UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY WASHINGTON, D.C. 20460



## JUN 1 5 2012

THE ADMINISTRATOR

Mark Mitchell, M.D. Chairman, Vulnerable Populations Workgroup National Advisory Council for Environmental Policy and Technology Mitchell Environmental Health Associates P.O. Box 1421 Hartford, Connecticut 06143

Dear Dr. Mitchell:

I would like to thank you and the National Advisory Council for Environmental Policy and Technology for your February 15, 2012, advice letter ontechnologies for environmental-justice communities and othervulnerable populations. I commend the advisory council for developing such athoughtful and practical set ofrecommendations for the types oftechnologies needed to help address the environmental problems facing these special populations. The supporting case studies provide valuable insights into real-world environmental-justice issues and the potential for technologies to better characterize and mitigate risks to human health and the environment.

In your letter, yourecommendedthatthe EPA develop appropriate detection, communication and solutiontechnologies and deploy these technologies in partnership with communities. You also offered a number ofrecommendations for game-changing next steps, such as establishing a public-private task force to provide strategic advice to the EPA, reaching outto other federal agencies and communicating with communities about the progress on these activities.

I am pleased to report thatthe EPA is already implementing some ofyourrecommendations. For example, the EPA is actively engaged in the rapidly evolving area ofenvironmental sensors. The EPA in March 2012 sponsored a conference onlow-cost, portable air-pollution sensors for use by individuals, organizations, researchers and government agencies. From community-based efforts inNew York City and West Oakland, Calif., to updates from the EuropeanUnion, the presentations covered groundbreaking developments for smartphone sensors, network sensors and social network-based datasharing and display technologies. The talks and small group discussions were highly interactive and have already resulted in newcollaborations among leaders inthe field. Several participants are developing an air-quality-sensing network that has attracted crowdsourced funding from many small contributors online.

Building onthe momentum from this effort, the EPAplans to further investigate how we canpromote collaboration and accelerate development and use ofinexpensive, highly portable air-pollution sensors. A secondworkshop for the EPA regional offices and other interested groups, to be held in November 2012, will focus on current and emerging technologies for the near-source and fenceline monitoring of air pollutants.

Internet Address (URL) • http://www.epa.gov Recycled/Recyclable • Printed with Vegetable Oil Based Inks on 100% Postconsumer, Process Chlorine Free Recycled PaperThe EPA'swork on environmental sensors is part ofa broader focus on fostering innovative research. The Office ofResearch and Development is testing open innovation, which uses crowdsourcing to find solutions to fill gaps in EPA science and technology needs. Additionally, a number ofactivities have been initiatedto increase collaboration across scientific disciplines and create partnerships between scientists and practitioners, such as environmental-justice communities.

As noted in your letter, NACEPT'srecommendations are consistent withthe activities described inthe "Science Tools" chapter ofthe EPA'sPlan EJ2014. One ofthese activities is the EPA's workwith the National Environmental Justice Advisory Committee to establish a research workgroup that will provide advice onthe EPA's environmental-justice-relatedresearch onhealth impacts, environmental risks and differential exposures that directly relate to environmentaljustice. The recommendations developed by NACEPTwill be an invaluable resource for the NEJAC working group to considerin its deliberations. Plan EJ2014 also includes actions to promote community-basedparticipatoryresearch, encourage leveraging partnerships with other federal agencies onresearch to address environmental and health disparities, and strengthenthe technical capacity ofEPA scientists conducting research in partnership with impacted communities.

I am committed to ensuring thatthe EPA leads by example in expanding the conversation on environmentaljustice and taking actions to ensure that all Americans enjoythe same level of environmental protection. Environmental-justice communities and othervulnerablepopulations rely on the EPAto help address their needs. Providingtools that individuals, communities and organizations can

use to effectively detect, monitor and assess pollutants is critically important. Clearly, the council's recommendations speak to these priorities and inform a number ofEPA efforts now under way. In the months ahead, we will continue to explore additional ways inwhich the EPA can identify the potential for technologies to better inform environmental-justice communities and vulnerable populations.

Again, Ithank you and the NACEPTmembers for yourhard work onthis important effort and your continued support oftheEPA'smissionto protecthumanhealth and the environment.

Sincerely,