97-58. Notice of Availability of Pollution Prevention Grants and Announcement of Financial Assistance Programs Eligible for Review

[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 2 (Friday, January 3, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 404-406]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-58]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
Environmental Protection Agency

[OPPTS-00204; FRL-5579-6]


Notice of Availability of Pollution Prevention Grants and 
Announcement of Financial Assistance Programs Eligible for Review

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of Availability of Pollution Prevention Grants.

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SUMMARY: EPA is announcing the availability of approximately $5 million 
in fiscal year 1997 grant/cooperative agreement funds under the 
Pollution Prevention Incentives for States (PPIS) grant program. The 
grant dollars are targeted at State and Tribal programs that address 
the reduction or elimination of pollution across all environmental 
media: air, land, and water. Grants/cooperative agreements will be 
awarded under the authority of the Pollution Prevention Act of 1990.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Your EPA Regional Pollution Prevention 
Coordinator. Contact names for each Regional Office are listed under 
Unit VI. of this preamble.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    Approximately $30 million has been awarded to more than 100 State, 
Tribal, and regional organizations under EPA's multimedia pollution 
prevention grant program, since its inception in 1989.
    In November 1990, the Pollution Prevention Act of 1990 (the Act) 
(Pub. L. 101-508) was enacted, establishing as national policy that 
pollution should be prevented or reduced at the source whenever 
feasible. Section 6603 of the Act defines source reduction as any 
practice that:
    (1) Reduces the amount of any hazardous substance, pollutant, or 
contaminant entering any waste stream or otherwise released into the 
environment (including fugitive emissions) prior to recycling, 
treatment, or disposal.
    (2) Reduces the hazards to public health and the environment 
associated with the release of such substances, pollutants, or 
contaminants.
    EPA further defines pollution prevention as the use of other 
practices that reduce or eliminate the creation of pollutants through 
increased efficiency in the use of raw materials, energy, water, or 
other resources, or protection of natural resources, or protection of 
natural resources by conservation.
    Section 6605 of the Act authorizes EPA to make matching grants to 
States

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to promote the use of source reduction techniques by businesses. In 
evaluating grant applications, the Act directs EPA to consider whether 
the proposed State program will:
    (1) Make technical assistance available to businesses seeking 
information about source reduction opportunities, including funding for 
experts to provide onsite technical advice and to assist in the 
development of source reduction plans.
    (2) Target assistance to businesses for which lack of information 
is an impediment to source reduction.
    (3) Provide training in source reduction techniques.
    In addition to this grant making authority, the Act authorized EPA 
to establish a national source reduction clearinghouse and expanded 
EPA's authorities to collect data to better track source reduction 
activities. The Act also requires EPA to report periodically to 
Congress on EPA progress in implementing the Act.
    In June 1996, EPA published the Pollution Prevention Incentives for 
States Assessment Study. The study documents the full range of 
activities funded by the PPIS grant program during its first 5 years. 
It represents an accounting of how grantees used EPA funds to stimulate 
and enhance pollution prevention awareness and initiatives throughout 
the country. For a copy of the report, including the Executive Summary, 
contact the Pollution Prevention Information Clearinghouse at 202-260-
1023.

II. Availability of FY 97 Funds

    With this publication, EPA is announcing the availability of 
approximately $5 million in grant/cooperative agreement funds for FY 
1997. The Agency has delegated grant making authority to the EPA 
Regional offices. Regional offices are responsible for the solicitation 
of interest, the screening of proposals, and the actual selection of 
awards. PPIS grant guidance will be provided to all applicants along 
with any supplementary information the Regions may wish to provide.
    All applicants must address the national program criteria listed 
under Unit V.2. of this document. In addition, applicants may be 
required to meet any supplemental Regional criteria. Interested 
applicants should contact their Regional Pollution Prevention 
Coordinator for more information.

