll answer all your questions about ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager in this public forum.

Register

NEW! April 8, 2 PM (ET) – Portfolio Manager 101

Learn about EPA’s ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager Tool. Attendees will learn how to: navigate Portfolio Manager; add a property and enter details about it; enter energy and water consumption data; and generate template performance reports to assess progress.

Register

NEW! April 14, 1 PM (ET) – Portfolio Manager 201

Continue to learn about EPA’s ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager Tool with a deeper dive into more advanced functionalities such as: editing property data; correcting and updating property use details; using the data quality checker; and sharing property data.

Register

NEW! April 21, 1 PM (ET) – Portfolio Manager 301

With a good background on the basic functionality of EPA’s ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager Tool, learn about some advanced features including: using spreadsheet upload templates to update property data; setting goals and targets to plan energy improvements for properties; creating custom reports; and using the Sustainable Buildings Checklist.

Register

NEW! April 29, 11 AM (MT) – Developing your energy vision: what do you want your tribe’s energy vision to be?

Once the low-hanging fruit of energy efficiency has been addressed, longer-term planning on future energy needs and energy options is needed. If you don’t identify where you want to go, you can’t plot the course to get there. This webinar will explore how tribes can develop a vision for their energy future.

Register

Deadline Extended! Call for Proposals: National Tribal & Indigenous Climate Conference August 31-September 3, 2020, St. Paul, Minnesota

Proposals now due: May 1, 2020

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) is honored to host the United States’ first Biennial National Tribal and Indigenous Climate Conference (NTICC) along with support from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Tribal Resilience Program. The NTICC is open to all US tribal nations and Indigenous Peoples from throughout the world, with an emphasis on including our Elders and

Youth. The NTICC will convene experts on climate change and will include a balance of Traditional Indigenous Knowledges and Western Science. We invite people to submit proposals discussing climate-related impacts, assessments, tools, adaptation planning, mitigation and actions in one or more of the following tracks:

• Indigenous Knowledges
• Air, Health & Well-Being
• Land
• Water
• Relocation
• Infrastructure
• Energy Systems
• Food Sovereignty
• Ecosystems and Biodiversity

The U.S. EPA has posted 10 upcoming webinars on climate and energy topics offered by federal agencies and others.

All webinars are offered free of charge, but space may be limited or require registration in advance. Let EPA know if you have upcoming webinars you would like us to include in future newsletters. Visit EPA’s website for other energy resources for state, local, and tribal governments. Archived webinars can be found here.

CC 202 Online Course: Tribal Hazard Mitigation Planning, application deadline extended to May 1

October 2020-September 2021

Course Goal: To support Tribe’s hazard mitigation planning through peer-to-peer learning and knowledge exchanges in a facilitated cohort focused on the process of developing or updating a Tribal Hazard Mitigation Plan, which looks “at natural hazards that may affect tribal governments and suggests actions to reduce losses from those hazards” (FEMA Tribal Mitigation Planning Resources). The course will be based around FEMA’s hazard mitigation plan requirements and will connect participants to resources, tools, information, and additional specialized expertise on a variety of topics including, but not limited to, various natural hazards, climate change in the context of natural hazards, FEMA’s four-phases of emergency management (mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery), cultural considerations, Tribal/Indigenous Knowledges, community outreach and engagement, hazard identification and risk assessment, asset inventorying, and developing and implementing an action plan. Follow this link to find out more information and to register. Contact Karen.Cozzetto@nau.edu with questions.

South Central Climate Adaptation Science Center: Earth to Sky Workshop

Earth to Sky is a partnership between NASA, NPS, and USFWS that enables and encourages informal educators to access and use relevant NASA science, data, and educational and outreach products in their work. The partnership’s focus is on climate change science and communication. Join us for three days of training with native informal educators from across the South Central region who recognize the importance of teaching climate change. The workshop will take place July 15-17 in Sulphur, OK. Learn more here.

Save the Date: Southwest Tribal Climate Resilience Camp

Date: July 26-31, 2020

Location: Navajo Technical University – Crownpoint, NM

The Tribal Climate Resilience Camp will support teams of Tribal Leaders, climate change coordinators, planners, and program managers to build skills, gather information, and develop Tribal policies and plans needed for Tribal Nations to address climate change impacts. Information about travel, lodging, and registration will be available soon. You may contact Althea Walker, Tribal Climate                                                   Science Liaison, at AWalker@aihec.org or (480) 258-3963 with questions.

SEEKING TRIBAL DELEGATES

We are currently recruiting 10 Southwest Tribes to participate in the 2020 Camp. Each Tribe should identify three delegates per Tribe. The delegates must participate for the entire week curriculum. Delegates may include climate change staff, tribal policy leaders, Tribal Council, natural resource and environmental managers and staff, administrators, department staff from health, public works, education, housing, and other relevant departments that should engage in climate change planning. FOR APPLICATIONS Visit this link.

Save the Date: Shifting Seasons Summit 3, October 6-8, 2020, Keshena, WI

Contingency dates: March 2021

The Shifting Seasons Summit is a gathering that focuses on climate resilience planning and implementation within Tribes and across Tribal ceded territories in the Northeast Region. This summit will also include network-building opportunities and initiatives developed outside of the Northeast by capacity building organizations, academic institutions and Tribes. Visit www.NICRN.org for more details.

ITEP’s Climate Change Adaptation Training Courses registration is online! Learn more about the courses and register here.

Toxics/Mobile Sources

Postponed: Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the West Coast Collaborative Partners Meeting has been postponed until August 24-26, 2020

After careful consideration of the growing public health concerns associated with the coronavirus (COVID-19), the Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the US EPA West Coast Collaborative is postponing our GTSE | WCCPM event until

August 24 – 26, 2020, at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center in Tacoma, WA.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) and the Green Transportation Summit & Expo (GTSE) have partnered to provide 25 complimentary full-conference passes to the Green Transportation Summit & Expo. The GTSE is the Pacific Northwest’s premier clean fleet and transportation event, focusing on fleets, fuels, technologies, policy & practice, with a regional focus and a national scope. We will provide you the opportunity to see, touch, drive, and learn about new transportation technologies firsthand, such as electric, hydrogen, natural gas and propane-powered heavy-duty vehicles, off-road utility vehicles, generators, and others. Workshops on DERA, VW funding, other federal funding opportunities, and alternative fuels will be presented. Please join us at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center for the 10^th annual GTSE to learn about clean transportation, how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, pollutants, and costs in your fleet operations. To learn more about the conference, check out our website. To receive the code for the complimentary passes, please contact ITEP’s Dara Marks Marino at Dara.Marks-Marino@nau.edu.

Indoor Air Quality

NEW! Covid-19 Webinar: Expert Panel on Safe Cleaning & Disinfecting of Indoor Environments, for Tribal and Impacted Communities

Thursday, April 9, 2020, 10am-11:45am Pacific Standard Time

Join us for a Tribal webinar hosted by the Partnership for Air Matters, with the Tribal Healthy Homes Network, the WA State Department of Health, Environmental Protection Agency, Center for Disease Control, and Indian Health Service. Register here!

New Radon Testing and Mitigation Standards Webinars – April 14^th and 16^th

Join members from the American Association of Radon Scientists and Technologists (AARST), Conference of Radon Control Program Directors (CRCPD), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for two free webinars on the new radon testing and mitigation standards. The April 14^th webinar is primarily designed for CRCPD members and the April 16^th webinar is geared towards AARST members; however anyone interested in learning more about the new testing and mitigation standards is welcome to join either webinar. In 2019, EPA issued guidance on the use of voluntary consensus standards (VCS) for state indoor radon grant recipients. The guidance recommends that all State Indoor Radon Grant recipients reference the most current VCS when implementing their radon programs. These standards undergo a rigorous development and a periodic review process to include new science, new technology, and marketplace evolution. EPA is encouraging the use of current codes and standards to help ensure public health protection. Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas that can cause lung cancer. EPA estimates that radon is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers and is responsible for about 21,000 lung cancer deaths every year. Learn more about radon and how to address it.

• Radon Testing and Mitigation Standards for CRCPD Members; April 14, 2020. 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. EST
• Radon Testing and Mitigation Standards for AARST Members and NRPP-Certified Professionals; April 16, 2020. 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. EST; Register.

Be sure to subscribe to CodeTalk, HUD’s Office of Native American Programs newsletter, for webinars and opportunities!

UPCOMING CALLS/EVENTS/NOTICES

Ambient Air Quality/EPA/NTAA/Tribes

NEW! Student Speaker Series: Valerie Segrest – Traditional Foods Support Community Resilience

April 3, 2020 at 12:00PM (PDT)

Register here!

Hosted by NWIC – Nez Perce Site, with sponsors Rising Voices, NOAA Coastal Management, and LiKEN Knowledge!

NEW! Join NTAA’s Informational Webinar on EPA’s Supplemental Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (SNPRM) for Strengthening Transparency in Regulatory Science

The NTAA has released this Fact Sheet, to help your Tribe in developing a response to EPA. Comments are due by April 17, 2020. The NTAA is also holding an informational webinar for Tribes to better understand this proposal and ask questions on Tuesday, April 7, 2020 at 2pm ET. Register, view documents, and hear the audio for the informational webinar here. Stay tuned to the NTAA’s website for the complete PRK!

