Evaluating the Effectiveness of the Partnership for Clean Fuels and Vehicles
Ross & Associates, in collaboration with IEc, conducted an evaluation of the design and implementation of the global Partnership for Clean Fuels and Vehicles-Lead Campaign. Over the past 10 years, this voluntary, public-private partnership has helped to catalyze the global elimination of leaded fuel, which each year is saving over a million lives and trillions of dollars.
AGree Transforming Food and Ag Policy
Ross & Associates is providing monitoring and evaluation support for a food and agriculture initiative funded by numerous foundations and managed by the Meridian Institute. The AGree initiative (see http://www.foodandagpolicy.org) brings together diverse interests to transform U.S. food and agriculture policy to enhance access and availability of nutritious foods, protect natural resources while producing food, and create economic opportunities for rural communities.
ClimateWorks Evaluation
Ross & Associates, IEc, and the Stockholm Environment Institute are conducting a five-year evaluation of the ClimateWorks Foundation, a global philanthropy and network of institutions working to prevent catastrophic climate change.
EPA Region 1 Stormwater Funding Evaluation
Ross & Associates is working with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Headquarters and EPA Region 1 to evaluate community approaches for addressing stormwater program funding challenges, with a particular focus on the role of multi-party dispute resolution in the establishment of stormwater utilities.
Evaluation of Air Quality Regional Planning Organizations
In 2011, Ross & Associates conducted an evaluation of roles and activities of Regional Planning Organizations (RPOs) in supporting air quality management and planning across the United States. The evaluation explored the effectiveness of regional technical support and coordination in equipping state and tribal air agencies to meet diverse air quality planning requirements under the Regional Haze Rule and Clean Air Act.
Evaluation of the Drinking Water Clean Water Infrastructure Tribal Set-Aside
Ross & Associates, in conjunction with Industrial Economics, Inc. (IEc), conducted a process and outcome evaluation of two EPA tribal grant programs, the Drinking Water Infrastructure Grant-Tribal Set-Aside (DWIG-TSA) and the Clean Water Infrastructure Set-Aside (CWISA)
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Pacific Coast Salmon Recovery Fund—Performance Framework
Ross & Associates has provided support to the NOAA Fisheries Pacific Coast Salmon Recovery Fund (PCSRF) program on grant and program performance since 2003. NOAA provides grants to state and tribal entities (annual funding ranged from $58 to $90 million for fiscal years 2000-2011) that fund projects to address salmon conservation and recovery, carried out by local governments, tribes, state agencies, public partners, watershed councils, soil and water conservation districts, and other organizations.
Encouraging Energy Efficiency through the BetterBuildings Program
Ross & Associates is providing facilitation, program development, and grantee network building support to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy’s (EERE) BetterBuildings program. Ross & Associates facilitated the first two workshops of Energy Efficiency Community Development Block Grant (EECBG) Retrofit Ramp-Up recipients in July and September 2010, and is working with DOE to develop and execute strategic approaches to foster on-going information sharing, rapid learning, and collaborative tool development involving grantees.
Climate Ready Water Utilities Working Group
Ross & Associates worked with EPA’s Office of Water to develop a program that will enable water and wastewater utilities to develop and implement long-range plans that account for climate change impacts. Specifically, Ross & Associates was responsible for convening a 21 member Working Group composed of a broad range of water sector stakeholders representing water utilities; state, local, and tribal governments; and academic and environmental organizations. Additionally, Federal Partners, from EPA, USACE, NOAA and other federal agencies participated in Working Group meetings and served as technical experts.
National Biosolids Partnership EMS Program
Ross & Associates assisted the National Biosolids Partnership (NBP) with the design and implementation of an independent third party verification approach for its voluntary recognition program. The NBP voluntary program engages over 100 wastewater treatment agencies from across the country in the development of an environmental management system (EMS) for biosolids.
Washington Lean and Green Manufacturing Assistance Program
Since 2006, Ross & Associates has provided strategic and technical support to an innovative partnership between the Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) and Impact Washington (formerly Washington Manufacturing Services) and a series of Lean and green manufacturing projects with facilities in Washington State. In these projects, Ecology and Impact Washington have integrated environmental considerations and pollution prevention (P2) tools into Lean manufacturing practices to deliver better operational and environmental results.