Region 7 Gives Grants for Pollution Prevention
EPA Region 7 awarded grants to the University of Missouri-Columbia's Environmental Assistance Center (EAC), the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (IDNR), the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the University of Nebraska-Omaha, and Kansas State University and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) for pollution prevention initiatives.
The regional office awarded $112,500 to the University of Missouri-Columbia's EAC for projects aimed at building increased capacity and implementation of environmental stewardship programs that target pollution prevention.
MU will provide matching funds totaling $112,770, giving the project a total value of $225,270. The university's EAC will use the funds to continue efforts to institutionalize curricula that will result in a minor or certificate program within the university system for pollution prevention. MU will also expand its internship program to support Missouri businesses in ways to reduce toxics and conserve water and energy, with a special emphasis on helping public water and wastewater treatment facilities.
Additionally, MU will work with specific industries to increase the tools and support for reducing toxics and conserving water and energy, including a special effort with the Missouri Dental Association and its members to prevent mercury from entering the environment.
Key partners in the project include the Missouri Institute of Science & Technology, Missouri State University, Washington University, Missouri Department of Natural Resources, Associated Industries of Missouri, Missouri Chamber of Commerce, Missouri Water Resources Center, Small Business Technology Development Centers, Missouri Dental Association, and the National Pollution Prevention Roundtable.
IDNR received two grants totaling $169,157 to support projects aimed at pollution prevention in the health care and metal finishing industries. The state agency will provide matching funds for each of the two projects receiving EPA grant assistance.
IDNR's Pollution Prevention Services will receive $112,750 from EPA and provide additional funds for a total of $225,500 directed at helping metal finishers raise environmental stewardship standards and reduce toxic metals and priority chemicals. This project will help the industry develop environmental management systems and will conduct assessments to evaluate voluntary pollution prevention opportunities and implementation.
Key partners for the project include the Iowa Strategic Goals Program, Iowa Waste Reduction Center, Rosenboom Machine & Tool, GE Consumer and Industrial, Rockwell Collins, City of Cedar Rapids and the Iowa Department of Economic Development.
IDNR's Pollution Prevention Services will receive a separate grant of $56,407 from EPA and provide additional funds for a total of $59,376 directed at source reduction technical assistance targeting the health care industry. The assistance will include on-site pollution prevention intern support, a series of Webinars and workshops, and professional engineering support for interns and health care facilities.
Key partners for the project include the Pollution Prevention Institute at Kansas State University, Environmental Assistance Center at the University of Missouri, Iowa City Veterans Administration, Via Christi Health Systems in Wichita, Pollution Prevention Resource Information Network, Associated Purchasing Services, Kansas City Area Healthcare Engineers, Wichita Veterans Administration, Kansas Hospital Association, Nebraska Medical Center, Kansas University Medical Center, and Practice Greenhealth.
Region 7 granted $172,650 in funding to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the University of Nebraska-Omaha for separate efforts aimed at pollution prevention.
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln will receive $71,300, and provide matching funds for a total grant of $142,773 for its Partners in Pollution Prevention program. The program will provide intensive on-site source reduction assistance to businesses using a model applicable to the current challenging economic environment. This project includes efforts to research collection methods for environmental metrics, and provide intense source reduction education to students.
The University of Nebraska Omaha (UNO) will receive $101,350, and provide matching funding for a total of $202,700 toward a cooperative assistance agreement to enhance the capacity of its Pollution Prevention Resource Information Center. UNO's center is one of eight national centers for the dissemination of pollution prevention information. It has expanded its efforts to assist pollution prevention specialists in business by adding new information resources and strengthening existing efforts in measurement and collection developments. The center is the national lead on infomatics and advancing the use of Web-based information systems. It also serves as a national co-lead on greening the hospitality industry.
Key partners in the UNO project include the University of Nebraska Medical Center, the Great Lakes Regional Pollution Prevention Information Center, and the University of Nebraska College of Information Science & Technology.
Grants totaling $154,332 will be used by Kansas State University and KDHE for separate projects aimed at pollution prevention.
Kansas State University (KSU) will receive $55,882 from EPA and provide additional funds for a total of $61,882 to support its Pollution Prevention Institute's efforts to continue offering source reduction technical assistance for the healthcare and hospitality industries.
This project includes five strategies:
- building and expanding a healthcare advisory board,
- providing direct technical assistance through an internship program,
- delivering healthcare Webinars and workshops,
- supporting the EPA Region 7 Mercury Task Force, and
- launching a green lodging pilot program to recruit business participation, provide interns and prepare a foundation for a comprehensive green lodging program in 2011.
Key partners for the project include Associated Purchasing Services, Hays Medical Center, Via Christi Health Systems of Wichita, Hampton Inn & Suites, Iowa Department of Natural Resources' Pollution Prevention Services, Pollution Prevention Resource Information Network, Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital, Missouri Extension Service's Environmental Assistance Center, Kansas Hospital Association, Iowa Hospital Association, Kansas Veterans Administration, Iowa Veterans Administration, Nebraska Medical Center, PharmEcology, and Kansas City Area Healthcare Engineers.
KDHE will receive $98,450 from EPA and provide matching funds for a total of $209,627 directed at providing multimedia pollution prevention technical assistance. KDHE and its contractor, the Pollution Prevention Institute of Kansas State University, will offer assistance in several areas, including management of an internship program to help companies assess and implement pollution prevention opportunities, education of targeted audiences through an environmental conference on pollution prevention accomplishments, publication of a newsletter, and provision of technical assistance specifically aimed at reducing toxic pollution, including pollution that results from energy demand.
Key partners for the project include Haldex Brakes, Frito-Lay, Kansas State University Engineering Department, iSi Environmental, and Geotechnical Services.
All these grants are authorized by the Pollution Prevention Act, which allows EPA to provide funding to states, their entities, and tribal governments for technical assistance projects that address source reduction or elimination of pollution by businesses across all environmental media ─ air, water and land.