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Environmental Justice Small Grants Recipients - FY2010

Grants & Programs Topics

Region 1 (ME, NH, VT, MA, RI, CT)

Recipient: Connecticut Coalition for Environmental Justice
Project Name: Hartford Recycles
Project Location: Hartford, CT
Issue: Recycling and Climate Change
Summary:
The "Hartford Recycles" project will train eight housing authority residents to be part of a Recycling Speakers Bureau. The Bureau's goal is to educate 900 Hartford residents in multifamily housing on how to recycle. Hartford Recycles will work to implement recycling programs at five housing authority buildings and will educate 10-12 landlords and small businesses about the economic benefits of recycling as oppose to higher trash removal costs. CCEJ's efforts to increase recycling will help reduce the amount of trash burned at the city's waste-to-energy incinerator and reduce greenhouse gas production.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • City Public Works, Metropolitan District (MDC)
  • the Advisory Commission on the Environment (ACOTE)

Recipient: Environmental Justice League of Rhode Island
Project Name: Community-Based Home Weatherization in Providence
Project Location: Providence, RI
Issue: Energy Efficiency and Climate Change
Summary:
The "Community-Based Home Weatherization in Providence" Project will take place in Providence, Rhode Island. Activities include training residents to perform basic home energy evaluations and home weatherization tasks and then to host several barn raising events. The goal is to provide outreach and education to homeowners and tenants about the benefits of residential weatherization as well as provide opportunities for individuals receiving job training in related fields to participate in energy efficiency efforts.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Home Energy Efficiency Team (HEET)

Recipient: Groundwork Somerville
Project Name: Groundwork Somerville Green Team: Combating Climate Change on a Local Level
Project Location: Somerville, MA
Issue: Energy Efficiency and Climate Change
Summary:
Through the project "Combating Climate Change on a Local Level", Groundwork Somerville's (GWS) High School Green Team will conduct a 20-week, door-to-door energy efficiency campaign focused on encouraging residents and business owners in the East Somerville and Clarendon Hill communities to replace incandescent light bulbs with more energy efficient compact florescent light bulbs. The Green Team also will host three "Energy Education Fairs." The fairs will focus on reducing home energy consumption, implementing energy-efficiency measures, and highlighting critical links between home energy use and climate change impacts. The goals of the project are to build awareness and provide practical instruction about home energy efficiency and how it relates to global climate change.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Somerville Climate Action
  • the City of Somerville Office of Sustainability and Environment
  • Somerville Community Access Television
  • East Somerville Main Streets

Recipient: Boston Public Health Commission
Project Name: Boston Safe Shops Project
Project Location: Boston, MA
Issue: Promote use of pollution reducing alternative products in neighborhood shops
Summary:
The Boston Safe Shops Project is designed to protect the health and well being of workers in small automotive repair shops and the neighborhoods in which they are located by preventing air pollution, promoting green job growth, and connecting workers with education and health care resources. Grant funds will be used to offer a new and important component to this project - a skills training program leading to certification on repair and maintenance of hybrid vehicles. This training will act as an incentive to implement pollution reducing alternative products in neighborhood shops.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Boston Auto Repair Shops
  • Safety-Kleen
  • Automotive Career Development Center

Recipient: Chelsea Neighborhood Development
Project Name: Cleaner Chelsea Campaign
Project Location: Chelsea, MA
Issue: Recycling
Summary:
"Cleaner Chelsea Campaign" will educate residents about new trash collection procedures, reduce litter on the streets, and increase recycling tonnage in Chelsea. Through community and City partnerships, the Cleaner Chelsea Campaign will coordinate city-wide public outreach and education about recycling which will include home visits, distribution of recycling bins, and house meetings. The project goal is to increase recycling from 7% to 14% citywide.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • City of Chelsea
  • Chelsea Green Space
  • Interact Club

Recipient: Groundworks Lawrence
Project Name: GreenStreets-Planting Trees to Address Climate Change
Project Location: Lawrence, MA
Issue: Heat island effect, storm water runoff and erosion, and air quality
Summary:
The GreenStreets Tree Planting Program works to increase vital tree cover in a sustainable manner in the City's densely populated, low-income urban environments. Groundworks Lawrence works directly with homeowners to increase the urban tree canopy by providing educational workshops, technical assistance, and supplies free of cost. The GreenStreets Tree Planting Program seeks to address the impacts of climate change by increasing the urban tree canopy which will sequester and absorb carbon dioxide. An increase in the urban tree canopy also mitigates the heat island effect by reducing energy costs, decreases storm water runoff and erosion, and improves air quality.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • National Park Service
  • City of Lawrence
  • MassDEP
  • YouthBuild

Recipient: Central Maine Community Health Corp/Healthy Androscoggin
Project Name: New Mainer Healthy Homes Advocacy and Education Project
Project Location: Lewiston, ME
Issue: Healthy Homes - free of lead, pests, mold, and harmful pesticides
Summary:
The "New Mainer Healthy Homes Advocacy and Education" Project will help New Mainers, resettled immigrant families, understand their rights to quality housing that is free of lead, pests, mold, and harmful pesticides. The overall purpose of the project is to empower New Mainers with the knowledge to protect their families from these environmental hazards. The goals of the project will be achieved by utilizing the Healthy Homes Healthy Families community partnership and will include education, home visits, and recruiting and training of Neighbor-to-Neighbor community educators.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Healthy Homes Healthy Families Partnership - Catholic Charities of Maine
  • United Somali Women of Maine
  • St. Mary's Health System Nutrition Center
  • the Cities of Lewiston-Auburn's Community Development Departments
  • University of Maine
  • Advocates for Children
  • Bates College

Recipient: Worcester Roots
Project Name: Toxic Soil Busters: Soil Science Research for Healthy Neighborhoods
Project Location: Worcester, MA
Issue: Lead soil contamination
Summary:
Through the project "Toxic Soil Busters: Soil Science Research for Healthy Neighborhoods," Worcester Roots will investigate the effectiveness of low-cost remediation methods for lead soil contamination. The project will involve the implementation of low-cost remediation techniques, soil science research, and GIS data mapping. Participants of Worcester Roots' lead safe landscaping program will partner with researchers from institutions of higher education to learn scientific methods and implement activities. Worcester Roots will produce written materials to aid residents and community based organizations in implementing techniques based on research findings.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Clark University
  • Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Recipient: Providence Community Opportunity Corporation
Project Name: Public Housing Recycling for Elderly/Disabled
Project Location: Providence, RI
Issue: Reducing solid waste, diminishing carbon emissions, and reducing toxic materials
Summary:
The "Public Housing Recycling for Elderly/Disabled" Project will take place in Providence, Rhode Island. Activities include providing education and outreach about solid waste, recycling, and its effects on the environment, creating recycling centers in Providence Housing Authority's high rise developments, and working with elected floor captains to collect recyclable materials. The goal is empower public housing residents to improve and impact the local environment by reducing solid waste, diminishing carbon emissions, and reducing toxic materials.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Providence Housing Authority
  • Environmental Justice League of Rhode Island (EJLRI)
  • City of Providence

Recipient: Main South Community Development Corporation
Project Name: Building Community Participation in Clean Energy and Infrastructure Projects in Worcester's Kilby/Gardener/Hammond Neighborhoods
Project Location: Worcester, MA
Issue: Clean Energy and Green Infrastructure
Summary:
The project "Building Community Participation in Clean Energy and Green Infrastructure Projects" will assist residents of the Kilby/Gardener/Hammond neighborhood in developing knowledge about the clean energy and green infrastructure sectors to positively impact their quality of life and health. Knowledge about these sectors will empower the community to meaningfully participate in future development projects in their neighborhood. Particular attention will be paid to the involvement of neighborhood youth through local schools and the Boys and Girls Club. An additional benefit will be the introduction of green job networks, as residents interact with professionals and are introduced to green job skills training offered by local community colleges.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • University Park Campus School (UPCS)
  • the Regional Environmental Council (REC)
  • the Worcester Tree Initiative (WTI)
  • the City of Worcester Department of Public Works
  • The Boys and Girls Club or Worcester
  • the Commonwealth of Mass Division of Energy Resource (DOER) Green Communities Division
  • Clean Water Action

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Region 2 (NY, NJ, PR, VI)

Recipient: UPROSE, Inc.
Project Name: The Sunset Park Clean Air, Clean Water, and Climate Health Initiative
Project Location: Brooklyn, New York
Issue: To address local air and water concerns with an emphasis on climate change
Summary:
Educating and engaging the community residents of Sunset Park (Brooklyn, New York) around water quality, air quality and climate change issues. The project will measure and map local air pollutants for sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and carbon monoxide (CO) using mobile air monitoring equipment. Also, the project will collaborate with students at the Sunset Park High School and local middle school on a project to test tap water and local waterways for contaminants such as lead, mercury, pesticides, bacteria and nitrates. The recipient will incorporate local climate change adaptation into the project discussion to help residents understand the relationship of their environment and the implication of a changing global climate on the natural resources (such as air and water).
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Youth at the Sunset High School
  • local middle school, M.S. 88