III. Catalogue of Federal Domestic Assistance

    The number assigned to the PPIS program in the Catalogue of Federal 
Domestic Assistance is 66.708 (formerly 66.900).

IV. Matching Requirements

    Organizations receiving pollution prevention grant funds are 
required to match Federal funds by at least 50 percent. For example, 
the Federal government will provide half of the total allowable cost of 
the project, and the State will provide the other half. A grant request 
for $100,000 would support a total allowable project cost of $200,000, 
with the State also providing $100,000. State contributions may include 
dollars, in-kind goods and services, and/or third party contributions.

V. Eligibility

    1. Applicants. In accordance with the Act, eligible applicants for 
purposes of funding under this grant program include the 50 States, the 
District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of 
Puerto Rico, any territory or possession of the United States, any 
agency or instrumentality of a State including State universities, and 
all Federally recognized Native American tribes. For convenience, the 
term ``State'' in this notice refers to all eligible applicants. Local 
governments, private universities, private nonprofit entities, private 
businesses, and individuals are not eligible. The organizations 
excluded from applying directly are encouraged to work with eligible 
applicants in developing proposals that include them as participants in 
the projects. EPA strongly encourages this type of cooperative 
arrangement.
    2. Activities and criteria.--(i) General. The purpose of the PPIS 
grant program is to support the establishment and expansion of State, 
Regional, Tribal, or local multimedia pollution prevention programs. 
EPA specifically seeks to build State pollution prevention capabilities 
or to test, at the State level, innovative pollution prevention 
approaches and methodologies. Funds awarded under the PPIS grant 
program must be used to support pollution prevention programs that 
address the transfer of potentially harmful pollutants across all 
environmental media: air, water, and land. Programs should reflect 
comprehensive and coordinated pollution prevention planning and 
implementation efforts State- or Region-wide. State programs might 
focus on, for example:
    a. Developing multimedia pollution prevention activities, including 
but not limited to: providing direct technical assistance to 
businesses; collecting and analyzing data to target outreach and 
technical assistance opportunities; conducting outreach activities; 
developing measures to determine progress in pollution prevention; and 
identifying regulatory and nonregulatory barriers and incentives to 
pollution prevention and developing plans to implement solutions, where 
possible.
    b. Institutionalizing multimedia pollution prevention as an 
environmental management priority, establishing prevention goals, 
developing strategies to meet those goals, and integrating the 
pollution prevention ethic within both governmental and nongovernmental 
institutions of the State or region.
    c. Initiating demonstration projects that test and support 
innovative pollution prevention approaches and methodologies including 
measuring progress.
    (ii) 1997 National Criteria. There is a growing emergence of 
business assistance organizations established within States to address 
the vast array of environmental concerns. Consequently, as a means to 
provide substantive support of pollution prevention, EPA is eager to 
ensure that the PPIS grants will add to the success and sustainability 
of State environmental assistance providers and will encourage a 
cooperative network of coordinated environmental assistance providers. 
EPA also believes it is important for these assistance organizations to 
complement the goals and strategies of the State Environmental 
Performance Agreement (EnPA), Performance Partnership Agreements 
(PPAs), and Performance Partnership Grants (PPGs) under the National 
Environmental Performance Partnership System (NEPPS).
    EPA through the PPIS grant funds is striving to support the 
development of a coordinated network of State environmental service 
providers that seek to leverage the expertise of the various 
environmental assistance organizations and show an ability to work 
jointly in an effort to promote pollution prevention in conjunction 
with the overall environmental performance goals identified by the 
States through the EnPAs. The application must demonstrate how 
activities will advance State environmental goals. Applicants must 
describe how pollution prevention activities will complement (where 
present) State EnPAs, PPAs, and PPGs developed under NEPPS. EPA 
encourages all applicants to develop initiatives in priority industry 
sectors and geographic areas identified by the states.

