[Federal Register: March 12, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 47)]
[Notices]
[Page 10735-10736]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr12mr09-54]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-8775-7]
Partnership To Promote Innovation in Environmental Practice,
Notice of Availability of Solicitation for Proposals for 2009
Assistance Agreement Award
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency),
National Center for Environmental Innovation (NCEI) is giving notice of
the availability of its solicitation for proposals from institutions
that are interested in organizing two symposia over four years to
promote sharing and transfer of innovative environmental protection
approaches among States, EPA, and other primarily governmental
representatives. The solicitation is available at the Agency's State
Innovation Grant Web site: http://www.epa.gov/innovation/
2010symposium.htm, or may be requested from the Agency by e-mail to:
innovation--state--grants@gov, telephone, or by mail. Eligible
recipients include States, territories, Indian Tribes, interstate
organizations, intrastate organizations, and possessions of the U.S.,
including the District of Columbia, public and private universities and
colleges, hospitals, laboratories, other public or private nonprofit
institutions, and individuals. Nonprofit organizations described in
Section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code that engage in lobbying
activities as defined in Section 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of
1995 are not eligible to apply. For-profit organizations are generally
not eligible for funding.
DATES: Eligible applicants will have until April 22, 2009, to respond
with a pre-proposal, budget, and project summary.
ADDRESSES: Copies of the solicitation can be downloaded from the
Agency's Web site at http://www.epa.gov/innovation/2010symposium.htm or
may be requested by telephone (202-566-2236), or by e-mail
(innovation_state_grants@epa.gov). You can request a solicitation
application package be sent to you by fax or by mail by contacting NCEI
as indicated below.
Applicants are requested to apply online using the Grants.gov Web
site with an electronic signature. Applicants are encouraged to submit
their pre-proposals early. For those applicants who lack the technical
capability to apply electronically via http://www.grants.gov, please
contact Scott Fontenot by phone at: (202) 566-2236 and/or by e-mail at:
innovation_state_grants@epa.gov, for alternative submission
procedures.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have questions about this
notice, please contact EPA at this e-mail address: innovation_state_
grants@epa.gov; or, you may call Scott Fontenot at (202) 566-2236.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Strengthening EPA's innovation partnership
with States and Tribes is a cornerstone of EPA's Innovation Strategy
(http://www.epa.gov/innovation/strategy.htm). A key mechanism by which
this partnership has been enhanced is through a bi-annual conference
sponsored primarily by the National Center for Environmental Innovation
that brings together State and EPA innovation practitioners to share
experiences. EPA sponsored the first State-EPA Environmental Innovation
Symposium in 2000 to showcase environmental innovations that promise
improved results. A second symposium was held in 2003. In 2006, NCEI
joined with EPA's Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental
Relations to offer an expanded agenda that focused on innovation as
well as performance management issues. In 2008, NCEI and EPA's Office
of Air and Radiation held the State/EPA Symposium on Innovating for
Sustainable Results: Integrated Approaches for Climate, Energy, and the
Environment.
[[Page 10736]]
(Information about these events can be found at http://www.epa.gov/
innovation/symposia.htm). Evaluations from these events, along with
discussion with State commissioners, indicate that States and others
have a strong interest in additional symposia that allow participants
to share experiences and results from innovative environmental programs
and policies.
The primary audience for these symposia will be State environmental
agency officials with practical experience implementing innovative
approaches to environmental protection. Representatives from American
Indian Tribes, local governments, other governments, NGOs, and the
business community will also be invited to participate as appropriate
to the ultimate symposia agendas. While EPA will have participants at
the symposia, the primary goal of the meetings is to identify and
highlight environmental innovations that can help States and other
governmental entities learn about new ways to achieve environmental
results. The symposia should be designed to:
--Identify and showcase successful, innovative projects and programs
that have accomplished important environmental results at the State,
Federal, or other levels;
--Facilitate information transfer so that proven approaches can be used
by other states or other entities to achieve improved environmental
results;
--Enable discussion about specific issues facing innovators, such as
how to effectively evaluate pilot-scale efforts and how to replicate
successful innovations on a larger scale (e.g., from a pilot project at
one facility to a program for the entire sector) or in other programs
(e.g., from use in the air program to the water program), and how to
sustain innovation over time so that projects continue evolving to
reflect new knowledge, experience, and/or technology;
--Expand the network of State, Federal and other environmental
practitioners who are interested in applying and advancing new
approaches;
--Stimulate ideas for new innovative initiatives and pilot projects.
The recipient will be responsible for preparing symposia agendas,
identifying relevant speakers and presenters, promoting the event, and
managing all symposia logistics. The recipient will be expected to be
knowledgeable about a broad array of environmental policy issues and
innovative approaches that have been tested to address them, and will
establish and work with a Steering Committee comprised of
representatives from the recipient, State environmental agencies and
EPA, to serve as a resource and help inform planning of the symposia.
EPA is interested in supporting the first symposium in 2010 and a
second symposium approximately two years later. The goal is to maximize
participation for State environmental officials as well as local and
Tribal government officials.
In addition to organizing the symposia, the recipient will provide
other mechanisms for sharing information presented at the symposia,
including providing all presentations and videotaped plenary sessions
on a publicly available Web site. These resources will help extend the
learning that occurs at the symposia to States, as well as other
interested stakeholders.
Dated: March 3, 2009.
David Widawsky,
Acting Director, National Center for Environmental Innovation.
[FR Doc. E9-5384 Filed 3-11-09; 8:45 am]
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