Manager's Welcome
This is the December issue of the Houston-Galveston Area Council's (H-GAC's) Community and Environmental Planning (C&E) E-newsletter. We hope this monthly newsletter will keep you up to date on the wide variety of community planning, economic development and environmental planning programs going on at H-GAC. We want this information to be useful and are very interested in your feedback! If you have any questions about any of our programs, please feel free to contact me at 713-993-4560 or Jeff.Taebel@h-gac.com. To unsubscribe, add another subscriber or offer any comments on the e-newsletter, please e-mail cep_news@h-gac.com. To view the current and past editions of the e-newsletter, please visit:
www.h-gac.com/CEeNewsletter Please click on the links below to view information regarding each topic. IN THIS ISSUE
H-GAC Downtown Public Spaces Improvements Program
Clean Rivers Program 2006 Regional Assessmentof Water Quality Underway
EPA Launches New Webpage in Spanish
Christmas Tree Recycling PSAs Available; Green Holiday Section Coming Soon
EPA Announces an Estimated One Million Pounds of Household Hazardous Waste Collected
TCEQ - Penalty Policy Rule Development
Grant Funding Available for Coastal Community Partnerships
Old cell phones are piling up in homes, survey
Save the Date! River, Lakes, Bays 'N Bayous Trash Bash® - March 25, 2006
Technical Assistance Available to Communities for Smart Growth Initiatives
H-GAC MEETING NOTICES
Solid Waste Management Committee
Environmental Enforcement Roundtable
Storm Debris: Force Account Labor and Equipment
Solid Waste Management Committee
Regional Recycling Roundtable: Glass
OTHER MEETING NOTICES
Advanced Air Permitting Seminar
IN THIS ISSUE
H-GAC Downtown Public Spaces Improvements Program
H-GAC is pleased to announce our new Downtown Public Spaces Improvements Program. Funds currently available through this program will be used to improve public spaces in the Downtown areas of communities in the H-GAC region. The program will benefit the region by making Downtown areas more attractive and increasing local economic vitality, sales tax and property values, while preserving and enhancing their architectural and cultural history. Program requirements and other details, as well as an application, may be found here. Please contact Chris McGowan at cmcgowan@h-gac.com with any questions.
Back to Top Clean Rivers Program 2006 Regional Assessmentof Water Quality Underway
H-GAC's Clean Rivers Program has begun its assessment of water quality in 51 watersheds throughout the H-GAC Region. The reulting report will contian a summary of each watershed and will establish water quality trends for over a dozen parameters using data from the last 10 years.There will also be a discussion of the special studies and public outreach programs that H-GAC has conducted over the last 5 years. The draft report will be available on the H-GAC website the first week in February 2006. We invite you to review the report and give us any feedback you might have. The final report will be made available on May 15, 2006. If you have any questions about the report, please contact Todd Running, Clean RIvers Program Manager at 713-993-4549.
Back to Top EPA Launches New Webpage in Spanish
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has launched a new Webpage in Spanish dedicated to providing information on different environmental issues and their effects among Hispanics residing in the United States. The new page, "El medio ambiente y su salud", The Environment and Your Health, will focus on a different issue every month. For the first month in this series the key issue is asthma. In this new page, EPA offers general information about the disease, its environmental triggers, asthma FAQs, and environmental health studies of Hispanics and asthma. In future months EPA will have similar pages on other environmental health issues of special concern to Hispanics such as lead poisoning prevention, radon, carbon monoxide, particulate matter, and mold, among others. This new Webpage presents information both in Spanish and English. It is part of the agency's overall efforts to educate Hispanics, researchers and health care providers on how environmental health issues affect the different Hispanic communities throughout the nation. To view this new page, "El medio ambiente y su salud," visit: http://www.epa.gov/espanol/asma.htm This new page is part of EPA's Spanish portal. To view EPA's consolidated Spanish site, visit: http://www.epa.gov/espanol.
