In this Issue:

Outreach in High Gear

WRAP Project Status Reports Available Online

Air Managers Committee to Address State & Tribal Needs

New Staff to Support State and Tribal Caucuses

Air Quality Modeling Forum Running Base Case Scenarios

Fire Forum Seeks Input on Alternatives to Agricultural and Wildland Burning

Air Pollution Prevention Forum Nears Final Report

Tribal Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Report Available

February Meeting on NEPA and How to Assess Fire's Impact on Air Quality

Outreach in High Gear
Wondering how to explain the work of the Western Regional Air Partnership to your colleagues? The WRAP Communications Committee has available two presentations summarizing the purpose of the WRAP and how it works. The goals of the presentations are twofold: 1) to explain the WRAP and how it fits into regional, state and tribal air quality planning, and 2) to encourage stakeholder participation in the WRAP.

Groups that know very little about the WRAP can sign up for a 10- to 15-minute overview. A more in-depth offering takes 30 to 35 minutes and includes a Power Point presentation describing air pollution problems in national parks and wilderness areas and details of the WRAP's organizational structure. The WRAP Communications Committee is willing to tailor the presentations for different audiences and also will provide handouts.

If you are interested in a presentation for your stakeholder group, or for any public meeting, please contact Karen Deike at the Western Governors' Association  (kdeike@westgov.org) or Pat Murdo (pmurdo@qwest.net) to make arrangements. They also will line up speakers (unless you already have someone in mind!).

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WRAP Project Status Reports Available Online
For complete information on the many complex activities of the WRAP, the best one-stop information center is the new Status Reports section of the WRAP Web site. The Status Reports page provides a link to each report or study being generated by the WRAP, along with information on the consultants conducting the study. This new addition to the WRAP Web site is intended to allow the broadest possible access to all of the data and analyses being generated by the WRAP. Let us know what you think of this new information source.

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Air Managers Committee to Address State & Tribal Needs
To meet federal Clean Air Act requirements for regional haze, numerous tasks await state and tribal air managers in the West. A newly formed WRAP Air Managers Committee will provide an opportunity for the air managers to review and discuss regional haze planning issues. Within the full committee, state and tribal caucuses have been formed, with each caucus supported by a full-time staff person. (See below for information on newly hired staff.)

The Air Managers Committee replaces the WRAP's Northern Air Managers Committee. The WRAP Board of Directors approved this new committee structure in November, while emphasizing the importance of continuing to reach consensus among all stakeholders through the WRAP's standing committees and forums. A description of the committee is in the minutes of the November WRAP meeting.

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New Staff to Support State and Tribal Caucuses
The National Tribal Environmental Council (NTEC) has recently hired Bob Gruenig to provide staff support to the tribal caucus of the Air Managers Committee. In addition to a law degree from Southern Illinois University School of Law, Mr. Gruenig has a master's in environmental law from Vermont Law School and has worked in the Office of the State's Attorney, Environmental Division, in Belleville, Illinois. Welcome to the WRAP, Mr. Gruenig!

Through a grant from the WRAP, the Western States Air Resources Council (WESTAR) has recently hired Don Arkell to provide staff support to the state caucus of the Air Managers Committee. Mr. Arkell has devoted the past 30 years to air quality management at the local, state, and regional levels, and has twice served as WESTAR's interim Executive Director. Welcome to the WRAP, Mr. Arkell!

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Air Quality Modeling Forum Running Base Case Scenarios
Air quality modeling may sound as ethereal as air, but the WRAP's Air Quality Modeling Forum is developing information critical to state and tribal regional haze planning in the West. Currently, the Forum is verifying model performance by running 1996 scenarios.  Soon the Forum will have ready analyses needed to help states and tribes decide whether to submit plans under Section 308 or Section 309 of EPA's Regional Haze Rule.

