y 4-

^ C H O O S I N G OUR ENVIRONMENT: CAN WE

ANTICIPATE THE FUTURE?

GOVERNMENT 1

Storage

M E N

1977

» «—3

H E A R IN G S

KANSAS SO

BEFO RE T H E sin

.4 P A N E L ON

El i j j S M EN TA L SC IE N C E A N D TEC H N OLO GY

OF T H E

SU BC OM M IT TE E ON

N V IB O N M E N T A L PO LL UTI ON

-----<t O F T H E

MITTEE ON PUBLIC WORKS

UNITED STATES SENATE

NINETY-FO UR TH CONGRESS 

SECOND SESSION

Qihbd

Wtb

SEI’TEMB ER 28, 1976

PA RT 3

ENV IRO NMENT AL PRO TEC TION AGENCY: LONG-RANGE 

FORECA STING AND PUB LIC POLICY

SERIAL NO. 94-H31

Printed for the use of the Committee on Public Works

CHOOSING OUR ENVIRONMENT: CAN WE

ANTICIPATE THE FUTURE?

H E A R IN G S

BEF ORE THE

PANE L ON

ENVIRON MENTAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

OF TH E

SUBCOMMITTEE ON 

ENVIRON MENTAL POLLUTION

OF TH E

COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC WORKS 

UNITED STATES SENA TE

NINETY-FO UR TH CONGRESS 

SECOND SESSION

SEPT EMB ER 28, 1976

PART 3

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY: LONG-RANGE

FORECASTING AND PUBLIC POLICY

SERIAL NO. 94-H31

Printed for the use of the Committee on Public Works

79-397 O

U.S. GOV ERNMEN T PRINTIN G OFFICE

WASHIN GTO N : 1976
COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC WORKS

JE N N IN GS R A N D O LPH , West Virginia, Chairman

ED M UND S. M U SK IE , Maine 

JO SE PH M. M O N TO YA , New Mexico 

M IK E G R A V E L , Alas ka

L L O Y D M. B E N T SE N , Texas 

Q U EN TIN N. B U R D IC K , North Dak ota 

JO HN C. C U L V E R , Iowa

R O B E R T M ORG AN , North Carolina 

G A R Y H A R T , Colorado

JA MES L. B U C K L E Y , New Yo rk 

HOW AR D H. B A K E R , Jr., Tennessee 

R O B E R T T. STA FFO R D , Verm ont 

JA MES A. M cC LU RE, Idaho 

P E T E V. DOM EN IC I, New Mexico

John W. Y aq o, Jr., Staff Director

Bai le y G ua rd, Minority Staff Director

Leon G. Billings, Richard D. Gr undy, and Harold II. Bra ym an (Minority),

Senior Professional Staff Members

Philip T . C umm ings, Richard M. Har ri s, and Richard E. Herod (Minority),

Associate Counsels

Professional and research staff: K arl R. B ra ith waite, Jam es W. Case (Assistant Counsel), Pau l C himes. 

T renton C ro w, K ath erine Y. C udlipp, Pau l F . E be lto pt, Jr., Geor ge F . Fen to n, Jr., Randolph

G. F lood, K at ha leen R. E. Forcum, John D. F re shma n, A nn Gar ra br an t, R ichard T . Gre er , 

Wes le y F . H ayd en, \ eronica A. H oll and, R ona ld L. K atz, Judy F. P ar en te, John B. P urin ton, 

Jr., James D. Ran ge , (Assistant Counsel, Minority), W. Lee Raw ls, C ha rle ne A. Stur bit ts, E. 

Steve ns Swai n, Jr., Sal ly W. Wal ke r, a nd H av en Whiteside

Subcommittee on E nvironmental Pollution

ED M UN D S.

JO SE PH M. M O N TO YA, New Mexico 

L L O Y D B E N T S E N , Texas 

M IK E G R A V E L , Alas ka 

JO HN C. C U L V E R , Iowa 

R O B E R T M ORG AN , North Carolina 

G A R Y H A R T , Colorado

M U SK IE , Maine, Chairman

JA ME S L. B U C K L E Y , New Yo rk 

R O B E R T T. STA FFO R D , Verm ont 

JA ME S A. M cC LU RE, Idaho 

P E T E V. DOM EN IC I, New Mexico

Panel on Environmental Science and Technology

JOHN C. C U L V E R , Iowa, Chairman

L L O Y D B E N T S E N , Texas JA ME S L. B U C K L E Y , New Yo rk

G A R Y H A R T , Colorado R O B E R T T. ST A FF O R D , Vermon t

(rr )
C O N T E N T S

Page

Library of Congress: Summary of hearing --------------------------------------- v

Culver, Hon. John C., U.S. Senator from the State of Iowa, opening sta tement of------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1

LIST OF WITNESSES

Barth, Dr. Delbert S., Deputy Assistant Administrator for Health and 

Ecological Effects, EPA----------------------------------------------------------- 9 Daly, Phyllis A., Director, Office of Planning and Review, EPA--------------- 10 Sansom, Dr. Robert, Consultant, Environmental Research and Technolment, Environmental Protection Agency--------------------------------------- 5

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL

Appendixes: A—Environmental Research Outlook, Fiscal Years 1976-80----------- 37

B—A Review of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Envi­ ronmental Research Outlook: Fiscal Years 1976-80-------------------- 203

Neuhold, Dr. John, director, ecology center, Utah State University,

statement o f------------------------------------------------------------------------- 210 Talley, Dr. Wilson K., Assistant Administrator for Research and Development, responses to written questions_____________________________ 29

(in)

V

ASHINGTON, D.C. 20540

THE LIBR ARY OF CONGRESS 

Co ngres sio nal Research Service

SUMMARY OF HEARING

EPA, LONG-RANGE FORECASTING AND ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY 

S e p te m b e r 2 8 , 19 76

by

J o h n E . B lo d g e tt 

A n a ly s t

E n v ir o n m e n t and N a t u r a l R e s o u rc e s P o l i c y D i v i s i o n 

N ove m ber 2 2 , 19 76
VI

BACKGROUND

As p a r t o f a s e r i e s o f h e a rin g s by th e P an el on E n v ir o n m en ta l S cie n ce 

an d T echnolo gy on "C hoosi ng Ou r E nvir onm ent: Can We A n tic ip a te th e F u tu re ? " 

S e n a to r C u lv e r c h a ire d a h e a r in g on th e E n v ir o n m en ta l P r o te c tio n A g en cy 's 

(EPA) Lon g- Ran ge F o re c a s tin g an d E nvir o n m en ta l P o lic y . In th e w or ds o f 

