Also See: What's New for EPA,
What's New for State Programs and/or What's New for National Programs

$700,000 in Alaska Clean Water Actions grants available
Organizations sought to help improve high priority water bodies
The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has announced that more than $700,000 in grants is available for clean water projects. Each year, DEC along with its partners in the Alaska Clean Water Actions (ACWA) program, the Departments of Natural Resources and Fish and Game, solicits proposals for projects to be funded through ACWA grants. The funds are granted to local communities and citizens groups for projects that monitor and restore targeted high priority water bodies.

New to the ACWA grants this year is a stewardship project that will provide monies to monitor stormwater impacts to urban anadromous streams in southcentral Alaska. Assessing and preventing stormwater pollution is a priority of the eight-year-old program. Projects receiving grants last year were diverse and distributed around the State. For example, the Juneau Watershed Partnership is constructing a number of stormwater treatment demonstration sites-to help show ways to reduce pollutants in stormwater.

For more information about the program's priorities and the solicitation, visit DEC's website at:
www.dec.state.ak.us/water/acwa/acwa_index.htm

Applications must be submitted on-line by February 19, 2010

EPA Seeks Applications for Environmental Community Grants
EPA is making $2 million available in 2010 to reduce pollution at the local level through the Community Action for a Renewed Environment (CARE) program. CARE is a community-based program that works with county and local governments, tribes, non-profit organizations and universities to help the public understand and reduce toxic risks from numerous sources.

EPA will award CARE cooperative agreements in two levels. Level I awards range from $75,000 to $100,000 and will help establish community-based partnerships to develop local environmental priorities. Level II awards, ranging from $150,000 to $300,000 each, will support communities that have established broad-based partnerships, have identified the priority toxic risks in the community, and are prepared to measure results, implement risk-reduction activities and become self-sustaining.

Applications for the CARE grants are due March 9, 2010. EPA will conduct three Webcasts to answer questions from prospective applicants about the application process on Feb. 2, 23, and 26 from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

More information about the grants: http://www.epa.gov/care/

EPA Seeks Nominations for Prestigious Environmental Award
Do you know a person, organization, or a business, union, or government official who works tirelessly to make the world a cleaner and healthier place? Then nominate them for a prestigious EPA Environmental Quality Award, which recognizes environmental leadership and the dedication of those who have gone above and beyond the call of duty in 2009 to improve the environment in New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The awards recognize achievement in six categories:

• Individual Citizen
• Non-Profit Organization, Environmental or Community Group
• Environmental Education
• Business and Industry
• Federal, State, Local or Tribal Government or Agency
• Press and Media

Nominations for the awards are solicited from both within and outside EPA.
Nominations must be submitted by Monday, February 22, 2010. Award recipients will be honored at a ceremony in April at EPA's Manhattan offices.

For more information on award criteria, prior winners and nomination instructions, visit EPA's Environmental Quality Award Web page at http://www.epa.gov/region2/eqa. Self-nominations are welcome.

Automotive X Prize to Hold Its Competitive Events in Michigan
The Progressive Insurance Automotive X Prize has chosen Michigan to host a multi-stage competition that will determine the winners of its $10 million prize purse for super fuel-efficient vehicles. This a departure from previous plans, which called for a rigorous long-distance stage competition. Instead, the 51 competing cars from 41 teams will start on-track performance events at the Michigan International Speedway, beginning on April 26 and continuing through July. During these closed-door competition stages, the competition organizers will evaluate the efficiency, safety, and performance of each competition vehicle under real-world conditions. The competition will feature a public open house at the Michigan State Capitol on April 29, and the racetrack will be open to the public at some time in July, but not during competitive events. In August, the vehicles will undergo dynamometer testing (similar to vehicle emissions tests) at a laboratory run by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, with technical support from DOE's Argonne National Laboratory. The on-track performance results and the lab test results will lead up to an award ceremony in Washington, D.C., in September. Specific dates for the final events will be announced later.

The goal of the Automotive X Prize is to inspire a new generation of viable, super fuel-efficient vehicles. Prizes totaling $10 million dollars will be awarded to the teams that win the competition to create clean, production-capable vehicles that exceed the energy equivalent of 100 miles per gallon of gasoline. DOE is supporting the competition through a $3.5 million grant for an associated education program and through technical support, which is funded with $5.5 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The Automotive X Prize is administered by the X Prize Foundation, an educational nonprofit prize institute whose mission is to create radical breakthroughs for the benefit of humanity. See the Automotive X Prize press release and Web site.

Tennessee Governor’s Environmental Stewardship Awards Program
The purpose of the Governor’s Environmental Stewardship Awards Program is to recognize outstanding achievements by individuals, businesses, organizations, educational institutions, and agencies for successful environmental projects and conservation measures. The program also promotes leadership by example and in turn increases conservation of the natural resources of the State of Tennessee – its wildlife, forests, soils, water, natural heritage, parks and recreation, and air.

For more information, see http://www.tennessee.gov/environment/awards/10awds/2010awardsbrochure.pdf