WEEKLY UPDATE (PDF): Week of June 28 – July 2, 2021
Loading...
Reload document 
Open in new tab 
PHOTOS FROM THE FIELD: Week of June 21 – 25, 2021
PHOTOS FROM THE FIELD
NBC News – Wildfires erupt after hottest week in history across parts of the West ignited them
Firefighters battle brush fire burning in the Santa Fe Dam Recreation Area, in Irwindle, Calif., on June 15, 2021.Ringo Chiu / via AP
TOP STORIES/HEADLINES: Week of June 21 – 25, 2021
TOP STORIES
NTAA has published a template letter for Tribes to use to respond to EPA’s request for comment on EPA’s reconsideration of the previous administration’s Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles Rule. The EPA has broken this reconsideration into two parts:
- SAFE-1, which includes interpretations that led to the withdrawal of the California waiver, and
- SAFE-2, which will address the fuel efficiency standards (and is expected to be proposed in July 2021).
The deadline for commenting on SAFE-1 is July 6, 2021. The NTAA has developed a Policy Resource Kit that includes a Fact Sheet and Tribal Template Letter for Tribes to utilize when commenting.
Be sure to check out this month’s NTAA EC Update Video posted on NTAA’s website under latest news here! This month’s update is provided by both Brandy Toft of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe and Joy Wiecks of the Fond Du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. If you don’t have time to dive deep into the NTAA Weekly Update, watch this quick video update to help give you the latest news from NTAA and learn more about the Tribes in Region 5! Watch the video here.
Please join a free webinar to learn about and provide input into EPA’s Tribal Indoor Air Quality Training and Resource Directory The Directory was created to consolidate helpful resources for tribes who are interested in starting or expanding Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) programs in their communities. The purpose of this webinar is to share this new resource and obtain feedback from future and potential users of this Directory. The Directory is being created by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in collaboration with the Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) and the National Tribal Air Association (NTAA). Register here and if you have questions, contact [email protected].
Ambient Air Quality/EPA/NTAA/Tribes
NPR – The Record Temperatures Enveloping The West Are Not Your Average Heat Waves
Atmos – The Land is Liminal
Native Sun News – Secretary Haaland to Make Announcement Regarding Legacy of Federal Boarding School Policies in Remarks to National Congress of American Indians
Broadband USA – NTIA Creates First Interactive Map to Help Public See the Digital Divide across the Country
Tucson.com – Arizona Legislature approves $100 million wildfire relief plan
Democracy Now – Arizona to Pay Prisoners $1.50/Hour to Fight Wildfires as Record Heat Scorches Western U.S.
The Hill – EPA announces new clean air advisors after firing Trump appointees
The Hill – Haaland announces program to review impact of Native American boarding schools
Indian Country Today – Tribe sues over hunting rights
EurekAlert – Exposure to air pollution increases risk for neurodegeneration
National Association of Clean Air Agencies – Washington Update
Climate Change/Energy
The Washington Post – Climate Change made Arizona’s heat wave worse. And it won’t be the last one.
AP – Western heat wave threatens health in vulnerable communities
NY Times – Tropical Storm Claudette Expected to Weaken After Causing Deaths and Damge
The Hill – California hydroelectric plant expected to shut down for the first time in 50 years
Reuters – U.N. warns drought may be ‘the next pandemic’
Texas Tribune – Grid operator says Texans can return to regular electricity use
Inside Climate News – Requiem for a Pipeline: Keystone XL Transformed the Environmental Movement and Shifted the Debate over Energy and Climate
Toxics/Mobile Sources
Bloomberg – Huge Methane Leak Spotted by Satellite Came From Gazprom Pipeline
The Guardian – A US oil company cut nearly 2,000 jobs – and reaped $2.1bn in pandemic benefits
NM Political Report – New Mexicans weigh in on methane as EPA considers new rules
NY Times – Big Oil Takes a Beating, but Its Investors Are Riding High
Reveal – Life in the drill zone
Indoor Air Quality
REMI Network – Scientists find lack of focus on air quality
Verywell Health – How to Improve Your Indoor Air Quality to Protect Against Pollutants
Builder Magazine – A Builder’s Guide to Breathable Indoor Air
Be sure to subscribe to EPA’s IAQ Bulletins
PHOTOS FROM THE FIELD: Week of June 14 – 18, 2021
PHOTOS FROM THE FIELD
NY Times – Biden Plans to Restore Alaskan Forest Protections Stripped Under Trump
The Tongass National Forest, in southeastern Alaska, is home to more than 400 species of wildlife, including nesting bald eagles, moose and bears. Credit: Ron Niebrugge/Alamy
TOP STORIES/HEADLINES: Week of June 14 – 18, 2021
TOP STORIES
If you missed Monday’s NTAA’s national webinar and release party for the 2021 Status of Tribal Air Report (STAR) on June 14th, you can view the recorded webinar and download the STAR on NTAA’s website here!
To help readers navigate the 130-page report, this webinar provided an overview of the STAR, shared the stories within the STAR, and provided the specific recommendations for national leadership to advance air quality on and around Tribal lands.
NY Times – G7 Nations Take Aggressive Climate Action but Hold Back on Coal
Earther – 7 Shocking Satellite Images Reveal the West’s Megadrought
Axios – Dangerous heat wave underway in West, will shatter records
Ambient Air Quality/EPA/NTAA/Tribes
The Hill – EPA to reinstate air pollution panel disbanded under Trump
NPR – Tackling ‘Energy Justice’ Requires Better Data. These Researchers Are On It
CBS – 90% of Utah in extreme drought as governor declares emergency, asks locals to conserve water
The Hill – Haaland recommends full restoration of monuments Trump altered: report
National Association of Clean Air Agencies – Washington Update
Climate Change/Energy
Axios – Climate reality collides with rhetoric at the G7 summit
Gizmodo – Joe Biden Is Already Failing on Climate Policy
NPR – Tackling ‘Energy Justice’ Requires Better Data. These Researchers Are on It
NPR – Warming Climate Amplifies The Risks Of Wildfire Season
AP – Report: California encourages rebuilding in fire-prone areas
NY Times – G7 Nations Take Aggressive Climate Action but Hold Back on Coal
The Hill – State appeals court upholds approval of Minnesota pipeline
Reuters – Biden Administration proposes offshore wind energy sales near NY, NJ
Gizmodo – A Bizarre Coal Industry Propaganda Program Is Infiltrating K-12 Classrooms
Axios – Study: Key Antarctic ice shelf is speeding up its collapse
The Washington Post – Lake Mead reaches lowest level on record amid exceptional drought
Reuters – California tells public to prepare for heatwave; power prices soar
Toxics/Mobile Sources
Axios – G7 leaders to announce plan to phase out gasoline cars
Inside Climate News – 13 Refineries Emit Dangerous Benzene Emissions That Exceed the EPA’s ‘Action Level,’ a Study Finds
The Guardian – World oil demand ‘will rebound to pre-Covid levels by end of 2022
AP – NTSB releases report on Washington oil-train derailment
The Guardian – Half of clothes sold by online fashion brands ‘made from virgin plastic’
Axios – Study: Take-out food, drink litter make up vast majority of plastics in oceans
Indoor Air Quality
The Regulatory Review – The Urgent Need for Indoor Air Quality Regulation
Verywell Health – How to Improve Your Indoor Air Quality to Protect Against Pollutants
Wyoming Public Media – Something In The (Indoor Air): A Paradigm Shift
Vox.com – Covid-19 proved bad indoor air quality makes us sick. We can fix that.
Be sure to subscribe to EPA’s IAQ Bulletins