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    For applicants from States that are currently not participating in 
the development of EnPAs, in order to be eligible for PPIS grant funds, 
the applicant must still clearly identify a partnership with one or 
more business or environmental assistance provider in the State.
    In addition, in 1995 and 1996 the National Institute for Standards 
and Technology (NIST) funded 27 State environmental planning networks. 
The purpose of the planning effort is to coordinate activities among 
NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnerships, pollution prevention 
programs, compliance centers, and other environmental service delivery 
organizations in the State. PPIS applications from States that have 
received funding from NIST for environmental services planning must 
address how the grant will relate to the NIST-funded environmental 
planning efforts.
    PPIS applications from States that have not been awarded a NIST 
environmental services planning grant are not required to address this 
criterion.
    Based on the above, EPA has developed the following criteria that 
must be addressed by all eligible applicants. Proposals that do not 
address these criteria will not be considered eligible for funding. In 
the narrative of the grant application, the following three 
requirements must be addressed:
    (1) Identify who the partnering organization(s) is/are and 
demonstrate or document the relationship. This can be done, for 
example, through a letter of agreement, a joint statement, or 
principles of agreement signed by both parties.
    (2) Describe how the activities in the grant will support the 
State's EnPA under NEPPS, where present.
    (3) Address how the grant will relate to the NIST-funded 
environmental coordination planning efforts. (This criterion only 
applies to those States that have a NIST-funded grant.)
    Applicants should consult the PPIS program guidance for more 
detailed information on the 1997 goals and criteria. Proposals accepted 
for review under this program must qualify as pollution prevention as 
defined by EPA.
    3. Program management. Awards for FY 1997 funds will be managed 
through the EPA Regional Offices.
    4. Contacts. Interested applicants are requested to contact the 
appropriate EPA Regional Pollution Prevention Coordinator listed under 
Unit VI. of this document to obtain specific instructions and guidance 
for submitting proposals.

VI. Regional Pollution Prevention Contacts

Abby Swaine, US EPA Region 1 (SPN), JFK Federal Bldg, Room 2203 Boston, 
MA 02203, [phone] (CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, VT)
Janet Sapadin, US EPA Region 2 (2-OPM-PPI), 290 Broadway, 25th Floor 
New York, NY 10007, [phone] (NJ, NY, PR, VI)
Cathy Libertz, US EPA Region 3 (3ES43), 841 Chestnut Bldg. Philadelphia 
PA 19107, [phone] (DC, DE, MD, PA, VA, WV)
Connie Roberts, US EPA Region 4, Atlanta Federal Center 100 Alabama St. 
SW Atlanta, GA 30365, [phone] (AL, FL, GA, KY, MS, NC, SC, TN)
Phil Kaplan, US EPA Region 5 (DRP-8J), 77 West Jackson Blvd., Chicago, 
IL 60604-3590, [phone] (IL, IN, MI, MN, OH, WI)
Linda Thompson, US EPA Region 6 (6EN-XP), 1445 Ross Ave., 12th Floor, 
Suite 1200 Dallas, TX 75202, [phone] (AR, LA, NM, OK, TX)
Steve Wurtz, US EPA Region 7, 726 Minnesota Ave. Kansas City, KS 66101, 
[phone] (IA, KS, MO, NE)
Linda Walters, US EPA Region 8 (8P2-P2), 999 18th St., Suite 500 
Denver, CO 80202-2466 [phone] (CO, MT, ND, SD, UT, WY)
Eileen Sheehan, US EPA Region 9 (H-1-B), 75 Hawthorne Ave. San 
Francisoco, CA 94105, [phone] (AS, AZ, CA, CNMI, GU, HI, NV, RP)
Carolyn Gangmark, US EPA Region 10, 1200 Sixth Ave. Seattle, WA 98101, 
[phone] (AK, ID, OR, WA)

    Dated: December 20, 1996.
William H. Sanders,
Director, Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics.

[FR Doc. 97-58 Filed 1-2-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-F