Call for Nominations: TAMS Steering Committee

The TAMS Center is announcing a call for nominations for one (1) position on the TAMS Steering Committee. The positon will serve from October 2020 to September 2023. Further information and the nomination forms are online and can be accessed at: TAMS Steering Committee Nomination Form. The deadline to submit a nomination is April 14, 2020. We sincerely appreciate your time to consider submitting a nomination. For further information, please contact either Farshid Farsi, TAMS-EPA Codirector (Farsi.Farshid@epa.gov or 702-784-8263), or Christopher Lee, TAMS-ITEP Codirector (Christoper.Lee@nau.edu or 702-784-8278).

Save the Date & Call for Papers: National Ambient Air Monitoring Conference

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, August 10-13, 2020. Abstracts due April 17, 2020.

EPA in conjunction with the Association of Air Pollution Control Agencies (AAPCA) and the National Association of Clean Air Agencies (NACAA) are pleased to announce the 2020 National Ambient Air Monitoring Conference. Interested in presenting a paper or a poster at the Conference? Great! We want to hear from you. We are interested in receiving proposals related to the following technical topics: PAMS, PM2.5 and Chemical Speciation, Near Road, Air Toxics, Tribal Monitoring, Field Operations, Sensors, Quality Assurance, Data Analysis & Data Visualization, Special Studies and Emerging Issues. This year we are also considering some time on the agenda for “Lightening Talks”.  These would be 5-10 minute maximum time slots for quick presentations on issues/topics related to ambient air monitoring and data analysis. In addition, if you’re planning to present a poster, please indicate if you would be interested in giving a 1-minute lightening talk about your poster. Abstracts are required for technical presentations, technical lightening talks, and posters. Please send your one-page abstract along with a bio to Laurie Trinca (trinca.laurie@epa.gov) no later than April 17, 2020. Registration is expected open in April 2020. Additional details will be available on EPA’s website in the coming months.

EPA Tools and Resources Webinar: Citizen Science at EPA

April 15, 2020, 3:00 to 4:00 PM ET

To join this webinar, please register here.

With the advent of new technologies for environmental monitoring and tools for sharing information, community volunteers are more engaged than ever before in collecting environmental data, and many environmental agencies are using these data. A major challenge is ensuring the quality of the data collected by citizen science organizations. One of the keys to breaking down this barrier is a Quality Assurance Project Plan. EPA’s Handbook for Citizen Science Quality Assurance and Documentation is for organizations that are starting or growing a citizen science project, and where transparency in the scientific methods for collecting the data are central to the outcome of the project. This webinar will provide an overview of citizen science at the Agency and showcase several EPA citizen science activities that involve partnerships with state, tribal and local governments on a diversity of issues, including 1) monitoring for cyanobacteria in waterbodies, 2) building and operating “real-time,” low-cost water quality sensors in Georgia; 3) demonstration of a new test method for community mapping of radon in Puerto Rico; 4) the Los Angeles Public Library air sensor loan program; and 5) using citizen science to analyze underwater video in the Great Lakes. For more information, visit EPA’s Citizen Science webpage. For registration questions, please email: tools_resources_webinar@epa.gov.

NEW! Draft Guidance: Interpretation of “Begin Action Construction” Under the NSR Preconstruction Permitting Regulations

Comments due: May 11, 2020

EPA is providing an opportunity for interested stakeholders to review and comment on the draft guidance titled, Interpretation of “Begin Actual Construction” Under the New Source Review Preconstruction Permitting Regulations. This guidance addresses EPA’s interpretation of “begin actual construction” under the regulations implementing the New Source Review (NSR) permitting program. In this draft guidance, EPA is adopting a revised interpretation that is more consistent with the regulatory text. Under this revised interpretation, a source owner or operator may, prior to obtaining an NSR permit, undertake physical on-site activities – including activities that may be costly, that may significantly alter the site, and/or are permanent in nature – provided that those activities do not constitute physical construction on an emissions unit. EPA will accept comment on this draft guidance through Monday, May 11, 2020. The draft guidance, and a link for submitting comments, is available at: https://www.epa.gov/nsr.

E-Enterprise National Meeting: Envisioning the Future of Environmental Protection

EE2020 is the latest in a long-running series of meetings sponsored by E-Enterprise for the Environment and the National Environmental Information Exchange Network. On May 12-14, 2020, EE2020 will bring together a broad community of attendees from state, tribal, and local environmental agencies, U.S. EPA, vendors, and other stakeholders with an interest in improving the productivity and responsiveness of the environmental protection enterprise. The meeting integrates content on information technology, program modernization, and process improvement. Click here to learn more about EE2020, the benefits of attending, and ways to get involved.

NEW! On March 30, 2020 the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed to amend the 2015 National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) for Phosphoric Acid Manufacturing. On September 6, 2016, PCS Phosphates (now Nutrien) petitioned EPA to review the 2015 NESHAP based on newly available data. Following analysis of the petitioner’s data, EPA is proposing to revise the mercury standard for calciners in the Phosphoric Acid Manufacturing NESHAP. The proposed amendment will revise the mercury MACT floor for existing calciners from 0.14 milligrams (mg) per dry standard cubic meter (dscm) at 3 percent oxygen to 0.23 mg/dscm at 3 percent oxygen. The proposed amendment fulfills EPA’s statutory requirements under the Clean Air Act, while maintaining the intent of the emission and operational standards of the 2015 NESHAP. EPA will accept comment on the proposed amendment for 45 days after publication in the Federal Register.

A prepublication version of the proposed amendment and a summary fact sheet are available here.

NEW! EPA’s EnviroAtlas Training Webinar:

Helping Users Capture Nature’s Benefits, Map a Sustainable Future

April 28, 2020 at 2:00 to 3:30 PM ET

As follow-up to the January EPA Tools & Resources Webinar on EnviroAtlas, EPA’s Office of Research and Development will provide a more in-depth training webinar on EnviroAtlas. Register and join the webinar. If you do not have an EPA ID, please register as a guest.

How do environmental managers and public health officials identify the benefits that local forests, parks, wetlands and other natural areas provide to their local communities? One way is through EnviroAtlas. EPA’s EnviroAtlas provides users with a host of interactive tools, geospatial data and resources for exploring the benefits people derive from nature and potential stressors that might impede their provision.

Save the Date: Tribal Lands and Environment Forum on August 17-20, 2020

This year’s Tribal Lands and Environment Forum: A National Conversation on Waste and Response Strategies, will take place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, August 17-20, 2020. Registration, session proposal forms, travel information, and field trip announcements will all be coming soon. Stay tuned! www.nau.edu/TLEF

Tribal Grants Education and Technical Assistance Webinar Series Second Wednesday of Every Month at 1pm ET

For more information, click here!

NTAA Upcoming Calls. The toll-free number is 1-800-309-2350. If you do not need to call toll free, or would like to help conserve NTAA funding, you can call 1-805-309-2350. Both numbers use code 928-523-0526#. Contact Andy.Bessler@nau.edu if you have any questions about any call! *Registration instructions* When you register for the GoToWebinar, please remember to include your Tribe, Region, or Organization in parenthesis after your last name. This allows you to see everyone on the call and prevents us from conducting a roll-call, ultimately saving everyone’s time.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professional’s (ITEP’s) Tribes and Climate Change Calendar includes conferences, trainings, webinars and other events related to tribes and climate change.

Click here for ITEP’s other trainings and events.

Click here for ITEP’s new Tribal Environmental Management and Planning Online Courses. New courses have been added, so check it out!

 ITEP’s FY20 AIAQTP Course Schedule 

Climate Change / Energy

Deadline Extended! Call for Proposals: National Tribal & Indigenous Climate Conference August 31-September 3, 2020, St. Paul, Minnesota

Proposals now due: May 1, 2020

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) is honored to host the United States’ first Biennial National Tribal and Indigenous Climate Conference (NTICC) along with support from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Tribal Resilience Program. The NTICC is open to all US tribal nations and Indigenous Peoples from throughout the world, with an emphasis on including our Elders and

Youth. The NTICC will convene experts on climate change and will include a balance of Traditional Indigenous Knowledges and Western Science. We invite people to submit proposals discussing climate-related impacts, assessments, tools, adaptation planning, mitigation and actions in one or more of the following tracks:

• Indigenous Knowledges
• Air, Health & Well-Being
• Land
• Water
• Relocation
• Infrastructure
• Energy Systems
• Food Sovereignty
• Ecosystems and Biodiversity

The U.S. EPA has posted 10 upcoming webinars on climate and energy topics offered by federal agencies and others.

All webinars are offered free of charge, but space may be limited or require registration in advance. Let EPA know if you have upcoming webinars you would like us to include in future newsletters. Visit EPA’s website for other energy resources for state, local, and tribal governments. Archived webinars can be found here.

CC 202 Online Course: Tribal Hazard Mitigation Planning, application deadline extended to May 1

October 2020-September 2021

Course Goal: To support Tribe’s hazard mitigation planning through peer-to-peer learning and knowledge exchanges in a facilitated cohort focused on the process of developing or updating a Tribal Hazard Mitigation Plan, which looks “at natural hazards that may affect tribal governments and suggests actions to reduce losses from those hazards” (FEMA Tribal Mitigation Planning Resources). The course will be based around FEMA’s hazard mitigation plan requirements and will connect participants to resources, tools, information, and additional specialized expertise on a variety of topics including, but not limited to, various natural hazards, climate change in the context of natural hazards, FEMA’s four-phases of emergency management (mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery), cultural considerations, Tribal/Indigenous Knowledges, community outreach and engagement, hazard identification and risk assessment, asset inventorying, and developing and implementing an action plan. Follow this link to find out more information and to register. Contact Karen.Cozzetto@nau.edu with questions.