Recipient: Cypress Hills Local Development Corporation
Project Name: Cypress Hills Verde: Retrofit and Weatherize Homes throughout Cypress Hills
Project Location: Brooklyn, New York
Issue: To educate and assist Cypress Hills residents on home energy practices, through retrofits and weatherization, so that homeowners and renters can reduce their energy costs as well as enjoy safe and green healthy living spaces.
Summary:
Conducting energy audits and educating homeowners and renters located in the Cypress Hills area of Brooklyn, NY to increase their overall energy efficiency to make the Cypress Hills neighborhood a green, safe healthy and livable community. The recipient will investigate the air quality inside homes and survey residents regarding issues of air quality and respiratory health. Also, the applicant will educate homeowners on ways to reduce water usage in their homes via home energy retrofits and weatherization as well as educate residents on ways to reduce the amount of toxins released into the local water system by using non-toxic cleaning supplies and properly disposing of harmful materials. Furthermore, the project will assist young people from the neighborhood by offering green jobs training opportunities, thus providing participants with the skills to conduct home energy audits and basic weatherization.
Project Initiation Date: June 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Pratt Center for Community Development
  • Community Environmental Center
  • Green City Force

Recipient: Rocking the Boat, Inc.
Project Name: Rocking the Boat Job Skills Apprenticeship Program
Project Location: Bronx, New York
Issue: To provide job skills training to inner city youth while addressing the multiple environmental issues of the Bronx River.
Summary:
Educating apprentices on the causes, effects, prevention and reduction of water pollution in the Bronx River. Apprentices will learn data collection techniques and apply these in their sampling of the waterbody. Also, the apprentices will provide results to the New York City Department of Environmental Protection to assist the local agency in identifying areas (in the Bronx River and along the shoreline) whereby solid waste materials need to be removed for proper disposal. This job skills training program will teach volunteers the following: how to build and repair the organization's boat fleet which is used to conduct the water monitoring sampling; prepare oyster habitats in the Bronx River; and assist with a reef enhancement project and monitor its effectiveness in slowing the rate of motion (subsidence) and compaction of the river bottom.
Project Initiation Date: June 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Bronx River Alliance
  • Natural Resources Group
  • NYC Department of Parks and Recreation
  • Lehman College Laboratory for Marine and Estuarine Research (LaMER)
  • NY/NJ Baykeeper
  • New York City Audubon Society

Recipient: West Harlem Environmental Action, Inc.
Project Name: Community Climate Change Readiness Campaign
Project Location: New York, New York
Issue: To identify and address the problems posed by climate change in Northern Manhattan.
Summary:
Organizing stakeholders in Northern Manhattan, New York, to develop a community-based climate change readiness plan. The recipient will work with New York State and New York City agencies as well as local community members to develop a climate change readiness planning process that will address specific concerns in Northern Manhattan. Using collaborative problem solving techniques, the recipient will identify the local challenges posed by climate change (i.e., sea-level rise and extreme weather events) on this community through a survey and needs assessment, and in turn share this information and partner with government agencies to address the specific environmental and public health risks challenges associated with water quality protection, wastewater treatment, solid waste management, and coastal zone flooding.
Project Initiation Date: June 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health
  • Metropolitan Transit Authority
  • New York State Department of Environmental Protection
  • New York City Housing Authority
  • New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
  • New York City Department of Environmental Protection
  • Mayor's Office of Long-Term Planning and Sustainability
  • Local tenants associations and waterfront businesses

Recipient: Citizens' Environmental Coalition
Project Name: Training Mega-Landfill Neighborhoods to Lead Themselves in Air Quality Awareness and Environmental Stewardship, including Climate Change
Project Location: City of Geneva, New York
Issue: To increase community involvement and understanding of the environmental, health, and climate change aspects associated with landfills (with a special focus on air quality) so that citizens, students, teachers and community activists can contribute solutions on how to control, reduce or eliminate the threat of living with these hazards.
Summary:
Educating and identifying the environmental, public health, and climate change issues associated with the Seneca Meadows Landfill in the City of Geneva, New York The recipient will conduct air quality screening to monitor the fugitive emission gases from the landfill. The air monitoring study will be used to determine if the air quality near those residents surrounding the landfill are within national air quality standards. Furthermore, the applicant will educate residents on solid waste disposal practices and develop a waste management plan to reduce the landfill waste intake.
Project Initiation Date: June 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Citizens of Seneca County and Finger Lakes Zero Waste Coalition

Recipient: Hudson River Sloop Clearwater
Project Name: Promoting Climate Justice in Hudson River Cities
Project Location: Peekskill, Beacon, Poughkeepsie and Kingston (New York)
Issue: To increase awareness among communities regarding environmental and public health risks associated with climate change, specifically through increased severity of storms, flooding and drought, heat impacts, food security and other essential services; and to engage area businesses, institutions and municipal governments to consider climate change in their emergency preparedness plans.
Summary:
This project seeks to increase knowledge of environmental and public health issues for residents located in Peekskill, Beacon, Poughkeepsie and Kingston. The recipient will conduct Climate Justice Assessments for each community, which will be developed by engaging residents on local water quality, air quality, solid waste management practices, toxic substances management, and pesticide applications, with an emphasis on climate change.
Project Initiation Date: June 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Rondout Creek Watershed Council
  • Fall Kill Watershed Committee

Recipient: Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper
Project Name: Riverwatch Volunteer Waterway Monitoring Program
Project Location: Erie County, New York
Issue: To improve the water quality throughout the Niagara watershed, and increase access to these waterfronts for those residents living in nearby impoverished neighborhoods.
Summary:
The purpose of this project is to increase awareness for community residents in Buffalo and Niagara Falls, New York on the environmental harms and risks associated with their local waterways. The recipient will conduct water quality sampling and monitoring at the local waterways within the cities of Buffalo and Niagara Falls. Results will be used to help community residents find solutions to address the environmental problems facing their local waterways. Furthermore, the recipient will educate residents on the historical and current industrial toxins which have polluted these waterbodies and the harmful affect these contaminants have on local aquatic wildlife and recreational usage of the waterways. Volunteers from local high schools will assist in conducting outreach for this project.
Project Initiation Date: June 15, 2010
Partners:
  • AmeriCorps
  • Erie County DEP
  • US Fish & Wildlife
  • NYSDEC
  • community and angler groups
  • South Park Public High School
  • McKinley Public High School

Recipient: Lazos America Unida, Inc.
Project Name: Lead-Safe Backyard Gardening in New Brunswick, New Jersey
Project Location: New Brunswick, New Jersey
Issue: To create a sustainable Lead-Safe Backyard Gardening Program that will protect community members from the risks associated with gardening in lead contaminated soil, and reduce solid waste to local area landfills.
Summary:
Educating community members of New Brunswick, New Jersey concerning the risks associated with lead exposure, and demonstrating methods for safe gardening practices to avoid lead poisoning. The organization will survey area residents to determine: the extent of backyard gardening usage; what residents are currently growing; whether existing backyard garden plots have had soil testing, and what residents already know about lead in soil, and other sustainable gardening practices. The results of the survey will be used to create a safe backyard gardening manual, which will be complimented by offering training workshops for residents. In addition, the organization will educate residents on ways to reduce solid waste, with an emphasis on the composting of household kitchen scraps and yard waste, to help sustain a long-term success in the community.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Rutgers Cooperative Extension - Middlesex and Union Counties

Recipient: South Street Seaport Museum
Project Name: Fish and Water Advisories Community Education Program
Project Location: Harlem (New York City)
Issue: To increase community's awareness of the environmental harms and risks associated by catching and digesting local fish and shellfish, and to understand how climate change affects local fisheries.
Summary:
Educating community residents in the Harlem section of Manhattan, New York on the environmental harms and risks associated with their local waterways. The recipient will educate community members on water pollution impacting their local river; how toxins (e.g., PCBs, Cadmium, Mercury, etc.) accumulate in the food chain; and the harmful effects the warming temperatures of the river, via climate change, impacts the local aquatic species and marine habitats.
Project Initiation Date: June 1, 2010
Partners:
  • New York State Department of Health's Hudson River Fish Advisory Outreach Project
  • West Harlem Piers Park
  • West Harlem Environmental Action, Inc.

Recipient: Northern Manhattan Improvement Corporation
Project Name: Northern Manhattan Improvement Corporation Healthy Housing Environmental Justice Project
Project Location: New York, New York
Issue: To prevent lead-paint poisoning through education and community outreach, and mitigate indoor environmental conditions that exacerbates asthma (e.g., rodent infestation and mold).
Summary:
The recipient will help the community to develop an understanding of environmental and public health issues by identifying 150 households at risk of environmental hazards, including lead poisoning, asthma exacerbation due to rodent infestation, and pesticide exposure, with an interest in developing strategies to remove those hazards. The recipient will educate the community both about the dangers of pesticide use to control vermin infestation as well as the benefits of integrated pest management. By educating residents on the importance of identifying these risks, and further take steps to remove them, the community will build local capacity for addressing household hazards.
Project Initiation Date: June 1, 2010
Partners:
  • The Community Union of Washington Heights and Inwood

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Region 3 (PA, DE, DC, MD, VA, WV)

Recipient: Berks County Conservancy
Project Name: Operation GRUB (Gardens Replace Urban Blight)
Project Location: Reading, PA
Issue: Urban Waste Spaces Remediation Education Program
Summary:
The Berks County Conservancy's "Operation G.R.U.B." Project (Gardens Replace Urban Blight), will work with city residents to transform areas of trash accumulation into urban gardens by educating communities about the environmental hazards associated with trash accumulation and the benefits of recycling and composting.
Project Initiation Date: October 1, 2010
Partners:
  • City of Reading
  • Centro Hispano
  • Reading Embracing Nature in our Urban Environment
  • Penn State Berks Ag. Extension Office

