190B13008
xe/EPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Cross-Cutting Fundamental Strategy
FY 2013 Action Plan Annual Progress Report
trateay 2: Working for Environmental Justice and Children's Health
Work to reduce and prevent harmful exposures and health risks to children and underserved, disproportionately
impacted low-income, minority, and tribal communities, and support community efforts to build healthy,
sustainable green neighborhoods.
Executive Summary
In FY 2013, EPA took steps to: (1) promote environmental justice (EJ) and children's health (CH) through the Continuing
Environmental Programs, National Environmental Performance Partnership System, and National Environmental Policy
Act processes; (2) incorporate EJ and CH into the regulatory process by providing guidance to rule writers about how to
appropriately consider EJ and CH when developing regulations; (3) replicate and expand best practices from EPA's multi-
media community-based programs; (4) provide training opportunities for the public and Agency staff on children's
health and environmental issues in underserved and minority communities.; and (5) increase the adoption of EPA's
voluntary school guidelines and programmatic school environmental health tools through focused outreach. In addition,
the Agency developed and promoted basic CH training for headquarters and regional staff. This strategy will be
incorporated into the "Communities" Cross Agency Strategy in the draft FY2014-2018 EPA Strategic Plan.
Accomplishments:
S National Program Managers (NPMs) included CH and Plan EJ 2014 commitments and EJ program initiatives in the FY
2013 NPM Guidance, operational measures that capture actions relevant to advancing EJ and CH.
S EPA completed an assessment of 47 promising practices from regional implementation of community-based
programs from which EPA senior management developed eight recommendations for aligning and harmonizing
future Agency community-based work. Each EPA Region identified a community in which to pilot these
recommendations in FY 2013.
S EPA's Region 1 led the development of the concept of EJ and permitting regional implementation plans under the
Plan EJ 2014 Permitting Initiative. These plans establish a process for prioritizing enhanced regional public
involvement opportunities of EPA-issued permits that may disproportionately impact overburdened communities.
Region 1 will pilot its plan in FY 2013 as a model for other Regions. Additionally, the Office of Air and Radiation,
Office of General Counsel, and Region 1 drafted and released for public comment an EJ and permitting Promising
Practices document that includes a number of "good neighbor" practices already employed by permit applicants
across the country.
S EPA developed the EJSCREEN tool, now available to every EPA employee via an internal Agency GeoPlatform.
EJSCREEN will increase consistency in the data and methods used for EJ screening and generate cost savings across
the Agency.
S The Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention launched the School Integrated Pest Management (IPM)
program. This program coordinated EPA intramural and extramural components and integrated efforts across the
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country to protect schools and school children from the hazards carried by pests. The program also integrated IPM
efforts across the federal government, including the work of the Departments of Agriculture and Health and Human
Services (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention).
S The Office of Children's Health Protection (OCHP) participated in 32 regulatory workgroups that contributed to many
of the most important actions for protecting children's health, including the Mercury Air Toxics Rule and the
development of the proposed rule for perchlorate.
•S Through grants awarded to Alabama and Tennessee in 2011 as part of the School Chemical Cleanout Campaign
program, Region 4 safely removed over 6,200 pounds of chemicals from 20 schools - protecting approximately
15,000 children from harm; and trained over 650 teachers on green and microscale chemistry to implement
measures for safer chemical management in schools. Region 8 developed and printed over 11,000 booklets for
distribution nationally on "Sensible Steps to Healthier School Environments." These booklets provide information to
address some of the most common environmental health concerns in schools and identify low-cost or no-cost
measures, programs, and resources available to help prevent, reduce, or resolve each of the highlighted
environmental health concerns.
Challenges:
S Efforts to establish implementation plans for OCHP and lead Regional Schools Coordinators as part of the Clean
Green and Healthy Schools initiative were delayed due to funding constraints.
•S Regional coordinators have encountered barriers while working within the National Environmental Performance
Partnership System (NEPPS) to enhance communications with states. Many states are hesitant to make revisions to
NEPPS agreements for unfunded initiatives.
