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Community Involvement Tools and Resources

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General CI Toolkit Information

The Superfund Community Involvement Toolkit ("CI toolkit") to provide Superfund Regional site teams, community involvement staff, and others with a practical easy-to-use aid for designing and enhancing community involvement activities. The CI toolkit helps users avoid some of the pitfalls common to the community involvement process. It enables them to quickly review and adapt a variety of community involvement tools to engage the community during all stages of the Superfund removal and remedial processes.

How to Use the Toolkit

Each community involvement tool in the toolkit describes an activity or resource that a Superfund site team may use to involve and inform the community. It explains how and when that activity or resource can be used in the Superfund process. It also provides tips for using the tool and notes whether or not it is required by law or regulation. Each tool cross-references other related tools and includes citations to additional reference materials or guidance. Note that multiple tools can be adopted, combined, or reinvented, as needed, to fit the specific needs of community involvement staff or the site team.

New tools are flagged, as are existing tools that have been updated with new information.

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Superfund Community Involvement Toolkit Files

To access the documents listed on this page, please use the document search tool below. Searching by document title or Superfund terms will generate a table of relevant results.

Note: Not all documents may be available at this time. EPA continues to update its website to enhance public access to Superfund-related information.

Community Involvement Activities Throughout the Superfund Remedial Process (PDF)(1 pp, 38 K)You will need Adobe Reader to view some of the files on this page. See EPA’s About PDF page to learn more.
Community Involvement Activities Throughout the Superfund Removal Process (PDF)(1 pp, 42 K)

  • Brownfields (PDF)(3 pp, 339 K)
  • Community Member Recognition (PDF)(1 pp, 145 K)
  • Communication Strategies (PDF)(7 pp, 691 K)
  • Community Groups (PDF)(4 pp, 179 K)
  • Community Interviews (PDF)(23 pp, 1.9 MB)
  • Community Involvement During Site Assessment (PDF)(7 pp, 825 K)
  • Community Involvement for Superfund Sites Affected by Vapor Intrusion (PDF)(19 pp, 21.3 MB)
  • Community Involvement Impact Analysis (PDF)(8 pp, 173 K)
  • Community Involvement Plans (PDF)(14 pp, 1.2 MB) 
  • Community Profile (PDF)(4 pp, 175 K)
  • Community Visioning Process (PDF)(2 pp, 393 K)
  • Computer-Based Resources (PDF)(28 pp, 531 K)
  • Contract Management (PDF)(12 pp, 476 K)
  • Cross-Cultural Communications (PDF)(6 pp, 156 K)
  • Evaluating CI Activities (PDF)(4 pp, 896 K)
  • Exhibits (PDF)(6 pp, 597 K)
  • Facilitation/Conflict Resolution/ADR (PDF)(10 pp, 281 K)
  • Fact Sheets (PDF)(4 pp, 164 K)
  • Federal Agencies (PDF)(34 pp, 688 K)
  • Five-Year Review (PDF)(15 pp, 1.1 MB)
  • Focus Groups (PDF)(8 pp, 509 K)
  • Frequently Asked Questions/Referrals (PDF)(8 pp, 233 K)
  • Going Door to Door (PDF)(8 pp, 3.9 MB)
  • Hot Sites Template (PDF)(8 pp, 124 K)
  • Informal Activities (PDF)(4 pp, 147 K)
  • Information Repository (PDF)(4 pp, 449 K)
  • International Association for Public Participation (IAP2) (PDF)(3 pp, 237 K)
  • Local Resources (PDF)(6 pp, 123 K)
  • Mailing List (PDF)(4 pp, 119 K)
  • Maps and Aerial Photographs (PDF)(2 pp, 271 K)
  • Media (PDF)(6 pp, 248 K)
  • On-Site Activities (PDF)(4 pp, 114 K)
  • Other EPA Programs (PDF)(12 pp, 197 K)
  • Partnering (PDF)(12 pp, 181 K)
  • Presentations (PDF)(16 pp, 135 K)
  • Public Availabilities/Poster Sessions (PDF)(10 pp, 446 K)
  • Public Comment Periods (PDF)(6 pp, 81 K)
  • Public Meetings (PDF)(12 pp, 527 K)
  • Public Notices (PDF)(4 pp, 274 K)
  • Residential Relocations (PDF)(4 pp, 119 K)
  • Resource Book (PDF)(6 pp, 88 K)
  • Responsiveness Summaries (PDF)(2 pp, 61 K)
  • Reuse Planning (PDF)(5 pp, 513 K) 
  • Risk Communication (PDF)(8 pp, 1.2 MB)
    • Qualitative Factors Affecting Risk Perception(1 pg, 240 K)
    • Frequently Asked Questions at Superfund, Environmental Cleanup, and Hazardous Waste Sites(5 pp, 824 K) 
    • Layout of a Message Map and Example(1 pg, 301 K) 
    • The Five Steps to Indexing(1 pg, 216 K) 
    • Non-Judgmental Language – Helpful Phrases(2 pp, 291 K) 
    • Useful Terms and Definitions for Explaining Risk(14 pp, 2.8 MB)
  • Siting Renewable Energy on Contaminated Land and Mining Sites (PDF)(27 pp, 2.8 MB)
  • Special Events (PDF)(4 pp, 119 K)
  • Spokesperson (PDF)(2 pp, 90 K)
  • Superfund Regional Public Liaison (PDF)(1 pg, 159 K)
  • Technical Assistance for Communities (PDF)(2 pp, 231 K) 
    • EPA Community for a Renewed Environment (CARE) (PDF)(2 pp, 155 K)
    • EPA/PRP's Technical Assistance Plan (TAP) (PDF)(2 pp, 159 K)
    • Technical Assistance for Brownfields (TAB) (PDF)(2 pp, 173 K)
    • Technical Assistance Grant (TAG) (PDF)(4 pp, 314 K)
  • Technical Assistance Needs Assessment (PDF)(19 pp, 1.6 MB)
  • Telephone (PDF)(6 pp, 106 K)
  • Translation Services (PDF)(2 pp, 123 K)
  • Videos (PDF)(8 pp, 256 K)
  • Workshops (PDF)(8 pp, 209 K)