Recipient: The Philadelphia Department of Public Health Division of Maternal, Child, and Family Health
Project Name: Prenatal Environmental Health Project
Project Location: Philadelphia, PA
Issue: Exposure to environmental health hazards to pregnant women and children
Summary:
The Philadelphia Department of Public Health - Division of Maternal, Child, and Family Health (MCFH) will be teaming with the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program (CLPPP) to provide outreach support and training for mothers and children at-risk and/or affected by lead exposure.
Project Initiation Date: October 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Maternal, Child, and Family Health Women's Health Services Unit
  • Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program

Recipient: Pocahontas County Commission
Project Name: Pocahontas County Water Resources Task Force: Protection and Management of our Waters
Project Location: Pocahontas County, WV
Issue: Develop a Water Resources Management Plan
Summary:
This project will develop a Water Resource Management Plan for the county by developing stakeholder involvement, conducting a water resources inventory, assessing data needs and preparing a plan.
Project Initiation Date: October 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Greenbrier River Watershed Association
  • Elk Headwaters Watershed Association
  • WVDEP
  • Downstream Strategies
  • The West Virginia Highlands Conservancy
  • US Forest Service
  • Pocahontas Count Health Dept.
  • WVDNR
  • WV & Pocahontas County Farm Bureaus

Recipient: Earth Conservation Corps
Project Name: Adopt-A-Street-Shed, Restoring Our River and Rebuilding Our Communities
Project Location: Washington, DC
Issue: Environmental Protection begins with educating youth about its importance
Summary:
Through environmental education, this Earth Conservation Corps project will empower youth and young adults to improve their knowledge of environmental hazards and pollution prevention. Additional education will take place in school and volunteer session settings.
Project Initiation Date: October 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Green DMV
  • Alliance to Save Energy
  • Taurus Development Group
  • Green Builders Council of DC
  • National Park Service Capital East
  • District Department of Transportation
  • Urban Forestry
  • Casey Trees
  • Dept. of Housing and Community Development

Recipient: Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington, Spanish Catholic Center
Project Name: Pre-Apprenticeship Green Construction Program
Project Location: Washington, DC
Issue: High risk exposure to air pollution, unsafe drinking water, and lead contamination
Summary:
This project will provide environmental education to low income DC metropolitan area residents in order to help them reduce their potential risks from air pollution and lead exposure.
Project Initiation Date: October 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Habitat for Humanity
  • Clark Construction
  • the Mt. Pleasant Solar Cooperative
  • APM Vocational Institute
  • the Latino Economic Development Corporation
  • Energy Star
  • Sierra Club
  • Herb Block Foundation
  • DC Office on Latino Affairs

Recipient: Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia
Project Name: The Hunting Park Community Garden and Air Sampling Project
Project Location: Philadelphia, PA
Issue: Vacant lots that have become trash collection sites that increase human health hazards
Summary:
The Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia will work with the Hunting Park neighborhood residents to convert vacant lots that have become dump sites into community gardens. These new green spaces will greatly reduce the health hazards related to pollution runoff. The gardens will be used as outdoor classrooms to further promote stewardship of the environment. Air monitoring data will also be collected.
Project Initiation Date: October 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Catalina Hunter (business owner)
  • Chemical Heritage Foundation
  • Antonia Pantoja Charter School

Recipient: Women's Health & Environmental Network
Project Name: Educating Senior Adults on Climate Change: Lessening their Carbon Footprint and Improving their Health
Project Location: Philadelphia, PA
Issue: Many seniors do not understand climate change and how they affect it or how to protect the environment
Summary:
The Women's Health & Environmental Network (WHEN) and partner New Courtland Network will develop and implement a program that will provide education and training to adult seniors focusing on the environmental and public health impacts of climate change and mitigation techniques each participant can take to lessen the effects of climate change.
Project Initiation Date: October 1, 2010
Partners:
  • New Courtland Network
  • Philadelphia Senior Center

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Region 4 (KY, TN, NC, SC, MS, AL, GA, FL)

Recipient: Anderson County, South Carolina
Project Name: "Read it Or Weep! Educating the Public on Potential Dangers of Household Chemicals"
Project Location: Anderson, South Carolina
Issue: Anderson County is a community in upstate South Carolina and is undergoing the slow and sometimes difficult transition from a low-density agricultural and textile center to a more balanced manufacturing-based regional center. In spite of the progress made over the past two decades, the County has systematic issues related to rural and urban poverty. The socio-economic conditions of the community a potential cause of the increase in "do-it-yourself" projects than involve the use of potentially hazardous household chemicals. Anderson County emergency service personnel and first-responders have had to handle an alarming number of cases involving hazardous chemicals being used in homes. They have responded to eight major incidents arising from the improper use, mixing, and/or storage of household chemicals.
Summary:
This project is a comprehensive, multi-media campaign to inform the public in general, as well as identify at risk groups and inform them of the threats of personal health and safety issues that can arise from the improper use of common household chemicals. This project will involved the dissemination of information through brochures, newspapers, radio, television, billboards, and a website regarding the improper use of common household chemicals. The development of the materials for printed brochures, newspaper advertisements, website, and billboards will be handled by the Anderson County Public Information Office in conjunction with AnMed Health Marketing Department. Radio and television advertisements and public service announcements will be developed by the AnMED Health Multimedia Department in cooperation with Tri-County Technical College. The materials will be tested for effectiveness on a focus group consisting of clients from the Westside Community Center. The Center offers various services to low-to-moderate income persons of all backgrounds. Anderson County will partner with local emergency responders and the regional poison control center in maintaining data for performance measurements. An initial round of media and material distribution will begin in late Fall of 2010, with a second round to follow in late Spring 2011.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Anderson County Finance Division
  • AnMed Health
  • Westside Community Center
  • The Radio and Television Production (RTP) of Tri-County Technical College
  • Local Emergency Planning Committee
  • Anderson County Health Services

Recipient: Charlotte County Board of Commissioners
Project Name: "Creation of an Urban Wetland"
Project Location: Port Charlotte, Florida
Issue: Charlotte County is currently experiencing many issues related to increasing urbanization. Development in Charlotte County has replaced valuable natural areas with a built environment that has resulted in citizens becoming disconnected from a healthy, natural environment. The affected community in the area of this project includes homeowners who reside in the area as well as 3,000 students that attend school less than 700 feet from the site. It also includes residents of thee Murdock Apartments who are low-income residents. The affected community is disproportionally impacted because residents of the neighborhoods are not within walking distance of any park, nor are there any opportunities for outdoor recreation.
Summary:
This project will facilitate a discussion with the community and the local government to cooperatively restore an urban wetland and create a multifaceted "environmental park" as one of the last underdeveloped parcels in Port Charlotte. The project will educate the affected community about diminishing wetlands in Charlotte County's urbanized areas as well as address the problems of impaired surface water and groundwater. There are four components to this project. They are 1) Identifying the topographic and boundary project areas, 2) water quality testing, 3) conduct three charettes to gather public input and, 4) create an urban wetland concept plan. The objectives of the project to be funded by this grant will be 1) identify all potential partners, 2) introduce neighborhoods to the concept of restoring the wetland and its role as an ecological form of infrastructure that can help treat storm water runoff, 3) document perceived and real threats associated with the project, 4) identify hazards and unmet needs that could be satisfied by the project, 5) identify essential passive park elements and, 6) the creation of a managing entity to oversee the park maintenance and make recommendation for its protection and improvements.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Charlotte Harbor National Estuary Program
  • Charlotte County Human Services Senior Division
  • Environmental Health Section of Charlotte County Health Department
  • Murdock Apartments

Recipient: Roger-Eubanks Neighborhood Association
Project Name: PITCH (Partnerships in Transforming Community Hope)
Project Location: Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Issue: The Rogers-Eubanks is an African-American, low-income community and has served as the host of the Orange County regional landfill since 1972. The community was promised basic amenities when the landfill site was originally purchased in 1972, however, amenities such as water and sewer service, storm drains, curbs and gutters, sidewalks, a recreation center and greenspace have not been forthcoming.
Summary:
The focus of PITCH is to achieve reductions of waste inputs to landfills and repair household energy and water inefficiencies. This will be achieved by reducing household solid waste, composting kitchen waste, recycling mixed paper, and using compost in a local community garden. In addition, the project will educate the residents on conserving water and energy through weatherization improvements, repairs of small-scale plumbing and sewage inefficiencies, and replacement of incandescent light bulbs with fluorescent ones. The project will engage Orange Country residents, the broader public, and news media on PITCH-In's call to action for waste reduction and environmental stewardship.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • University of North Carolina Chapel Hill School of Public Health
  • Daniel A. Okun Chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB)
  • Coalition to End Environmental Racism

Recipient: Southface Energy Institute
Project Name: Green Building Education for Residents of Affordable Housing
Project Location: Atlanta, Georgia
Issue: The residents of many affordable housing projects are disproportionally impacted by environmental harms and risks due to poor air quality. These residents are thus more likely to be exposed to indoor air contaminants like mold which can trigger asthma and radon, which is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the country. The affected community for this project includes the occupants of CHRIS Kids Apartments. CHRIS Kids Apartments is a supportive housing community for youth, ages 17 to 24, who either grew up homeless or in foster care. All youth in the affected community are low or no-income; 79% are African American, 17% are Caucasian, and 4% are multiracial.
Summary:
This project addresses the lack of green building education for residents of affordable housing. The disadvantaged youth living in the CHRIS Kids Apartments and residents of affordable housing units in the Southeast will be educated through a short green building video and a green tour discussing techniques used in green building. The focus of the video will be on the importance of techniques used in apartments and other green affordable housing projects that promote energy inefficiency, water efficiency, resource efficiency, indoor air quality, and other advanced techniques. The tour will focus specifically on the following categories: energy efficiency, water efficiency, site planning, indoor air quality, resource efficiency, and advanced techniques (such as recycling and the utilization of alternate modes of transportation). The green tour and video developed for the CHRIS kids Apartments will be made available online through the Earth Craft and Southface website and marketed to green affordable housing developers and state agencies throughout the Southeast, providing valuable education to low-income residents.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • CHRIS Kids

