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Sustainability means “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”
This site provides information on scores of EPA programs supporting sustainability that focus on the Built Environment; Water, Ecosystems & Agriculture; Energy; and Materials & Toxics on sustainability near you, and on how you can help.
"We have a responsibility to sustain - if not enhance - our natural environment and our nation's economy for future generations." -Steve Johnson, Administrator, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
News & Events
The National Biofuels Action Plan (PDF) (24 pp, 4.9MB, About PDF), which outlines research needed to advance sustainable biofuel production, has been released by the interagency Biomass Research and Development Board, The board is chaired by the chaired by U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Department of Energy; EPA is co-leading workgroups on Sustainability and Environment, Health and Safety.
EPA’s P3 (People, Prosperity and the Planet) program is now welcoming applications for its annual Student Design Competition for Sustainability from teams of college students. Selected teams will receive support to research, develop, and design solutions to real-world challenges involving sustainability in the areas of agriculture, materials and chemicals, energy information technology, water, and the built environment. Applications will be accepted until December 19, 2009 from degree-granting public and private institutions of higher education in the U.S.
EPA to Develop Green Building Strategy. EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson has announced a new agency approach to encourage sustainable building practices. Offering a multi-faceted approach to reduce negative environmental and public health impacts of buildings and related products throughout their life span, the strategy will strengthen EPA’s Green Building program.
Federal R&D Agenda for Net-Zero Energy, High-Performance Green Buildings (PDF) (76 pp, 2.8 MB, About PDF). This National Science and Technology Council report, released in October 2008, describes research and development activities that could decrease use of natural resources and improve indoor environments while reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other harmful pollutants from the building sector. Several EPA staff contributed to the development of the report.
Engineering Sustainability 2009: Innovations that Span Boundaries. This biennial conference is sponsored by the University of Pittsburgh’s Mascaro Sustainability Initiative and Carnegie Mellon University’s Steinbrenner Institute for Environmental Education and Research. Pittsburgh, April 19-21, 2009.
EPA To Develop Biofuel Strategy (PDF) (2 pp, 141KB, About PDF). EPA’s Administrator responds to reports by National Advisory Council for Environmental Policy and Technology. Sept. 26, 2007.
Biomass Conversion: Emerging Technologies, Feedstocks, and Products (PDF) (36 pp, 1.9MB, About PDF). This report from EPA's Sustainability program describes the principal steps in biomass conversion. Eight emerging technologies are detailed in the report's Biomass Conversion Matrix (Appendix C) (PDF), which may be printed in 11-by-17-inch format (2 pp, 133K, About PDF).
Sustainability Research Strategy (PDF) (72 pp, 1.37MB, About PDF). EPA's Office of Research and Development has developed and published EPA’s strategy for research related to Sustainability.