Region 7 Community Information Guide

EPA Region 7’s Community Information Guide provides communities, nonprofits, stakeholder groups, community-based organizations, academia, tribes, state and local governments, and other partners with the latest information on funding and technical assistance opportunities, meetings, conferences, events, webinars, and other activities related to human health and the environment.

This guide is updated periodically, so be sure to check back for the latest information!

On this page:

• Headlines
• Funding and Technical Assistance
• Meetings, Conferences and Events
• Webinars and Conference Calls

To suggest content for this page, please send an email to: R7_Communities_Digest@epa.gov.

EPA Seeks Applicants for National Environmental Education and Training Program The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the availability of up to $4.7 million in funding under the National Environmental Education and Training Program to strengthen environmental education nationwide by supporting training programs for educators and professionals and improving how environmental topics are taught and communicated. EPA anticipates that one award will be made under this announcement that will be incrementally funded annually for two years, depending on Agency funding levels, the quality of applications received, agency priorities, and other applicable considerations. Awards funded under this opportunity are expected to have a two-year project period. Eligible entities include Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs), Nonprofit organizations, and consortiums of IHEs, or a combination of both. This funding is meant to build a more environmentally literate public by equipping educators with better knowledge and tools. Applicants are encouraged to address and leverage the following funding priorities in their proposed projects in support of EO 14313, Establishing the President’s Make America Beautiful Again Commission: Environmental Stewardship Outdoor Education Environmental Risk Issue Investigations AI-Enhanced Environmental Education Applications are due by April 27, 2026. Interested in learning more? Visit the National Environmental Education Training Program webpage or Grants.Gov announcement for EPA-OA-NEETP-26.

Spring Cleaning! Tips and Resources for Nebraska Communities to Revitalize Those Eyesore Properties! Now is the time to think about addressing your blighted and potentially contaminated properties. Join us to learn about available resources and when and how best to apply them. The Nebraska Department of Water, Energy, and Environment (DWEE), U.S. EPA - Region 7, and KSU TAB are partnering to present a webinar focused on: Understanding what brownfields are and how their redevelopment can kick-start community revitalization. Meeting your brownfield partners at Nebraska DWEE, U.S. EPA, and KSU TAB and hear about free tools and resources they offer. Informational Webinar Details Date: April 29, 2026 Time: 2 p.m. - 3 p.m. CST Click Here for Details and Registration Attend this Webinar

Headlines

Relaunch of EPA’s Guidance Portal

• EPA has relaunched the EPA Guidance Portal, a streamlined website for accessing important guidance documents related to air quality, water protection, hazardous waste management, and more. The website serves as a resource for all guidance documents managed across EPA's environmental programs. It is designed to be a one-stop shop to help users and small businesses easily and quickly locate and follow EPA’s active guidance documents on topics of interest.
• EPA guidance documents inform the public how the agency interprets an underlying statute and its regulations, and take the form of memoranda, policy statements, handbooks, manuals, and other documents formally titled as guidance. Guidance documents that have been superseded with newer guidance are not included in the updated website.

Air Quality Flag Program

• One way to get students involved in learning about outdoor air quality – and the impacts it can have on indoor air quality – is EPA's Air Quality Flag Program. This program is a simple resource for teachers and schools to keep communities informed about air quality using colorful flags based on EPA’s Air Quality Index (AQI). The program’s colorful flags reflect the daily outdoor air quality forecast – crucial information during times when smoke can significantly impact air quality and pose health risks. Raising a flag each day helps everyone make informed decisions about outdoor activities, ensuring that children can enjoy safe play while protecting their health.
• For added convenience, you can also virtually display AQI flags or install an AQI widget for timely updates on school screens. Visit the Air Quality Flag Program website at the link above to learn which flag to fly and promote a healthy learning environment for children.

Funding and Technical Assistance​​​​​​

EPA Emerging Contaminants (EC) in Small or Disadvantaged Communities Grant (SDC) – $2 Billion

• Due date: ongoing
• This noncompetitive program will provide states, territories, and tribes with grants to public water systems in small or disadvantaged communities to address emerging contaminants, including per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). 
• Eligible entities: states, territories, tribes.