S e n a to r C u lv e r, th e p u rp o se o f t h i s h e a rin g was t o re v ie w th e lo n g -ra n g e 

co m po ne nt o f EPA 's R & D, to an sw er th e q u e s tio n , " I s EPA d e v e lo p in g 

th e p ro p e r in fo rm a tio n b a s e to a n t i c i p a t e f u tu r e e n v ir o n m e n ta l c o n s e ­

qu en ces a s w e ll a s th e te c h n o lo g y b a se to d e a l w ith pro ble m s a s th e y 

in f a c t d e v e lo p ? "

W it n esses a tte n d in g w er e Dr. W ilso n T a lle y , EPA A s s is ta n c e Adm i n i s t r a t o r f o r R & D, ac co m pan ie d by D r. D e lb e rt B a rth , A s s is ta n t 

A d m in is tra to r f o r H e a lt h an d E c o lo g ic a l E f f e c t s , an d Ms. P h y llis 

D aly , A c ti n g D ir e c to r o f th e O ffic e o f P la n n in g an d Rev ie w; and Dr.

R obert Sa ns om , C o n s u lta n t E n v ir o n m en ta l R esearc h an d T ech n o lo g y , INC.

D r. Jo hn N euhold , D ir e c to r o f th e E co lo gy C e n te r, U ta h S ta te U n iv e r s ity , 

su b m it te d a s ta te m e n t.

PRIMARY PROBLEM

The w itn e s s e s a g re e d t h a t , a t p r e s e n t, th e b a s ic pro ble m ham per in g 

EP A' s e f f o r t s to mou nt an a d e q u a te lo n g -te rm R & D pro gr am i s a la c k 

o f s t a b i l i t y — a la c k o f s t a b i l i t y a r i s i n g from EPA 's te n d e n c y to t r a n s ­

f e r fu nds an d p e rs o n n e l prog ram med f o r lo n g -ra n g e r e s e a rc h p r o j e c t s to 

s h o r t- te r m im m edia te r e s e a r c h on a c u r r e n t c r i s i s . D rs. T a lle y and 

B a rt h b o th gav e exam ple s o f t h i s d iv e r s io n o f fu n d s an d p e rs o n n e l:
VII

CRS-2

30 p e rc e n t o f th e ma npow er a t th e D ulu th L a b o ra to ry was d e v o te d to th e 

La ke S u p e rio r a s b e s to s p ro b le m ; th e Kepon e in c id e n t in V ir g in ia has 

c o s t EPA $1.6 5 m illio n , w it h $ 1 .2 5 m illio n ta k e n from th e o f f i c e o f 

R & D; th e pro gra m to e v a lu a te th e b i o lo g ic a l an d c l im a to lo g ic a l e f f e c t s 

o f ozone d e p le tio n c o s t th e A ge nc y $4 m il lL o n fo r 197 6 an d 19 77, w it h 

m os t o f th e fu n d s re pro gra m m ed fr om lo n g -te rm h e a lth an d e c o lo g ic a l 

r e s e a rc h — in 1976 th e m ost s e v e re c u ts w er e in th e a i r h e a l t h e p id e ­

m io lo g y a r e a . Such a la c k o f s t a b i l i t y n o t o n ly e n d a n g e rs o n g o in g lo n g - 

ra n g e r e s e a r c h p r o j e c t s , b u t d i s r u p t s p e r s o n n e l, to o .

D rs. T a lle y and San som b o th urg ed th e a u th o r iz a tio n o f a " c o n ti n g e n c y "

fu nd fo r d e a lin g w it h c r i s e s , so o n goin g pro gra m s wou ld n o t be d is r u p te d .

SECONDARY ISSUES

Beyond th e pro ble m o f p r o t e c t i n g lo n g -ra n g e R & D fu n d in g fro m 

b e in g d iv e r te d to d e a l w it h c r i s e s , th e w itn e s s e s a d d re s s e d a nu mber 

o f s e c o n d -o rd e r is s u e s c o n c e rn in g th e ad equacy o f EPA 's lo n g -ra n g e R & D.

O r g a n iz a tio n . D r. T a lle y p o in te d o u t t h a t one way " t o l i m i t com pet i t i o n bet w ee n s h o r t - an d lo n g -ra n g e pro ble m s i s th ro u g h o r g a n iz a tio n ," 

an d he n o te d t h a t th e lo n g -ra n g e pro ble m s te n d to be c o n c e n tr a te d 

in th e O f fic e o f H e a lt h an d E c o lo g ic a l E f f e c ts w h il e th e s h o r t- r a n g e 

p ro b le m s te n d to be lo c a te d in th e O ffic e o f M o n it o rin g an d T e c h n ic a l 

S u p p o rt ( th e o th e r two o f f i c e s b e in g " in te r m e d ia te p r o b le m -o r ie n te d " ) . 

H ow ev er , when Ms. D al y wa s a s k e d how many o f th e jo b s l o t s l o s t be tw ee n 

1971 an d 1976 were d ev o te d t o " lo n g -te rm an d f u tu r e e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b ­

le m s ," sh e s a id sh e co u ld n o t a n sw e r, a lt h o u g h a br ea kdow n by th e s e
VIII

CRS-3

o f ic e s wou ld seem s u g g e s tiv e . A q u e s tio n wa s r a is e d ab o u t c r e a t i n g a 

new Dep ut y A d m in is tra to r fo r th e O ffic e o f R & D (ORD) who wou ld be 

r e s p o n s ib le s p e c i f i c a l l y fo r a s s u r in g " c o n tin u ity an d a d v i s i b i l i t y " o f 

th e lo n g -ra n g e R & D pro gra m ; D r. Sam son s a id t h i s was "a p o s s ib le r e ­

fo rm t h a t wo uld hav e u t i l i t y , " b u t he wou ld be " r e l u c t a n t to se e Con ­

g re s s s p e c i f i c a l l y r e q u ir e t h a t . " He s a id " i t m ig ht be a s p e c ia l a s ­

s i s t a n t , " an d he n o te d t h a t th e r e m ig h t be c o n f l i c t s bet w ee n a new 

a d m in is tr a to r on lo n g -ra n g e re s e a rc h an d th e a d m in is tr a to r o f th e H ealt ti 

and E c o lo g ic a l E f f e c ts O f fic e .