Recipient: Appalachia - Science in the Public Interest, Inc.
Project Name: Lighten Up, Frankfort!
Project Location: Mt. Vernon, Kentucky
Issue: Kentucky plays a critical role in the climate change crisis. As the third largest producer of coal in the country and the 13th largest emitter of carbon dioxide, Kentucky shares significant responsibility for the build-up of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. As a State that heavily mines and burns coal, Kentucky bears a heavy burden of public health costs and environmental degradation. From the coal mine to the power plant, the coal economy has significant impacts on public health and the environment.
Summary:
This project aims to help households in Franklin County, Kentucky reduce household greenhouse emissions. FrankfortCAN will partner with local organizations. The local organizations will recruit people to join a team that will participate in the project. A special effort will be made to reach out to local organizations with ties to the low-income/minority population. Lighten Up, Frankfort! will use the book "The Low Carbon Diet " to guide households through a series of actions to reduce their household energy use. The aim of the project is to have 400 households participate in the program with at least 75% of these participants completing in the program and reporting their results.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • FrankfortCAN

Recipient: Appalshop, Inc.
Project Name: Gas Drilling In the Coalfields
Project Location: Whitesburg, Kentucky
Issue: In the past few years, natural gas and oil producers have become an increasing presence in a community long dominated by coal mining. Increased recovery of oil and natural gas raise a series of environmental issues that have not been well recognized locally. Kentucky has the fifth highest poverty rate in the nation.12.02% of the population is minority. The median income for a household in the county was $40,011; the median income for a family was $51,052. The per capita income for the county was $21,229.
Summary:
This project will focus on the affects of oil and gas recovery on water and air quality. The project will identify key stakeholders, gather information, and identify ways local decision-makers can respond to emerging issues. WMMT, the public radio station of Appalshop, Inc. in Whitesburg, KY, will partner with two county newspapers to carry out the project addressing issues raised by the increased level of oil and gas development in its broadcast area of southeast Kentucky. Twelve radio news features (5-7 minutes) and two call-in programs will be broadcasted. Articles concerning the issue will be printed in the county newspapers. The information will also be available via an interactive website.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Mountain Eagle (newspaper)
  • Coalfield Progress (newspaper)

Recipient: Haarambe House/Citizens for Environmental Justice
Project Name: Tools for Change
Project Location: Savannah, Georgia
Issue: The scorecard at the Environmental Pollution Information website reports African American, low-income and other communities of color bear the brunt of environmental burdens in Savannah, Chatham County, Georgia. Of the total population of Savannah, 21% of its residents live in poverty and the poverty rate for a family of four is $18,600; 18% of the individuals in the labor force earn less than a self-supporting wage even at full time employment. The majority of these individuals are African Americans who live in communities surrounded by brownfields and superfund sites.
Summary:
This project will engage adults and youth residents in community based participatory research and community education activities that help residents understand and address the impacts of environmental toxins in Chatham County. Specifically, Harambee House/Citizens For Environmental Justice will work with an accredited training provider to train 10 adult residents on the new renovation, repair, and painting (RRP) rule that address environmental hazards in residential units and research the impacts of lead poisoning. In addition, the project will work with the nationally renowned youth organization "Intelligent Seedz" to train 12 youth to research and document (through a video) the impacts of environmental toxins in communities.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Intelligent Seedz
  • Savannah State University

Recipient: County of Santa Rosa
Project Name: Santa Rosa County Inland Potable Water Well field Protection
Project Location: Milton, Florida
Issue: Twenty years ago the water management district began to notice saltwater intrusion into some of the potable water wells along the Coast of Santa Rosa County which could cause pollution of the community's drinking water. The per capita income for the county of Santa Rosa is $20,089.90% of families and 9.80% of the population is below the poverty line, including 12.60% of those under age 18 and 7.50% of those ages 65 or over.
Summary:
This project will support ongoing efforts to reduce the risk for contamination of Inland Potable Wellfield areas through the creation and distribution of public educational materials designed to educate residential and commercial property owners about groundwater protection. The project will review GIS analysis of available vertical and horizontal data. The review will result in the creation of a GIS map that is most appropriate for enhanced aquifer protection. A workgroup referred to as "Sustainable Santa Rosa" will be created that will include stakeholders from the affected communities. The purpose of the workgroup is to establish a network of communication, and build community capacity to address environmental concerns. An education brochure will be published to inform property owners within the project area about the Sand and Gravel Aquifer and steps they can take to protect this source of drinking water.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Stakeholders from the affected community

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Region 5 (MN, WI, IL, MI, IN, OH)

Recipient: Little Village Environmental Justice Organization
Project Name: Real Solutions to Climate Change in Chicago
Project Location: Chicago, IL
Issue: Climate change mitigation, transportation
Summary:
This project will conduct a grassroots Clean Power Campaign in the Chicago area to address coal power plant emissions. The project will complete weatherization of 100 housing units. The project will work with the Chicago Transit Authority to begin a new, twelve mile cross-town bus service that will serve 300000 people in seven Chicago community areas and the town of Cicero.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Chicago Transit Authority
  • People for Dignity, Democracy and Justice

Recipient: City of East St. Louis
Project Name: Building Capacity for Green Jobs in the New Green Economy
Project Location: East St. Louis, IL
Issue: Green jobs training
Summary:
This project will develop a green jobs training academy for green jobs in the building trades and lead abatement. This project will focus on four training sectors: weatherization, renewable energy technology installation, green roof installation, and lead abatement technology.
Project Initiation Date: May 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Emerson Park Community Development Corporation
  • YouthBuild
  • Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
  • East Side Health District
  • St. Clair County

Recipient: Southwest Detroit Environmental Vision
Project Name: Clean Air Justice Project
Project Location: Detroit, MI
Issue: Air and water quality
Summary:
This project will conduct outreach to collect video testimonies from area residents and students on the disparate impacts of local truck traffic and the air and water quality impacts of the local wastewater treatment plant. This project will educate residents, students and the business community on the impacts of truck traffic and diesel emissions in the community and available diesel emissions reductions programs. This project will conduct one-on-one visits to eight local truck companies who have fleets to educate them on emissions reduction, anti-idling and partnership opportunities. This project will take significant steps toward seeking mitigations through raising community awareness and extending beyond to begin overall regional awareness. This project will seek to build support from residents, the City of Detroit and the business community for diesel retrofits, anti-idling education and in the longer term a broad-scale diesel retrofit program for our border region trucks. This project will be taking necessary steps toward mitigations, which can eventually lead to reductions in carbon emissions and a positive impact on climate change.
Project Initiation Date: May 1, 2010
Partners:
  • CHASS Clinic
  • Health and Environmental Action Network Alliance for Hispanic Health
  • People's Community Services
  • ACCESS
  • Wayne State University Department of Urban Studies and Planning
  • Southwest Michigan Council of Governments
  • Southwest Detroit CARE Collaborative
  • Southwest Detroit Community Benefits Coalition
  • the Southwest Detroit Clean Diesel Campaign

Recipient: Detroiters Working for Environmental Justice
Project Name: Buildup Detroit Civic Engagement
Project Location: Detroit, MI
Issue: Climate change
Summary:
This project will address local climate change impacts through community outreach and education. This project will address local climate change impacts utilizing the Community Hazards Awareness Training Workshop (CHATS) model. This project will conduct two Community Hazards Awareness Workshop training sessions reaching a total of 400 community residents.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Hannan House
  • the Wayne County Community College District

Recipient: Kent County Health Department
Project Name: Southeast Grand Rapids Integrated Pest Management and Radon Testing Project
Project Location: Grand Rapids, MI
Issue: Radon and integrated pest management
Summary:
This project will train ten community members to perform radon testing and Integrated Pest Management assessment and remediation techniques to local low-income residents. This project will alleviate pest issues in at least 60 target area residences, achieving a reduction in observed insects and rodents, pest evidence, reduction or elimination of over the counter pesticides, and reduction in asthma symptoms.
Project Initiation Date: May 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Healthy Homes Coalition of West Michigan
  • Grand Rapids Public Schools
  • Kent County Department of Public Works Pesticide, Plant Pest Management Division
  • Aardvark Pest Management
  • Kent County Community Development Housing Redevelopment Program

Recipient: Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy
Project Name: Twin Cities Network for Climate Justice and Health
Project Location: Minneapolis, MN
Issue: Climate change and public health
Summary:
This project will educate and build the capacity of local communities of color in the Twin Cities area to address climate justice and health issues. This project will establish a network of community groups to educate the community about these complex issues, train community leaders to provide community workshops on energy conservation and efficiency and develop and disseminate culturally appropriate educational materials on climate related health issues. The objectives of this project include: (1) increase awareness of how to achieve and maintain a healthy, energy efficient home; (2) reducing greenhouse gas emissions and home energy costs; (3) improving household energy safety; and (4) reducing chronic health conditions.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Healthy Nations
  • Westside Citizens Organization
  • Metropolitan Urban Indian Directors
  • Urban Offices of the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe Indians and the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Indians

