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 mansel.nelson@nau.edu.
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
