Water Quality Grant To Nebraska Tribe's Office of Environmental Protection

EPA Region 7’s Office of Tribal Affairs has awarded a $39,942 performance partnership grant to the Santee Sioux Nation of Nebraska to support the tribe’s water quality monitoring and protection efforts. EPA’s grant, expressed through a cooperative agreement, provides administrative flexibility and support to the tribe’s Office of Environmental Protection, which has conducted water quality monitoring under the federal Clean Water Act since 1996.

Under this grant, the tribe will continue to monitor groundwater, fish tissue, wetlands, streams and ponds on the reservation. The Office of Environmental Protection will analyze data to identify issues of interest or concern for future monitoring, and will use data to inform the tribal council and its people on the water quality of the reservation.

EPA provides financial assistance to states and tribes to help them implement environmental programs. States and tribes may receive these funds in individual environmental program categorical grants, or choose to combine grants in a performance partnership grant (PPG). PPGs, such as the one awarded to the Santee Sioux Nation of Nebraska, streamline administrative requirements, give states and tribes greater flexibility to direct resources to their most pressing environmental problems, and make it easier to fund efforts that cut across program boundaries. The Santee Sioux Nation of Nebraska is one of nine federally recognized tribes within EPA Region 7.


Caltha LLP provides expert environmental consultant services in Nebraska to obtain air and wastewater permits, evaluate regulatory requirements, and to develop cost effective compliance programs.
For further information contact Caltha LLP at info@calthacompany.com or Caltha LLP Website

Brownfields Restoration Grants To Nebraska Tribe

US EPA Region 7 Office of Tribal Affairs has awarded two grants to the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska to support a brownfields tribal response program and increase the capacity of its environmental protection department to protect human health and the environment.

1. A $94,298 grant, expressed through a cooperative agreement, will allow the tribe to continue the process of establishing a brownfields tribal response program to address contaminated sites on the reservation with the goal of returning them to beneficial reuse.
2. A $15,000 grant to the tribe’s Environmental Protection Department will help the department build its overall capacity to protect human health and the environment. Specific work to be funded by the grant includes expansion of the tribal solid waste program, including tire removal; research for additional funding opportunities; the mapping of abandoned homesteads; and working with the tribe’s land management office to plot no-till acreage.

EPA provides financial assistance to states and tribes to help them implement environmental programs. States and tribes may receive these funds in individual environmental program categorical grants, or choose to combine grants in a performance partnership grant. The Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska is one of nine federally recognized tribes within EPA Region 7.

Caltha LLP provides expert environmental consultant services in Nebraska to obtain air and wastewater permits, evaluate regulatory requirements, and to develop cost effective compliance programs.
For further information contact Caltha LLP at info@calthacompany.com or Caltha LLP Website

Public Meeting Scheduled On Increased CAFO Inspections

EPA Region 7 representatives will host a public informational meeting for livestock producers about the Agency’s inspection program for concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) on Monday, July 2, in Lexington, Nebraska.

EPA Region 7’s inspections are part of an increased national emphasis on reducing discharges of pollutants from CAFOs into rivers and streams. Topics at the meeting include  selection of CAFOs for inspection, aerial overflights to assess CAFOs, winter feeding areas, manure stockpiling and nutrient management plans.

There will be an opportunity for attendees to interact with EPA officials during a question-and-answer session.

Caltha LLP provides expert environmental consultant services in Nebraska to obtain air and wastewater permits, evaluate regulatory requirements, and to develop cost effective compliance programs.

For further information contact Caltha LLP at info@calthacompany.com or Caltha LLP Website

Revised Nebraska Water Quality Standards Approved

EPA has completed its review of the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality’s new and revised water quality standards. EPA’s June 22, 2012, decision letter provides a more detailed description of EPA’s review. The Clean Water Act (CWA) requires states to review water quality standards every three years and submit new or revised standards to EPA for review and approval.