Recipient: Earth Day Coalition
Project Name: Naturehood = People + Native Plants, Building a Sustainable Cleveland
Project Location: Cleveland, OH
Issue: Land revitalization, community green space
Summary:
This project will address environmental issues associated with vacant lots and local climate change impacts. This project will work directly with the community to revitalize, develop and utilize vacant plots of land from the city land bank and significantly expand open space, restore natural habitats and green the community with native plants. This project will educate local residents on native Ohio plants, pesticides, and sustainable naturescaping. This project will address climate change and help students and residents learn how to document the carbon footprint of landscape actions.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • West 48th Street Block Club
  • Stockyard Redevelopment Organization
  • Lee-Seville-Miles Citizens Council
  • Walden Avenue Block Club

Recipient: Communities United for Action
Project Name: Community Education for Cleaner Air
Project Location: Cincinnati, OH
Issue: Air quality
Summary:
This project will provide education and outreach to four low-income communities in Mill Creek Valley. This project will educate residents on air toxics and develop strategies to reduce air pollution. The project will connect community leaders with eighth grade classes at three neighborhood schools to educate students on air pollution, toxic chemicals, and environmental justice. The project will develop local environmental justice leaders and a local action plan to reduce air pollution.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Winton Hills Academy, St Boniface School
  • Ethel Taylor Academy
  • the Cincinnati NAACP

Recipient: Growing Power, Inc.
Project Name: Growing Green-Living Lead Free in the Green Economy
Project Location: Milwaukee, WI
Issue: Lead, urban agriculture, green jobs
Summary:
This project will educate Milwaukee Southside families about lead issues and about growing organic vegetables and leafy greens to improve nutritional deficits and reduce lead blood levels in children. This project will provide green job preparedness and opportunity for local youth through sustainable urban agriculture. This project will educate and implement the composting of food waste which will be used to add fertility to urban gardens and demonstrate sustainable solid waste disposal.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Southside Parents Against Lead
  • Cultivators de Paz Community Garden
  • the Sixteenth Street Community Health Center

Recipient: Silver Spring Neighborhood Center
Project Name: Pests be Gone: an Integrated Pest Management Campaign for the Silver Spring Community
Project Location: Milwaukee, WI
Issue: Integrated pest management, asthma
Summary:
This project will develop and implement an outreach campaign using education, social marketing, and a media campaign on Integrated Pest Management (IPM), asthma and the health risks of pests and pesticide use. This project will inform the Silver Spring Community and the general Milwaukee metro area of effective ways to implement IPM practices to improve the health of themselves and their families. This project will increase the number of community residents who are aware of IPM resources available to them, and their role in the IPM process.
Project Initiation Date: May 1, 2010
Partners:
  • University of Milwaukee College of Nursing
  • Westlawn Partnership for a Healthier Environment
  • Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee
  • landlords of KANDO Housing Development
  • the Havenswood Economic Development Corporation

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Region 6 (NM, TX, OK, AR, LA)

Recipient: Familias Triunfadoras, Inc
Project Name: "Familias Saludables Project" - Healthy Families Project
Project Location: El Paso, TX
Issue: Environmental concerns affecting U.S/Mexico Border Region such as poor water quality, ground water contamination, illegal dumping, lead-based and chemical poisoning. The project targets colonias in San Elizario, Clint and Montana Vista that do not have water or wastewater utilities and residents living in poor housing conditions.
Summary:
Project targets colonias in San Elizario, Clint and Montana Vista, designed to 1) build community knowledge and capacity of residents to effectively assess and monitor present and potential community environmental hazards through community outreach and education workshops, 2) develop leadership capacity among the residents and support the formation of "Environmental Justice Block Committees" in order to monitor illegal dumping; 3) develop a culturally relevant and bilingual social media campaign on environmental issues 4) develop a train-the-trainer curriculum and video production to inform colonia families lacking water and sewer on how to purify drinking water and how to maintain septic systems, why not use salvaged materials to build their home and the importance of enforcing illegal dumping laws 5) create a partnership forum that brings together community based organizations, health offices and universities to monitor ongoing potential hazards in the colonias. Project targets colonias in San Elizario, Clint and Montana Vista who do not have water or wastewater utilities and those living in poor housing conditions that use salvaged construction materials to build their homes.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Colonias Youth in Action Council
  • the Agua Dulce Self-Help Center
  • Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee
  • The Texas A&M colonias Program

Recipient: Earth Works Institute
Project Name: Empowering Economically Challenged Communities in Santa Fe
Project Location: Santa Fe, NM
Issue: Empowering Economically Challenged Communities in Santa Fe to Create Clean and Safe Outdoor Spaces through Green Collar Employment and Youth Development
Summary:
Educate/empower youth and young adults in collaborative efforts to create clean and safe outdoor spaces, such as city drainage systems, trails and park areas through their employment, development of educational outreach media and installation of storm water infiltration gardens. The project will also use art and educational signage as community education tools and green jobs training hubs in economically challenged neighborhoods surrounding Santa Fe High School and the nearby Arroyo de los Chamisos. Santa Fe High School (SFHS) students will be trained as stewardship ambassadors to conduct educational outreach in low-income communities, neighboring areas where storm water demonstration and signage projects are being developed. Institute of American Indian Arts students will mentor and coach SFHS students and will provide artistic expertise to develop and implement murals, curb stencils and interpretive signage to educate community members, reduce pollution and increase stewardship activities around the school and the adjoining arroyos (dry creek).
Project Initiation Date: August 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Santa Fe High School
  • City of Santa Fe (storm water, public works, youth services, Mayor)
  • Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee
  • Institute of American Indian Arts students
  • Sam's club
  • other neighborhood associations

Recipient: Connections
Project Name: Na'nizhozhi Healthy Lifestyles Through Season Extension
Project Location: Gallup, NM
Issue: Make the continued growth and consumption of fresh produce as accessible as possible in an area that has one of the highest poverty rates in the country and where obesity and diabetes are at epidemic proportions. This project will address lack of nutrition in high poverty areas, in collaboration with a greater community action plan, by making food with a higher nutritional value available and working to help educate community members on the significance of healthy lifestyles.
Summary:
Season extension through hoop house utilization in McKinley County. We plan to make the continued growth and consumption of fresh produce as accessible as possible in an area that has one of the highest poverty rates in the country. These efforts will serve to increase sustainable green jobs in our area through education and community producer to producer networks. Project will take an organic approach to sustainable agricultures thereby minimizing chemical risks and promoting education about the harmful effects of pesticides. Focus on shortening the food transportation chain so as to cut carbon emissions and reduce green house gases produced by way of long distance transportation.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • High Desert Farmers
  • Work in Beauty - Gallup Growers
  • NMSU-Cooperative Extension Services

Recipient: Gila Resources Information Project
Project Name: Green Jobs Capacity Building for New Mexico High School Students
Project Location: Silver City, NM
Issue: Currently, there are no secondary school educational and training programs in the state that prepare students for employment in the green economy. This project will develop and pilot a high school-level curriculum to prepare students for employment and/or post-secondary school training and education in the new green economy.
Summary:
This project proposes to build capacity for green jobs training and education benefiting high school students in environmental justice communities in New Mexico that will equip those students with the knowledge, skills and abilities to compete for employment in the growing green jobs sector. Green workforce development in communities with environmental justice concerns is critical to ensuring that all New Mexicans are well prepared for the existing as well as the thousands of estimated future clean energy jobs. Students will receive classroom-based as well as hand-on training in the areas of energy efficiency and weatherization, renewable energy technologies, water conservation, home safety, automotive retrofitting, as well as workplace readiness and success skills. The curriculum will be piloted at Aldo Leopold Charter High School in Grant County, and then disseminated for use at the secondary school level throughout New Mexico. This project will directly benefit low-income high school students in Grant County and statewide by providing pathways out of poverty through green jobs training and education. By providing green jobs opportunities, education and training, doors to employment and social and environmental justice will be opened to those who face high rates of unemployment and underemployment and potential disproportionate impacts from climate change in New Mexico. A trained green jobs workforce in New Mexico will support state entities in their efforts to develop clean energy and green industries and to meet the labor needs of the estimated 235,000 new green jobs expected in New Mexico by 2020.
Project Initiation Date: August 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Western New Mexico University School of Applied Technology - New Mexico Green Collaborative
  • Doña Ana Community College
  • Department of Labor
  • US Housing and Urban Development
  • New Mexico Economic Development Department/Green Jobs Cabinet
  • Green business and industry
  • Community Action Agency of Southern NM
  • New Mexico Solar Energy Association Silver City
  • New Mexico Youth Organized
  • Youthbuild

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Region 7 (NE, KS, IA, MO)

Recipient: Grace Hill
Project Name: Branch Street- Last Community Connector to the River
Project Location: St. Louis, Missouri
Issue: Recycling and recreational space
Summary:
The goal of the project is to protect Branch Street, the only remaining street in North St. Louis that connects to the Mississippi River, from being closed off from recreational use. Branch Street serves to facilitate healthy activities, ecological education, and helps improve public health. The project will conduct educational workshops for community leaders focused on public and environmental health issues and organize community bike rides to build awareness about the value of the street. The project will also encourage local business facilities to recycle materials by distributing a self assessment tool to help analyze their waste streams and will work to develop relationships with at least four of the local facilities which operate in the community.
Project Initiation Date: August 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Trailnet, Inc.