South Central Climate Adaptation Science Center: Earth to Sky Workshop

Earth to Sky is a partnership between NASA, NPS, and USFWS that enables and encourages informal educators to access and use relevant NASA science, data, and educational and outreach products in their work. The partnership’s focus is on climate change science and communication. Join us for three days of training with native informal educators from across the South Central region who recognize the importance of teaching climate change. The workshop will take place July 15-17 in Sulphur, OK. Learn more here.

Save the Date: Southwest Tribal Climate Resilience Camp

Date: July 26-31, 2020

Location: Navajo Technical University – Crownpoint, NM

The Tribal Climate Resilience Camp will support teams of Tribal Leaders, climate change coordinators, planners, and program managers to build skills, gather information, and develop Tribal policies and plans needed for Tribal Nations to address climate change impacts. Information about travel, lodging, and registration will be available soon. You may contact Althea Walker, Tribal Climate                                                   Science Liaison, at AWalker@aihec.org or (480) 258-3963 with questions.

SEEKING TRIBAL DELEGATES

We are currently recruiting 10 Southwest Tribes to participate in the 2020 Camp. Each Tribe should identify three delegates per Tribe. The delegates must participate for the entire week curriculum. Delegates may include climate change staff, tribal policy leaders, Tribal Council, natural resource and environmental managers and staff, administrators, department staff from health, public works, education, housing, and other relevant departments that should engage in climate change planning. FOR APPLICATIONS Visit this link.

NEW! Save the Date: Shifting Seasons Summit 3, October 6-8, 2020, Keshena, WI

Contingency dates: March 2021

The Shifting Seasons Summit is a gathering that focuses on climate resilience planning and implementation within Tribes and across Tribal ceded territories in the Northeast Region. This summit will also include network-building opportunities and initiatives developed outside of the Northeast by capacity building organizations, academic institutions and Tribes. Visit www.NICRN.org for more details.

ITEP’s Climate Change Adaptation Training Courses registration is online! Learn more about the courses and register here.

Toxics/Mobile Sources

Postponed: Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the West Coast Collaborative Partners Meeting has been postponed until August 24-26, 2020

After careful consideration of the growing public health concerns associated with the coronavirus (COVID-19), the Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the US EPA West Coast Collaborative is postponing our GTSE | WCCPM event until

August 24 – 26, 2020, at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center in Tacoma, WA.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) and the Green Transportation Summit & Expo (GTSE) have partnered to provide 25 complimentary full-conference passes to the Green Transportation Summit & Expo. The GTSE is the Pacific Northwest’s premier clean fleet and transportation event, focusing on fleets, fuels, technologies, policy & practice, with a regional focus and a national scope. We will provide you the opportunity to see, touch, drive, and learn about new transportation technologies firsthand, such as electric, hydrogen, natural gas and propane-powered heavy-duty vehicles, off-road utility vehicles, generators, and others. Workshops on DERA, VW funding, other federal funding opportunities, and alternative fuels will be presented. Please join us at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center for the 10^th annual GTSE to learn about clean transportation, how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, pollutants, and costs in your fleet operations. To learn more about the conference, check out our website. To receive the code for the complimentary passes, please contact ITEP’s Dara Marks Marino at Dara.Marks-Marino@nau.edu.

Heavy Duty Engine Design for a Transitioning Market

Thursday, April 2, 2020, at 12:00pm EDT

An uncertain regulatory climate. The potential for automated vehicle operation. All these trends are affecting the way engine developers are approaching near-term engine design and development cycles. What are the most significant – and potentially most disruptive – factors that will influence engine developers in the next three to five years? This 60-minute Technical Webinar from the editors of SAE International examines emergent engine design and technology trends that are likely to advance as smart choices in a transitioning environment of on- and off-road heavy-duty engines. An audience Q&A will follow the technical presentation. Register here!

EPA MOVES Training

EPA has presented various webinars and training courses to assist users with Motor Vehicle Emission Simulator (MOVES) software and inputs, and makes presentation slides available here for future reference. Subscribe to the MOVES Listserv to receive notification of upcoming webinars and courses. We have an upcoming hands-on two day MOVES training session scheduled for May 5-6 in Research Triangle Park, NC. This is part of EPA’s Air Emissions Inventory Training conference, which is free and intended for state, local, and tribal air agency members and their contractors who develop inventories and/or prepare State Implementation Plans.  For more information, see this webpage. We also make all of our training materials available for self-study on our website.

Indoor Air Quality

Welcome Secody Hubbard as the IED’s new Tribal Coordinator!

Secody, a member of the Navajo Nation from Ganado, Arizona, has been with EPA for 14 years. He has a lot of experience in the agency, having worked at Region 7 in the Office of Policy and Management; Region 6 as the Texas Tribal Program Coordinator; EPA Headquarters as the National American Indian/Alaska Native Program Manager in the Office of Civil Rights. Most recently, Secody previously worked in Region 9’s Superfund Division on the implementation of the US EPA 5-Year Plan on Addressing Uranium Contamination on the Navajo Nation. Secody’s background includes exceptional knowledge of federal Indian policy, Tribal governments, the US Federal System and intergovernmental relations.  Before joining EPA, he worked with Tribal Governments on the Arizona Colorado Plateau Ecosystem Management Project as a Research Associate for Northern Arizona University, and served as a Special Diabetes Project Consultant to the Navajo Area US Indian Health Service on the Navajo Nation. Secody earned his BS in Health Administration, Master of Public Administration, and a PhD in Public Policy from Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona. For now, Secody will be teleworking like most of the rest of the agency. If you would like to reach out, you can contact him at Hubbard.secody@epa.gov.

New Radon Testing and Mitigation Standards Webinars – April 14^th and 16^th

Join members from the American Association of Radon Scientists and Technologists (AARST), Conference of Radon Control Program Directors (CRCPD), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for two free webinars on the new radon testing and mitigation standards. The April 14^th webinar is primarily designed for CRCPD members and the April 16^th webinar is geared towards AARST members; however anyone interested in learning more about the new testing and mitigation standards is welcome to join either webinar. In 2019, EPA issued guidance on the use of voluntary consensus standards (VCS) for state indoor radon grant recipients. The guidance recommends that all State Indoor Radon Grant recipients reference the most current VCS when implementing their radon programs. These standards undergo a rigorous development and a periodic review process to include new science, new technology, and marketplace evolution. EPA is encouraging the use of current codes and standards to help ensure public health protection. Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas that can cause lung cancer. EPA estimates that radon is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers and is responsible for about 21,000 lung cancer deaths every year. Learn more about radon and how to address it.

• Radon Testing and Mitigation Standards for CRCPD Members; April 14, 2020. 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. EST
• Radon Testing and Mitigation Standards for AARST Members and NRPP-Certified Professionals; April 16, 2020. 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. EST; Register.

Be sure to subscribe to CodeTalk, HUD’s Office of Native American Programs newsletter, for webinars and opportunities!

UPCOMING CALLS/EVENTS/NOTICES

Ambient Air Quality/EPA/NTAA/Tribes

DRAFT Guidance for Ozone and Fine Particulate Matter Permit Modeling: Comment by March 27, 2020
EPA is providing an opportunity for interested stakeholders to review and comment on DRAFT Guidance for Ozone and Fine Particulate Matter Permit Modeling. This guidance provides EPA’s recommendations for how a stationary source of air pollution seeking a Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) permit may demonstrate that it will not cause or contribute to a violation of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for ozone (O₃) and fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) and PSD increments for PM_2.5, as required under Section 165(a)(3) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) and 40 CFR sections 51.166(k) and 52.21(k). This draft guidance updates EPA’s Guidance for PM_2.5 Permit Modeling to reflect the 2017 revisions to the Guideline on Air Quality Models and incorporates appropriate sections for O₃.  EPA requests comments on the draft guidance by Friday, March 27, 2020. This allows at least 45 days for consideration, review, and comment. The draft guidance is available on EPA’s SCRAM website.

NEW! Call for Nominations: TAMS Steering Committee

The TAMS Center is announcing a call for nominations for one (1) position on the TAMS Steering Committee. The positon will serve from October 2020 to September 2023. Further information and the nomination forms are online and can be accessed at: TAMS Steering Committee Nomination Form. The deadline to submit a nomination is April 14, 2020. We sincerely appreciate your time to consider submitting a nomination. For further information, please contact either Farshid Farsi, TAMS-EPA Codirector (Farsi.Farshid@epa.gov or 702-784-8263), or Christopher Lee, TAMS-ITEP Codirector (Christoper.Lee@nau.edu or 702-784-8278).

Save the Date & Call for Papers: National Ambient Air Monitoring Conference

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, August 10-13, 2020. Abstracts due April 17, 2020.