Back to Top Christmas Tree Recycling PSAs Available; Green Holiday Section Coming Soon
Earth 911 has two new holiday PSAs now available in the Public Service Announcement area of the Web site. Both PSAs center around Christmas tree recycling and feature the Earth 911 call-to-action. The new print piece features a chasing tree arrow reminding residents of the importance of recycling Christmas trees, and the new television PSA features Santa and a friendly elf discussing the benefits of live trees and recycling. Thank you to the National Christmas Tree Association for assisting Earth 911 with these new pieces. As always, Earth 911 PSAs can be customized at no charge for use with your community education and outreach efforts. Also, be sure to look for the annual Earth 911 Green Holiday Section on the 16th of this month! This yearly special section features helpful holiday waste reduction and reuse and recycling tips, Tree Tags, PSAs and other helpful holiday links. Order free Christmas tree recycling PSAs from the Earth 911 Public Service Announcement library at http://www.earth911.org/usa/master.asp?s=psa&a=psa/psa.asp.
Back to Top EPA Announces an Estimated One Million Pounds of Household Hazardous Waste Collected
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that an estimated one million pounds of household hazardous waste has been collected in Louisiana in the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Most of these ordinary household products are safe when stored under normal circumstances in the home, but can endanger the public when co-mingled. When disposed along with ordinary household garbage and then taken to a landfill for final disposal, these products can cause long term damage to the environment. To read more about household hazarous waste and proper disposal techniques, visit http://www.epa.gov/.
Back to Top TCEQ - Penalty Policy Rule Development
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) is revising its administrative penalty policy. This rulemaking will address how penalties will be calculated for violations. When calculating an administrative penalty, the law requires that the TCEQ consider many things such as the nature and extent of the violation, economic benefit gained through the violation, and good faith efforts to correct the violation. This rulemaking will specify how these factors are applied to the penalty calculation. As a small business or local government, this is your prime opportunity to provide meaningful input into crafting a rule that may directly affect you. Please refer to the attached agenda which contains questions that the TCEQ is seeking input on in this rulemaking process. You may refer to these questions as you draft your comment letters. In addition the Compliance Advisory Panel (CAP) and the Small Business Advisory Committees (SBACs) have been providing input throughout the review process. Their comments on the Penalty Policy are attached for your reference. The meetings are scheduled to be held at the locations and times as follows: December 1, 2005
Arlington 2:00 - 6:00
North Central Texas Council of Governments
2nd Floor Boardroom
616 Six Flags Dr
Arlington, Texas 76011-6347 December 5, 2005
El Paso 1:00 - 5:00
Rio Grande Council of Governments
6th Floor Conference Room
1100 North Stanton, Suite 610
El Paso, Texas 79902 The Agenda and backup material for the meetings are attached. You may send comments to Pen_Rule@tceq.state.tx.us and cc Melinda Houlihan at mhouliha@tceq.state.tx.us so we may keep track of small business and local government involvement in the rulemaking process and ensure your comments get addressed.
Back to Top Grant Funding Available for Coastal Community Partnerships
The National Sea Grant College Program in NOAA's Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research is offering small grants to Sea Grant Programs who partner with a local community to help the local community develop in ways that meet environmental and other community goals. In addition, the Development, Community and Environment Division (DCED) in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) Office of Policy Economics and Innovation will provide smart growth implementation assistance to the selected applicants and local community partners. All applications are due to NOAA on Friday, January 6, 2006. For more information, please visit http://www.lgean.org/html/whatsnew.cfm?id=966..
Back to Top Old cell phones are piling up in homes, survey finds
The Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation, which is a nonprofit organization that promotes cell phone and rechargeable battery recycling, recently conducted a survey to find out what people are storing in their closets. The survey, conducted on Real Simple magazine´s promotional Web site, Real Simple Rewards, found that one in four of the 573 respondents said they were still holding on to their "skinny jeans." And aside from old textbooks, yearbooks and clothes, electronics were the most widely stockpiled items in our closets. Forty-five percent of those responding said they were holding on to old cell phones in their homes. But 71 percent also said they know they can recycle old cell phones and rechargeable batteries, the survey showed.