A q u e s tio n ab o u t th e d e s i r a b i l i t y o f N a ti o n a l E n v ir o n m en ta l L abora t o r i e s was r a i s e d , w it h th e p o s s i b i l i t y th e y m ig h t be b u f fe r e d fro m 

th e d i s r u p tio n o f d e a lin g w it h s h o r t- te rm p ro b le m s. D r. T a lle y s a id 

th at, w h il e su ch l a b o r a t o r i e s m ig ht o f f e r th e " s i t e f o r th e c o n d u ct o f 

th e lo n g -ra n g e b a s ic r e s e a rc h on th e en v ir o n m en t t h a t I th in k we n e e d ," 

n e v e r th e le s s " b e in g in s u la te d from th e nee d to p ro duce [ u s e f u l] a n sw e rs , 

. . . I am n o t co n v in ced t h a t n a tio n a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l la b o r a t o r i e s a r e th e 

way to g o ," a lt h o u g h "so me ch anges in o r g a n iz a tio n a l an d ma nagement 

s t r u c t u r e a re n e e d e d ." Bu t i t d i n o t s p e c ify what, chan ges th e s e m ig ht 

b e . D r. Sam son g e n e r a lly a g re e d . He s a id , " I th in k t h a t th e s tr e n g th 

o f lo n g -ra n g e r e s e a rc h i s wha t i t d e r iv e s fro m th e

s t r e s s o f th e e f f o r t to fin d o u t wha t i s h a p p e n in g in is s u e s l i k e k e - 

p o n e ." He w ar ne d o f "p ro b le m s o f f o s s i l i z a t i o n in some o f th e s e r e ­

se a rc h c e n te r s " an d c o n clu d ed th e r e a r e "a l o t o f dr aw bac ks to h av in g

th a t kin d o f i s o l a t e d a c t i v i t y .
IX

CRS -4

F u n d in g . B e sid e s th e pr oble m o f i n s t a b i l i t y in fu n d in g a r i s i n g from 

d iv e r s io n s an d re pro gra m m in g to d e a l w it h c r i s e s , w itn e s s e s a d d re ss e d 

th e adeq uac y o f c u r r e n t fu n d in g f o r lo n g -ra n g e R & D. D r. T a lle y r e ­

commended f iv e - y e a r a u th o r iz a tio n s a s a way o f " l e v e lin g o u t" p eaks 

and v a l l e y s . He a ls o s a id t h a t in c r e a s e s in fu n d s sh o u ld be c o n s id e re d 

in te rm s o f s p e c i f i c , " ta r g e te d " in c r e a s e s r a t h e r th a n " l a r g e , g e n e r a liz e d 

ch unk s o f mon ey" w hi ch h e doubte d th e ag ency c o u ld e f f e c t i v e l y a b s o rb . 

D r.San so m c o n c u rre d in th e nee d f o r an y in c r e a s e s to be t a r g e t e d , an d 

he s p e c if ie d lo n g -te rm re s e a rc h as n e e d in g in c r e a s e s o f th e le v e l o f 

10 to 20 p e r c e n t. " In my own p e rs o n a l v ie w ," s a id D r. S an so n, " th e in cre m en t 

o f r e s o u r c e s sh o u ld go in to th e h e a lth e f f e c t an d e c o lo g ic a l e f f e c t s 

an d th e m o n ito rin g , lo n g -ra n g e t r a n s p o r t an d t h a t k in d o f a r e a an d n o t 

in th e te c h n o lo g y a r e a ."

P la n n in g . The pro ble m o f p la n n in g in o rd e r to s e t p r i o r i t i e s among 

v a rio u s lo n g -ra n g e re s e a rc h pro gra m s r e v e a le d q u i t e d i f f e r e n t a s se s sm e n ts 

by th e w itn e s s e s o f EP A's p la n n in g . A cco rd in g to Ms. D aly , th e ORD 

a n n u a ll y u p d a te d f iv e - y e a r p la n (p re p a re d a t th e b e h e s t o f C o n g re ss; 

th e f i r s t on e is s u e d in F e b ru a ry , 19 76 ) i d e n t i f i e s th e m ajo r i s s u e s t h a t 

th e Ag ency sh o u ld a d d r e s s . D r. T a lle y d e fe n d ed th e p la n when he was 

ask ed ab o u t c r i t i c i s m s o f i t p re p a re d by th e O ffic e o f T ec hnolo gy Asse ss m e n t (O TA ). He a d m it te d t h a t i t wa s n o t s p e c i f i c en ou gh an d t h a t 

t h i s f i r s t i t e r a t i o n was p u b li s h e d h a s t i l y , b u t he co n te n d ed t h a t i t 

f u l f i l l e d th e jo b o f d e f in in g r e s e a r c h n eed s w ith in a c o n s tr a in e d bu dg e t . How ev er , he s a id t h a t i t was n o t c o o rd in a te d w it h th e C o n g re ss io n a l B ud ge t O f f i c e 's p la n n in g w hic h h e a s e r te d wa s n o t d e t a i l e d en ou gh

to j u s t i f y i t . He n o te d th e f iv e - y e a r - p la n was lim ite d to th e ORD 's
X

CRS-5

p ro gra m s an d d id n o t in c lu d e th e " s tu d y fu n d s" o f o th e r EPA o f f i c e s .

He s a id he c o n s id e re d th e OTA re v ie w as a "co m p re h en siv e l i s t o f e n v iro n ­

m e n ta l p ro b le m s" t h a t wa s p re p a re d " w it h o u t b u d g e ta ry c o n s t r a i n t , " w h il e 

"my p u rp o se was to b u ild a do cu m en t whi ch wo uld e n a b le me to n o t o n ly 

d e fe n d th e b u d g e t, b u t p ro v id e g u id a n c e as to how t h a t b u d g e t sh o u ld 

be d i s t r i b u t e d . "

D r. Sansom , how ever, t e s t i f i e d t h a t many re v ie w e rs f e l t th e ORD 

f i v e - y e a r p la n was c o n c e p tu a lly in a d e q u a te . D r. Sa ns om , who ha d 

c h a ir e d on e o f th r e e OTA p a n e ls t h a t re vie w ed th e p la n , s a id th a t a l l 

t h r e e p a n e ls —

f e l t t h a t th e do cu m en t in th e se n se o f la y in g o u t o b je c tiv e s 

an d c o u p li n g b u d g e t l e v e l s w it h d e liv e r y o b j e c t i v e s an d a l ­

lo w in g some p e o p le t o u n d e rs ta n d th e is s u e s t h a t hav e bee n 

d is c u s s e d . . . in te rm s o f fu n d in g le v e ls [a nd] p e o p le o v er 

a f iv e - y e a r ti m e fra m e , t h a t th e do cu m en t d id n o t do t h a t 

j o b .

