Citizen Participation Support Materials

Prepared by

Division of Environmental Remediation

Citizen Participation

Support Materials

for

DER-23 / Citizen Participation Handbook for Remedial Programs

January 2021

The most current version of these materials is available at



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Citizen Participation Support Materials

for

DER-23 / Citizen Participation Handbook

for Remedial Programs

DER-23 / Citizen Participation Handbook for Remedial Programs is a Program Policy that identifies CP requirements for remedial programs managed by DER, including the State Superfund Program, Brownfield Cleanup Program, and Environmental Restoration Program. The following support materials provide additional guidance and information to assist DER Project Managers and remedial parties to plan and implement site-specific citizen participation plans and activities.

Note to DER Project Managers and DEC Citizen Participation Specialists: The Division of Environmental Remediation (DER) provides a citizen participation resources page within its internal web site. The resources page provides links to DER citizen participation policy documents, citizen participation plan and fact sheet templates, and other resources. Click here to access DER's citizen participation internal web page: .

Note to Remedial Parties and Contractors: The templates and instructions to develop fact sheets and site-specific citizen participation plans discussed in these materials can be obtained electronically from the appropriate DER site Project Manager.

Contents

1. Planning and Conducting a Site Citizen Participation Program

2. Citizen Participation Activities ? Site Contact List ? Document Repository and DECinfo Locator ? Remedial Programs - Scoping Sheet for Major Issues of Public Concern ? Citizen Participation Plan ? Fact Sheet ? Certification of Mailing ? Public Meeting ? Availability Session

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1.

Planning and Conducting a Site Citizen Participation Program

Introduction

The term "citizen participation program" may evoke images of a public meeting, a citizen participation plan, or a fact sheet. However, a vision limited to particular outreach activities forms an incomplete perception of the concept.

Successful implementation of a citizen participation (CP) program and its related activities requires planning and strategy. The following discussion describes an overall strategy to effectively plan and conduct a CP program for a site.

A site CP program integrates with the site's remedial program and contains several steps:

Step 1. Plan CP activities for effectiveness. Step 2. Conduct CP activities to promote meaningful participation by citizens. Step 3. Incorporate results of CP into decision making as appropriate. Step 4. Evaluate CP activities for effectiveness and adjust the CP program as appropriate.

Step 1: Plan a Site Citizen Participation Program

Start Early. Plan for what you will do and how you will do it. Discussions between Division of Environmental Remediation (DER) staff and the remedial party about the site's CP program should take place by the time the order, agreement, or State assistance contract is executed. DER and the remedial party can review their respective responsibilities to plan and implement CP activities, as well as how those CP activities integrate with the site's remedial program.

Planning for the site CP program should not be confined to a single "starting" point, however. It is most effective as an ongoing process for several important reasons:

? Issues of public concern and the stakeholders who raise them can change. ? Information that project staff may need from the public at key decision points can change. ? Significant elements of the site's remedial program can change substantially from those

contemplated at an earlier time.

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