EPA in conjunction with the Association of Air Pollution Control Agencies (AAPCA) and the National Association of Clean Air Agencies (NACAA) are pleased to announce the 2020 National Ambient Air Monitoring Conference. Interested in presenting a paper or a poster at the Conference? Great! We want to hear from you. We are interested in receiving proposals related to the following technical topics: PAMS, PM2.5 and Chemical Speciation, Near Road, Air Toxics, Tribal Monitoring, Field Operations, Sensors, Quality Assurance, Data Analysis & Data Visualization, Special Studies and Emerging Issues. This year we are also considering some time on the agenda for “Lightening Talks”.  These would be 5-10 minute maximum time slots for quick presentations on issues/topics related to ambient air monitoring and data analysis. In addition, if you’re planning to present a poster, please indicate if you would be interested in giving a 1-minute lightening talk about your poster. Abstracts are required for technical presentations, technical lightening talks, and posters. Please send your one-page abstract along with a bio to Laurie Trinca (trinca.laurie@epa.gov) no later than April 17, 2020. Registration is expected open in April 2020. Additional details will be available on EPA’s website in the coming months.

NEW! EPA Tools and Resources Webinar: Citizen Science at EPA

April 15, 2020, 3:00 to 4:00 PM ET

To join this webinar, please register here.

With the advent of new technologies for environmental monitoring and tools for sharing information, community volunteers are more engaged than ever before in collecting environmental data, and many environmental agencies are using these data. A major challenge is ensuring the quality of the data collected by citizen science organizations. One of the keys to breaking down this barrier is a Quality Assurance Project Plan. EPA’s Handbook for Citizen Science Quality Assurance and Documentation is for organizations that are starting or growing a citizen science project, and where transparency in the scientific methods for collecting the data are central to the outcome of the project. This webinar will provide an overview of citizen science at the Agency and showcase several EPA citizen science activities that involve partnerships with state, tribal and local governments on a diversity of issues, including 1) monitoring for cyanobacteria in waterbodies, 2) building and operating “real-time,” low-cost water quality sensors in Georgia; 3) demonstration of a new test method for community mapping of radon in Puerto Rico; 4) the Los Angeles Public Library air sensor loan program; and 5) using citizen science to analyze underwater video in the Great Lakes. For more information, visit EPA’s Citizen Science webpage. For registration questions, please email: tools_resources_webinar@epa.gov.

E-Enterprise National Meeting: Envisioning the Future of Environmental Protection

EE2020 is the latest in a long-running series of meetings sponsored by E-Enterprise for the Environment and the National Environmental Information Exchange Network. On May 12-14, 2020, EE2020 will bring together a broad community of attendees from state, tribal, and local environmental agencies, U.S. EPA, vendors, and other stakeholders with an interest in improving the productivity and responsiveness of the environmental protection enterprise. The meeting integrates content on information technology, program modernization, and process improvement. Click here to learn more about EE2020, the benefits of attending, and ways to get involved.

Save the Date: Tribal Lands and Environment Forum on August 17-20, 2020

This year’s Tribal Lands and Environment Forum: A National Conversation on Waste and Response Strategies, will take place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, August 17-20, 2020. Registration, session proposal forms, travel information, and field trip announcements will all be coming soon. Stay tuned! www.nau.edu/TLEF

Tribal Grants Education and Technical Assistance Webinar Series Second Wednesday of Every Month at 1pm ET

For more information, click here!

NTAA Upcoming Calls. The toll-free number is 1-800-309-2350. If you do not need to call toll free, or would like to help conserve NTAA funding, you can call 1-805-309-2350. Both numbers use code 928-523-0526#. Contact Andy.Bessler@nau.edu if you have any questions about any call! *Registration instructions* When you register for the GoToWebinar, please remember to include your Tribe, Region, or Organization in parenthesis after your last name. This allows you to see everyone on the call and prevents us from conducting a roll-call, ultimately saving everyone’s time.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professional’s (ITEP’s) Tribes and Climate Change Calendar includes conferences, trainings, webinars and other events related to tribes and climate change.

Click here for ITEP’s other trainings and events.

Click here for ITEP’s new Tribal Environmental Management and Planning Online Courses. New courses have been added, so check it out!

 ITEP’s FY20 AIAQTP Course Schedule 

Climate Change / Energy

March 25, 11 AM (MT) – Energy Efficiency Projects from Concept to Completion

Once your Tribe has identified energy efficiency as a goal and considered the opportunities, the next state consists of defining and executing the project. This webinar will focus on how to move a project from concept to completion.

Register

March 25, Noon (ET) – Ask the Expert

Every Wednesday ENERGY STAR holds a Portfolio Manager “Ask the Expert” session. It’s a live webinar that gives all users an opportunity to ask their questions directly to EPA experts in an open forum. Want to talk to a “real” person? Have a question about how Portfolio Manager calculates your score? Want to learn more about entering Green Power? Join ENERGY STAR, and they’ll answer all your questions about ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager in this public forum.

Register

March 31, 1 PM (ET) — Resilient Power in Puerto Rico – Innovative Applications of Solar+Storage to Serve Vulnerable Populations  

Since Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico in 2017, demand for resilient power technologies — solar PV paired with battery storage (solar+storage) — has so far resulted in over 10,000 residential and 300 critical facility systems across the island. Despite these gains, persistent energy infrastructure issues still plague the island. After the recent earthquakes, entire regions had to contend with extended blackouts. Rural communities face additional hurdles. This Clean Energy Group webinar will explore innovative solar+storage applications in vulnerable communities. Panelists will also discuss barriers to resilient power development and local workforce training initiatives.

Register

Call for Proposals now open: National Tribal & Indigenous Climate Conference August 31-September 3, 2020, St. Paul, Minnesota

Proposals due: April 3, 2020

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) is honored to host the United States’ First Biennial National Tribal and Indigenous Climate Conference (NTICC) along with support from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Tribal Resilience Program. The NTICC is open to all US tribal nations and Indigenous Peoples from throughout the world, with an emphasis on including our Elders and

Youth. The NTICC will convene experts on climate change and will include a balance of Traditional Indigenous Knowledges and Western Science. We invite people to submit proposals discussing climate-related impacts, assessments, tools, adaptation planning, mitigation and actions in one or more of the following tracks:

• Indigenous Knowledges
• Air, Health & Well-Being
• Land
• Water
• Relocation
• Infrastructure
• Energy Systems
• Food Sovereignty
• Ecosystems and Biodiversity

South Central Climate Adaptation Science Center: Earth to Sky Workshop

Earth to Sky is a partnership between NASA, NPS, and USFWS that enables and encourages informal educators to access and use relevant NASA science, data, and educational and outreach products in their work. The partnership’s focus is on climate change science and communication. Join us for three days of training with native informal educators from across the South Central region who recognize the importance of teaching climate change. The workshop will take place July 15-17 in Sulphur, OK. Learn more here.

NEW! Save the Date: Southwest Tribal Climate Resilience Camp

Date: July 26-31, 2020

Location: Navajo Technical University – Crownpoint, NM

The Tribal Climate Resilience Camp will support teams of Tribal Leaders, climate change coordinators, planners, and program managers to build skills, gather information, and develop Tribal policies and plans needed for Tribal Nations to address climate change impacts. Information about travel, lodging, and registration will be available soon. You may contact Althea Walker, Tribal Climate                                                   Science Liaison, at AWalker@aihec.org or (480) 258-3963 with questions.

SEEKING TRIBAL DELEGATES

We are currently recruiting 10 Southwest Tribes to participate in the 2020 Camp. Each Tribe should identify three delegates per Tribe. The delegates must participate for the entire week curriculum. Delegates may include climate change staff, tribal policy leaders, Tribal Council, natural resource and environmental managers and staff, administrators, department staff from health, public works, education, housing, and other relevant departments that should engage in climate change planning. FOR APPLICATIONS Visit this link.

ITEP’s Climate Change Adaptation Training Courses registration is online! Learn more about the courses and register here.

Toxics/Mobile Sources

Draft EPA Port-Related Emission Inventory Methodologies Document Available

The public draft of the “Methodologies for Estimating Port-Related and Goods Movement Mobile Source Emission Inventories” is now available. This document describes the latest, state-of-the-science methodologies for preparing a port-related emissions inventory for six mobile source sectors: ocean-going vessels, harbor craft, recreational marine, cargo handling equipment, onroad vehicles, and rail. This draft document reflects new data sources and model availability, and integrates the lessons learned from practical experience with EPA-Port Everglades Partnership and National Port Strategy Assessment. This document supersedes EPA’s 2009 “Current Methodologies in Preparing Mobile Source Port-Related Emission Inventories.” Interested stakeholders can send any feedback on this draft to talkaboutports@epa.gov by March 31, 2020. In addition, EPA encourages stakeholders to use this document when developing inventories.  EPA will consider any feedback received on the public draft in a future revision to this document. For more information, please visit this link.

Postponed! Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the West Coast Collaborative Partners Meeting has been postponed until August 24-26, 2020

After careful consideration of the growing public health concerns associated with the coronavirus (COVID-19), the Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the US EPA West Coast Collaborative is postponing our GTSE | WCCPM event until

August 24 – 26, 2020, at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center in Tacoma, WA.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) and the Green Transportation Summit & Expo (GTSE) have partnered to provide 25 complimentary full-conference passes to the Green Transportation Summit & Expo. The GTSE is the Pacific Northwest’s premier clean fleet and transportation event, focusing on fleets, fuels, technologies, policy & practice, with a regional focus and a national scope. We will provide you the opportunity to see, touch, drive, and learn about new transportation technologies firsthand, such as electric, hydrogen, natural gas and propane-powered heavy-duty vehicles, off-road utility vehicles, generators, and others. Workshops on DERA, VW funding, other federal funding opportunities, and alternative fuels will be presented. Please join us at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center for the 10^th annual GTSE to learn about clean transportation, how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, pollutants, and costs in your fleet operations. To learn more about the conference, check out our website. To receive the code for the complimentary passes, please contact ITEP’s Dara Marks Marino at Dara.Marks-Marino@nau.edu.