Recipient: Migrant Farm Workers
Project Name: Cambio Climatico
Project Location: Lafayette County, Mo, Kansas City, Mo
Issue: Sun exposure, lead poisoning, training, Spanish language
Summary:
This project will address climate change issues and public health issues that affect the community of migrant and seasonal farmworker adults and children in Lafayette County, western Missouri. The goals of the project are to increase awareness about the dangers of sun and heat exposure, the key words and symbols related to weather advisories broadcast via television, telephone, or in person, and the dangers of lead poisoning and poisoning prevention strategies, including how to evaluate toys and find out about toy recalls. This project also seeks to decrease in pesticide related health issues in migrant populations.
Project Initiation Date: August 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Rodgers-Lafayette Community Health Center
  • Lafayette County Health Department

Recipient: Friends of the Kaw
Project Name: Community Environmental Justice Education Program for Eastern Kansas City, Kansas
Project Location: Eastern Kansas City, Kansas
Issue:
Summary:
With high rates of poverty, heavy pollutant loads, and other significant health risks, young people are exceptionally vulnerable to factors that impact their ability to thrive and grow into healthy adults. This project seeks to develop capacity to obtain community feedback on activities and increase participation in environmental decision-making. It also seeks to create opportunity for additional computer access and computer skills in the Quindaro community, and to improve access to information on fish consumption and the health effects of environmental pollutants.
Project Initiation Date: August 1, 2010
Partners:
  • J Gordon Community Development Corporation
  • Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools
  • Wyandotte High School
  • Building a Sustainable Earth Community

Recipient: Kamen's Angels, Inc.
Project Name: Oak Park Neighborhood Reclamation Project Phase 1
Project Location: Oak Park Neighborhood- Kansas City, Missouri
Issue: Revitalization, weatherization, green jobs training
Summary:
The goal of this project is to engage young people from the neighborhood in the process of revitalization by recruiting homeowners to apply for energy audits and home weatherization through existing programs. Neighborhood youth will also receive training through mentorship in home weatherization as well as home renovation and energy efficiency retrofitting. The idea is to foster community involvement with youth, while at the same time, increasing neighborhood energy efficiency and decreasing the cost associated with outdate and drafty homes.
Project Initiation Date: August 1, 2010
Partners:
  • City of Kansas City, Missouri
  • Jackson County Juvenile Court System
  • Changing Lanes
  • New Rising Star Church
  • Kansas City Power and Light Company

Recipient: St. Louis Lead Prevention Coalition
Project Name: Healthy Homes, Healthy Families
Project Location: St. Louis, Missouri
Issue: Indoor air quality, asthma, lead poisoning
Summary:
The goal of this project is to provide education and resource materials to low-income families in St. Louis, MO, designed to enable them to address common household issues found in older, lower cost housing stock and maintain a healthy home environment by addressing the hazards of lead, mold/mildew, poor indoor air quality, and insects/rodents.
Project Initiation Date: August 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Healthy Homes and Families Advisory Council
  • St. Louis City Health Department
  • St. Louis City Building Division
  • Community Development Agency
  • Grace Hill
  • Urban League
  • Catholic Charities
  • Legal Services of Eastern Missouri

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Region 8 (MT, ND, WY, SD, UT, CO)

Recipient: Groundwork Denver, Inc.
Project Name: Clean and Green Globeville: A Community-based Approach to Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation.
Project Location: Denver, CO
Issue: Climate change is predicted to have numerous negative health impacts in the U.S. In Denver, we expect drought, heat waves, hail storms, and increased smog. The health impacts of these changes are likely to fall disproportionately on populations that are most vulnerable to climate-sensitive health outcomes.
Summary:
This project addresses the environmental justice issues likely to result from climate change by utilizing mitigation and adaptation strategies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions while also building a "greener" and healthier neighborhood. The project includes a series of activities that will encourage and support residents as they reduce energy use in their homes, clean out toxic substances from their homes, yards and alleys, and participate in the conversion of vacant, underutilized property into a community green space and demonstration of "green infrastructure". Each activity will address climate change issues while also providing more immediate "co-benefits" to the residents and build a network of interested and active families who will continue to participate in broader climate change initiatives. It is anticipated that the communities will benefit from reduced energy bills and a safer environment, while at the same time greenhouse gases are reduced.
Project Initiation Date: June 14, 2010
Partners:
  • Platte Farm Open Space Steering Committee consisting of local residents who are leading the effort to convert the Globeville Valley into a community open space and other initiatives
  • the Civic Association
  • Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Center
  • faith based organizations
  • other community leaders

Recipient: Environmental Learning for Kids
Project Name: Denver Youth Naturally - Climate Change and Environmental Justice through Youth Leadership Development
Project Location: Denver, Colorado
Issue: For communities with fewer resources to respond and adapt, the impacts of climate change can topple an already precarious situation. We seek to address climate change issues that will directly affect the community, such as reductions in air and water quality, drought, and the public health impacts of increased hot and cold temperature days.
Summary:
The project seeks to strengthen the capacity of the communities of Park Hill, East Montclair, and Montbello to understand, respond, and prepare for climate change impacts, through one of the greatest assets: youth. Activities will include outdoor and nature-based education on local climate change issues that will directly affect the community, such as reductions in air and water quality, drought, and the public health impacts of increased hot and cold temperature days. The youth will be educated on monitoring and collecting data on local climate change impacts, and develop leadership skills to educate the community on climate change, building consensus, and setting community priorities. Through self-designed community stewardship projects and community education activities, youth become engaged in their neighborhoods while building their community's capacity to challenge environmental injustice and climate change impacts.
Project Initiation Date: June 14, 2010
Partners:
  • Colorado Division of Wildlife
  • US Forest Service
  • Denver Parks & Recreation
  • National Park Service
  • the communities of Park Hill, East Montclair, and Montbello

Recipient: Mountain Studies Institute
Project Name: Facilitating a Culture of Awareness: Broadening Public Outreach for Ozone and Mercury in Rural Colorado-New Mexico
Project Location: Silverton, Colorado
Issue: Concerns about mercury, ground-level ozone, particulates, and other pollutants and their effects on human health, visibility, and ecosystems are growing for the Four Corners region.
Summary:
The goal of the project is to facilitate the education, empowerment, and participation of rural people in SW Colorado-NW New Mexico that are affected by air, water, and toxics pollution from oil and gas and energy production facilities. This will be accomplished by 1) building community knowledge about ozone, mercury, and other environmental quality issues via regular radio announcements; reader-friendly outreach materials; and air/water quality alerts in newspapers; 2) engaging a broad range of stakeholders via an Air Quality Forum; and 3) empowering and facilitating lower income community participation by making outreach materials related to environmental issues available in Spanish. Success will be measured by: 1) development of a centralized website platform, 2) secure commitment to report air quality conditions on 5 media outlets in the region, 3) development of a Spanish version of the booklet "How's the Air Out Here?", 4) dissemination of the booklet to the Hispanic Community, 5) inclusion of the Hispanic Community in discussions on air quality in the Four Corners Region, and 6) hosting a 2010 Air Quality Forum with 75 attendees representing the full diversity of the Four Corners citizenry.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Hispanic and Native American community programs
  • CitSci.org
  • government agencies
  • local media outlets
  • outreach organizations

Recipient: Thunder Valley Community Development Corporation
Project Name: Lakota Youth Community Demonstration Project
Project Location: Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, South Dakota
Issue: The reservation has been negatively and disproportionately impacted by water and air contamination and by the construction of all-electric buildings without community input. The community is dealing with the impacts of government policies that lead to unsustainable construction. These houses have astronomical utility bills and, as they are powered by fossil fuels, contribute to climate change.
Summary:
The project is located on the Pine Ridge Reservation and has three goals. The first is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and empower community youth by building a demonstration photovoltaic solar generation project at an all-electric community building; reducing community energy use; and providing training and community education on these topics. The second goal is to increase community capacity to adapt to climate change and a drier, hotter climate by giving youth experience with organic gardening and rooftop water collection and by providing community education. The resulting vegetables will be given to community elders, providing public health benefits. Third, the project will increase public education about "green economy" jobs and employment in green industries by holding an open house involving regional green businesses and colleges that provide training for green jobs.
Project Initiation Date: June 14, 2010
Partners:
  • Lakota People's Law Project
  • Red Cloud Solar
  • Village Earth
  • South Dakota Cooperative Extension
  • Oglala Sioux Parke and Recreation Authority
  • Intertribal Council on Utility Policy
  • Oglala Lakota College
  • South Dakota Department of Labor
  • Oglala Sioux Tribe Health Department Running Strong for American Indian Youth
  • Honor the Earth

Recipient: Front Range Earth Force
Project Name: Justair: Northwest Denver Air Pollution Mitigation Project
Project Location: Denver, Colorado
Issue: This project will identify and mitigate air pollution and solid waste disposal issues effecting public health and climate change in the Northwest Denver Skinner Middle School community with disparate economic and racial/ethnic composition.
Summary:
Skinner Middle and elementary school students will utilize the six-step Earth Force Service-Learning Process to investigate the environmental impact practices such as idling automobiles and busses at school entrances; raise awareness about chemical and particulate pollutants and their link to respiratory diseases and eye/nose irritation; and reach across cultural and economic barriers to partner with community stakeholders in order to develop and pilot test multiple strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve solid waste disposal practices, and prevent the triggering of respiratory disease by chemical and particulate pollutants in the air.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Skinner Middle School
  • Brown International Elementary School
  • Denver Environmental Health Clean Air for Schools Engines Off
  • Groundwork Denver, Inc.