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CI Handbook

The revised 2015 Superfund Community Involvement Handbook is almost complete and will be posted here soon! Please check back in late October 2015.

Citizen's Guides

To access the documents listed on this page, please use the document search tool below. Searching by document title or Superfund terms will generate a table of relevant results.

Note: Not all documents may be available at this time. EPA continues to update its website to enhance public access to Superfund-related information.

Citizen's Guide Series to Cleanup Technologies (Summary) (PDF) (1 pg, 710 K)You will need Adobe Reader to view some of the files on this page. See EPA’s About PDF page to learn more.

The Citizen's Guide series is a set of fact sheets that summarizes cleanup methods used at Superfund and other sites. The series was originally released ten years ago and was updated in 2012 to include information about new technologies and techniques. Each fact sheet is two pages long and answers six questions about the cleanup method: 1) What is it? 2) How does it work? 3) How long will it take? 4) Is it safe? 5) How might it affect me? and 6) Why use it? These guides are are currently being translated to Spanish. Until then, the Spanish versions of the 2001 guides are still available.

  • A Citizen's Guide to Activated Carbon Treatment (PDF) (2 pp, 1.2 MB) (EPA 542-F-12-001)
    Guía para el Ciudadano Sobre el Tratamiento con Carbón Activado (PDF) (2 pp, 457 K) (EPA 542-F-12-001S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to Air Stripping (PDF) (2 pp, 1.2 MB) (EPA 542-F-12-002)
    Guía para el Ciudadano Sobre la Separación por Aire (PDF) (2 pp, 531 K) (EPA 542-F-12-002S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to Bioremediation (PDF) (2 pp, 1.0 MB) (EPA 542-F-12-003)
    Guía del Ciudadano Sobre la Biorremediación (PDF) (2 pp, 3 MB) (EPA 542-F-12-003S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to Capping (PDF) (2 pp, 930 KB) (EPA 542-F-12-004)
    Guía para el Ciudadano Sobre el Recubrimiento (PDF) (2 pp, 500 K) (EPA 542-F-12-004S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to Ecological Revitalization (PDF) (2 pp, 933 KB) (EPA 542-F-12-005)
    Guía del Ciudadano Sobre la Revitalización Ecológica (PDF) (2 pp, 1.3 MB) (EPA 542-F-12-005S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to Evapotranspiration Covers (PDF) (2 pp, 1.1 MB) (EPA 542-F-12-006)
    Guía del Ciudadano Sobre las Cuberturas de Evapotranspiración (PDF) (2 pp, 1.2 MB) (EPA 542-F-12-006S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to Excavation of Contaminated Soil (2 pp, 651 KB) (EPA 542-F-12-007)
    Guía para el Ciudadano sobre Excavación del Suelo Contaminado (PDF) (2 pp, 454 K) (EPA 542-F-12-007S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to Fracturing for Site Cleanup (PDF) (2 pp 766 KB) (EPA 542-F-12-008)
    Guía del Ciudadano Sobre la Limpieza del Sitio con Fracturación (PDF) (2 pp, 666.35 KB) (EPA 542-F-12-008S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to Greener Cleanups (PDF) (2 pp, 1.4 MB) (EPA 542-F-12-009)
    Guía del Ciudadano Sobre Limpiezas más Ecológicas (2 pp, 995.41 KB) (EPA 542-F-12-009S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to in Situ Chemical Oxidation (PDF) (2 pp, 867 KB) (EPA 542-F-12-011)
    Guía del Ciudadano para la Oxidación Quómica In Situ (PDF) (2 pp, 122 K) (EPA 542-F-12-011S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to in Situ Chemical Reduction (PDF) (2 pp, 1.1 MB) (EPA 542-F-12-012)