Heavy Duty Engine Design for a Transitioning Market

Thursday, April 2, 2020, at 12:00pm EDT

An uncertain regulatory climate. The potential for automated vehicle operation. All these trends are affecting the way engine developers are approaching near-term engine design and development cycles. What are the most significant – and potentially most disruptive – factors that will influence engine developers in the next three to five years? This 60-minute Technical Webinar from the editors of SAE International examines emergent engine design and technology trends that are likely to advance as smart choices in a transitioning environment of on- and off-road heavy-duty engines. An audience Q&A will follow the technical presentation. Register here!

EPA MOVES Training

EPA has presented various webinars and training courses to assist users with Motor Vehicle Emission Simulator (MOVES) software and inputs, and makes presentation slides available here for future reference. Subscribe to the MOVES Listserv to receive notification of upcoming webinars and courses. We have an upcoming hands-on two day MOVES training session scheduled for May 5-6 in Research Triangle Park, NC. This is part of EPA’s Air Emissions Inventory Training conference, which is free and intended for state, local, and tribal air agency members and their contractors who develop inventories and/or prepare State Implementation Plans.  For more information, see this webpage. We also make all of our training materials available for self-study on our website.

Indoor Air Quality

NEW! Welcome Secody Hubbard as the IED’s new Tribal Coordinator!

Secody, a member of the Navajo Nation from Ganado, Arizona, has been with EPA for 14 years. He has a lot of experience in the agency, having worked at Region 7 in the Office of Policy and Management; Region 6 as the Texas Tribal Program Coordinator; EPA Headquarters as the National American Indian/Alaska Native Program Manager in the Office of Civil Rights. Most recently, Secody previously worked in Region 9’s Superfund Division on the implementation of the US EPA 5-Year Plan on Addressing Uranium Contamination on the Navajo Nation. Secody’s background includes exceptional knowledge of federal Indian policy, Tribal governments, the US Federal System and intergovernmental relations.  Before joining EPA, he worked with Tribal Governments on the Arizona Colorado Plateau Ecosystem Management Project as a Research Associate for Northern Arizona University, and served as a Special Diabetes Project Consultant to the Navajo Area US Indian Health Service on the Navajo Nation. Secody earned his BS in Health Administration, Master of Public Administration, and a PhD in Public Policy from Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona. For now, Secody will be teleworking like most of the rest of the agency. If you would like to reach out, you can contact him at Hubbard.secody@epa.gov.

NEW! New Radon Testing and Mitigation Standards Webinars – April 14^th and 16^th

Join members from the American Association of Radon Scientists and Technologists (AARST), Conference of Radon Control Program Directors (CRCPD), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for two free webinars on the new radon testing and mitigation standards. The April 14^th webinar is primarily designed for CRCPD members and the April 16^th webinar is geared towards AARST members; however anyone interested in learning more about the new testing and mitigation standards is welcome to join either webinar. In 2019, EPA issued guidance on the use of voluntary consensus standards (VCS) for state indoor radon grant recipients. The guidance recommends that all State Indoor Radon Grant recipients reference the most current VCS when implementing their radon programs. These standards undergo a rigorous development and a periodic review process to include new science, new technology, and marketplace evolution. EPA is encouraging the use of current codes and standards to help ensure public health protection. Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas that can cause lung cancer. EPA estimates that radon is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers and is responsible for about 21,000 lung cancer deaths every year. Learn more about radon and how to address it.

• Radon Testing and Mitigation Standards for CRCPD Members; April 14, 2020. 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. EST
• Radon Testing and Mitigation Standards for AARST Members and NRPP-Certified Professionals; April 16, 2020. 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. EST; Register.

Be sure to subscribe to CodeTalk, HUD’s Office of Native American Programs newsletter, for webinars and opportunities!

UPCOMING CALLS/EVENTS/NOTICES

Ambient Air Quality/EPA/NTAA/Tribes

DRAFT Guidance for Ozone and Fine Particulate Matter Permit Modeling: Comment by March 27, 2020
EPA is providing an opportunity for interested stakeholders to review and comment on DRAFT Guidance for Ozone and Fine Particulate Matter Permit Modeling. This guidance provides EPA’s recommendations for how a stationary source of air pollution seeking a Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) permit may demonstrate that it will not cause or contribute to a violation of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for ozone (O₃) and fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) and PSD increments for PM_2.5, as required under Section 165(a)(3) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) and 40 CFR sections 51.166(k) and 52.21(k). This draft guidance updates EPA’s Guidance for PM_2.5 Permit Modeling to reflect the 2017 revisions to the Guideline on Air Quality Models and incorporates appropriate sections for O₃.  EPA requests comments on the draft guidance by Friday, March 27, 2020. This allows at least 45 days for consideration, review, and comment. The draft guidance is available on EPA’s SCRAM website.

Save the Date & Call for Papers: National Ambient Air Monitoring Conference

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, August 10-13, 2020. Abstracts due April 17, 2020.

EPA in conjunction with the Association of Air Pollution Control Agencies (AAPCA) and the National Association of Clean Air Agencies (NACAA) are pleased to announce the 2020 National Ambient Air Monitoring Conference.

Interested in presenting a paper or a poster at the Conference? Great! We want to hear from you. We are interested in receiving proposals related to the following technical topics: PAMS, PM2.5 and Chemical Speciation, Near Road, Air Toxics, Tribal Monitoring, Field Operations, Sensors, Quality Assurance, Data Analysis & Data Visualization, Special Studies and Emerging Issues. This year we are also considering some time on the agenda for “Lightening Talks”.  These would be 5-10 minute maximum time slots for quick presentations on issues/topics related to ambient air monitoring and data analysis. In addition, if you’re planning to present a poster, please indicate if you would be interested in giving a 1-minute lightening talk about your poster. Abstracts are required for technical presentations, technical lightening talks, and posters. Please send your one-page abstract along with a bio to Laurie Trinca (trinca.laurie@epa.gov) no later than April 17, 2020. Registration is expected open in April 2020. Additional details will be available on EPA’s website in the coming months.

E-Enterprise National Meeting: Envisioning the Future of Environmental Protection

EE2020 is the latest in a long-running series of meetings sponsored by E-Enterprise for the Environment and the National Environmental Information Exchange Network. On May 12-14, 2020, EE2020 will bring together a broad community of attendees from state, tribal, and local environmental agencies, U.S. EPA, vendors, and other stakeholders with an interest in improving the productivity and responsiveness of the environmental protection enterprise. The meeting integrates content on information technology, program modernization, and process improvement. Click here to learn more about EE2020, the benefits of attending, and ways to get involved.

Save the Date: Tribal Lands and Environment Forum on August 17-20, 2020

This year’s Tribal Lands and Environment Forum: A National Conversation on Waste and Response Strategies, will take place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, August 17-20, 2020. Registration, session proposal forms, travel information, and field trip announcements will all be coming soon. Stay tuned! www.nau.edu/TLEF

Tribal Grants Education and Technical Assistance Webinar Series Second Wednesday of Every Month at 1pm ET

For more information, click here!

NTAA Upcoming Calls. The toll-free number is 1-800-309-2350. If you do not need to call toll free, or would like to help conserve NTAA funding, you can call 1-805-309-2350. Both numbers use code 928-523-0526#. Contact Andy.Bessler@nau.edu if you have any questions about any call! *Registration instructions* When you register for the GoToWebinar, please remember to include your Tribe, Region, or Organization in parenthesis after your last name. This allows you to see everyone on the call and prevents us from conducting a roll-call, ultimately saving everyone’s time.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professional’s (ITEP’s) Tribes and Climate Change Calendar includes conferences, trainings, webinars and other events related to tribes and climate change.

Click here for ITEP’s other trainings and events.

Click here for ITEP’s new Tribal Environmental Management and Planning Online Courses. New courses have been added, so check it out!

 ITEP’s FY20 AIAQTP Course Schedule 

Climate Change / Energy

March 20, 1:30 PM (ET) – Financing Climate Mitigation and Resilience: Lessons from Hawaii

View a live briefing on innovative efforts to finance and implement climate change mitigation and resilience projects. Featuring a panel from Hawaii, the briefing will explore steps the state is taking to reach carbon neutrality and run on 100 percent renewable energy by 2045. Hawaii’s top climate change official will discuss state-wide efforts to lead on climate, and the Executive Director of one of the most robust green banks in the country will speak about its unique features and how it supports companies, communities, and individuals as they work towards Hawaii’s climate goals in an equitable way.

Livecast link

March 24, Noon (ET) – Resilience: Helping Communities and Countries Move from Crisis to Stability

Resilience. It’s a pressing topic, but the term is frequently confused with related—yet distinct—concepts of risk reduction or adaptation. Join Abt for a free webinar to learn what resilience really means, how it is relevant to diverse stakeholders, and how to strengthen resilience at local, regional, and national scales. Speakers will describe how communities and nations experience and recover from impacts to their environment and climate, energy systems, health, and cultures, and how to develop effective resilience-building strategies.

