NEW! Vapor Intrusion (VI) Pathway Evaluation and Mitigation

NEW! PFAS Team

NEW! Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CEC) Biologicals

NEW! Climate Working Group

Click the links above to join the new 2024 Project Teams. These two-year teams are seeking members and are working on refining their project scope and goals before the Annual Meeting in April 2024. All environmental professionals are welcome to join ITRC Project Teams, with free membership available to state, federal, tribal governments, academia, and public stakeholders.

Industry Members must be registered for the 2024 Industry Affiliates Program to be eligible to join or continue their participation on ITRC Teams in 2024. For questions about the Industry Affiliates Program, please contact Charles Reyes at creyes@ecos.org. To request an invoice, please contact Carolyn Sistare at csistare@ecos.org.

2024 Annual Meeting - Long Beach, CA

ITRC is looking forward to hosting our 2024 Annual Meeting in Long Beach, California from Monday, April 8 to Thursday, April 11, 2024. Additional information about the meeting including registration, the draft agenda, and sponsorship opportunities are available on ITRC's Annual Meeting Webpage.

We're looking for Sponsors

ITRC’s meetings bring together a diverse group of environmental leaders and professionals, allowing for exceptional networking opportunities. Each year, ITRC offers sponsorship opportunities for those who would like to support the meeting. See the link below to learn more about the levels of sponsorship, their benefits, and how to support the event.

Upcoming Training Opportunities

January Training Sessions

• January 18: Sediment Cap Chemical Isolation NEW! 
• January 25: Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CEC) NEW! 
• January 30: Pump & Treat Optimization

February Training Sessions

• February 6:  Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) NEW! 
• February 20: EtO & What You Need to Know Training NEW! 
• February 27: Microplastics
• February 29:  ITRC PFAS Introductory Training

Visit our training webpage for the full training schedule and to learn more!

2023 ITRC Training by the Numbers

The ERIS Board and U.S. EPA ORD leadership visited the Pickle Pond site to view remediation and restoration work in the Great Lakes.

ITRC's Reuse of Solid Mining Waste, PFAS, Tire Anti-Degradants, Passive Sampling Technology Update, Microplastics, and Managed Aquifer Recharge Project Teams met in person this past fall to continue work on their guidance documents and training materials.

Rebecca Higgins (MN PCA), Co-Chair of ITRC Board of Advisors, delivered a keynote speech at the Australasian Land & Groundwater Association's (ALGA) ecoforum/SustRem Conference in 2023 about the ITRC and our international partnerships. Our Microplastics and Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CEC) Teams also provided classroom training workshops during the event.

ITRC's CEC trainers Paula Panzino (AZ DEQ), Meaghan Cibarich (WI DNR), Kim Nimmer (City of Raliegh, NC)

In November 2023, the ITRC team helped support the Department of Defense’s Defense Environmental Restoration Program (DERP) Forum in Kansas City, MO, and the ITRC CEC Team concluded the Forum with a half-day workshop on their new Identification Framework.

ECOS and ITRC met with leadership from the Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TMG), and Bureau of Environment, on November 30 in Washington, DC, to discuss and learn from one another about PFAS-related efforts in the U.S. and Japan.

ECOS New Year Update

The Environmental Council of the States (ECOS) has enjoyed a banner 2023 and looks forward to delivering on our priorities for 2024. We have an outstanding team of FY24 officers in President Elizabeth Biser of North Carolina, Vice President Jon Niermann of Texas, Secretary-Treasurer Jim Kenney of New Mexico, and Past President Myra Reece of South Carolina, along with bipartisan participation and engagement from all of the states, and a dedicated team of ECOS and ITRC staff to help continue our shared learning, advocacy, and growth. 

President Biser has set the following ECOS priorities for her tenure:

• Building State Capacity. Federal infrastructure funding and regulatory program support for states – the primary implementers and enforcers of the nation’s environmental laws – are more important than ever. ECOS will continue to step up its advocacy to Congress and the U.S. EPA to increase state categorical grants, protect the water infrastructure state revolving fund programs from harmful funding diversions (such as the growing amount of congressionally directed spending), and ensure states are respected as co-regulators with our federal partners. 

• Funding and Managing PFAS Responsibilities. ECOS will continue to prioritize our education and advocacy for the science, funding, and regulatory partnerships needed to successfully address PFAS and other emerging contaminants of concern. We’ll press for funding and support from EPA, other federal agencies, and Congress to help states meet the challenges of PFAS and build the necessary capacity to ensure the protection of environmental health in all of our communities. 

• Accelerating the Circular Economy. All levels of government, the private sector, academia, and nongovernmental organizations are seeing the value of sustainable materials management as a strategy to help reduce carbon pollution and other environmental stressors, increase equity and community resilience, and grow the economy. ECOS will continue to emphasize the importance of market-based and customized solutions in each state so that we maximize landfill diversion and ensure materials continue to have productive economic use. 

