Zunis turn to the Sun
Solar Water Pumping
Clay Bravo of the Hualapai Tribe
PV Solar Certification
Certified system designers and installers will have an edge when it comes to getting jobs, putting up and repairing PV systems. Tribal colleges will be lead sites for PV solar installer certification training and testing. The tribal college certification program is being developed by the Institute for Sustainable Power, along with NAREEP, and tribal colleges with renewable energy training programs. Funding from the Department of Energy will support development of the program over the next year. Please contact Vivian Gratton if you are interested in learning more about this newly funded program. (831-459-8942; fax 831-454-9739)
Grants for Economic Development
The Commerce Department's Economic Development Administration (EDA) invites application for projects to alleviate persistent unemployment and underemployment in economically-distressed areas and joblessness resulting from sudden economic dislocations. Project areas of interest include but are not limited to: the commercialization and deployment of new environmental technologies and techniques (e.g., innovative material recycling or reuses, pollution control or treatment processes, and flood mitigation), sustainable development (e.g., diversification of natural resource dependent economies, eco-industrial parks, aquaculture facilities, and brownfields' redevelopment); projects that support the economic development of Native American communities including Alaska Native Villages. Regionally focused solutions will be given priority over proposals that are more limited in scope. $248,796,000 is available through 6/15/99.For more info and a list of EDA contacts, go to the Federal Register notice (2/24/99).
Ultraviolet-light water purification
If you have water quality concerns on your tribal lands, ultraviolet light water purification may be the way to go. Currently being used in remote villages around the world, particularly in Honduras after the hurricane, the technology requires little power to do a very important job. One or two 45-watt solar panels can power the purification of enough drinking water for several thousand people. Smaller units for individual or household uses are powered by small solar panels, or can be wired to other electric sources.For more information contact Aqua Sun International 775-265-7725, fax 775-265-3985.
Northwest Indian Tribes Involved in Utility Deregulation Process
The Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians Economic Development Corporation (ATNI-EDC) is responding to the changing electric industry by developing a Tribal Energy Program. This program supports true self determination by involving Northwest Indian Tribes in the electric utility deregulation process.The ATNI-EDC wants to ensure that Northwest Tribes have a solid foundation for making informed decisions about energy deregulation opportunities. To this end, the ATNI-EDC has formed a partnership with the Bonneville Power Administration. This partnership will allow the Tribes access to the technical expertise at the Bonneville Power Administration and to other state, federal, and regional entities.
Each Tribe has a distinct vision of the economic, environmental and cultural issues that guide and protect the political sovereignty of their Tribe. The Energy Program was designed to assist Tribal leadership in making more informed decisions regarding the ways that regional utility deregulation affects their own Tribe. Some of the questions that Tribes will address include: What roles can Tribes play as the electric utility deregulation unfolds? What are the effects deregulation will bring to tribal natural resources? What are the challenges of entering a changing market?
For more information about the ATNI-EDC Energy Program, contact Sonya Tetnowski at 425-774-5419, fax 425-774-5927.