Speakers:

• Lorine Giangola, Ph.D. – Abt Associate Scientist, Environment & Natural Resources (moderator)
• Ambassador John Lange – Senior Fellow for Global Health Diplomacy, United Nations Foundation
• Sherry Stout, Engineer – U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL)
• Raymond Martinez – Director of the Pueblo de San Ildefonso’s Department of Environmental and Cultural Preservation, and Tribal Risk Assessment Program Manager

Register

March 25, 11 AM (MT) – Energy Efficiency Projects from Concept to Completion

Once your Tribe has identified energy efficiency as a goal and considered the opportunities, the next state consists of defining and executing the project. This webinar will focus on how to move a project from concept to completion.

Register

March 25, Noon (ET) – Ask the Expert

Every Wednesday ENERGY STAR holds a Portfolio Manager “Ask the Expert” session. It’s a live webinar that gives all users an opportunity to ask their questions directly to EPA experts in an open forum. Want to talk to a “real” person? Have a question about how Portfolio Manager calculates your score? Want to learn more about entering Green Power? Join ENERGY STAR, and they’ll answer all your questions about ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager in this public forum.

Register

March 31, 1 PM (ET) — Resilient Power in Puerto Rico – Innovative Applications of Solar+Storage to Serve Vulnerable Populations  

Since Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico in 2017, demand for resilient power technologies — solar PV paired with battery storage (solar+storage) — has so far resulted in over 10,000 residential and 300 critical facility systems across the island. Despite these gains, persistent energy infrastructure issues still plague the island. After the recent earthquakes, entire regions had to contend with extended blackouts. Rural communities face additional hurdles. This Clean Energy Group webinar will explore innovative solar+storage applications in vulnerable communities. Panelists will also discuss barriers to resilient power development and local workforce training initiatives.

Register

Call for Proposals now open: National Tribal & Indigenous Climate Conference August 31-September 3, 2020, St. Paul, Minnesota

Proposals due: April 3, 2020

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) is honored to host the United States’ First Biennial National Tribal and Indigenous Climate Conference (NTICC) along with support from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Tribal Resilience Program. The NTICC is open to all US tribal nations and Indigenous Peoples from throughout the world, with an emphasis on including our Elders and

Youth. The NTICC will convene experts on climate change and will include a balance of Traditional Indigenous Knowledges and Western Science. We invite people to submit proposals discussing climate-related impacts, assessments, tools, adaptation planning, mitigation and actions in one or more of the following tracks:

• Indigenous Knowledges
• Air, Health & Well-Being
• Land
• Water
• Relocation
• Infrastructure
• Energy Systems
• Food Sovereignty
• Ecosystems and Biodiversity

South Central Climate Adaptation Science Center: Earth to Sky Workshop

Earth to Sky is a partnership between NASA, NPS, and USFWS that enables and encourages informal educators to access and use relevant NASA science, data, and educational and outreach products in their work. The partnership’s focus is on climate change science and communication. Join us for three days of training with native informal educators from across the South Central region who recognize the importance of teaching climate change. The workshop will take place July 15-17 in Sulphur, OK. Learn more here.

ITEP’s Climate Change Adaptation Training Courses registration is online! Learn more about the courses and register here.

Toxics/Mobile Sources

Draft EPA Port-Related Emission Inventory Methodologies Document Available

The public draft of the “Methodologies for Estimating Port-Related and Goods Movement Mobile Source Emission Inventories” is now available. This document describes the latest, state-of-the-science methodologies for preparing a port-related emissions inventory for six mobile source sectors: ocean-going vessels, harbor craft, recreational marine, cargo handling equipment, onroad vehicles, and rail. This draft document reflects new data sources and model availability, and integrates the lessons learned from practical experience with EPA-Port Everglades Partnership and National Port Strategy Assessment. This document supersedes EPA’s 2009 “Current Methodologies in Preparing Mobile Source Port-Related Emission Inventories.” Interested stakeholders can send any feedback on this draft to talkaboutports@epa.gov by March 31, 2020. In addition, EPA encourages stakeholders to use this document when developing inventories.  EPA will consider any feedback received on the public draft in a future revision to this document. For more information, please visit this link.

Postponed! Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the West Coast Collaborative Partners Meeting has been postponed until August 24-26, 2020

After careful consideration of the growing public health concerns associated with the coronavirus (COVID-19), the Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the US EPA West Coast Collaborative is postponing our GTSE | WCCPM event until

August 24 – 26, 2020, at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center in Tacoma, WA.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) and the Green Transportation Summit & Expo (GTSE) have partnered to provide 25 complimentary full-conference passes to the Green Transportation Summit & Expo. The GTSE is the Pacific Northwest’s premier clean fleet and transportation event, focusing on fleets, fuels, technologies, policy & practice, with a regional focus and a national scope. We will provide you the opportunity to see, touch, drive, and learn about new transportation technologies firsthand, such as electric, hydrogen, natural gas and propane-powered heavy-duty vehicles, off-road utility vehicles, generators, and others. Workshops on DERA, VW funding, other federal funding opportunities, and alternative fuels will be presented. Please join us at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center for the 10^th annual GTSE to learn about clean transportation, how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, pollutants, and costs in your fleet operations. To learn more about the conference, check out our website. To receive the code for the complimentary passes, please contact ITEP’s Dara Marks Marino at Dara.Marks-Marino@nau.edu.

NEW! Heavy Duty Engine Design for a Transitioning Market

Thursday, April 2, 2020, at 12:00pm EDT

An uncertain regulatory climate. The potential for automated vehicle operation. All these trends are affecting the way engine developers are approaching near-term engine design and development cycles. What are the most significant – and potentially most disruptive – factors that will influence engine developers in the next three to five years? This 60-minute Technical Webinar from the editors of SAE International examines emergent engine design and technology trends that are likely to advance as smart choices in a transitioning environment of on- and off-road heavy-duty engines. An audience Q&A will follow the technical presentation. Register here!

EPA MOVES Training

EPA has presented various webinars and training courses to assist users with MOtor Vehicle Emission Simulator (MOVES) software and inputs, and makes presentation slides available here for future reference. Subscribe to the MOVES Listserv to receive notification of upcoming webinars and courses. We have an upcoming hands-on two day MOVES training session scheduled for May 5-6 in Research Triangle Park, NC. This is part of EPA’s Air Emissions Inventory Training conference, which is free and intended for state, local, and tribal air agency members and their contractors who develop inventories and/or prepare State Implementation Plans.  For more information, see this webpage. We also make all of our training materials available for self-study on our website.

Indoor Air Quality

Call for Experts: Develop guidelines on protecting building occupants from smoke during wildland fires

The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) has agreed to support development of guidelines on building measures (e.g., air handling/filtration, etc) to reduce human exposure to smoke during wildfires.  Once finalized, these guidelines will provide valuable information for local officials, building owners and managers. Steven Emmerich of NIST will be chairing the committee to develop these guidelines, and EPA expects to have a voting member on the committee. ASHRAE committees typically include representation from: producers (e.g, manufacturers of equipment); users (e.g., building engineers and architects); and general (academics, government). We anticipate a diverse set of perspectives for this committee including membership from indoor air quality engineers, public health officials, building managers, owners, university researchers, and others.

A Call for Members is announced for the following new project committee, GPC 44P, Protecting Building Occupants from Smoke During Wildfire and Prescribed Burn Events. The Title, Purpose and Scope (TPS) is below (and on the ASHRAE website at: www.ashrae.org/tps.)

Persons who are interested in serving on this ASHRAE committee are asked to indicate their interest by completing the online membership application forms listed under Instructions for New Applicants at https://www.ashrae.org/pcmemberapp  or by contacting Steve Ferguson at: ASHRAE, 1791 Tullie Circle, N.E., Atlanta, GA 30329; phone: 678-539-1138; fax: 678- 539-2138; email Standards.Section@ashrae.org.

Be sure to subscribe to CodeTalk, HUD’s Office of Native American Programs newsletter, for webinars and opportunities!

UPCOMING CALLS/EVENTS/NOTICES

Ambient Air Quality/EPA/NTAA/Tribes

RadResponder webinars, links, and information

Upcoming Webinars this spring:

The CBRNResponder team conducts Special Feature Webinars each month covering various topics and capabilities. See the links below to sign up for a webinar. If you would like to request a new user webinar please contact us at support@cbrnresponder.net.

• Event Merging: Mar. 11 (Wed) 1:00 PM ET Sign up
• Chemical Data Types and Severity Thresholds: Apr. 15 (Wed) 1:00 PM ET Sign up
• GIS File Management: May 12 (Tues) 1:00 PM ET Sign up

Other links and information:

• RadResponder website: radresponder.net
• CBRNResponder – overarching website, that includes both RadResponder and ChemResponder: CBRNResponder.net
• Support: support@CBRNresponder.net

NEW! EPA’s Air Quality System Tribal Q&A

Wednesday, March 11, 2020 2:00 PM-3:30 PM (UTC-05:00) Eastern Time (US & Canada)

This interactive call provides an opportunity for new and experienced tribal users of EPA’s Air Quality System to hear updates on any changes to AQS and allows for any questions to be answered by AQS staff from EPA. Join Skype Meeting or join by phone: (984) 444-7480 with conference ID 11741141#.