FY 2013 Annual Progress Report: Working for Environmental Justice and Children's Health
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FY 2013 Performance Summary
Strategy 2: Working for Environmental Justice and Children's Health
FY 2013 Action Plan Activity
Status/Explanation
v' = Activity Complete
Interaction with States and Tribes
1. Take additional steps to communicate and work with
the states in critical activities to enhance consideration
of environmental justice (EJ) and children's health (CH).
In addition to exercising their roles as regulators, states
are also critical partners in non-regulatory activities
that promote EJ and CH (Supports Principle 1).
• In FY 2013, Regions will enhance communications
about EJ and CH and work together with their states
through Continuing Environmental Programs (CEP)
grant work plans or National Environmental
Performance Partnership System (NEPPS)
agreements to identify shared opportunities that can
yield significant benefits for EJ and/or CH (e.g., lead
poisoning, asthma, air and water pollution from
concentrated animal feeding operations and multiple
or cumulative exposures to air pollution). These
communications will emphasize (1) improving
environmental conditions and public health in
minority, low-income, tribal, and other vulnerable
communities; and/or (2) advancing CH. By
September 30, 2013, each Region will submit to the
Office of Environmental Justice (OEJ) and Office of
Children's Health Protection (OCHP) a brief narrative
summary describing its EJ and CH communication
efforts in working with states through CEP grant
work plans or NEPPS agreements.
Many regional EJ and CH coordinators have enhanced
communications with states regarding NEPPS
agreements by working closely with regional EPA
NEPPS coordinators.
Variability in implementation of NEPPS programs from
region to region and state to state has prevented a
uniform communications approach. Six regions
submitted summaries of CH communication efforts
with states.
Regulatory, Enforcement and Training Actions
2. Build on previous efforts to implement Action
Development Process (ADP) Guidance for considering EJ
and CH when developing regulations related to the
protection of human health (Supports Principles 1 and
4).
To supplement ADP training opportunities:
• Develop a webinar-based training available to all EPA
staff - but targeting regulation developers - to
enhance understanding of children's environmental
health and its application within EPA's regulatory
process by September 2013.
• Establish an intranet "EJ in Rulemaking" website and
training materials to increase awareness of guidance
and other support materials that will promote early
consideration of EJ in ADP by January 2013.
^
The training was finalized in July 2013 and presented to
EPA staff in September 2013.
,/
The website was completed on November 2, 2012.
FY 2013 Annual Progress Report: Working for Environmental Justice and Children's Health
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FY 2013 Performance Summary
Strategy 2: Working for Environmental Justice and Children's Health
FY 2013 Action Plan Activity
Status/Explanation
S = Activity Complete
3. Work with EPA enforcement staff and manage
interagency National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
workgroup to develop tools to support the
consideration of CH and EJ by all federal agencies
(Supports Principles 1, 4, 5, and 6).
The Office of Children's Health Protection (OCHP)
will partner with the Office of Federal Activities
(OFA) to integrate CH considerations into NEPA and
Section 309 reviews of federal environmental impact
statements (EISs) and other NEPA documents. In FY
2013, each Region will participate in and propose CH
considerations for at least one NEPA review.
Eight regions participated in the NEPA review process.
Many regional NEPA personnel completed children's
environmental health training.
Produce and distribute training materials, including
best practices, for federal government and external
stakeholders that advance consideration of EJ in the
NEPA review process government-wide.
For Environmental Justice
4. EPA will apply recommendations identified in FY 2012
for improving and advancing EPA's work with
communities, especially those with underserved and
overburdened populations, in one pilot community or
area in each Region and optimize available training
resources for Agency staff in how best to work in and
with communities (Supports Principles 5 and 6).
Convene two meetings of senior Agency officials to
review and discuss the progress of the Regional
community pilot projects and lessons learned from
their implementation. Target meeting dates are set
for February 1, 2013 and August 1, 2013.
EPA held two Executive Steering Committee meetings in
February and May 2013 to discuss progress on the pilot
projects. A third meeting was held August 1, 2013, at
which key recommendations for FY 2014 were
discussed. Additionally, EPA held bi-monthly community
network meetings of regions and HQ program offices to
facilitate more effective coordination of community
work at EPA.
