AMES, Iowa -- Summaries of the results from six recent projects are now available on the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture website, representing all four research initiatives: Ecology, Marketing and Food Systems, Policy and Cross-Cutting.

SHEBOYGAN, Wisc. -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced the completion of all dredging and habitat restoration projects required to remove the Sheboygan River Area of Concern from a list of toxic hot spots identified in the 1987 Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- The Bureau of Reclamation announced the selection of four groundwater banking projects that will receive an estimated $12.7 million in cost-share funding under Part III of the San Joaquin River Restoration Settlement Act, including $10 million in Fiscal Year 2013 awards. Combined with local cost-share contributions, more than $39.6 million in water management improvements will be implemented through these projects for Friant Division water contractors in the San Joaquin Valley.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced that the DOT is providing $11.5 million in emergency relief funds from the Federal Highway Administration to help six states cover the costs of repairing roads and bridges damaged by a variety of natural disasters in the last year.

WASHINGTON, D.C. –– The U.S. Green Building Council announced that Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton will give the opening keynote address at its 2013 Greenbuild International Conference and Expo. This year’s conference will take place Nov. 20-22 in Philadelphia at the LEED Gold certified Pennsylvania Convention Center.

PORTLAND, Ore. -- In response to President Barack Obama's challenge to expand employment opportunities for youth, Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell announced $4.2 million in grants to support conservation employment and mentoring opportunities for more than 600 young people ages 15-25 on public lands across the country.

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell signed a Declaration of Cooperation with the states of Oregon and Washington to expedite the review and permitting of energy generation, power transmission and other vital infrastructure development in the Pacific Northwest.

-- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 9 (EPA) is soliciting initial proposals under this announcement from eligible entities to protect and restore the water quality of the San Francisco Bay and its watersheds.

The following competitive grants are available to municipal and/or non-profit applicants, among others:

This week’s news that Moore, Okla., had been devastated by another EF5 tornado – the second of that magnitude in 14 years – brought to mind a session at the New Partners for Smart Growth Conference in Kansas City this past February. In that session, titled “Howling Winds and Ominous Skies: Disaster Resilience in the Age of Climate Change,” speakers recounted two extreme weather events and how local officials worked with state and federal agencies to deal with the aftermath and rebuild their communities.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Indiana’s toolbox for creative brownfields financing includes one source that is seldom used outside of Indiana: Supplemental Environmental Projects.

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency approved Pennsylvania’s 2012 final list of impaired waters. The list is part of a bi-annual monitoring and assessment report characterizing the condition of Pennsylvania’s surface waters.

LANSING, Mich. -- The Michigan Office of the Great Lakes announced $702,163 in Coastal Zone Management grants awarded to 19 coastal communities, nonprofit organizations, state agencies and universities for projects to protect Michigan's Great Lakes. These grants enhance public access to coastal areas, encourage stewardship through beach clean-up programs, promote public safety at beaches, and support local and regional waterfront redevelopment plans.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, in partnership with the White House Council on Environmental Quality, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Department of the Interior, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and other federal partners, announced that the Urban Waters Federal Partnership is adding 11 new locations. In addition, two more federal partner agencies will join the partnership in its collaborative efforts to restore waterways and their environments, boost recreation, help local economies, create jobs, and protect Americans’ health.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The U.S. Department of the Interior released its Annual Environmental Justice Implementation Progress Report for 2012 documenting programs, policies and activities that “continue the momentum gained during the current Administration” to help build and sustain the environment, health and economies of low-income, minority and tribal communities.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Federally subsidized crop insurance is now the most expensive program supporting farm income, so it’s no surprise that it will be at the center of the Senate Agriculture Committee’s deliberations on the 2013 farm bill, starting later this month. And as it happens, last year’s epic drought, which decimated crops across a wide swath of America, afforded a unique opportunity to assess the effectiveness of a program whose costs have ballooned to $9 billion a year, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

-- The U. S. Department of Agriculture is requesting proposals to provide implementation of restoration activities on eligible Wetland Reserve Program properties.

The following competitive grants are available to municipal and/or non-profit applicants, among others:

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Pesticides are toxic by design. They are expressly created to kill living organisms. When carefully targeted, pesticides can help farmers reduce their risks and boost income. But, pesticides frequently miss their intended targets and often wind up polluting air, water and bodies. As the Environmental Working Group’s yearly Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce shows, the most toxic pesticides are still detected on some foods.

CHICAGO, Ill. -- As the spring gardening season kicks off, the Chicago Department of Transportation announced the launch of a new and convenient website for the Chicago Sustainable Backyards Program: www.sustainablebackyards.org.

-- The purpose of this funding opportunity announcement (FOA) is to provide support to help restore research resources, including animal colonies and related materials and equipment, that were lost due to Hurricane Sandy.

The following competitive grants are available to municipal and/or non-profit applicants, among others:

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced that $8.9 million will be made available to repair roads and bridges on federal and tribal lands damaged during natural disasters in Arkansas, Minnesota, and New Jersey.

BIGLERSVILLE, Pa. -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and American Rivers announced that the Land Conservancy of Adams County will permanently preserve 135 acres of forest through a conservation easement on lands owned by Boyer Nurseries and Orchards in Biglersville, Pa.

SEATTLE, Wash. -- Bertschi School, an independent elementary school in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle, Wash., is now home to the first Living Building on the West Coast and the world’s fourth fully certified Living Building. Completed in February 2011, Bertschi’s Living Building Science Wing is a 3,380 sq. ft. interactive learning environment for students ages 5-11. It is the first built project to meet the standards of version 2.0 of the Living Building Challenge, a green building certification program which integrates urban agriculture, social justice and universal access issues, and the use of healthy building materials.