As an ex am p le , D r. Sanso m s a id i t does n o t p e rm it on e to " g ra p p le " 

w it h th e r e s u l t s o f tr a d e o f f s : "w ha t wo uld ha ppen i s we fu nded a n o th e r 

10 e p id e m io lo g is ts in more t o x i c o l o g i c a l work . . . ? How f a r w ou ld th a t 

g e t th e c o u n tr y ? What wou ld we f in d o u t? " O r, " w it h in a b u d g e t r e s t r a i n t 

i f yo u re d u ced th e su p p o rt an d [ p u t] more in th e te c h n o lo g ic a l e f f o r t s , 

w ha t w ould yo u g e t f o r i t ? "

D r. San som r e je c te d th e s u g g e s tio n t h i s f a i l u r e r e s u l t e d fro m th e 

la c k o f d e t a i l in th e p la n . He s a i d , " i t i s more th a n t h a t . . . i t has 

to have a fram ew or k so yo u ca n u n d e r s ta n d ." A ccord in g to D r. Sa nsom , 

th e docu m en t oug h t n o t j u s t be " a compend ium o f en d r e s e a r c h p r o j e c t s , "
XI

CRS-6

b u t sh o u ld be s e t t i n g "som e o v e r a l l c o n te x t t h a t a S e n a to r o r C o n g re ssman o r h ig h - le v e l a d m i n i s t r a t o r o r th e p u b lic c an d e a l w i t h ." Asked 

w h eth er a t a b le in th e f i v e - y e a r p la n w hi ch l a i d o u t su bpro gra m s d id n o t 

p ro v id e a s t r u c t u r e f o r th e R & D pro gra m , D r. Sanso m r e p l i e d , "N o.

I th in k t h a t was a m ajo r d i f f i c u l t y t h a t th e p a n e l i s t s h a d , t h a t th e 

b u d g et l i n e it e m s p r e s e n te d i n t h i s do cu m en t . . . r e a l l y d i d n 't d iv u lg e 

th e r e l a t i v e pro gra m em p h asis in th e s e a r e a s ." T here wa s no "fra m e ­

w o rk ."

D r. T a l le y 's te s ti m o n y im p li e d t h a t t h i s a p p a re n t la c k o f fr am ew or k d e riv e d from th e in c o n s is te n c y an d in c o m p le tn e ss o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

p o lic y in th e U .S . He s a i d : " I n my a r e a , I hav e y e t t o s e e a n a tio n a l 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l p o lic y in s u f f i c i e n t d e t a i l to e n a b le my ag en cy o r my arm 

o f th e ag en cy to do m u lti- y e a r p la n n in g ." A cco rd in g to D r. T a lle y , "A 

p ro b le m w hi ch s p e c i f i c a l l y i n h i b i t s EPA 's a b i l i t y to do lo n g -ra n g e p la n ­

n in g i s th e nu mber o f la w s to w hi ch we have to r e s p o n d ." He s a id n in e 

d i f f e r e n t la w s m an dat ed EPA r e s e a r c h , an d "b e c a u se e ach A ct c h a rg e s EPA 

w it h d i f f e r e n t an d p o s s ib ly c o n f l i c t i n g m is s io n s , g iv e s EPA d i f f e r e n t 

r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s , an d p r o v id e d i f f e r e n t r e g u la to r y re m e d ie s , i t i s o f te n 

d i f f i c u l t to p la n a c o o r d in a te d a t t a c k on e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s ." For 

ex am p le , s a id D r. T a lle y , th e C le an W at er A ct i s " te c h n o lo g y - o rie n te d " 

an d th e C le an A ir A ct i s p r i m a r i l y h e a l t h - e f f e c t o r i e n t e d ; ORD mus t 

t h e r e f o r e " o rg a n iz e b o th a te c h n o lo g y develo pm ent an d a n a l y t i c p ro ­

gr am an d a ls o th e lo n g e r -te r m h e a lth e f f e c t s p ro g ra m ." But a s p o ll u t i o n ab ate m en t c an p u t p ro b le m s in o th e r m ed ia , "we d e v e lo p a h e a lth 

b a s i s f o r w a te r p o l l u t i o n a s w e ll a s a te c h n o lo g y b a s i s f o r a i r . "
XII

CRS-7

D r. Sa nsom d is a g re e d w it h t h i s asse ssm e n t o f th e r e s e a r c h im p lic a tio n s o f th e d iv e r s e p o llu t i o n c o n t r o l la w s. He s a id o f D r. T a l le y 's 

re m ar k t h a t "o ne law was te c h n o lo g y an d on e law was h e a lth e f f e c t s " th a t 

" I d is a g r e e w it h t h a t . Th ey seem t o have e le m e n ts o f b o th . Th e is s u e 

i s c o n c e p tu a lly wh at sh o u ld be th e r e l a t i v e em phas is n a t u r a l l y in th e s e 

tw o a r e a s . " T h is c o n c e p tu a liz in g , w en t on D r. Sa nsom , i s w ha t th e EPA 

f iv e - y e a r p la n "o ught to t r y to la y o u t ."

D r. Sansom pro pose d a c o n c e p tu a l vie w o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l pro ble m s 

an d d is c u s s e d i t s im p lic a tio n s f o r EPA 's ORD. D r. San som d i s tin g u is h e d 

fo u r " a r e n a s " o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s: g lo b a l m o n ito rin g , to x i c and 

ch em ic al p o l l u t i o n , c o n v e n ti o n a l p o l l u t i o n pro ble m s a r i s i n g fr om b a s ic 

gro w th an d p ro d u c tio n , an d p o l l u t a n t s d e r iv in g from th e p a r t i c u l a r h ig h ­

ly co n su m p ti v e U .S . l i f e s t y l e . A cco rd in g to D r. Sa nsom , th e f i r s t 

i s o n ly p a r t l y EP A's r e s p o n s i b i l i t y . Th e se co nd i s " r i p e f o r EPA r e ­

s e a rc h an d l e a r d e r s h i p " :

What fr am ew ork , w ha t sy ste m does EPA hav e fo r i d e n t i f y i n g and 

s e a rc h in g o u t t h r e a t s fr om su ch p o llu ta n ts ? . . . Where do 

a l l th in g s f i t on th e s c a l e o f t h r e a t s to man an d c r i t i c a l 

ec o sy ste m s? £

E xam in ati o n o f t h i s f i e l d d e m o n s tr a te s th e f u t i l i t y o f ORD 

m arc h in g s o le ly to th e s i g n a ls o f th e r e g u la to r y p ro g ra m s. 

