ENERGY

Under Public Law 102-486 Energy Policy Act of 1992, the U.S. Department of Energy awarded the Fort Sill Apache Tribe an Energy Planning Grant in September 2003. The intent of the grant was to establish a tribal Energy Office, complete an energy audit on tribal facilities and develop a long range tribal energy plan. 

The proposed project was designed to provide the tribe with more information on the development of energy related projects and exploration of energy technologies that may be applicable to the tribe, its members and the community.

The Energy Ofiice was established and personnel hired.  The Council of Energy Resource Tribes (CERT) was contacted to assist the tribe in developing a Strategic Energy Plan.  On January 12-12, 2005, CERT facilitated a Strategic Planning Session with tribal members and staff.  A document was produced from this Planning Session that covers the needs and desires of the tribe for future development.

An Energy Audit was performed by Caddo Electric which began with an initial meeting in October 2005 and culminated with a report to the tribe March 2006.  The report covered defeciencies in each building and made recommendations to improve the enegy efficiency for each building.

Communication to the tribal members and the public is part of the outreach considered essential for the Fort Sill Apache and part of the deliverables for the grant.  As the website evolves, the documents produced by this grant should become available on the website.  For Energy saving tips visit: www.energyquest.ca.gov.

The Long Range tribal energy plan is the final document that completes the deliverables for this grant.  This plan includes the vision statement, assessment of resource options, descriptions of options and projects that appear technically and tribally viable, key personnel, timelines and budget information.

June 30, 2006, the Fort Sill Apache Tribe will begin the closeout process for Department of Energy Grant.

The Fort Sill Apache Environmental Program (FSAEPA) began in 1997.  However, the program was discontinued in 2001.  The tribe re-applied for General Assistance to Tribes (GAP) Grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and received funding for the 2003-2004 year.

FSAEPA currently operates with funding from the U.S. EPA for the General Assistance to Tribes Program Grant (GAP) and the Clean Air Act 103 (CAA 103).  The GAP program is in its 3rd year of a 4 year cycle.  The intent of the GAP funding is to build capacity to administer environmental regulatory programs on Indian lands and to provide technical assistance from EPA in the development of multimedia programs to address environmental issues.

Building capaciy means that staff members are hired and trained, tribal members, business committee and tribal employees are informed about the program, planning for long and short goals occurs, outreach and education is developed, grants are written and implementation of some solid wastes activities can begin.

This webpage is part of our outreach process.  Other forms of communication about FSA environmental projects are in the tribal programs newsletter, local papers, monthly reports to supervisors and quarterly reports to funding agencies.  Educational information about our projects, environmental concerns and presentations can also be found on the Calendar, Health Alerts, within the programmatic information on this website.

The Solid Waste Activities for the FSAEPA began in 2005 with the establishment of the Recycling Component of the Solid Wastes Activities.  The printer cartridge and cell phone recycling began in 2005.  The Dell printer recycling project began in 2005 through the Dell Computer Native American Initiative.  In partnership with Gifts in Kind, Dell Computers, and the Fort Sill Apache Tribe, the Environmental Program helped distribute over 640 Dell printers to Indian Tribes, 501 c3 non-profit organizations, and area schools.  Recycling of shredded paper and food scraps into the bio orb compost started in 2005 and the latest addition to the recycling component is the recovery of aluminum cans in 2006.  For more information and pictures about these activities click on the link in the sidebar or on the highlighted word Recycling.

Recycling is just a component of Solid Waste Activities for the FSAEPA.  In 2006, additional activities associated with Solid Waste included a clean-up program in conjunction with Earth Day celebrations.

Emergency Response planning began in 2006 with a Safety Plan for the tribal headquarters.  This plan incorporates response action for fire, tornado, bomb, and toher emergency needs.