    Guía del Ciudadano Sobre la Reducción Química In Situ (2 pp, 672.12 KB) (EPA 542-F-12-012S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to in Situ Thermal Treatment (PDF)(2 pp, 700 KB) (EPA 542-F-12-013)
    Guía para el Ciudadano Sobre el Tratamiento Térmico In Situ (PDF) (2 pp, 184 K) (EPA 542-F-12-013S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to Incineration (PDF) (2 pp, 776 KB) (EPA 542-F-12-010)
    Guía para el Ciudadano Sobre la Incineración (PDF) (2 pp, 451 K) (EPA 542-F-12-010S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to Monitored Natural Attenuation (PDF) (2 pp, 853 KB) (EPA 542-F-12-014)
    Guía del Ciudadano para la Reducción Natural Supervisada (PDF) (2 pp, 130 K) (EPA 542-F-01-004S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to Permeable Reactive Barriers (PDF) (2 pp, 857 KB) (EPA 542-F-12-015)
    Guía del Ciudadano para las Barreras Reactivas Permeable (PDF) (2 pp, 145 K) (EPA 542-F-01-005S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to Phytoremediation (PDF) (2 pp, 935 KB) (EPA 542-F-12-016)
    Guía del Ciudadano para la Fitocorrección (PDF) (2 pp, 101 K) (EPA 542-F-01-002S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to Pump and Treat (PDF) (2 pp, 854 KB) (EPA 542-F-12-017)
    Guía para el Ciudadano sobre Bombeo y Tratamiento (PDF) (2 pp, 461 K) (EPA 542-F-01-025S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to Soil Vapor Extraction and Air Sparging (PDF) (2 pp, 1.2 MB) (EPA 542-F-12-018)
    Guía del Ciudadano para la Extracción de Vapores de los Suelos y la Aeración (PDF) (2 pp, 288 K) (EPA 542-F-01-006S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to Solidification and Stabilization (PDF) (2 pp, 644 KB) (EPA 542-F-12-019)
    Guía para el Ciudadano sobre Solidificación/Estabilización (PDF) (2 pp, 457 K) (EPA 542-F-01-024S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to Thermal Desorption (PDF) (2 pp, 833 KB) (EPA 542-F-12-020)
    Guía del Ciudadano para la Desorción Térmica (PDF) (2 pp, 90 K) (EPA 542-F-01-003S)
  • A Citizen's Guide to Vapor Intrusion Mitigation (PDF) (2 pp, 1.1 MB) (EPA 542-F-12-021)
  • A Citizen's Guide to Vertical Engineered Barriers (PDF) (2 pp, 1.2 MB) (EPA 542-F-12-022)

Other Resources

  • Community Resources

    Superfund Job Training Initiative

    Superfund Risk Assessment and How You Can Help Exit

    EPA Conflict Prevention and Resolution Center

    EPA Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act

    EPA Office of Environmental Justice

    EPA's Public Involvement Policy

    Other Policies and Publications

    Community Involvement in Superfund Risk Assessments

    Community Relations:  Use of Senior Environmental Employees in Superfund - August 31, 1990

    Identification and Evaluation of Community Involvement Activities in Abandoned Mine Land Communities

    Lessons Learned About Superfund Community Involvement

    The Model Plan for Public Participation (February 2000)

    Superfund Today:  Focus on Five Year Reviews and Involving the Community (December 2009)

    Superfund Today:  Focus on Risk Assessment:  Involving the Community (April 1999)

    Superfund Today:  Focus on Revisions to Superfund's Risk Assessment Guidance (February 1999)

    Assessing Social Impacts in the Superfund Process

    Social, Cultural, Economic Impact Assessments:  A Literature Review

    Societal, Cultural and Economic Impacts and the Superfund Process Workshop, November 6-7, 2002, Meeting Summary