EPA Staff Contribution
This month, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is wrapping up a total of 20 scheduled interviews with community members who volunteered to share their thoughts, questions, and concerns about Upper Columbia River contamination.
Last fall, EPA reached out to affected communities within the site to invite people to participate in community interviews and to learn how and when they would like to be involved in the Superfund cleanup process. EPA staff and supporting contract associates from Skeo Solutions conducted voluntary interviews with representatives from the broad community: residents, community organizations, tribes, government agencies, and other interested parties involved in the Upper Columbia River.
Results from the interviews will be used anonymously to update the site’s Community Involvement Plan, originally created in 2004. Interviews also included questions to better understand the current needs for technical assistance and communication preferences.
The Community Involvement Plan will provide a road map that describes how EPA will conduct community involvement throughout the investigation and cleanup process. The plan will include a profile to describe the site and affected communities, general outreach activities, project milestones and timeframes where possible, and an action plan. The Technical Assistance Needs Assessment summary report will help meet
identified needs.
Both the updated Community Involvement Plan and the Technical Assistance Needs Assessment summary report will be shared with the public later this year.
