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Environmental Finance Center Network
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What is the EFC Network?
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Locate an EFC:
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What's New?
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The Environmental Finance Center Network and the Environmental Finance Program
of the Office of Enterprise Technology & Innovation are pleased to make available the
EFC Network 2002 Annual Report
(PDFs) (February 2004).
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The Environmental Finance Program is pleased to make available the
EFP Activity Report
.
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The Environmental Finance Center Network was the subject of an article on the National Drinking Water Clearinghouse's website entitled "Show Me the Money (And How to Manage It): Environmental Finance Centers Explain Fiscal Management." The article decribes the EFC's efforts in the field of environmental finance and provides examples.
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The Environmental Finance Center at Boise State was recently mentioned on page 21 of the Fall 2003 issue of Boise State University's Focus magazine in the article "Environmental technology helps assure pure water." The article decribes the EFC's research and subsequent national product roll out.
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The Environmental Finance Center at Boise State, regarding its sussessful research studies, was recently mentioned in the Federal Register, vol. 68, no. 192, pg. 57451. It was noted that "EPA's proposed revised [Small Local Governments Compliance Assistance Policy] policy recommends that States adopt a number of listed capacity measures the Agency has drawn from the studies performed by the EPA's Boise Environmental Finance Center. In the context of measuring the ability of small local governments to implement the requirments of the the Safe Drinking Water Act. The Boise Environmental Finance Center identified a number of factors that influence the technical, managerial, and financial capacity of local governments. (see, http://sspa.boisestate.edu/efc) EPA adapted many of these measures for inclusion into the proposed revised policy, and recommends that States incorporate these measures as appropriate for their local condition."
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The
Environmental Finance Center Network 2002 Overview
is now available online.
(PDF, 1.1MB) (Fall 2002)
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EFC Network Contacts:
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EFCN Charrettes - A Proven Tool:
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EFC Network Annual Reports:
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Tools and Publications:
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INTRODUCTION
Environmental goals cannot be met without financing,
which is essential to implementing state and local
programs, Knowledge about how to fund these programs
is often limited, especially at the local level. As
a result, there is an unprecedented demand on the
expertise of public officials currently on the front
lines of financing environmental facilities and services.
The EFCs provide state and local officials and small
businesses with advisory services; education, publications,
and training; technical assistance; and analyses on
financing alternatives. The EFC network currently
includes: the
University of Southern Maine
,
Syracuse University
,
University of Maryland
,
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
,
University of Louisville
,
Great Lakes EFC at Cleveland State University
,
New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology
,
California State University at Hayward
, and
Boise State University
. These centers have proven effective
vehicles for promoting innovative environmental financing
techniques. While EPA provides seed funding for EFC
start-up operations, financial independence of the
centers is a major objective.
SERVICES AND CAPABILITIES
EFCs pursue various avenues of education and training
such as offering short courses on environmental finance
for state and local officials, as well as graduate-level
educational courses through regular university curriculum.
The EFCs at both the New Mexico Tech and
the University of Maryland have developed environmental
finance courses for state and local officials and
graduate students. Similarly, the University of North
Carolina EFC is developing a modular environmental
finance training course for use by the Network. The
New Mexico Tech EFC provides U.S./Mexican
Border Area environmental infrastructure assistance
and assessment, and the Boise State University EFC
is providing training throughout the national EFC
Network on utility rate setting. In addition, EFCs
develop and publish case studies about innovative
financing techniques, as well as serve as clearinghouses
for Regional and state information on environmental
financing and program management.
EFCs provide technical assistance and analyses to
state and local governments and the private sector
on managing and financing environmental infrastructure.
For example, the Syracuse University EFC is developing
case studies on how New York communities prioritize
environmental activities using risk and finance considerations.
Another important service the Syracuse EFC provides
is assisting state and local officials in collaborative
planning processes. The New Mexico Tech EFC
continues to develop financing strategies for the
long-term viability of environmental infrastructure
on the U.S.-Mexico border. The California State University
at Hayward EFC is dedicated to helping small business
by advancing the Environmental goods and services
industry and promoting polluting prevention. Among
its primary products are the development of public-private
partnership models for financing environmental services,
emphasizing the participation of small and medium
sized businesses. The Great Lakes EFC is focusing
on brownfield redevelopment, especially the availability
of financing and tools/incentives to spur investment
in abandoned industrial and commercial sites. In addition,
the Great Lakes EFC is helping Native American communities
in Great Lakes states restore ecological balance through
the appropriate use of comprehensive community planning,
sustainable development, and ecological design techniques.
The University of Maryland EFC conducts problem-solving
roundtables known as "charrettes" with community representatives
to discuss how to pay for environmental services,
mandates and projects. The EFC at Boise State University
is analyzing drinking water and wastewater systems
viability and paying for environmental mandates.
Finally among our newer EFCs, the EFC at the University
of North Carolina is designing a finance training
course for Network use and is completing a report
on wastewater and growth issues in the southeast coastal
region of the country. The other Region 4 EFC, located
at the University of Louisville, is providing support
services to many small and medium-sized water and
wastewater facility operators throughout Kentucky.
The most recent addition to the Network is the EFC
at the University of Southern Maine, which is currently
focusing on wastewater treatment challenges in coastal
areas of Massachusetts.
EFC Brochure
in PDF Format
.
For more information, contact:
Vera Hannigan
Environmental Finance Program Center Network Coordinator
hannigan.vera@epa.gov
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