Recipient: Utah Society for Environmental Education
Project Name: The West Side Environmental Justice Project - addressing issues in the Rose Park Community of North West Salt Lake City
Project Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Issue: The problems in Rose Park are not completely uncommon to the rest of Utah, with the exception of a historic superfund site. The underlying issue at hand is the lack of information disseminated to the diverse populations and the cultural sensitivity around these issues. USEE has found that the traditional methods of environmental education (handouts, displays, presentations) may not work well with language barriers and between social classes.
Summary:
The overall mission of the West Side Environmental Justice Project is to help identify and reduce environmental concerns and issues in the Rose Park area by forming community partnership, performing an environmental assessment, gathering community input, and providing education and environmental stewardship. The specific goals are to: 1) Bring together a Community Action committee for the Rose Park area; 2) identify and prioritize environmental health threats to the Rose Park community; 3) ensure that adults, families and children have access to information about these threats and the means to protect against them, no matter their primary language; and 4) promote practical means to remove or reduce recognized, serious threats that are not being addressed effectively.
Project Initiation Date: June 14, 2010
Partners:
  • The University of Utah
  • The Tracy Aviary
  • community members
  • Wasatch Community Gardens
  • The People's Market
  • The Sorensen Multicultural Unity Center
  • SLC Public Library (Day Riverside Branch)
  • Utah Department of Environmental Quality/ Department of Natural Resources
  • local businesses and local schools
  • SLC Housing and Neighborhood Development

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Region 9 (CA, NV, AZ, HI)

Recipient: Yurok Tribe Project
Project Name: The Yurok Tribe's Climate Change Impacts Assessment and Prioritization Project
Project Location: Klamath, California
Issue: Climate change. The issue to be addressed is building tribal capacity on climate change in order to understand the technical issues associated with climate change research and modeling and to engage and educate the community and develop partnerships in order to begin adaptation planning.
Summary:
Located on the lower part of the Klamath River, in parts of Del Norte and Humboldt Counties, the Yurok Reservation faces significant environmental impacts from climate change including coastal erosion, the rise of sea levels, and increased flooding in the Klamath River watershed. The largest and poorest federally recognized tribe within California, the Yurok Reservation hopes to build tribal government and community capacity via technical training of the program staff and participation in national meetings. The project will engage the reservation community in potential localized changes through the production of educational materials, including a brochure outlining various opportunities to participate in local and regional climate change planning efforts. The final goal of the project is the preparation and completion of the Yurok Tribe Climate Change Prioritization Plan and an initial assessment of potential climate change impacts that will serve as a guide for future tribal climate change research and planning efforts.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • USGS
  • USFWS
  • USFS
  • EPA
  • NPS
  • California Department of Water Resources
  • California Climate Change Taskforce
  • CalEPA
  • Other partners include local agencies such as Humboldt, Del Norte, Trinity, Siskiyou, and Shasta Counties and local environmental groups such as the Klamath Riverkeeper, North Coastal Environmental Network, and other regional tribes

Recipient: Scott's Valley Band of Pomo Indians
Project Name: Scott's Valley Energy Conservation and Efficiency Implementation Project
Project Location: Lakeport, California
Issue: Energy efficiency, weatherization, green jobs training
Summary:
The Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians is one of six federally recognized Tribes in Lake County, California, comprising the Hinthill Environmental Resource Consortium (HERC). The Scotts Valley Tribe will use an Environmental Justice Small Grant, and Dept of Energy funding, to implement a Weatherization Energy Program to reduce energy consumption in tribal housing and commercial buildings. The Program will include energy evaluations, conservation consultations, and building retrofitting for energy efficiency. In addition to the energy reduction benefits, the Program will increase the Tribe's environmental capacity by providing Tribal members with training for specialized "green" jobs. Energy evaluations and retrofits will be completed by program trainees and graduates, teamed with energy professionals and contractors, providing program participants with the necessary hands-on experience to become licensed California Weatherization Contractors.
Project Initiation Date: October 1, 2010
Partners:
  • DOE
  • EPA
  • NPS
  • California EPA

Recipient: Malama Learning Center
Project Name: Green Collar Institute
Project Location: Leeward Coast of O'ahu, HI
Issue: Green jobs
Summary:
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Leeward Community College

Recipient: Urban Habitat
Project Name: Community Climate Action Engagement Project
Project Location: Richmond, CA
Issue: Climate Change
Summary:
Urban Habitat will use an Environmental Justice Small Grant to support the Community Climate Action Engagement Project in Richmond, California. The purpose of the project is to 1) increase the Richmond community's ability to engage in the development of an Energy and Climate Action Plan (ECAP); and 2) to engage Richmond's decision makers in addressing the impacts that climate change has on the city's low-income communities and communities of color. The organization will accomplish this by creating and implementing a "Climate Justice Curriculum" that connects climate change to local and regional efforts around transportation justice, affordable housing, equitable development and quality green jobs. It will build public awareness regarding the threats of climate change and the benefits of developing a local ECAP through public alerts and briefing sessions, and work to increase the capacity of Richmond residents and stakeholders to help them participate effectively in planning efforts related to climate change.
Project Initiation Date: June 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Asian Pacific Environmental Network
  • Communities for a Better Environment
  • Contra Costa FaithWorks!
  • Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization

Recipient: The Watershed Project
Project Name: Greenway Garden Project
Project Location: Richmond, CA
Issue: Urban waters, Climate change
Summary:
The Watershed Project, a non-profit organization with a 13-year history of working in the Richmond community, will lead the Richmond Greenway Bioswale and Native Plant Garden (Greenway Garden) project, a community based effort to transform a section of abandoned railroad into a transportation, education, and recreation resource for the community. The project will set an example for the City by using low impact biological and cost effective ways of removing storm water pollutants, as well as encourage green approaches to cleaning local storm waters. The Greenway Garden will restore a wildlife habitat in the heart of urban Richmond, educate the surrounding community about local gardening and demonstrate how the native habitat can reduce the need for pesticides in adjacent vegetable and fruit gardens. The project is designed to improve water quality in the Bay by reducing storm water and urban runoff pollution, increasing awareness of Low Impact Design best management practices, and increasing environmental literacy in the Richmond community.
Project Initiation Date: June 1, 2010
Partners:
  • City of Richmond
  • Friends of the Richmond Greenway
  • Urban Tilth
  • Restoration Design Group

Recipient: Rose Foundation
Project Name: New Voices Are Rising
Project Location: Oakland, CA
Issue: Environmental Education, Youth
Summary:
The Rose Foundation's New Voices Are Rising Program is a youth-focused, community-driven environmental justice and civic engagement project that works with students from low-income communities and communities of color in Oakland and Richmond, California. With a $25,000 EJ Small Grant, the Rose Foundation will help students explore the concepts of environmental justice, and allow youth to learn by actively engaging in legislative and regulatory processes. Participating students will attend an intensive summer program focusing on strategies for addressing climate change, as well as a series of classroom presentations on environmental health, environmental civics, and the connections between air pollution environmental health disparities in low-income communities and communities of color in San Francisco's East Bay. They will learn about the federal, state, and local roles in developing laws and regulations that impact climate change, air pollution, and community health, and they will also learn key analytical tools and public speaking skills that will encourage them to participate effectively in public efforts to improve air quality.
Project Initiation Date: June 1, 2010
Partners:
  • EarthTeam Environmental Network
  • East bay Alliance for a Sustainable Economy
  • Global Community Monitor
  • Coalition for Clean and Safe Ports
  • West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project
  • Pacific Institute
  • National Resources Defense Council
  • Union of Concerned Scientists

Recipient: Marin Community Clinic (MCC)
Project Name: Viviendo Verde Ya! (Living Green Now)
Project Location: San Rafael's Canal District in San Rafael, CA.
Issue: Healthy places for children, climate change
Summary:
The Viviendo Verde Ya! Project will expand the role of promotores (community health workers) in the Canal district by working with Promotores Verdes (a grassroots organization) to mentor a network of volunteer environmental leaders, advocate for environmental change in the community, and develop a community endorsed and scientifically reviewed toolkit designed to meaningfully engage the Latino/Indigenous community in environmental change. The expected results include 1) the adoption of Integrated Pest Management practices and a reduction in pesticide use in the home, 2) strategies to reduce water intrusion and mold growth in the home to improve air quality and reduce asthmagens, and 3) a reduction in the use of toxic substances including pesticides in the workplace. Finally, local government, school, and housing improvements that reduce toxic exposures, improve indoor air quality, and improve community knowledge about local consequences of climate changes.
Project Initiation Date: June 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Promotores Verdes
  • Marin County Supervisor Steve Kinsey's office
  • First 5 Marin
  • the Region 9 Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit

