UPCOMING CALLS/EVENTS/NOTICES

Ambient Air Quality/EPA/NTAA/Tribes

NEW! 2022 WHITE HOUSE TRIBAL NATIONS SUMMIT ANNOUNCEMENT

The President will host the next White House Tribal Nations Summit on November 30 and December 1 at the Department of the Interior in Washington, D.C. Since taking office, the President has prioritized strengthening Nation-to-Nation relationships, honoring trust and treaty obligations with federally recognized Tribes and advancing Tribal sovereignty and self-determination. Through the American Rescue Plan, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and the Inflation Reduction Act, the Administration is also making historic investments in Tribal communities. Building on the 2021 White House Tribal Nations Summit, this year’s Summit will be an opportunity for Tribal leaders to engage directly with senior administration officials on the implementation of these key priorities, new policies, and other important issues facing Tribal communities. Read the statement here.

NEW! Limited Stipends Available for the 2022 WHITE HOUSE TRIBAL NATIONS SUMMIT

Greetings Fellow Sovereignty Protectors and Justice Advocates, In partnership with Native Americans in Philanthropy (NAP) as our funder, we are pleased to announce that the USET SPF is leading the coordination and management of providing a limited number of stipend payments to support Tribal Leaders from across Indian Country who want to attend the White House Tribal Nations Summit (WHTNS). To qualify, individuals must (1) self-attest a financial need, (2) be a representative of a federally recognized Tribal Nation, and (3) have been accepted by the White House as the Designated Attendee for their federally recognized Tribal Nation.

Stipends in the amount of $2,500 will be made available on a first come, first served basis, until funds are exhausted. Stipends will be paid directly to the federally recognized Tribal Nation. Please see the link below to complete the stipend request form. Click Here for Stipend Request Form

Please join us for a virtual round table discussion hosted by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Midwest Tribal Energy Resources Association on either November 8 (3PM MT) or November 9 (9AM MT).

Indian Country represents approximately 2% of the U.S. landmass, but more than 5% of the United States solar photovoltaic (PV) potential. Despite the significant potential of solar PV development on tribal lands, only a handful of large-scale projects have been installed.The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and MTERA have partnered to form the Tribal Solar Initiative in order to address regulatory barriers to tribal solar adoption, supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Energy Technologies Office. The goal of the project is to articulate key barriers to tribal solar and tribal solar-plus-storage adoption at all scales and to ready stakeholders to implement options to address these challenges.

These discussions will focus on the findings of the Tribal Solar Initiative. In March 2022, NREL and MTERA published the draft guidebook “Addressing Regulatory Challenges to Tribal Solar Deployment” and is seeking feedback from interested stakeholders regarding key findings. Final+Guidebooks+Draft.pdf (squarespace.com). We hope that you will join us so that we may improve the guidebook and better enable tribal solar deployment.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) FY2022 Appropriations

To View Report Click Here.

This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan shared staff to congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and under the direction of Congress. Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other than public understanding of information that has been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in connection with CRS’s institutional role.

NC Radon Program Social Media Toolkit

The NC Radon Program has created a free Radon Social Media Toolkit for your use. The materials are in both English and Spanish. All of the materials are in a Google Docs folder. To access this social media toolkit folder

EPA’s Community and Tribal Programs Group has a publicly facing Tribal Actions and Events calendar for all to use!

This calendar is also linked under the “Tribal Air and Climate Resources” webpage under the “Policy and Planning” heading available at https://www.epa.gov/tribal-air. The purpose of the calendar is to ensure that our Tribal partners are kept apprised of EPA activities that are relevant to them. If you have any questions about the calendars or any recommendations on how EPA can improve upon the calendars, please do not hesitate to reach out to Loren Fox ([email protected]) with any feedback.

New Air Knowledge E–Learning Content

The Air Knowledge training team is pleased to announce the availability of new air quality training materials!

These e-learning courses and modules are at the foundational learning level and are available to tribal, state, and local air agencies through our learning management system (LMS) and to the public here. The website was recently enhanced to provide additional self-instructional and instructor-led training materials.

The new materials include:

A course that explains the key historic events that led to air pollution control legislation and describes progress made with air pollution control since the passage of the Clean Air Act,
A course that explains the basic components of state and tribal implementation plans,
A module that generally defines the transport and fate of air pollutants and how transport and fate are influenced by meteorology and topography,
A module that explains the basic aspects of an air emissions inventory, and
A module that explains the purposes and types of air emissions inventories, including the inventories that the EPA develops.

