Calendar
Every question/comment you type will be viewed as public comments and will be part of the public record including your name, e-mail, and any other information you provide. The webinar will be recorded and posted on restorethegulf.gov. In accordance with the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf States Act (RESTORE Act or Act), the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council (Council) will announce the availability of the Draft 2017 Funded Priorities List: Comprehensive Commitment and Planning Support (draft CPS FPL). In the draft CPS FPL, the Council proposes to provide its members with funding to enhance collaboration, coordination, public engagement and use of best available science needed to make efficient use of Gulf restoration funds resulting from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. These awards will support the Council’s commitment to a coordinated approach to ecosystem restoration, as called for in the Comprehensive Plan Update 2016: Restoring the Gulf Coast’s Ecosystem and Economy.
The draft CPS FPL will be available for public and Tribal review and comment at www.restorethegulf.gov. Register for the webinar online.Â
Until now, there has been only one source of data on global fishery catches: information reported to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations by member countries. An extensive, ten-year study conducted by The Sea Around Us Project of the University of British Columbia shows that this catch data is fundamentally misleading. Many countries under report the amount of fish caught (some by as much as 500%), while others such as China significantly over report their catches. The Global Atlas of Marine Fisheries is the first and only book to provide accurate, country-by-country fishery data. This groundbreaking information has been gathered from independent sources by the world’s foremost fisheries experts, and edited by Daniel Pauly and Dirk Zeller of the Sea Around Us Project. Meet the panel and join in on the discussion with these experts on Wednesday, July 26, 2017, from 1:15 to 2:45 PM- remember to register online for this informative webinar at https://register.gotowebinar.com. The Security and Sustainability Forum convenes global experts in free educational webinars about critical climate risk topics such as urban resilience, the food – water – energy nexus, droughts and flooding, green infrastructure, public health and global climate security, among others. Learn more about SSF and other hosted webinars at http://securityandsustainabilityforum.org/.
The Security and Sustainability Forum is hosting “EarthED: Rethinking Education on a Changing Planet” webinar on Wednesday, August 2, 2017, from 12:15 to 1:45 PM.
In collaboration with the World Watch Institute and Island Press the webinar features contributors to WWI’s latest State of the World publication, EarthEd – Rethinking Education on a changing planet. EarthEd addresses schooling at all levels of development, from preschool to professional. Its lessons can inform teachers, policy makers, school administrators, community leaders, parents, and students alike. And its vision will inspire anyone who wants to prepare students not only for the storms ahead but to become the next generation of sustainability leaders. Register for this webinar and save your seat.Â
US EPA’s Green Infrastructure program will host a webcast on Wednesday, August 9, 2017, from 12:00 to 1:30 PM CT, titled “Exploring the Link Between Green Infrastructure and Air Quality.” Speakers from the EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation and Office of Research and Development will discuss innovative research into the multiple benefits of green infrastructure.
Attending the webcast is free but registration is required. Go to the webcast series announcement page to register for the webcast and learn more about our speakers and their research.
While green infrastructure can help communities manage stormwater, using vegetated systems such as green roofs and tree boxes can also help improve air quality and reduce urban heat island effects. These practices shade building surfaces, deflect radiation from the sun, and release moisture into the atmosphere. Additionally, natural features such as urban forests and vegetative barriers planted near roads, in parking lots and around city centers, assist in reducing particulate pollution and ground-level ozone, improving air quality and reducing cases of respiratory illness and other health impacts related to air pollution. For more on this webcast, visit www.epa.gov/green-infrastructure/.
The College and University Recycling Coalition (CURC) 2017 Webinar Series continues with Engaging the Campus to Improve Recycling Participation from noon to 1:30 p.m. Thursday, August 10.  The CURC Webinar series is designed to share technical knowledge between program managers, student interns and others involved with promoting waste reduction on college campuses. Scheduled on the second Thursday every other month, CURC webinars cover a range of topics related to sustainable materials management, such as material collections and processing, education, and promotion and procurement. Registration is required.
The Association of State Wetland Managers (ASWM) invites you to join in for their new mini webinar series focused on best management practices for invasive species in coastal wetlands. There will be a total of 6 webinars on this topic, starting with the first, “Invasive Species in Coastal Wetlands: Current and Future Challenges & Management Implications†on Thursday, August 17, 2017, at 2:00 PM. In this webinar you will hear from two experts in this field: Thomas Hall, a Wildlife Biologist with the USDA, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Wildlife Services Program; and Anne Garwood, the Great Lakes Coastal Wetland Ecologist for the Water Resources Division in the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.
To register for the webinar, click here.
Webinar: Reducing Plastic Pollution with Better Products and Policies
The next webinar in Security and Sustainability Forum’s Closing the Environmental Literacy Gap series is hosted by the World Watch Institute and Island Press on Saturday, September 2, 2017. The webinar features contributors to WWI’s latest State of the World publication, “EarthEd – Rethinking Education on a Changing Planet“.
EPA is hosting a webinar for interested parties to explain the process for gathering use and exposure information on five persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic (PBT) chemicals under the amended Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). This webinar will take place on Thursday, September 7, 2017 at 1:00 PM. It will provide background on new requirements for regulating certain PBT chemicals and explain how interested parties can provide use information to EPA on these five chemicals:
– Decabromodiphenyl ethers (DecaBDE), used as a flame retardant in textiles, plastics, wiring insulation, and building and construction materials;
– Hexachlorobutadiene (HCBD), used as a solvent in the manufacture of rubber compounds and as hydraulic, heat transfer or transformer fluid;
– Pentachlorothiophenol (PCTP), used as a mercaptan (sulfur) cross-linking agent to make rubber more pliable in industrial uses;
– Phenol, isopropylated, phosphate (3:1), used as a flame retardant in consumer products and as lubricant, hydraulic fluid, and other industrial uses; and
– 2,4,6-Tris(tert-butyl) phenol, an antioxidant that can be used as a fuel, oil, gasoline or lubricant additive.
Under TSCA section 6(h), EPA is required to take expedited regulatory action to address risks and exposures from certain PBT chemicals. By June 22, 2019, EPA must propose rules for the above five PBT chemicals that have been identified under TSCA section 6(h)(1). EPA is currently identifying where these chemicals are used and how people are exposed to them.
Following EPA’s presentation, participants will have an opportunity to provide their comments on uses of these five chemicals.
To register for this webinar, please click here.