EPA Science Matters: Wildfire Smoke and More

• Smoke from wildfires can impact air quality across much of the U.S. EPA researchers have been working to address many of the issues wildfires present to health and the environment, including preparing communities and individuals on how to protect themselves.
  • Listen to EPA's Jason Sacks and a panel of other experts discuss how wildfire smoke affects your health on NPR's 1A.
  • EPA's Ana Rappold spoke to The Atlantic about the effects of wildfire smoke and particulate matter on brain function.
• EPA develops software models and tools to address a range of environmental issues. The Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) modeling system is EPA’s premier tool for studying air pollution from global to local scales. In June 2023, EPA celebrated the 25th anniversary of CMAQ’s initial release with a three-part story on the history and significance of this powerful computational tool.
  • Read about what has made the CMAQ model so successful over the years and why it is still relevant today.
  • Read about how CMAQ has been working toward a “one environment-one health” approach throughout its lifetime.
  • Read about how CMAQ has continued to innovate, modernize, and address emerging environmental issues.

Environmental Finance Center Network

• The Environmental Finance Center Network offers free help on training and technical assistance to small wastewater and decentralized wastewater treatment works serving approximately 10,000 or fewer people. Request assistance here.

U.S. Department of Energy’s National Community Solar Partnership+

U.S. Department of Energy’s Clean Cities Coalition Network Technical Assistance

• To assist with alternative fuels, fuel economy improvements, and emerging transportation technologies.

EPA’s RE-Powering Mapper 3.0

• This update includes data provided by EPA Brownfields, Superfund, Abandoned Mine Lands, Landfill Methane Outreach, and Resource Conservation and Recovery Act programs, and a pilot with Underground Storage Tanks, in addition to data from 22 state partners. Over 190,000 sites and nearly 40 million acres of land are included and screened for solar, wind, biomass and geothermal energy potential. EPA partnered with the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) to provide up-to-date data and screening that reflects current trends in renewable energy development.

EPA Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) Technical Assistance

• CSO Technical Assistance is available from EPA’s Office of Wastewater Management on monitoring/modeling; smart sewers and smart data; asset management; operation and maintenance; regulatory/ compliance questions; and small CSO community spreadsheet-based tools (CSO model, long-term control plan review checklist, post-construction compliance monitoring checklist). See flyer for more information.

EPA CSO Tools Available

• Check out the NEW CSO Tools for combined sewer overflow permittees and permitting authorities for planning and management of different aspects of CSO programs. Each tool consists of an interactive spreadsheet, fact sheet or user guide, and three recorded trainings. These tools, which are currently in Beta test version, do not present new or changed requirements; rather they attempt to help break down information in a more digestible and interactive fashion.
  • Long-Term Control Plan (LTCP) Review Checklist – Designed to help CSO permittees and NPDES authorities determine if LTCPs meet the requirements of the Clean Water Act (CWA) and the CSO Control Policy and conform with EPA guidance on developing LTCPs.
  • Post-Construction Compliance Monitoring (PCCM) Checklist – Designed to help CSO permittees and NPDES authorities develop and evaluate PCCM programs to meet the requirements of the CWA and CSO Control Policy and conform with EPA guidance on PCCM.
  • Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) Model for Small Communities – Planning tool for small CSO communities that want a reasonably simple approach to estimating a CSO occurrence, as well as treated or untreated CSO volume over a 24-hour period and have limited resources to invest in more advanced CSO monitoring and modeling.

Meetings, Conferences and Events

Webinars and Conference Calls

Spring Cleaning! Tips and Resources for Nebraska Communities to Revitalize Those Eyesore Properties!

Now is the time to think about addressing your blighted and potentially contaminated properties. Join us to learn about available resources and when and how best to apply them.

The Nebraska Department of Water, Energy, and Environment (DWEE), U.S. EPA - Region 7, and KSU TAB are partnering to present a webinar focused on:

• Understanding what brownfields are and how their redevelopment can kick-start community revitalization.
• Meeting your brownfield partners at Nebraska DWEE, U.S. EPA, and KSU TAB and hear about free tools and resources they offer.

Informational Webinar Details

• Date: April 29, 2026
• Time: 2 p.m. - 3 p.m. CST
• Click Here for Details and Registration Attend this Webinar

The information above is being provided by EPA Region 7 for informational purposes only. This page contains links to information, agencies, sites, and organizations external to EPA’s website. EPA is not responsible for third-party links. EPA does not endorse third-party organizations or agencies.