Office of Environmental Programs Services Cont.
The Comanche Nation Environmental Program holds our Annual Earth Day event in April. We have several students from surrounding schools and many tribal members in attendance. We also have several vendors and other Environmental Entities, as well as our own division set up booths to share information and helpful tips on being more environmentally aware.
Water Quality Division
Comanche Nation Water Resources Technicians perform routine spot and duration testing of water quality of the major lakes, rivers, streams, and creeks within the jurisdictional boundaries of the Comanche Nation. Testing for various parameters, including pH, turbidity, nitrate-N, dissolved oxygen, temperature, and conductivity.
Tribal members with drinking water wells may receive water testing services upon request, from our office at no cost. Upon receipt of analysis, a final written report will be given back to tribal member detailing all findings.
Upon receiving a completed application the tribal member will be contacted to set a time up for the dump-site to be inspected. Assessments will be done to determine how hazardous the site is will determine where to start with our cleanup and what equipment is needed. GPS will also be done on all sites.
Working with our tribal members we can keep our lands and homes clean with proper disposal of waste. Illegal dumping is the depositing of solid waste on trust land other than an approved facility.
You MAY NOT dispose of your trash along roadways, in fields, wooded areas, stream valleys (creek), and park-lands.
Solid Waste Department
The Solid Waste department currently rotates the Recycle Bin location to several Comanche Nation locations. This includes the tribal community buildings in Apache, Walters, and the Cahoma building in Cache. We also place the Recycle Bin in the parking lot of the Comanche Nation tribal complex. Members can bring their tires and old batteries to the Environmental department office, to be properly disposed of, during business hours throughout the year.
The Comanche Nation Solid Waste department is very proud to mention that our Annual Tire and Battery Drive has helped our communities in properly disposing of tires and batteries with collecting 3,000 tires yearly. Our Annual Tire and Battery Drive, held every February, is open to the public and takes place in the Anadarko, Apache, Cache, and Walters communities.
Bulk Item Pick Up
The Bulk Item pick-up is a service that the CNOEP provides for the Comanche Nation tribal members that need items to be picked up that are too large to be accepted by their regular waste collection service provider. The bulk items that we accept are furniture items, appliances, scrap metals, trash items (5 bag max), tires, batteries, and E-Waste materials.
To be eligible for a Bulk Item Pick-up:
- Must be an enrolled Comanche Nation Tribal Member (Proof of CDIB)
- Proof of Ownership/Residency (Utility Bill)
- Bulk Item Consent Form must be filled out
- Appointment has to be made
- Assessment has to be done
- Bulk Item pick-up must be scheduled
The day of your scheduled pick-up, all items must be placed at the curb. Any items not out on the scheduled pick-up date will not be picked up. The bulk waste must not exceed no more than eight (8) cubic feet. Do not place items under power lines or tress. Make sure vehicles are not blocking access to the bulk items. Do not place items over gas meters, telephone boxes, or cable boxes.
Recycling Division
In this division, we have placed containers around the tribal complex to collect recyclable items like aluminum cans, #1, and #2 plastics. We also provide a Recycle Bin to collect all previously listed items in addition to batteries and paper.
The Indoor Air Quality department offers assessments to Comanche tribal members upon request (application process). Assessments consist of identifying indoor air pollutants in Tribal member's homes by thoroughly investigating the exterior, interior, the attic and air duct system for structural deficiencies that might affect the quality of the indoor air. The type of Indoor Air Quality assessments the Environment department provides are:
Mold Inspection
After the Comanche Nation Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) inspector has received a completed application. The IAQ technician will schedule a date to perform the mold inspection. During the mold inspection the IAQ technician will perform a series of tests by methods of spore trap sampling with a BIO Pump tester or tape lift to determine how bad the quality of the air has been contaminated with spores. The IAQ technician will also visually inspect the entire house and document with pictures. The technician will gather all the results from the testing and inspection to compile a final report of all findings with recommendations on how to improve the quality of air in the tribal member's home or to refer them to the proper department if mold remediation is needed.
Air Duct Inspection
Upon receiving a completed application and a time and date has been arranged for the inspection, the Certified Air Duct Inspector will come into your home and will use a High Definition (HD) camera, showing a live recording on a laptop of the dust particles and contaminates in the air ducts of your home. At the completion of the inspection, it will be determined by the inspector if your homes air duct system needs a thorough cleaning. During the cleaning a vacuum machine with a hose attached to a propeller brush that spins at 2000 RPMs will be inserted into the duct system and begin to break the debris and dust particles up while removing them from the ducts and out of your home.
Today our homes and workplaces are air-tight and energy efficient. This means that they trap pollutants and contaminants inside, which lowers the quality of the air we breathe. Homes and offices have contaminated air that is circulated through the central heating and air systems. Even frequent filter changes cannot stop this contamination. Contamination builds up over time in your air system. This build-up will reduce the efficiency of your air system, shorten its operation life, and continue to circulate the contaminants throughout your home.
Indoor pollution sources that release gases or particles into the air are the primary cause of indoor air quality problems in homes. Inadequate ventilation can increase indoor pollutant levels by not bringing in enough outdoor air to dilute emissions from indoor sources and by not carrying indoor air pollutants out of the home. High temperature and humidity levels can also increase concentrations of some pollutants.
Dust aggravates breathing problems, causes burning/itching eyes, itchy skin, and can also make allergy problems worse. House dust is more dangerous than outdoor dust because it has bacteria, pollen, skin flakes, decaying organic matter, fungi, hair, dust mites, viruses, textile fibers residue from chemicals, and many other contaminants.