FY 2013 Annual Progress Report: Working for Environmental Justice and Children's Health
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FY 2013 Performance Summary
Strategy 2: Working for Environmental Justice and Children's Health
FY 2013 Action Plan Activity
Status/Explanation
S = Activity Complete
By September 30, 2013, compile: (1) a brief summary
of the ten Regional pilots; (2) the recommendations
identified in FY 2012 that each pilot was designed to
test; (3) the lessons learned implementing the
Regional community pilots; and, (4) a limited set of
recommendations for integrating promising practices
from the pilots into appropriate Agency programs as
results from the pilots become available and
recommendations are reviewed and approved by
senior Agency officials.
EPA implemented ten regional KPI pilots that tested FY
2012 promising practice themes. The pilots, while
ongoing, informed a draft set of recommendations
designed to better integrate promising practices into
core Agency programs and operations.
• Compile promising practices identified by the
Regions in FY 2012 into a resource for Agency
community practitioners by April 2013.
The Agency completed an assessment of 46 promising
practices in May 2013. The report is available on the
Community-Based Coordination Network Page of the
Environmental Science Connector.
• Review existing staff training opportunities for
working with communities and develop a training
plan to fill any gaps, as warranted, by September 30,
2013.
EPA reviewed existing training opportunities, and no
significant gaps were apparent in core competency
areas. However, specific recommendations to enhance
training and coordination were included as part of the
Community-Based Network's draft recommendations for
consideration by senior Agency officials by August 1,
2013.
5. National Program Managers (NPMs) will promote the
use of "EJ Legal Tools and Activities to Promote
Environmental Justice in the Permit Application
Process" and collect examples and best practices of
their use and impact (Supports Principle 1).
By September 30, 2013, NPMs will collectively
identify 50 examples of the use of EJ legal tools
(EJLT) to more fully ensure that its programs,
policies, and activities fully protect human health
and the environment in minority and low-income
communities.
EPA collected 82 examples of the use of EJ legal tools for
the EJLT Repository for EPA staff. These also serve a
resource for development of additional EJ materials for
EPA staff and the public.
FY 2013 Annual Progress Report: Working for Environmental Justice and Children's Health
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FY 2013 Performance Summary
Strategy 2: Working for Environmental Justice and Children's Health
FY 2013 Action Plan Activity
Status/Explanation
S = Activity Complete
By September 30, 2013, NPMs will collectively
identify 20 best practices illustrating the use of the
EPA activities to promote EJ in the permit application
process.
EPA collected approximately 22 case studies
illustrating how it has promoted EJ in the permit
application process.
The EJ in Permitting Workgroup under Plan EJ 2014
will evaluate these case studies to identify lesson
learned that could be included in other Agency
resources to address EJ issues in the permit
application process.
For Children's Health
6. Assess the results of the Office of Children's Health
Protection (OCHP) and Regional Schools Coordinators'
focused outreach and technical assistance to identify
opportunities to increase adoption of EPA's guidelines
and programmatic school environmental health tools
(Supports Principle 5).
By September 2013, schools staff will participate in
at least 20 outreach forums (webinars, conferences,
technical assistance sessions, trainings, etc.) and
evaluate the effectiveness of these activities to
direct the FY 2014 outreach plan.
HQ and regional staff participated in over 40 outreach
forums related to EPA's guidelines. Effectiveness of
previous forums continues to be considered as FY 2014
outreach is conducted.
7. OCHP will monitor the implementation of agency-wide
Children's Environmental Health training at
headquarters and Regional offices by tracking
completion and offering group and web-based sessions.
OCHP will work to reach a 10% completion rate by
September 2013. Training will be revised as appropriate
and made available to federal, state, tribal, and local
partners; as well as non-governmental stakeholders; by
September 2013 (Supports Principles 5 and 6).
EPA met the Agency goal of a 10% completion rate by
September 2013. The highest performers were Regions 1
and 10, with an over 36% completion rate for
employees.
FY 2013 Annual Progress Report: Working for Environmental Justice and Children's Health
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