Save the date: Pacific Islands Environmental Conference is June 26, 2019

February 19, 2019 (Tiyan, Guam) – The Pacific Islands Environment Conference (PIEC) is a longstanding conference that rotates between the U.S. Pacific Territories – American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Guam. PIEC 2019 marks the 30th anniversary of this event, which will be held on Guam June 23-28, 2019. The Guam Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is the lead organization in partnership with the United States EPA.

The theme for PIEC 2019! is Greening Growth in the Pacific.

Workshops on three waste management disciplines will precede the Conference beginning Sunday, June 23, 2019 in collaboration with the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA). You may also register to take an online Certification exam. Successful examinees will obtain certification recognized nationally.

On Wednesday, June 26, 2019, the Conference will officially open with plenary sessions followed by concurrent tracks over a period of 3 days. One track will cover topics regarding Green Infrastructure, as it relates to storm water, wastewater, drinking water and nonpoint source systems. A second track will cover topics regarding Zero Waste and a third will explore Innovation and Collaboration. A one-day track is allocated for Guam’s Coral Reef Symposium, hosted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Guam Bureau of Statistics and Plans. The final day of field trips will have a focus on community involvement and multi-stakeholder partnerships.

PIEC 2019! is made possible through federal grant funding from our partner, USEPA, Region IX. Part of the funding is used to offset the travel costs for the participation of the Environmental Directors from the Federated States of Micronesia (Chuuk, Kosrae, Pohnpei and Yap), Palau, and the Marshall Islands.

For more information about this release, please contact Guam EPA Air and Land Administrator Conchita S.N. Taitano at 671.300.4751or conchita.taitano@epa.guam.gov