The approved standards include:

1. new and revised surface water criteria to protect aquatic life and human health;
2. new and revised public drinking water supply criteria;
3. numeric nutrient criteria for lakes; and
4. new use designations for four lakes.

Caltha LLP provides expert environmental consultant services in Nebraska to obtain air and wastewater permits, evaluate regulatory requirements, and to develop cost effective compliance programs.

For further information contact Caltha LLP at info@calthacompany.com or Caltha LLP Website

OSHA-approved State Plan Assessment To Be Considered

OSHA has scheduled an informal stakeholder meeting for June 25, 2012 on establishing definitions and measures to determine whether OSHA-approved State Plans for occupational safety and health (State Plans) are at least as effective as the federal OSHA program. The purpose of this meeting is to provide a forum to gather information and ideas on key outcome and activity based indicators and how OSHA can use such indicators to assess the effectiveness of State Plans.
The stakeholder meeting is scheduled to take place on June 25, 2012 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Washington, DC. The deadline for registration to attend or participate in the meeting and to submit written comments is June 11, 2012.

Caltha LLP provides expert environmental consultant services in Nebraska to obtain air and wastewater permits, evaluate regulatory requirements, and to develop cost effective compliance programs.

For further information contact Caltha LLP at info@calthacompany.com or Caltha LLP Website

Policy Regarding Compliance With Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) Rule

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)has released a policy statement that outlines how it will advise EPA on requests for extra time for electric generators to comply with the new Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) rule. FERC says the policy addresses the need for timeliness, fairness, and transparency while respecting FERC's jurisdiction over reliability of the electric power system. Electric generators have 3 years to comply with the MATS. Some generators will be eligible for a 1-year extension and possibly an additional year if they need to meet specific reliability concerns. FERC's policy statement addresses this final year to comply.
The FERC policy statement says:

• The Commission points out that any decision on whether to grant this additional time, and the extent to Generators should submit copies of their requests to EPA for extra time for compliance to FERC as informational filings.
• FERC's Office of Electric Reliability will lead the review of the filings under the Commission's general investigative authority; the reviews will examine whether compliance with EPA's rule could result in a violation of a FERC-approved reliability standard or other issues within FERC's jurisdiction.
• There are no specifically required analyses to show that operation of a generating unit beyond the compliance date is critical to maintain reliability, though informational filings should provide the types of data used by the Commission to examine potential violations of its mandatory reliability standards.

The Commission will not seek comments on the informational filings, though EPA requires that requests for extra time contain any written comments by other parties. The EPA policy encourages such comments, which should be included in the informational filings. When considering extension requests, FERC recommends EPA also seek advice from other reliability experts such as state regulators, regional market operators, planning authorities, and the North American Electric Reliability Corp. and its affiliated regional entities.

Caltha LLP provides expert environmental consultant services in Nebraska to obtain air and wastewater permits, evaluate regulatory requirements, and to develop cost effective compliance programs.
For further information contact Caltha LLP at info@calthacompany.com or Caltha LLP Website

Nebraska Impaired Waters List Approved By EPA

The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) submitted its impaired waters list to EPA for review and approval, as required by the Clean Water Act (CWA). The act requires EPA to review the state’s list of impaired waters to determine if the state reasonably considered available water quality-related data, and identifies waters to be listed. A water body is placed on the impaired waters list when monitoring finds that pollutant levels prevent the lake, river, or stream from attaining its beneficial uses. Beneficial uses in Nebraska include human recreation, agricultural water supply, and maintaining healthy aquatic life.

EPA issued its approval in an April 16, 2012, decision letter which provides a more detailed description of EPA’s review and the basis for this action. The approved Nebraska list of impaired waters removes 21 waters from the previous impaired waters list and adds 92 waters. The decision brings the total number of impaired waters in the state to 330.

Caltha LLP provides expert environmental consultant services in Nebraska to obtain air and wastewater permits, evaluate regulatory requirements, and to develop cost effective compliance programs.

For further information contact Caltha LLP at info@calthacompany.com or Caltha LLP Website