On Tuesday, February 3, 2015, the NEMWI will host its annual regional reception in the Capitol Visitor Center - North Capitol Room from 5:00-7:00 pm. NEMWI  Board members will introduce NEMWI's new President, Michael Goff, Ph.D. For over 37 years, the NEMWI, working closely with regional stakeholders, has actively, creatively, and effectively generated regional information and analysis for the NEMW Congressional and Senate Coalitions and states to support their significant joint efforts to improve federal, state, and local policy responses to the region's needs. The NEMWI is especially skilled in the areas of economic development in the context of resource conservation and restoration. Areas of focus include water resource restoration and protection, energy efficiency, community redevelopment, advanced manufacturing, transportation improvement, public health protection, and workforce development. Please join us to celebrate the remarkable NEMW region and the bipartisan NEMW Coalitions and state offices that work to improve it!

For more information, contact Hope Ratner, Administrative Manager at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.   

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Announces Release of $300 million for   

Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program

The Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Administration for Children and Families announced on January 21, 2015 the release of $300 million for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP).  LIHEAP provides assistance in managing costs associated with home energy bills, energy crises, and weatherization and energy-related minor home repairs. An additional $2.4 million is allocated for federal training and technical assistance to grantees. This release of funding awards represents the second release of funding to-date for FY 2015; HHS previously awarded $3.05 billion in October 2014, for a total of $3.35 billion year-to-date. Tables detailing the allocations to states and tribes are available here.

In December 2014, NEMW Coalition member Peter Welch (VT-At Large) led many NEMW Coalition and delegation members, among others, in urging the President to fund LIHEAP at no less than $4.7 billion in FY2016.

For more information, contact Colleen Cain, Sr. Policy Analyst at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.     

USDA Regional Conservation Partnership Program Conservation Projects Include Significant Northeast-Midwest Representation

On January 14, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced the awarding of $372.5 million for 115 conservation projects to be implemented across the nation under USDA's Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP), a program newly authorized by the 2014 Farm Bill. At least one project was selected in each of the 50 states, including 46 projects within the Northeast-Midwest region's states, as follows: Connecticut (2), Indiana (4), Illinois (4), Iowa (3), Maine (2), Massachusetts (1), Michigan (5), Minnesota (3), New Hampshire (3), New Jersey (2), New York (2), Ohio (4), Pennsylvania (4), Rhode Island (1), Vermont (2), and Wisconsin (4). Twenty-four of the selected RCPP projects are focused within eight " Critical Conservation Areas" (CCAs) named in 2014 by Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS), with ten of those 24 designated as CCA projects in the Northeast-Midwest region. 

According to USDA, 50 percent of the awarded projects are designed to address water quality concerns, 24 percent wildlife conservation, 18 percent water quantity, three percent soil quality, and five percent "other" concerns. A listing of all of the projects, their locations and the major project partners can be found here. The Request for Proposals for the next round of RCPP funding will be issued in the spring, 2015, when it is expected that slightly more than $200 million will be made available for the subsequent suite of RCPP projects. For additional background and details, see this RCPP summary.

For more information, contact Mark Gorman, Policy Analyst, Northeast-Midwest Institute.

USGS Releases Report on Water Quality in Principal   

United States Aquifers

On January 21, the United States Geological Survey (USGS)  National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program released findings from its ongoing evaluation of water quality in the principal aquifers of the United States. The report, "Water Quality in Principal Aquifers of the United States," summarizes groundwater quality trends at the regional- and national-scales based on assessments between 1991 and 2010. Several principal aquifer systems evaluated in the compendium lie completely or partially within the NEMW region, including the sands and gravels of the northern glacial aquifer system; the Northern Atlantic Coastal Plain surficial aquifer system, the Mississippi River Valley alluvial aquifer; and aquifers of the Piedmont, Blue Ridge, and Valley and Ridge regions. The report includes several notable findings for aquifers supplying irrigation water and public drinking water within the Northeast-Midwest region. For example, in the glacial aquifer system, contaminants from geologic sources including arsenic and manganese were at times present, especially in oxygen-depleted groundwater areas, at concentrations of potential concern for human health. Agriculture, especially in the upper Midwest, is a source of nitrate and pesticides to groundwater, although low-permeability soils and artificial drainage reduce vulnerability to contamination in some aquifer areas.   

For more information, contact Mark Gorman, Policy Analyst, Northeast-Midwest Institute.