Recipient: Amigos de los Rios
Project Name: The Emerald Necklance Project
Project Location: San Gabriel Valley, East County Los Angeles, CA
Issue: Air Quality, Water Quality, Climate Change, Sustainable Cities
Summary:
Amigos de los Rios, a non-profit organization, aims to strengthen community life, preserve the environment and improve healthy living in the underserved areas of the San Gabriel Valley and East County Los Angeles through the Emerald Necklace Project. The project is a direct response to the health and environmental challenges that coincide with the poor air quality and green house gas emissions faced by residents living in the urban core. Emerald Necklace will on focus on creating healthy cities by providing valuable training to the community on issues including air, water quality and greenhouse gas emissions, and creating green infrastructure to address these challenges in a holistic manner.
Project Initiation Date: June 6, 2010
Partners:
  • Los Angeles County Recreation and Parks Division
  • School Districts
  • Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors
  • County Flood Control's Watershed Division

Recipient: Community Services Unlimited, Inc.
Project Name: From the Ground Up: Promoting Safe and Healthy Urban Agriculture
Project Location: Los Angeles, CA (South Central)
Issue: Sustainable Urban Agriculture
Summary:
The goal of this project is to teach the youth in South Central Los Angeles about sustainable urban agriculture to promote healthy eating, reduce exposure to toxins, and mitigate and adapt to climate change. Through teaching residents how to grow food naturally, the project will increase community residents' access to healthy produce, while also raising awareness about, and reducing exposure to, lead and pesticide hazards.
Project Initiation Date: September 1, 2010
Partners:
  • EXPO Center
  • John Muir Middle School
  • Normandie Avenue Elementary School
  • South LA Healthy Eating Active Communities
  • Tree People
  • County of Los Angeles Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Center

Recipient: Communities for a Better Environment
Project Name: LA Youth Making the Connection: Climate Change, Local Fossil Fuel Impacts, & Alternatives
Project Location: South East Los Angeles and Wilmington, CA
Issue: Fossil fuels and Climate change
Summary:
The goal of this project is to provide a bridge connecting the existing work of Youth EJ on the direct health impacts of fossil fuel emissions to the broader impacts of fossil fuels causing climate change. CBE will hold new fossil fuel leadership training for youth who are active in the EJ communities of South East LA and Wilmington on the global and local impacts of fossil fuels, work with youth to carry out simple, alternative energy demonstration projects, and continue youth involvement on local fossil fuel policy. The youth leaders will help tremendously by learning the facts about fossil fuels, climate change, and practical solutions, educating their friends and family, and increasing their leadership skills to address these environmental issues.
Project Initiation Date: October 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Southern Californians for Youth
  • Youth for Environmental Justice
  • Youth Justice Coalition
  • South Central Youth Empowered Through Action/Community Coalition
  • Other youth organizations

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Region 10 (WA, OR, ID, AK)

Recipient: Anchorage Neighborhood Housing Services
Project Name: Fairview Highway Justice Project
Project Location: Anchorage, Alaska
Issue: Community social, health and environmental impacts of proposed highway project.
Summary:
NeighborWorks Anchorage will utilize Justice Project grant funds to promote awareness and public involvement in the H2H project and the ultimate decision making process for the final route. Through NeighborWorks Anchorage's existing resident council structure staff we will educate residents about the H2H process and the potential environmental and public health implications, including the potential impact to air and water quality. We will then facilitate a process to identify the residents' main concerns regarding the project and develop a position statement on their behalf. Finally, through our existing Community Leadership Institute, we will empower the residents by training them in public speaking and effective advocacy skills. To complement our resident organizing capacity, we will partner with local stakeholders to provide technical expertise on the project.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Fairview Community Council
  • Alaska Housing Finance Corporation
  • Anchorage Neighborhood Health Center
  • Anchorage Citizen's Coalition
  • Alaska Center for the Environment
  • Anchorage Department of Neighborhoods
  • Anchorage Department of Health and Human Services Air Quality Program
  • Anchorage Transit Advisory Board

Recipient: Center for Human Services
Project Name: Ballinger Sustainability Initiative
Project Location: Seattle, Washington (Shoreline)
Issue: Community education and participation in sustainability activities and toxics reduction
Summary:
The Ballinger Sustainability Initiative will focus on promoting sustainability practices and climate change awareness though service learning, education, and workshops with the residents at Ballinger Homes, who are underrepresented in the sustainability arena. Ballinger Homes is a public-housing community in Shoreline, Washington. This diverse neighborhood of 110 families represent a mini United Nations of immigrants and refugees from Asia, Africa, and former Soviet Union. As residents of public housing, they are living with a very low income (30% of HUD Median Family Income). The majority of the residents are English Language Learners. We will investigate organic gardening, composting, toxins in the environment, and climate change. We will empower residents to make a difference in their community and promote sustainable choices.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • The Nature Consortium
  • The North Cascades Institute

Recipient: DEPAVE
Project Name: North Portland School Re-Greening
Project Location: Portland, Oregon
Issue: Social and environmental impacts of heavily paved public spaces.
Summary:
Following on our successful 2007-9 re-greening efforts, DEPAVE will continue our high momentum community green space redevelopment efforts during 2010 with up to six additional de-paving projects working with a diverse array of partners. DEPAVE plans to use this present funding request from the EPA to match recently awarded grant monies from EMSWCD to re-green two North Portland schools; Portland Village School and Astor Elementary, with a combined impervious surface area footprint of 7,000 square feet. By replacing paved areas at both of the planned sites with playfields and native plantings, runoff rates will be reduced from 10% to 55%. The physical removal of asphalt from these sites will be completed by volunteers and will involve members of the local communities. Thus, the proposed de-paving projects will not only restore native soils, allow for on-site rainwater infiltration and beautify urban spaces, but will also serve as a method for community building and provide educational outreach opportunities. Through participation in these public greenspace redevelopment efforts community volunteers will gain education and inspiration for potential de-paving and re- greening opportunities in their own backyards, multiplying the projects' benefits.
Project Initiation Date: n/a
Partners:
  • Verde
  • Multnomah Soil and Conservation District
  • Partners in Conservation

Recipient: Nez Perce Tribe
Project Name: Water Resources Protection Project
Project Location: Nez Perce Reservation, Lapwai, Idaho
Issue: Destructive use of recreational vehicles in wetlands, meadows and other delicate aquatic habitats.
Summary:
The Nez Perce Tribe Water Resources Division will conduct pre and post surveys regarding the communities' knowledge of water sustainability, quality and protection on Nez Perce reservation. We will solicit Nez Perce Tribe tribal youth to observe and document their experience and learning on the division's water projects (UST, LUST, Brownfields, TMDL, Solid Waste management, Water Utilities and waste water management, CWA-319-Nonpoint source and water quality monitoring effort) to develop an informational documentary video tool expressing the importance of changing demand, water efficiency, quality and protection for Tribal members and reservation communities. Through this tool, the tribe will have a better understanding of our water and its attributes in the home, environment and understand the Tribe's continuing work on improving for water quality for future generations.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Nez Perce Tribe Boys and Girls Club
  • Nez Perce Tribe Nii Mii Puu Helath Clinics in Lapwai and Kamiah
  • Nez Perce Tribe Natural Resources/Environmental Programs
  • US Forest Service
  • US Fish and Wildlife Service
  • Nez Perce Reservation School Districts

Recipient: Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association
Project Name: Common Waters/Common Roots
Project Location: Eight Watersheds in Whatcom County, Washington (Bellingham)
Issue: Cultural and watershed impacts of invasive species on Tribes, communities and salmon.
Summary:
The Common Waters/Common Roots project will accomplish successful on-the-ground riparian restoration projects within eight local watersheds - Deer Creek, Kwina Slough, Schell Creek, Silver Creek, Slater Slough, Smugglers' Slough, and the Lummi and Nooksack rivers; all of which have a rich history of subsistence fishing by indigenous peoples of the Coast Salish tribes (including the Lummi Nation), but have been degraded by a combination of past land use practices and urbanization. This community-based streamside habitat restoration project integrates education and the voluntary involvement of tribal members and other community volunteers with hands-on restoration projects as a strategy for increasing community involvement and investment in protecting waterways, reducing the impacts of greenhouse gas emissions, and recovering wild salmonid populations in the Pacific Northwest. Through the Common Waters/Common Roots (CWCR) project more than 400 local citizens will work to remove non-native and invasive plant species, plant more than 5,000 native trees and shrubs, and maintain these restoration sites located right in their backyards; improving water quality, air quality, and more than 6,000 feet of spawning and rearing habitat for salmonids along these eight streams. Tribal members of the Lummi Nation, citizens of Whatcom County, the ecosystems of the seven watersheds, and the Endangered Species Act listed salmonids and other wild fish that call these waters home and will benefit for generations from this project. The CWCR project will support and empower tribal members and members.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Lummi Tribe

Recipient: Oregon Toxics Alliance
Project Name: West Eugene Industrial Corridor Environmental Health Project
Project Location: West Eugene, Oregon
Issue: Air and health impacts to community from concentration of facility sources.
Summary:
The West Eugene Industrial Corridor Environmental Health Project is a partnership between Centro Latino Americano, a community-based Latino human services organization, and Oregon Toxics Alliance, an environmental health advocacy organization, to engage an underserved and vulnerable community in environmental health actions. Neighborhoods in the West Eugene Industrial Corridor have higher percentages of Latino, disabled and poverty level residents than all other areas in Eugene. The purpose of the project is to enhance the community's understanding of environmental pollutants, improve the community's ability to communicate their environmental health concerns, and mobilize community and business partnerships to help minority and low-income neighborhoods reduce their exposure to toxics. The project activates community involvement by organizing public education opportunities, take-action events and community-based surveys at the neighborhood level.
Project Initiation Date: July 1, 2010
Partners:
  • Centro Latino Americano

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