Request for Applications for EPA’s American Indian Air Quality Training Program, RFA#: EPA-OAR-IO-20-03, Closing Date: March 13, 2020

EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation (OAR) is soliciting applications from eligible entities to provide comprehensive air quality policy and regulatory analysis including support and national coordination activities to assist tribes in understanding, participating in, and responding to OAR’s policy and regulatory activities. The total estimated funding for this competitive opportunity is approximately $8,000,000 over five years. EPA anticipates awarding one cooperative agreement from this announcement, subject to availability of funds, the quality of applications received, and other applicable considerations.

Interested in Strategic Planning? Community Outreach? Enroll in ITEP’s online courses!

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) is pleased to offer professional development training to new and seasoned tribal professionals through interactive online courses. The Tribal Strategic Planning/ETEP and Partnerships & Community Outreach courses will be available February 13 – March 20, 2020. The two online courses listed here are fee-based and have instructors to ensure your individual questions are answered in a timely manner during the course period.

Instructors:

• Sharon Hausam, Ph.D., AICP, Pueblo of Laguna, Planning Program Manager
• Ondrea Barber, former Director for the Gila River Indian Community’s Department of Environmental Quality and Manager for the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community’s Environmental Protection & Natural Resources Division

These online courses contain assignments, quizzes, videos, examples, and other resources. You will continue to have access to course materials after the course end date. Learn more and register for the two courses using the following links:

• Tribal Strategic Planning: Ensuring Successful Development of your ETEP
• Partnerships and Community Outreach

Deadline for submitting proposals for the NTFAQ has been extended to March 20, 2020

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals and the National Tribal Air Association invite you to submit a proposal to present or conduct a session during the upcoming National Tribal Forum on Air Quality, scheduled for May 27-29, 2020 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The deadline for submitting proposals has been extended to March 20, 2020! We accept requests from tribal organizations, federal and local government agencies, colleges and universities, and other public and private sector representatives working in the field of air quality. In addition to traditional presentations or panel sessions, we encourage proposals with interactive elements, including demonstrations, roundtable discussions, listening sessions, workshopping opportunities, educational activities, special caucuses or other stakeholder meetings. To submit a request to present, or for more details on options, please visit this link.

DRAFT Guidance for Ozone and Fine Particulate Matter Permit Modeling: Comment by March 27, 2020
EPA is providing an opportunity for interested stakeholders to review and comment on DRAFT Guidance for Ozone and Fine Particulate Matter Permit Modeling. This guidance provides EPA’s recommendations for how a stationary source of air pollution seeking a Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) permit may demonstrate that it will not cause or contribute to a violation of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for ozone (O₃) and fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) and PSD increments for PM_2.5, as required under Section 165(a)(3) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) and 40 CFR sections 51.166(k) and 52.21(k). This draft guidance updates EPA’s Guidance for PM_2.5 Permit Modeling to reflect the 2017 revisions to the Guideline on Air Quality Models and incorporates appropriate sections for O₃.  EPA requests comments on the draft guidance by Friday, March 27, 2020. This allows at least 45 days for consideration, review, and comment. The draft guidance is available on EPA’s SCRAM website.

Save the Date & Call for Papers: National Ambient Air Monitoring Conference

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, August 10-13, 2020. Abstracts due April 17, 2020.

EPA in conjunction with the Association of Air Pollution Control Agencies (AAPCA) and the National Association of Clean Air Agencies (NACAA) are pleased to announce the 2020 National Ambient Air Monitoring Conference.

Interested in presenting a paper or a poster at the Conference? Great! We want to hear from you. We are interested in receiving proposals related to the following technical topics: PAMS, PM2.5 and Chemical Speciation, Near Road, Air Toxics, Tribal Monitoring, Field Operations, Sensors, Quality Assurance, Data Analysis & Data Visualization, Special Studies and Emerging Issues. This year we are also considering some time on the agenda for “Lightening Talks”.  These would be 5-10 minute maximum time slots for quick presentations on issues/topics related to ambient air monitoring and data analysis. In addition, if you’re planning to present a poster, please indicate if you would be interested in giving a 1-minute lightening talk about your poster. Abstracts are required for technical presentations, technical lightening talks, and posters. Please send your one-page abstract along with a bio to Laurie Trinca (trinca.laurie@epa.gov) no later than April 17, 2020. Registration is expected open in April 2020. Additional details will be available on EPA’s website in the coming months.

NEW! E-Enterprise National Meeting: Envisioning the Future of Environmental Protection

EE2020 is the latest in a long-running series of meetings sponsored by E-Enterprise for the Environment and the National Environmental Information Exchange Network. On May 12-14, 2020, EE2020 will bring together a broad community of attendees from state, tribal, and local environmental agencies, U.S. EPA, vendors, and other stakeholders with an interest in improving the productivity and responsiveness of the environmental protection enterprise. The meeting integrates content on information technology, program modernization, and process improvement. Click here to learn more about EE2020, the benefits of attending, and ways to get involved.

Save the Date: Tribal Lands and Environment Forum on August 17-20, 2020

This year’s Tribal Lands and Environment Forum: A National Conversation on Waste and Response Strategies, will take place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, August 17-20, 2020. Registration, session proposal forms, travel information, and field trip announcements will all be coming soon. Stay tuned! www.nau.edu/TLEF

Tribal Grants Education and Technical Assistance Webinar Series Second Wednesday of Every Month at 1pm ET

For more information, click here!

NTAA Upcoming Calls. The toll-free number is 1-800-309-2350. If you do not need to call toll free, or would like to help conserve NTAA funding, you can call 1-805-309-2350. Both numbers use code 928-523-0526#. Contact Andy.Bessler@nau.edu if you have any questions about any call! *Registration instructions* When you register for the GoToWebinar, please remember to include your Tribe, Region, or Organization in parenthesis after your last name. This allows you to see everyone on the call and prevents us from conducting a roll-call, ultimately saving everyone’s time.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professional’s (ITEP’s) Tribes and Climate Change Calendar includes conferences, trainings, webinars and other events related to tribes and climate change.

Click here for ITEP’s other trainings and events.

Click here for ITEP’s new Tribal Environmental Management and Planning Online Courses. New courses have been added, so check it out!

 ITEP’s FY20 AIAQTP Course Schedule 

Climate Change / Energy

March 11, 18 and 25, Noon (ET) – Ask the Expert

Every Wednesday ENERGY STAR holds a Portfolio Manager “Ask the Expert” session. It’s a live webinar that gives all users an opportunity to ask their questions directly to EPA experts in an open forum. Want to talk to a “real” person? Have a question about how Portfolio Manager calculates your score? Want to learn more about entering Green Power? Join ENERGY STAR, and they’ll answer all your questions about ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager in this public forum.

Register

March 11, 1 PM (ET) – Portfolio Manager 201

Continue to learn about EPA’s ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager Tool with a deeper dive into more advanced functionalities such as: editing property data; correcting and updating property use details; using the data quality checker; and sharing property data.

Register

March 12, 1 PM (ET) – Benchmarking Water & Wastewater Treatment Plants in Portfolio Manager

This webinar features EPA’s ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager, a powerful online tool that can help you track and manage your system’s energy usage and energy savings from efficiency projects, including related greenhouse gas emissions for your inventories. We will discuss how Portfolio Manager benefits water and wastewater systems, and demonstrate how you can create an account and benchmark your systems at no cost to you.

Register

March 16, Noon (ET) – Reducing Supply Chain Embodied Greenhouse Gas Emissions with Local Economic Benefits: The Urban Wood Project

As more companies set goals to reduce their supply chain greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions—especially from their manufactured goods and services—new collaborative opportunities and innovative approaches can help them achieve their targets. This webinar explores a new partnership in reducing a product’s embodied GHG emissions that also achieves additional community benefits. In 2018, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service brought together Humanim, a social services enterprise, and the U.S.-based furniture manufacturer and retailer Room & Board in a unique partnership aimed at improving American communities environmentally, socially and economically. Through its Urban Wood Project, reclaimed wood from Baltimore’s former housing stock was incorporated into one of Room & Board’s product lines, while also increasing local employment. In the webinar, representatives from USDA’s Forest Service, Humanim, and Room and Board discuss the partnership model, its successes, and current opportunities and challenges for scaling up.

Speakers:

• Sarah Hines – Urban Field Station Network Coordinator, USDA Forest Service
• Jeff Carroll – Vice-President, Humanim
• Steve Freeman – Vendor Resource Manager, Room & Board

Register

March 17, 2 PM (ET) – Portfolio Manager 301

With a good background on the basic functionality of EPA’s ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager Tool, learn about some advanced features including: using spreadsheet upload templates to update property data; setting goals and targets to plan energy improvements for properties; creating custom reports; and using the Sustainable Buildings Checklist.

Register

March 17, 1 PM (ET) – Introduction to REopt Lite Open Source

The REopt Lite web tool helps building owners evaluate the economic viability of grid-connected PV, wind, and battery storage at a site; identify system sizes and battery dispatch strategies to minimize energy costs; and estimate how long a system can sustain critical loads during a grid outage. In this webinar, we will review REopt Lite Open Source, the latest addition to the suite of ways you can use REopt Lite for research, analysis, and project development. REopt Lite Open Source allows programmers to explore the source code to see exactly how the model works, add custom capabilities, and work with NREL to implement new features.