More detailed information about the contents of these new materials can be found in the attached document.

To access the courses and modules on the LMS (https://epaapti.csod.com), tribal air agencies and organizations can register, log in, and refer to the “What’s New” section on the home page. All other users (the public, international community, academia, industry, EPA staff, etc.) can access the courses and modules on the Air Knowledge interim website.

NTAA Upcoming Calls

Contact [email protected] 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 rollcall, ultimately saving everyone’s time.

Woodsmoke Work Group: This work group meets Bi-Monthly and includes Tribal and EPA professionals with an interest in woodsmoke issues in Tribal communities. Contact [email protected] to join the call!	Thursday, November 17, 10 am AK or 2 pm ET
Mobile Sources Work Group: This work group meets Bi-Monthly and includes Tribal and EPA professionals with an interest in mobile source issues in Tribal communities. Contact [email protected] to join the call!	Thursday, November 3, 10 am AK or 2 pm ET
Alaska Air Work Group: Join this work group to hear updates from EPA and Alaskans working on air quality. Contact [email protected] to join the call!	November 16, 10 am AK or 2 pm ET (tentative)
NTAA / EPA Air Policy Update Call: Join this monthly meeting to hear updates from EPA on important air quality and climate policy updates as well as updates around the country related to Tribal Air Programs. Calls are usually on the last Thursday of every month unless it falls on a national holiday. Contact [email protected] to join the call!	Thursday, October 27, 10 am AK or 2 pm ET
Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) Work Group: This work group meets Bi-Monthly and includes Tribal and EPA professionals with an interest in indoor air quality in Tribal homes and other buildings. [email protected] to join the call!	Thursday, December 15, 10 am AK or 2 pm ET

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professional (ITEP)

Click Here for ITEP’s new Tribal Environmental Management and Planning Online Courses. Sign up for a self-paced course hosted by ITEP’s Waste and Response and Tribal Air Quality programs. New courses have been added, so check it out!

ITEP’s American Indian Air Quality Training Program (AIAQTP) hosts the Building Performance: Improving IAQ in Cold Climates, Residential Building Science Review, Radon Fundamentals, Quality Assurance Fundamental, Writing a Quality Assurance Project Plan, Emissions Inventory Fundamentals, and Emissions Inventory Advanced.

AIAQTP Schedule and Registration

Recorded Webinars

Looking for more information check out the Tribal Air Quality Media Space Channel. Recent webinars include an Introduction to Air Quality Programs, Emissions Inventories, Remote Professional Assistance, and Woodstoves in Indian Country. Older classics include a series on Air Quality Planning for Wildland Smoke, Tribal Air Program and Grants, Data Management, and the Clean Air Act.

ITEP’s Tribes and Climate Change Calendar includes conferences, trainings, webinars, and other events related to tribes and climate change.

EPA Tools and Resources Webinar Series

Click here to see all past and upcoming webinars hosted by the EPA.

Climate Change / Energy

REMINDER! Clean Energy Group webinars: Introduction State Leadership in Decarbonizing the Building Sector, Featuring California and New York

October 26, 2022, | 1 PM ET | Register Here

The building sector is a substantial contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. This webinar will highlight two state initiatives that are making a big impact in decarbonizing this sector. The California Energy Commission’s 2022 Building Energy Efficiency Standards for newly constructed buildings and renovated buildings blazes a trail for states seeking to decarbonize aggressively and cost-effectively. The New York Clean Energy Initiative, a joint effort of NYSERDA and New York State Homes and Community Renewal, provides incentives and technical assistance for electrification and high-performance envelope improvements in new and existing multifamily affordable housing developments. In this webinar, representatives from the California Energy Commission and NYSERDA will present their programs and answer questions from the audience. CESA’s Warren Leon will moderate. These programs were recipients of the 2022 State Leadership in Clean Energy Awards. Learn more at https://www.cesa.org/projects/state-leadership-in-clean-energy/2022-awards/.

Toxics/Mobile Sources

REMINDER! U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) EV Grid Assist: Accelerating the Transition initiative Webinar Series

September 8 – November 10, 2022

This webinar series is part of the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) EV Grid Assist: Accelerating the Transition initiative. It aims to support decision makers by providing timely information on a wide range of topics important to the integration of electric vehicles and the grid. To learn more about the EVGrid Assist initiative or to download a recording of past webinars, visit www.energy.gov/evgridassist.