C on g re ss i s n o t g o in g to EPA to r e g u la te p o l l u t a n t s . . . 

t h a t EPA h a s n 't to ld th e C o n g re ss e x i s t s .

A do cu men t l i k e EPA 's f i v e - y e a r p la n co u ld be u se d t o r e ­

p o r t a n n u a lly to th e C o n g re ss on th e s t a tu s o f th e c h e m ic a l 

to x ic re s e a rc h an d i t s a s s e s s m e n t o f p o llu ta n t c r i t i c a l i t y .

On th e t h i r d a r e a , "EPA sh o u ld m a in ta in an ongoin g a s se s sm e n t o f w h eth er 

th e r a t e o f re d u c tio n and e m is s io n s p e r u n it o f p ro d u c ti o n in o u r m ajo r 

gro w th i n d u s t r i e s i s a d e q u te to keep e m is s io n s d e c lin in g w h il e norm al
XIII

CRS-8

gro w th i n o u tp u t o c c u r s . E PA 's new i n te g r a te d te c h n o lo g y a s s e s s m e n ts 

a re a n e c e s s a ry s te p in t h i s d i r e c t i o n . " The f o u rth a r e a , l i f e - s t y l e 

p o l l u t i o n , " i s d i f f i c u l t to h a n d le b u t r a i s e s fu n d am en ta l q u e s tio n s : 

fo r exam ple : What i s th e f u t u r e o f urb an a re a s ? L im it s c a n n o t be known 

"b e c a u se th e p o t e n t i a l f o r . . . ec onom ic gro w th in su ch r e g io n s w it h 

h ig h l e v e l s o f c o n tr o ls h a s n o t been ex am in ed ." Dr. Sa nsom recomm ended 

" s p e c i f i c c i t y o r re g io n -w id e s t u d i e s " t h a t " t e l l th e n a tio n w it h re g ­

u la to r y an d s c i e n t i f i c r i g o r w her e we sta n d on th e gro w th an d e n v iro n ­

m en t s p e c tr u m ."

D r. San som co n clu d ed t h i s c o n c e p tu a liz a tio n by s a y in g , "T he v is io n 

an d sc o p e nee ded to p erf o rm su c h wor k m us t com e from th e to p an d i t mus t 

come to g e th e r in docu m en ts l i k e ORD 's f iv e - y e a r p la n o r an e q u iv a le n t 

in s tru m e n t so u g h t by C o n g re s s ."

Mo re s p e c i f i c a l l y , D r. Sa ns om rec om me nded more r e s e a r c h on su ch 

lo n g -te rm pro ble m s a s h e a l t h an d e c o lo g ic a l e f f e c t s , m o n ito rin g , and 

lo n g -ra n g e tr a n s p o r t o f p o l l u t a n t s ; and he s u g g e ste d th e te c h n o lo g y 

a r e a may be o v e re m p h a siz e d . He n o te d t h a t w h il e s ta c k - g a s sc ru b b e r 

te c h n o lo g y ha d bee n h e a v ily r e s e a rc h e d by EPA, th r e e o f th e m os t s u c ­

c e s s f u l s c u b b e rs w er e c o n s tr u c te d by p r i v a t e fu n d s , an d t h a t EPA 's b ig g e s t 

c o n t r i b u ti o n in th e a r e a had b een h o ld in g m e e ti n g s an d e n c o u ra g in g 

te c h n o lo g y t r a n s f e r .

D r. T a lle y s u g g e ste d t h a t th e pr oble m o f c h ro n ic e f f e c t s was em er gin g a s a h ig h p r i o r i t y i s s u e r e q u ir in g lo n g -te rm r e s e a r c h . He s a id he 

was m ak in g p r e p a r a tio n s to s u p p o rt t h i s t h r u s t .
XIV

CRS-9

C o o r d in a tio n . R ecog n iz in g t h a t e n v ir o n m e n ta l re s e a rc h o c c u rs th ro u g h ­

o u t th e F e d e ra l G over nm en t, th e w itn e s s e s a ls o a d d re ss e d how p ro gra m s 

ca n be c o o r d in a te d . D r. T a lle y n o te d t h a t th e r e i s a new F e d e ra l c o ­

o r d in a tin g g ro u p ; b u t he fo re saw th e m ost e f f e c t iv e c o o r d in a tin g m ec ha nism a s b e in g th e d e s ig n a tio n o f " le a d a g e n c ie s " w it h " p a s s th ro u g h fu n d ­

in g " a u t h o r i t i e s to d e a l w it h s p e c i f i c p ro b le m s. T hus, an ag en cy wou ld 

be r e s p o n s ib le f o r o v e rs e e in g r e s e a r c h in an a re a an d wou ld fu nd p ro ­

gr am s in o th e r a g e n c ie s whe n th e y w ere e x p e rt in p a r t i c u l a r a s p e c ts 

o f th e p ro b le m . As an exam ple , D r. T a lle y n o te d t h a t EPA wa s th e le a d 

ag ency f o r th e lo n g -ra n g e a tm o s p h e ric re s e a rc h pr og ra m a lt h o u g h o th e r 

a g e n c ie s w ou ld a c t u a l l y do much o f th e r e s e a r c h . D r. T a lle y o b se rv e d 

t h a t a p ro p o s a l in th e FY 1977 a u t h o r i z a t i o n b i l l f o r EPA 's r e s e a r c h 

wo uld have made EPA th e le a d agen cy f o r a l l e n v ir o n m e n ta l r e s e a r c h , 

b u t t h i s was d e l e t e d . T hus, " a t p r e s e n t th e r e i s no l e g i s l a t i v e man ­

d a te f o r EPA to be th e le a d ." D r. T a lle y n o te d t h a t th e " p a s s th ro u g h " 

fu n d s th e ag en cy ex pe nd ed on th e o zo n e d e p le tio n pro b le m , some $4 m ill i o n , cam e a t th e expen se o f ORD pro gra m s a s th e r e was no a d d i t i o n a l 

o r s u p p le m e n ta l fu n d in g .

P e r s o n n e l. Ms. Daly p o in te d o u t th a t th e numb er o f EPA 's re s e a rc h 

p e rs o n n e l had d e c lin e d fro m 2000 in 197 1 to 183 4 in 19 76 , an d t h a t t h i s 

ha d ma de i t d i f f i c u l t to h i r e p e rs o n s to im pr ov e th e mix o f e x p e r t i s e s .