Register

March 20, 1:30 PM (ET) – Financing Climate Mitigation and Resilience: Lessons from Hawaii

View a live briefing on innovative efforts to finance and implement climate change mitigation and resilience projects. Featuring a panel from Hawaii, the briefing will explore steps the state is taking to reach carbon neutrality and run on 100 percent renewable energy by 2045. Hawaii’s top climate change official will discuss state-wide efforts to lead on climate, and the Executive Director of one of the most robust green banks in the country will speak about its unique features and how it supports companies, communities, and individuals as they work towards Hawaii’s climate goals in an equitable way.

Livecast link

March 24, Noon (ET) – Resilience: Helping Communities and Countries Move from Crisis to Stability

Resilience. It’s a pressing topic, but the term is frequently confused with related—yet distinct—concepts of risk reduction or adaptation. Join Abt for a free webinar to learn what resilience really means, how it is relevant to diverse stakeholders, and how to strengthen resilience at local, regional, and national scales. Speakers will describe how communities and nations experience and recover from impacts to their environment and climate, energy systems, health, and cultures, and how to develop effective resilience-building strategies.

Speakers:

• Lorine Giangola, Ph.D. – Abt Associate Scientist, Environment & Natural Resources (moderator)
• Ambassador John Lange – Senior Fellow for Global Health Diplomacy, United Nations Foundation
• Sherry Stout, Engineer – U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL)
• Raymond Martinez – Director of the Pueblo de San Ildefonso’s Department of Environmental and Cultural Preservation, and Tribal Risk Assessment Program Manager

Register

March 25, 11 AM (MT) – Energy Efficiency Projects from Concept to Completion

Once your Tribe has identified energy efficiency as a goal and considered the opportunities, the next state consists of defining and executing the project. This webinar will focus on how to move a project from concept to completion.

Register

March 31, 1 PM (ET) — Resilient Power in Puerto Rico – Innovative Applications of Solar+Storage to Serve Vulnerable Populations  

Since Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico in 2017, demand for resilient power technologies — solar PV paired with battery storage (solar+storage) — has so far resulted in over 10,000 residential and 300 critical facility systems across the island. Despite these gains, persistent energy infrastructure issues still plague the island. After the recent earthquakes, entire regions had to contend with extended blackouts. Rural communities face additional hurdles. This Clean Energy Group webinar will explore innovative solar+storage applications in vulnerable communities. Panelists will also discuss barriers to resilient power development and local workforce training initiatives.

Register

Call for Proposals now open: National Tribal & Indigenous Climate Conference August 31-September 4, 2020

Proposals due: April 3, 2020

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) is honored to host the United States’ First Biennial National Tribal and Indigenous Climate Conference (NTICC) along with support from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Tribal Resilience Program. The NTICC is open to all US tribal nations and Indigenous Peoples from throughout the world, with an emphasis on including our Elders and

Youth. The NTICC will convene experts on climate change and will include a balance of Traditional Indigenous Knowledges and Western Science. We invite people to submit proposals discussing climate-related impacts, assessments, tools, adaptation planning, mitigation and actions in one or more of the following tracks:

• Indigenous Knowledges
• Air, Health & Well-Being
• Land
• Water
• Relocation
• Infrastructure
• Energy Systems
• Food Sovereignty
• Ecosystems and Biodiversity

South Central Climate Adaptation Science Center: Earth to Sky Workshop

Earth to Sky is a partnership between NASA, NPS, and USFWS that enables and encourages informal educators to access and use relevant NASA science, data, and educational and outreach products in their work. The partnership’s focus is on climate change science and communication. Join us for three days of training with native informal educators from across the South Central region who recognize the importance of teaching climate change. The workshop will take place July 15-17 in Sulphur, OK. Learn more here.

ITEP’s Climate Change Adaptation Training Courses registration is online! Learn more about the courses and register here.

Toxics/Mobile Sources

Mobility Mindsets: Shared Mobility and Personal Micromobility

Thursday, March 12, 3:00-4:30 PM (ET)

Electric vehicles are only part of what many believe is a changing transportation landscape. Other emerging trends that are sparking innovation and investment include shared mobility and personal micromobility services. Researchers are still learning under which conditions these changes can be good for the environment. This webinar will highlight potential approaches to reducing emissions via mobility options.

Register

Draft EPA Port-Related Emission Inventory Methodologies Document Available

The public draft of the “Methodologies for Estimating Port-Related and Goods Movement Mobile Source Emission Inventories” is now available. This document describes the latest, state-of-the-science methodologies for preparing a port-related emissions inventory for six mobile source sectors: ocean-going vessels, harbor craft, recreational marine, cargo handling equipment, onroad vehicles, and rail. This draft document reflects new data sources and model availability, and integrates the lessons learned from practical experience with EPA-Port Everglades Partnership and National Port Strategy Assessment. This document supersedes EPA’s 2009 “Current Methodologies in Preparing Mobile Source Port-Related Emission Inventories.” Interested stakeholders can send any feedback on this draft to talkaboutports@epa.gov by March 31, 2020. In addition, EPA encourages stakeholders to use this document when developing inventories.  EPA will consider any feedback received on the public draft in a future revision to this document. For more information, please visit this link.

Green Transportation Summit & Expo and the West Coast Collaborative Partners Meeting April 13-15, 2020

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) and the Green Transportation Summit & Expo (GTSE) have partnered to provide 25 complimentary full-conference passes to the Green Transportation Summit & Expo in Tacoma this April 13-15. The GTSE is the Pacific Northwest’s premier clean fleet and transportation event, focusing on fleets, fuels, technologies, policy & practice, with a regional focus and a national scope. We will provide you the opportunity to see, touch, drive, and learn about new transportation technologies firsthand, such as electric, hydrogen, natural gas and propane-powered heavy-duty vehicles, off-road utility vehicles, generators, and others. Workshops on DERA, VW funding, other federal funding opportunities, and alternative fuels will be presented. Please join us at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center for the 10^th annual GTSE to learn about clean transportation, how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, pollutants, and costs in your fleet operations. To learn more about the conference, check out our website. To receive the code for the complimentary passes, please contact ITEP’s Dara Marks Marino at Dara.Marks-Marino@nau.edu.

NEW! EPA MOVES Training

EPA has presented various webinars and training courses to assist users with MOtor Vehicle Emission Simulator (MOVES) software and inputs, and makes presentation slides available here for future reference. Subscribe to the MOVES Listserv to receive notification of upcoming webinars and courses. We have an upcoming hands-on two day MOVES training session scheduled for May 5-6 in Research Triangle Park, NC. This is part of EPA’s Air Emissions Inventory Training conference, which is free and intended for state, local, and tribal air agency members and their contractors who develop inventories and/or prepare State Implementation Plans.  For more information, see this webpage. We also make all of our training materials available for self-study on our website.

Indoor Air Quality

NEW! Call for Experts: Develop guidelines on protecting building occupants from smoke during wildland fires

The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) has agreed to support development of guidelines on building measures (e.g., air handling/filtration, etc) to reduce human exposure to smoke during wildfires.  Once finalized, these guidelines will provide valuable information for local officials, building owners and managers. Steven Emmerich of NIST will be chairing the committee to develop these guidelines, and EPA expects to have a voting member on the committee. ASHRAE committees typically include representation from: producers (e.g, manufacturers of equipment); users (e.g., building engineers and architects); and general (academics, government). We anticipate a diverse set of perspectives for this committee including membership from indoor air quality engineers, public health officials, building managers, owners, university researchers, and others.

A Call for Members is announced for the following new project committee, GPC 44P, Protecting Building Occupants from Smoke During Wildfire and Prescribed Burn Events. The Title, Purpose and Scope (TPS) is below (and on the ASHRAE website at: www.ashrae.org/tps.)

Persons who are interested in serving on this ASHRAE committee are asked to indicate their interest by completing the online membership application forms listed under Instructions for New Applicants at https://www.ashrae.org/pcmemberapp  or by contacting Steve Ferguson at: ASHRAE, 1791 Tullie Circle, N.E., Atlanta, GA 30329; phone: 678-539-1138; fax: 678- 539-2138; email Standards.Section@ashrae.org.

Federal Interagency Committee on Indoor Air Quality (CIAQ)

The Federal Interagency Committee on Indoor Air Quality (CIAQ) will hold its next public webinar on Wednesday, March 11, 2020, beginning at 1:00 p.m. EST.

At the meeting, CIAQ member agencies will provide updates on indoor environmental quality–related activities at their agencies, with the goal of enhancing opportunities for collaboration and coordination. Following these updates, invited presentations on topics of interest to the IAQ community include—

1. Findings from a Meta-Analysis of the Association of Respiratory Health Effects and Dampness and Mold in Schools and
2. The results of an assessment of Indoor Environmental Control Practices by Race/Ethnicity Among Children with Asthma in 14 US States and Puerto Rico, 2013-2014

The agenda for the March meeting will be provided on the CIAQ website shortly.

• To register for the webinar, please visit this link.
• For audio, participants must call toll-free (855) 883-8661 and provide the operator with the audio conference ID 4942048 when prompted.
• If you would like to attend in person, please contact the Executive Secretariat at laureen@epa.gov with your full name and organizational affiliation; this information is needed for security purposes.

For more information on the CIAQ and its activities, click here. If you have a presentation topic or other suggestions that you would like considered for future meetings, please send it to burton.laureen@epa.gov.

Be sure to subscribe to CodeTalk, HUD’s Office of Native American Programs newsletter, for webinars and opportunities!