Charging Station Design – Part 1, September 27, 2022, 3:00 PM – 4:30 EDT, Register Here
Load Forecasting, October 3, 2022, 3:00 PM – 4:30 PM EDT, Register Here
Rates and Incentives, October 25, 2022, 3:00 PM – 4:30 PM EDT, Register Here
Planning for the future, November 10, 2022, 3:00 PM – 4:30 PM EDT, Register Here

EPA Past SmartWay Webinars and Events

To address these trends and challenges, EPA developed the SmartWay program.

Launched in 2004, this voluntary public-private program:

provides a comprehensive and well-recognized system for tracking, documenting and sharing information about fuel use and freight emissions across supply chains
helps companies identify and select more efficient freight carriers, transport modes, equipment, and operational strategies to improve supply chain sustainability and lower costs from goods movement
supports global energy security and offsets environmental risk for companies and countries
reduces freight transportation-related emissions by accelerating the use of advanced fuel-saving technologies
is supported by major transportation industry associations, environmental groups, state and local governments, international agencies, and the corporate community

View the SmartWay timeline and learn about the program’s achievements and key milestones reached since SmartWay’s launch in 2002. Our progress to making freight in the supply chain more sustainable and efficient is due to the vision, commitment and hard work of SmartWay Partners and Affiliates! Two Decades of Progress: SmartWay Partnership Milestones (PDF)(1 pg, 345 K, June 2021, EPA-420-H-21-001). Click Here to view past webinars and upcoming webinars

Indoor Air Quality

NEW! EPA Seeks Information to Support Indoor Air Quality Management Improvements to Reduce Disease Transmission and Improve Public Health

Building upon the Biden-Harris Administration’s Clean Air in Buildings Challenge, a key component of the President’s National COVID-19 Preparedness Plan, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is seeking public comment to inform efforts by EPA and others to support the widespread adoption of actions that lead to improvements in indoor air quality in the nation’s building stock, with a particular emphasis on schools and commercial buildings, to help reduce disease transmission indoors and improve public health. EPA will review information received during this public comment period to support the potential development, improvement, and implementation of technical assistance efforts, including tools, training, guidance, and other strategies to support sustained ventilation, filtration, air cleaning, and other indoor air quality improvements in buildings. The Agency is inviting comments from a broad array of individuals and organizations with knowledge and expertise relating to the built environment and health, indoor air quality, epidemiology, disease transmission, social sciences, and other disciplines, and from the general public.

Comments must be submitted by December 5, 2022. For more information, see FR Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2022-0794.

EPA Spanish Webinar: Indoor Air Quality: Healthy Homes and Asthma

November 10, 2022, | 1:00 – 2:00 PM ET | Register Here

EPA’s Office of Indoor Environments ─ whose primary goal is to improve indoor air quality where people live, learn and work ─ will host this Spanish-language webinar on the importance and relationship of indoor air quality, healthy homes, and asthma. EPA will be joined by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in Puerto Rico and the Puerto Rico Department of Health.

This webinar will provide you with valuable information on:

Indoor air quality
Principles of healthy homes
Asthma in Puerto Rico and the VIAS Home Visiting Project
Resources available in Spanish

We encourage you to register for this webinar aimed at Spanish speakers in general. Spread the word and forward information about the event to a colleague who may be interested in the topic.

For more information about the webinar, please contact Carmen Torrent at [email protected]

Available Now: An Introduction to Radon Gas in Homes Webinar Recording

EPA’s Indoor Environments Division recently hosted a webinar to provide an overview of the key basic facts of radon – what it is, what it does to us, how we measure it, how we reduce our exposure, and where to find resources and additional information. A recording of An Introduction to Radon Gas in Homes is now available online. The recorded webinar features a presentation by Bruce Snead, Director of Engineering Extension at Kansas State University and director of the National Radon Program Services effort for EPA since 2009.

EPA: A Fact Sheet for Tribes on State and Tribal Indoor Radon Grants

EPA’s Indoor Environments Division is pleased to announce the State and Tribal Indoor Radon Grants (SIRG) Program Fact Sheet. This fact sheet has information on SIRG eligibility, matching requirements, allowable activities, EPA contacts, and more. EPA works collaboratively and values our tribal partnership to support healthy indoor air quality (IAQ) in tribal communities. We work together to develop tools and resources that address the health and the safety of tribal members when it comes to indoor air quality.

Please visit the Indoor Air Quality in Tribal Communities or State Indoor Radon Grants (SIRG) Program and Resources pages to learn more and download the fact sheet.

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