Back to Top Save the Date! River, Lakes, Bays 'N Bayous Trash Bash® - March 25, 2006
Once a year thousands of Trash Bash® volunteers gather along the waterways of our region to do their part in cleaning up the environment. Last year 2,758 volunteers picked up 77 tons of trash and 645 tires within the Galveston Bay watershed. The dedicated team of volunteers, local and state agencies, citizens' groups, local businesses and industry has made the River, Lakes, Bays 'N Bayous Trash Bash® a success since 1994. Trash Bash® is regionally coordinated through the H-GAC Solid Waste Program. To learn more about Trash Bash and to become a volunteer, please visit http://www.trashbash.org/.
Back to Top U.S. EPA will provide technical assistance to communities for implementing smart growth either through policy analysis (e.g., reviewing state and local codes, school siting guidelines, transportation policies, etc.) or public participatory processes (e.g., visioning, alternatives analysis, build-out analysis, etc.). Selected communities will receive assistance in the form of a multi-day visit from a team of experts organized by EPA and other national partners to work with local leaders. EPA will provide this assistance through an Agency contract vehicle, not a grant. Team members will be nationally known experts in disciplines to be determined by the community's unique needs. After the visit, the team will work with the community to deliver a final report. Although the assistance is free to the community, priority will be given to those places that can demonstrate commitments of local staff time, support from local businesses, and other local resources. For more information go to http://www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/techasst.htm. All applications are due to EPA on Friday, January 6, 2006. Eligible entities are tribal, local, regional, and state governments and nonprofit organizations that have a demonstrated partnership with a governmental entity. For more information, contact Ilana Preuss at preuss.ilana@epa.gov or at 202-566-2853; or Mary Kay Bailey at bailey.marykay@epa.gov or at 202-566-2859.
Back to Top H-GAC MEETING NOTICES
Solid Waste Management Committee
December 8, 2005
H-GAC Conference Room A
3555 Timmons, Houston, TX 77027
10:00am to noon
For more information, please contact Cheryl Mergo at 713-993-4520 or cmergo@h-gac.com..
Back to Top Environmental Enforcement Roundtable
Topic: Storm Water Enforcement and Prosecution
January 12, 2006
H-GAC Conference Room A
3555 Timmons, Houston, TX 77027
10:00am to noon
For more information, please contact Cheryl Mergo at 713-993-4520 or cmergo@h-gac.com.
Back to Top Storm Debris: Force Account Labor and Equipment
January 18, 2006
H-GAC Conference Room A
3555 Timmons, Houston, TX 77027
9:00am to 4:00pm
For more information, please contact Kelly Doyle at 713-993-4566 or kdoyle@h-gac.com.
Back to Top Solid Waste Management Committee
January 25, 2006
H-GAC Conference Room A
3555 Timmons, Houston, TX 77027
10:00am to noon For more information, contact Cheryl Mergo at 713-993-4520 or cmergo@h-gac.com..
Back to Top Regional Recycling Roundtable: Glass
November 29, 2006
H-GAC Conference Room C
3555 Timmons, Houston, TX 77027
9:30am to 11:30am
For more information, please contact Kelly Doyle at 713-993-4566 or kdoyle@h-gac.com.
Back to Top OTHER MEETING NOTICE
Advanced Air Permitting Seminar
The TCEQ Compliance and Enforcement staff will discuss how businesses can achieve compliance in all areas of air quality in a seminar at the Sofitel Houston Hotel on December 14 -15. The half-day workshops and two-day Advanced Air Permitting Seminar will focus on areas from new source review to Title V,to emissions banking and trading, to dispersion modeling. The seminar promises to provide a wealth of knowledge about those aspects of air permitting and air quality that are important to you. The sessions are designed for engineers, environmental staff or managers of permitted facilities, consultants, or owners of business or industrial facilities operating in Texas. To find out more about this seminar and to register, visit www.tceq.state.tx.us/assets/public/admin/events/12-05airpermitting.pdf.
Back to Top
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H-GAC Community and Environmental Update December2005
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