D r. T a lle y a ls o o b se rv ed t h a t C iv il S e rv ic e c o n s t r a i n t s on s a l a r i e s p re ­

v e n te d th e a g e n c ie s fro m h i r in g n eed ed s p e c i a l i s t s , an d he c i t e d th e 

nee d f o r e p id e m io lo g is ts in p a r t i c u l a r . ( I t wa s n o te d t h a t th e a i r
XV

CRS-10

h e a lth e p id e m io lo g y pro gra m to o k a s e v e re c u t in 197 6 to f r e e fu n d s f o r 

c r i s i s p ro b le m s; Ms. D al y s a id t h i s d id n o t a f f e c t p e r s o n n e l, how ever, 

a s th e fu n d s w er e ta k e n fr om u n o b lig a te d e x tr a m u ra l r e s e a r c h , b u t n e v e rth e l e s s th e la c k o f s t a b i l i t y i n fu n d in g fo r th e a r e a m ig ht in f lu e n c e 

p e r c e p tio n s o f th e j o b .) D r. Sa ns om co n clu d ed h i s te s ti m o n y by 

a g re e in g w it h D r. T a lle y on th e need fo r re m ov in g C iv il S e rv ic e co n ­

s t r a i n t s on EPA 's R & D p e r s o n n e l; he c i t e d ERDA as an ag en cy which 

had been p e rm itt e d a more f u n c t i o n a l p o lic y fo r h i r in g an d p a y in g p e o p le . 

T h is " i s th e k in d o f re fo rm t h a t i s lo n g o v e rd u e ," s a id D r. Sa ns om .

CHOOSING OCR ENVIRONMENT: CAN WE ANTICIPATE 

THE FUTURE?

Environmental Protection Agency: Long-Range Forecasting 

and Public Policy

TU ESD AY, S E P T E M B E R 28 , 19 76 

U .S . S e n a t e,

C o m m it tee on P ubli c W ORK S,

S ub co m m it te e on E n vir o n m en tal P o llu tio n,

P a n el on E n v ir o n m e n ta l S cie n ce an d T ech n o lo gy,

TFasAfngfon, D.C.

The panel met at 8:30 a.m., pursuant to call, in room 4200, Dirksen Senate Office B uild ing, Hon. Joh n C. Culve r (cha irma n of the panel) 

presiding.

Pr es en t: Senator Culver.

OPE NIN G STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN C. CULVER, U.S. SENATOR 

FROM TH E STATE OF IOW A

Sen ator C ul ve r. Th e panel will come to order.

I want to welcome all of you to the four th hea ring by the Panel on Environm ental Science and Tech nology in its ong oin g series en­ titled “ Choosing our Environme nt: Can We An ticipa te the Future? As you may know, the panel was created by the Environmen tal Pollutio n Committee in 1971 to focus attention on research rega rdin g 

the science and technology of controlling the environment. In this year-lon g series of hearings, we have explored the impor­ tance of a more effective foresight cap ability in public policy. There is a gro wing concern among the citizen s that our pub lic institutions are not adequately shaped or indeed equipped to anticipate and resolve problems before they become full-fledged national crises, and these hearing s have afforded us an opportu nity to ide ntify futu re environ­ mental problems and to determ ine what should be done to improve 

long-range forec astin g in government. In 1975. the Environmen tal Protection Agenc y undertook an ex ten­ sive reorganization of its Office o f Research and Development (O RD ) as a partia l response to critica l reports that had been issued the pre ­ vious year. Tt was felt that the management of its research and deve l­ opment progra m lacked a sound long-range perspective. Tn response to this criticism. Congress last year instituted a requirement that a comprehensive 5-year plan for environm ental research lx* submitted to the Congress annuallv. Th e first 5-year ove rvie w of research and development was transmitted to the Congress in F ebruary o f this year. 

(1)

79 -3 97 0 - 77 - 2
2

This plan represents a majo r change, I think, in E PA ’s management 

because it is an initial attempt to structure the research program so 

as to anticipate future environmental problems. I believe it is important as well to recognize th at this plan is the first of its kind at 

EP A and has been designed to raise issues and indicate priorities. 

The plan provides an opportunity to develop a meaningful dialog 

between EP A and the Congress that goes beyond the usual program 

budget for the upcoming year.

An adequate anticipatory capability is nowhere more critical than in 

the field of environmental policy. We have learned from recent crises, 

such as kepone in the James River and asbestos in La,ke Superior, 

tha t a failure to forecast environmental degradation in the longer 

range can result in irreversible harm. We must be able to detect adverse 

environmental consequences before widespread damage is done. The 

key to such a capability is a strong research and development effort 

which addresses long-range environmental concerns. Only through a 

strong commitment to this kind of research can we more adequately 

prepare for the unexpected.

In today’s hearing, “EP A, Long-Range Forecasting and Environmental Policy,” we will tur n our attention to an analysis of EP A’s 

research and development. We will review the newly developed 5- 

year research outlook prepared by this office. We will also be interested 

in whether or not appropriate personnel and financial resources are 

being devoted to research, and what can be done to improve the management and organization of this function at EPA . Is EPA developing the proper information base to anticipate future environmental 

consequences as well as the technology base to deal with problems 

{is they develop?

I am confident tha t today’s group of witnesses will help provide us 

with a better understanding of the considerations regarding the research program at the Environmental Protection Agency and will 

provide stimulating answers to many concerns regarding EP A’s anticipation of long-range problems.

We will hear testimony from Dr. Wilson Talley, the Assistant Administrator for Research and Development, at the EP A. Dr. Talley 

will l>e accompanied by Dr. Delbert Barth, Assistant Administrator 

for Health and Ecological Effects, and former Director of the Environmental Monitoring and Support Laboratory; and Phyllis Daly, 

Acting Director of the Office of Planning and Review.

We will also hear from Dr. Robert Sansom. who is a consultant at 

Energy and Environmental Analysis, Inc. Dr. John Neuhold, director of the Ecology Center at Utah State University, is unable to be 

here for personal reasons; however, he has submitted a statement 

which will be included in the record. [See p. 210.]

In o rder to have an exchange of questions and answers later in the 

hearing, and in view of the fact that the Senate will be going in early 

this morning, I would appreciate it if each person would limit the 

summary of his prepared remarks to 15 or 20 minutes at the most.

The entire text of the w ritten statement will be made a part of the 

record.

Since the Joint Senate-House Conference Committee on the 1976 

Clean Air Act Amendments will meet later this morning and I will 

have to be in attendance then, this hearing will not be able to continue 

beyond 10 a.m.
3

Our first witness today is Dr. Robert Sansom, who is associated with 

Energy and Environmental Analysis, Inc. Mr. Sansom, I welcome you 

here and please begin.

