| From the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency – |
| Hello everyone and happy new year! Below please find some information about next week’s – January 10th Portland Harbor Community Advisory Group meeting and a few related items. January 10 Portland Harbor Community Advisory Group Meeting – *Save the Date* March 13 Portland Harbor Collaborative Group Meeting – *Optional Review by January 31* Community Impacts Mitigation Plan Annotated Outline – *Upcoming Deadlines!* City of Portland Community Grants – Environmental Justice Updates 1. January 10 Portland Harbor Community Advisory Group Meeting (6:30-8:30pm Pacific) The Portland Harbor CAG welcomes everyone to attend next week’s hybrid meeting on Wednesday, January 10 from 6:30-8:30pm, featuring: – EPA’s Hunter Young will provide brief updates on the Gasco In Situ Stabilization and Solidification Field Pilot Study and the Pacific Power Willamette River Crossing. – Nancy Hiser with Tank the Tanks will provide a slideshow presentation of the Multnomah County Office of Sustainability and the City of Portland Bureau of Emergency Management’s commissioned study of the Critical Energy Infrastructure Hub in Northwest Portland. – Bob Sallinger with Willamette Riverkeeper will provide a quick “Consent Decree 101” to help community members discern the meaning of the two proposed consent decrees that were recently lodged by the Department of Justice to restore natural resources in Portland Harbor. This information will help community members provide good comments for the January 28, 2024 deadline. For more information, please visit the CAG’s website or contact the CAG at portlandharborcag@gmail.com (the CAG is always looking for new members & volunteers)! – In-Person Location: 8940 N. Bradford St. Portland, Oregon 97203 (https://goo.gl/maps/tB7tzPscUuS7wRQA7). – Zoom Information: Zoom Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86023146208 Meeting ID: 860 2314 6208 One tap mobile +12532158782,,86023146208# 2. *Save the Date* March 13 Portland Harbor Collaborative Group Meeting Please save the date for the next Portland Harbor Collaborative Group Meeting on the evening of March 13. This meeting will be hosted in person and online. The meeting topic and more information will be shared next month. If you are interested in becoming a Collaborative member, please e-mail phcollaborative@triangleassociates.com. You may also review the Collaborative Group Charter document, which was developed in collaboration with Portland-area community leaders and members and approved in principle at the group’s September 13, 2023 meeting. 3. *Optional Review by January 31* Community Impacts Mitigation Plan Annotated Outline EPA continues to develop Community Impacts Mitigation Plan (CIMP) for the Portland Harbor Superfund Site. The CIMP is a living document that will serve as a guide and enforcement tool to reduce adverse impacts to the community from Portland Harbor activities. The CIMP draft annotated outline includes information gathered so far and is not comprehensive, but provides a status update on the current content and layout of the CIMP. If you want to submit informal comments on the CIMP Annotated Outline, (completely optional) you may: – Review the annotated outline by January 31, 2024 (extended) = Share your thoughts with us by either (1) filling out this survey or (2) reach out to Dani Jochums, Triangle Associates, via email at djochums@triangleassociates.com to provide written comments or schedule a time to meet. The full draft CIMP will be shared for public feedback tentatively in winter 2024. 4. *Upcoming Deadlines!* City of Portland Community Grants The Portland Harbor Community Grants support community-led programs related to the Portland Harbor Superfund. The goal is to support meaningful public involvement in the Portland Harbor cleanup, particularly for communities disproportionately affected by the contamination and cleanup. Grant applications will be open January 15 – February 15, with technical assistance available throughout the application period. Anyone interested in becoming a panelist for the grant review committee should fill out an interest form due by January 8 (extended). Committee members may expect a time commitment of about 20-25 hours and the city offers a $500 stipend. Review Panel Virtual Orientation will be held January 10, where reviewers and the Portland Harbor team will select dates for two review sessions. Here is what the time commitment looks like for panelists: – Receive grant applications, evaluation criteria, and score sheets for evaluation by February 21. – Evaluate applications and submit score sheets to Portland Harbor team by 9 a.m., March 5. – The first review panel will take place on the evening of March 5, 6, or 7. – Conversations with panelists and applicants will take place March 12-14. Panelists are expected to attend one of these conversations. – The second and final review committee meeting will take place March 18, 19, or 20. Find more information on the City’s Portland Harbor Community Grant website or contact Miranda Mishan at City of Portland (miranda.mishan@portlandoregon.gov). 5. Environmental Justice Updates · – Public Comment Period on Draft Policy for Public Participation in Agency Decision-Making Processes – the draft policy, Achieving Health and Environmental Protection Through EPA’s Meaningful Involvement Policy, provides guidance for EPA on meaningfully involving the public in Agency regulatory and program decisions. You may submit public comments until January 16, 2024. Comments can be submitted via: – Emailing MeaningfulInvolvementPolicy@epa.gov – Submit the contact us form – The draft policy docket EPA-HQ-OEJECR-2023-0326 at www.regulations.gov To learn more about the policy, register for a webinar at: https://www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/epas-meaningful-involvement-policy Questions: Please contact MeaningfulInvolvementPolicy@epa.gov. In recent EPA press releases: Biden-Harris Administration Announces $600M to 11 Grantmakers to Fund Thousands of Environmental Justice Projects Across the Nation as Part of Investing in America Agenda o Communities will be able to apply to a Grantmaker for a subgrant to fund a range of different environmental project activities, including (but not limited to) small local cleanups, local emergency preparedness and disaster resiliency programs, environmental workforce development programs for local jobs reducing greenhouse gas emissions, fenceline air quality and asthma related projects, healthy homes programs, and projects addressing illegal dumping. o Grantmakers will work in collaboration with the Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Centers to create a robust support network to assist eligible entities when applying. o Learn more about the Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Grantmakers Biden-Harris Administration Announces $2 Billion to Fund Environmental and Climate Justice Community Change Grants as Part of Investing in America Agenda o This funding will support community-driven projects that deploy clean energy, strengthen climate resilience, and build capacity for communities to tackle environmental and climate justice challenges. o The Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) will be open until November 21, 2024, and EPA will review applications on a rolling basis. EPA encourages applicants to apply as early as possible. o Learn more about Community Change Grants If you have any questions, suggestions, or concerns about the Portland Harbor Superfund Site, please contact Laura Knudsen (knudsen.laura@epa.gov, 206-553-1838) or Kristin Ching (ching.kristin@epa.gov, 206-900-4344). You may also visit EPA’s Portland Harbor Superfund Site webpage at www.epa.gov/superfund/portland-harbor. Thank you! |