The modeling runs for Section 309 will reflect the benefits of the Annex (dealing with sulfur dioxide emissions from industrial sources), fire strategies, and programs for increasing the use of renewable energy and energy efficiency. The modeling will also evaluate the need for additional strategies to address clean air corridors, industrial source emissions of nitrogen oxide and particulate matter, mobile source tailpipe emissions, and road dust. To see the WRAP's Regional Modeling Center progress reports and model outputs, go to: http://www.cert.ucr.edu/rmc/models/

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Fire Forum Seeks Input on Alternatives to Agricultural and Wildland Burning
The WRAP's Fire Emissions Joint Forum (FEJF) is currently assessing alternatives to agricultural and wildland burning on public and private land. A draft report on alternatives to agricultural burning was made available in mid-February for a three-week public comment period. Included in this report are inventories of agricultural burning in all WRAP states, along with estimates of burning for areas where data are not available. The use of alternatives to burning on wildland is also under study, with contractor Jones and Stokes initially interviewing national and regional experts on the subject.

The FEJF expects to issue a draft report in April on recommendations for Enhanced Smoke Management Programs (ESMP). One suggestion contained in the report will be to establish a more predictable regulatory framework for all fire sources, addressing fire's impact on visibility across the WRAP region. A comment period will follow release of the draft report.

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Air Pollution Prevention Forum Nears Final Report
The Air Pollution Prevention Forum is in the final stages of preparing a report outlining policies to encourage greater use of renewable energy and energy efficiency. A separate tribal report on renewable energy and energy efficiency is in draft stage (see below).

The Air Pollution Prevention Forum plans to submit its final report to the WRAP in June. By outlining an array of effective policies, the Forum is hoping for state, tribal, and federal actions to increase utilization of renewable energy and energy efficiency in the West. The Grand Canyon Visibility Transport Commission (GCVTC) set goals of 10 percent of the region's energy supply from renewable energy sources by 2005 and 20 percent by 2015. In 1998, renewable energy sources accounted for a little less than 5 percent of the region's total energy supply.

The Forum's reports and supplemental materials, including a state-by-state analysis of energy efficiency opportunities, are available under the Status Reports section of the WRAP Web site.

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Tribal Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Report Available
A draft report is available describing how tribal expectations and opportunities fit into the GCVTC goals of increasing renewable energy sources and conservation by 2015. The Tribal Renewable Energy Report describes policies that would lead to greater use of renewable sources such as wind, solar, and biomass. The report also addresses economic development and energy-related goals of the tribes. The draft report suggests individual tribal actions that could promote renewable energy resources, including development of a tribal energy policy and consumer education programs. The draft report, which includes details regarding potential tribal energy resources and transmission capability, can be found at the Status Reports section of the WRAP Web site.

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February Meeting on NEPA and How to Assess Fire's Impact on Air Quality
The Fire Emissions Joint Forum (FEJF) and WESTAR are coordinating a joint workshop in Boise on Feb. 26-27 regarding the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) planning process and addressing fire's effects on air quality. For more information, please contact Frances Bernards (801-536-4056) at the Utah Department of Environmental Quality. The meeting will be held at the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality.

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Comments? Questions?
Comments and questions on The WRAP Sheet are welcomed. Please contact: wrapnews@wrapair.org to request further information, suggest future topics or otherwise comment.

Subscriptions
If you received The WRAP Sheet as a forwarded e-mail or as a copy at a meeting and if you would like to receive it directly, please subscribe by sending an email to wrapnews@wrapair.org and include the term "SUBSCRIBE" in the subject line. If you no longer wish to receive The WRAP Sheet directly and want to be removed from the mailing list, e-mail wrapnews@wrapair.org and include the word "UNSUBSCRIBE" in the subject line. Please feel free to forward The WRAP Sheet to others.

For More Information about The WRAP:
The WRAP, a voluntary organization of Western states, tribes and federal agencies, promotes, supports and monitors programs implementing recommendations from the Grand Canyon Visibility Transport Commission and other programs that protect visibility throughout the West.

For other information about the WRAP or to see back copies of The WRAP Sheet, check out our Web site: http://www.wrapair.org.

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