STATEMENT OE DR. ROB ERT SANSOM, CONSULTANT, ENVIRO NMENTAL RESEA RCH AND TECHNOLOGY, INC.

Mr. Sansom. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Mr. Chairman, I have been asked to address several issues related 

to the subject you have just introduced, EPA, long-range environmental forecasting.

The list is much longer than I could cover in the few minutes 

allotted. Assessing today the future of America in environmental 

terms it tries more than anything else a rigorous scientific and global 

approach.

This wasn’t true 5 or even 2 years ago because the dimensions of the 

problem had not emerged. Now the picture is in vague focus. It is 

almost as if the ecological world is defined as well as the physical 

globe is defined at the end of the era of Portuguese and Spanish 

exploration around 1600.

Now we must set up colonies in each major area, research colonies. 

First, we must systematically plot the scope of the global environmental threats setting upworld monitoring systems and accomplishing 

pollutant screening on a worldwide scale.

The second arena is t ha t of the toxic and chemical pollution with 

both chronic and acute effects.

The third area of conventional pollutant problems relates to the 

growth and economic production both in the United States and 

worldwide.

Then, fourth, are the problems of pollution tha t are a derivative of 

our overzealous or highly productive and consumptive life style. These 

are pollutants like oxidants and particulates tha t we can live with in 

modest amounts, but at the point of which they start to be emitted in 

a lar ge-scale growth or in urban complexes they become intolerable.

These are four general areas.

If we break these areas out as I have just described them, EP A’s 

role becomes more comprehensible. The global area is not one of EPA, 

though CEQ and other agencies have equal roles.

The second area of toxic and chemical pollution is ripe for EDA 

research and leadership. How does one decide whether substances like 

kepone, vinyl chloride, PCW ’s, and all the rest that face us in our 

newspapers every day a re being managed from a research standpoint.

What framework, what system does EPA have for identifying and 

searching out threats from such pollutants? How many substances are 

hazardous in the parts pe r million ?

How does one rank the threat of a substance th at can damage man’s 

gene pool alongside that from a substance like asbestos which can cause 

cancer?

What we need is not a long-range plan but a short range guide, a 

scorecard. Where do all of these things fit in on the scale of threats to 

man and critical ecosystems?

Examination of this field demonstrates the futi lity of ORD m arching solely to the signals of the regulatory programs. Congress is not
4

going to tell E PA to reg ula te p ol lutant s or tell someone else to reg ula te 

po llu tants th at EPA ha sn 't told the Congress exists.

A doc ument like E PA 's 5- year plan could be used t o repo rt annuall y 

to the Con gress on th e sta tus of the chemical toxic res ear ch and its 

assessment o f pollut ant crit icality .

E PA has the c ap ability to conduct such research. It prob ably lacks 

som ewhat the resources.

In a supp lem entar y docume nta tion E PA ’s first 5-year plan did say 

th at such stu die s were un de r way bu t it failed to disclose what was 

sought o r what m ight be pr oduce d and when.

If the Congres s hopes to ge t such a document from E P A it must 

specify w ha t it requires.

It is also essential th at to mandate th at befo re E P A produces 

finally such a docume nt it be giv en adequate pee r review within the 

scientific com munity and adequate pub lic exposure.

The th ir d area of analysis is the only one add ressed bv the form al 

lim its to grow th typ e of analy sis. It is not a difficult one to han dle 

with reason able scientific precision. I per son ally am unconvince d th at 

the re are glob al and enivo rnme nta l lim its to gr ow th; th at is, th at 

the re are po llu tant effects such as the man-caused wa rm ing o r coolin g 

of the biosphere th at c an’t be handled . I do not believe th at these are 

rea lly an obsta cle to economic grow th worldwide or in the Un ited 

Sta tes.

I here are problems like the fluo rocarbo n problem th at can be m anaged with ou t harm ing gro wth if we wan t to man age it. He re t he issue 

is not research so much at th is point os it is regu lator y action.

Anyway, I h ave alr eady ment ion ed t ha t I do n't think E P A is necessarily the only goveminentw ide mover in the global env ironmental 

effects area . T hey certai nly have a ma jor role.

W ith rega rd to U.S. economy at larg e, E PA should ma int ain an 

ong oin g assesm ent of wh eth er the rat e of red uctions and emissions 

per un it of pro duction in ou r major g row th ind ust ries is ade qua te to 

keep emissions dec lining while normal gro wth in ou tput occurs.

E P A ’s new inte grate d technolo gy assessments are a ne cessary step in 

th is dir ectio n.

The fo ur th are a of ana lysis of env ironm ental futur es is the most 

difficult to handle with scientific precision. I call the prob lem lif estyle pollution. While there ar e pro bab ly not env ironm ental limits 

to ove rall grow th in the U .S. economy, in regions like the L os Angeles 

basin or even most urb an are as of more than 1 million people there 

pro bably a re lim its t o growth.

We can not say for sure because t he poten tial fo r grow th, economic 

gro wth in such regions with hi gh level of controls has not been examined. Th is is a problem OR D need s to address.

The lis t of concerns is v ery long. Recent studies show, fo r exam ple, 

th at att ain men t of the oxide nts stan da rd is unlikely in alm ost every 

majo r metr opoli tan area.

Does th is means land use an d tra ns po rta tio n con trols have heavy 

reliance on mass tra ns it, th at the se are the only appro aches to urban 

develop men t that can make urba n liv ing in the auto era com patible 

with the clean e nvir onm ent ?

Si m ila r problems are raised by sulfa te and othe r long -ra ng e tran spo rt po llu tan ts. But thes e ap ply to larg er geograp hic region s tha n 

pa rtic ul ar cities.
5

The need is for ORD to tell the Nation with regulatory and scientific 

rigor where we stand on the growth and environment spectrum. This brings me to the forester type of analysis, the limits o f growth type. I doubt tha t this type of analysis has any utility because it has no empirical content. Conceptually i t posed a question in the interest­ ing and provocative way. Now we need research and analysis, not 

provocation. This is the task for ORD. In executing this requirement, ORD should be careful to avoid costly modeling with the excessive amounts of out-of-date and obsolete data. The public needs to relate to EP A’s project, thus scientific—I am sorry. Thus, specific city or region-wide studies will prove of greater utility than global-type modeling. Congress must take an interest in these studies if they are to be accomplished competently. ORD has the capability to do all the things 

I have mentioned. There is some question w hether institutionally the organization is 

equipped to do so or organized to do so. The vision and scope needed to perform such work must come from the top and it must come together in documents like ORD ’s 5-year plan or an equivalent instrument sought by the Congress.