• Advancing Workforce Innovation and Productivity. ECOS members benefit when we share information and learn from each other and from our colleagues in the public and private sectors. We’ll increase opportunities for identifying best practices and “game changers” to improve employee recruitment, retention, and retirement planning, as well as “to modernize the business of environmental protection” (a key purpose of E-Enterprise for the Environment and the Exchange Network) through internal and external partnerships.

To help shape these and other initiatives, please join ECOS for our March 25-27 Spring Meeting (and special technology fair) in Austin, Texas on Impactful Partnerships: Bigger & Better Together and October 4-6 Fall Meeting in Newport, Rhode Island on Environmental Sea Change.

EPA Tools and Resources Webinar Series:  EPA's Office of Research and Development (ORD) hosts this monthly public webinar series to translate EPA research and share research resources and information that are useful, practical/applied and available to meet research needs of states/territories and other entities, such as tribes, local governments, and communities. These free webinars are typically held the third Wednesday of every month from 3:00-4:00 PM (ET). Attendees may register at https://www.epa.gov/research-states/epa-tools-and-resources-webinar-series.  

Upcoming Webinars topics include Food Waste (January 17), Chemical Safety for Sustainability Online Tools (February 14), and Tire Crumb Research (March 13). 

The Department of Defense's Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP) is seeking environmental research and development proposals for funding beginning in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2025. Projects will be selected through a competitive process. Details are available on the SERDP website. The Core Solicitation provides funding opportunities for basic and applied research and advanced technology development. Core projects vary in cost and duration consistent with the scope of the work proposed. The Statements of Need referenced by this solicitation request proposals related to the SERDP program areas of Environmental Restoration, Resource Conservation and Resilience, and Weapons Systems and Platforms. All Core pre-proposals are due January 9, 2024, by 2:00 p.m. ET. For more information, please visit https://serdp-estcp.org/workingwithus/solicitation?id=078a8263-a3e4-4cb5-a195-d91cc074c065

The SERDP Exploratory Development (SEED) Solicitation provides funding opportunities for work that will investigate innovative environmental approaches that entail high technical risk or require supporting data to provide proof of concept. Funding is limited to not more than $250,000 and projects are approximately one year in duration. This year, SERDP is requesting SEED proposals for the Weapons Systems and Platforms program area. SEED proposals are due March 14, 2024, by 2:00 p.m. ET. For more information, please visit https://serdp-estcp.org/workingwithus/solicitation?id=b2d13885-2562-407b-964e-12f1e6925aa3

ASTSWMO

President’s Letter

Read ASTSWMO President Amy Brittain’s letter addressed to the membership outlining her vision for 2024. Read Here.

Elections

Elections for the Vice-President were held during the 2023 ASTSWMO Annual Meeting. ASTSWMO would like to welcome Suzanne Engels (WY) as the new ASTSWMO Vice-President.

 Annual Meeting Recap

The Association of State and Territorial Solid Waste Management Officials (ASTSWMO) was pleased to host State and Territorial (State) members, EPA and other Federal Agency officials, and others at the ASTSWMO Annual Meeting in Arlington, VA. The meeting theme was focused on Complex Issues and Multifaceted Solutions. An agenda of the meeting sessions is available here and the presentations and recordings are posted here. 

Upcoming Meetings

2024 ASTSWMO Mid-Year Meeting

April 23-24, 2024

Boston, MA

2024 ASTSWMO RCRA Subtitle C Corrective Action Training Workshop

June 4-5, 2024

Charleston, SC

2024 ASTSWMO Superfund and Brownfields Symposium

August 13-15, 2024

Portland, OR

2024 ASTSWMO Materials Management Workshop

September 10-11, 2024

Philadelphia, PA

2024 ASTSWMO Annual Meeting

October 17-18, 2024

Washington, DC

As we approach the end of 2023, on behalf of the Australasian Land and Groundwater Association (ALGA) Board and team, I extend warm wishes for a wonderful and safe festive season to everyone. Looking back on the year we have had an amazing engagement with ITRC including co-hosting two international webinars, and ITRC delivering face-to-face training on the topics of PFAS, Contaminants of Emerging Concern, and Microplastics across Australia and New Zealand.

Looking ahead to 2024, the ALGA team is excited to provide the industry with many opportunities to learn, share ideas, partner, and network through our webinars, Branch events, Symposiums, and Conferences. Please take the time to mark the dates for these events in your calendars: https://landandgroundwater.com/page/events-calendar. We hope that our partnership with ITRC continues to foster a rich and diverse industry.To learn more, contact our team at ALGA Membership membership@landandgroundwater.com