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EPA AWARDS FOUR EDUCATION GRANTS TO SOUTHERN CA GROUPS

Release Date: 6/17/1999
Contact Information: Lois Grunwald, U.S. EPA, (415) 744-1588

     Grants totaling $47,415 go to diverse groups for environmental education projects
                 
     SAN FRANCISCO--The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced the award of four environmental education grants totaling $47,415 in Southern California.

     Including the Southern California grants, EPA awarded grants totaling $160,000 to 19 organizations in Northern California, Arizona, Nevada and Hawaii. Recipients of the grants include school districts, colleges and universities, non-profit organizations, and city, county, tribal, regional and state government agencies.

     The grants, awarded under the National Environmental Education Act, provide funding to support projects that will address significant environmental issues.  The organizations contribute matching funds. For more information on EPA's environmental education programs, access EPA's web site at: https://www.epa.gov/enviroed.

The recipients are:

Sequoia Foundation, La Jolla - $19,005 "New River" Environmental Education Symposium Sequoia Foundation will join with the state Department of Health Services and the Imperial County Office of Education to offer a workshop to high school science and social studies teachers in the use of an environmental curriculum covering health issues affecting New River communities. The workshop will provide teachers with materials to teach about the health risks associated with New River and provide them with national and regional environmental health education resources, including environmental justice, exposure and health risk assessment, epidemiology, risk communication, and mitigation measures. Contact: Tere Brown, (510) 622-4471.

Community Environmental Council, Santa Barbara - $5,000 Comprehensive School Recycling and Composting Pilot Project The Community Environmental Council will partner with the Youth Gardening Coalition to introduce recycling and composting of lunch scraps at three local elementary schools. The project will kick off with school assemblies to describe the project. Workshops will be held for teachers at each pilot school to help them integrate environmental learning projects into the required curriculum. A team of fifth and sixth graders will implement the lunchtime composting projects at each site. Contact: Cay Sanchez, (805) 884-0459.
                           
People's CORE, Los Angeles - $5,000 Air Pollution and Prevention Project for Students and Residents in the Carson Area This project will establish a partnership between Community Organization for Reform and Empowerment, Philippine Action Group for the Environment , and the Environmental Club at Carson High School to implement an air pollution study in the Carson community. The partnership will train 30 students to use simple devices to collect air samples and to analyze the results of laboratory tests on these samples.  The project will enable high school youth to sample air pollutants, understand the effects of these chemicals on their health, and learn ways to reduce or prevent air pollution. The students will discuss their findings at community forums and at a city council meeting. Contact: Joe Navidad, (213) 625-7705.

Resource Conservation District of Greater San Diego County, Escondido - $18,410 A Garden in Every School Regional Support Center The Resource Conservation District of Greater San Diego will join with the California Department of Education, U.C. Cooperative Extension Service, and Discovery School to establish a regional support center for K-12 educators interested in garden-based education. The center will provide teacher workshops, newsletters, networking opportunities, teacher's resource library and a demonstration garden.  The center will also develop a plan to sustain and expand outreach for 43 public school districts, private schools, and informal education programs.  Contact: Julie Steiner, (760) 745-2061.