That completes my remarks.

Senator Culver. Thank you very much, Dr. Sansom. I wonder if we could have Dr. Talley join us at the witness table now. Why don’t we hear all statements first, and then we will have 

some questions. Dr. Talley, I am glad you are able to join us this morning. We look forward to hearing from you and also welcome Dr. Barth and 

Miss Daly.

STATEMENT OF DR. WILSON K. TALLEY, ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR FOR RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT, ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY; ACCOMPANIED BY DR. DELBERT S. BARTH,

DEPUTY ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR FOR HEAL TH AND ECOLOGICAL EFFECTS; AND PHY LLIS A. DALY, DIRECTOR, OFFICE

OF PLANNING AND REVIE W

Dr. Talley. Mv statement is brief. So I can read it well within 

the 15-minute guideline. Mr. Chairman, T am happy to be here this morning to discuss with you how long-range planning is essential to the Environmental Pro ­

tection Agency’s research program. Accompanying me today are Dr. Delbert S. Barth , Deputy Assistant Administrator for Health and Ecological Effects, and Miss Phyllis 

A. Dalv, Director, Office of Planning and Review. Dr. Barth, who was until recently director of our Environmental Monitoring and Support Laboratory in Las Vegas, has now joined us in Washington in his current position. He will provide, I believe, valuable viewpoints on long-range planning, both from a laboratory director’s and a deputy assistant administrator’s perspective. Miss Dalv is responsible for developing, recommending, and co­ ordin ating long-range planning activities within the Office of Research 

and Development.
6

The Office of Research and Development (ORD), as part of a regulatory agency, must fulfill the responsibility to develop accurate and 

reliable scientific information for environmental decisionmaking.

Such information is often needed in a short time frame to meet, for 

example, legislative mandates, court orders, or environmental emergency situations such as the two you mentioned this morning, kepone 

and asbestos in Lake Superior.

This need makes it difficult to plan for, fund, and conduct research 

directed to future problems.

Thus, a continuing problem for ORD is striking a balance between 

longer term research and meeting the Agency’s regulatory needs.

I thin k I would like to stress, sir, that that balance cannot be struck 

but once and then proposed in a static document the balancing is not 

only an annual process but, as at the time of the kepone situation, it 

can be a daily occurrence.

Because of the nature of the research in certain programs, particularly in the health and ecological effects area, significant lead times 

and long-term commitments with respect to level and stability of 

funding are required.

Periods of level or decreasing resources make it difficult to determine priorities among competing research projects.

One of the ways the Office of Research and Development has tried 

to limit the competition between short- and long-term research problems is through its organization. ORD’s present time activities, pr imarily quality assurance, monitoring systems development, and 

analytic responses to the needs of other agency programs, are grouped 

together into the Office of Monitoring and Technical Support.

Though specific problems cannot be anticipated, planning for this 

area can proceed based on historical data. The relatively longer term 

research activities, relating to the human and ecological effects of po1

- lutants, need several years to obtain the necessary results and consequently need a relatively stable level of resources.

These activities, in order to more effectively protect the stability 

of the resources, are in a separate Office of Health and Ecological 

Effects.

Intermediate problem-oriented research—meeting legislative and 

Agency mandates for control or abatement methods and technology— 

is divided into two offices. The Office of Energy, Minerals, and In ­

dustry focuses on point, or basically industrial sources.

The Office of Air, Land, and Water Use addresses the nonpoint 

source and public sector areas, as well as the transformation and 

physical transport of pollutants in the environment.

Another way the Office of Research and Development is addressing 

the need for stability of the long-term research is through long-range 

planning. A fundamental element of our planning system is the development and annual revision of a 5-year research plan which includes 

budget projections. It is designed to reflect Agency goals and program 

direction, relate ORD goals and objectives necessary to support 

Agency goals, and describe the research program and priorities for 

meeting the goals.

The Environmental Research Outlook—Fiscal Year 1976-80 was 

published in February of th is year, and we plan to upd ate and publish 

it annually. As the first attempt to produce a 5-year research plan for
7

ORD, the document suffers from the usual weaknesses or deficiencies 

tha t are associated with any first effort. The Office of Technology Assessment review of the plan, as well as comments received from our Federal research agency counterparts, interested public and private scientific groups and individuals, and other offices within the Environmental Protection Agency, have provided valuable suggestions on how the plan can be improved in 

the revision we are about to undertake. And I would hope, Mr. Chairman, that the comments on our plan 

would include direct critical review by the Congress. So far this morning, I have talked about how long-term planning can minimize instability of long-term research funding. Resources, however, means more than just funding. The capabilities of research personnel are another importa nt resource which requires long-range 

planning and stability. Due to personnel system inflexibilities, it is difficult to make shifts in skill-mix in short periods of time. Furth er program requirements for skills must therefore be anticipated through long-range planning so tha t desired personnel can be hired and gain experience in an a ppropriate time frame. Certain constraints on flexibility in hiring researchers with the right capabilities are already critical. One of these is the ability to hire medical doctors. The current Civil Service salary structu re simply does not provide the monetary incentive to attract and retain highly qualified and experienced physicians. One wav of relieving some of these constraints is to supplement our current Civil Service laboratories with a contract laboratory system, like that of the Energy Research and Development Administration. The ability to recruit and maintain highly qualified scientific staffs is 

greatly enhanced in such a system. A related problem in research capabilities is the lack of expertise in certain critical skills. For example, ORD and other research organiza­ tions have a clear need for epidemiologists, but there is a very small number of epidemiologists in the conutry and the supply is not rapidly 

increasing. Long-term planning for skill-mix and funding is also essential for achieving a balance between in-house and extram ural research. This balance is important because, on the one hand, a regulatory agency must have expert scientists who can provide independent scientific 

judgments. This necessitates that the scientists themselves be actively involved in research. On the other hand, a research agency cannot rely on its own limited number of personnel for all its research needs. The r igh t kind of balance must be achieved over a number of years, with stable funding. A large increase in funds, for instance, with no corresponding increase in personnel, requires a shift to extramural research. Such a large increase in extramural research dollars also requires higher skill levels. Conversely, a large drop in funding must greatly reduce the extram ural funds since salaries must continue to be 

paid. The extramural research thus turned off, cannot be turned back on immediately with a simple infusion of funds. H aving persuaded aca­ demic, nonprofit and industrial intsitutions to participate in our re­ search program, they are learv of participating the second time.
8

A way of leveling out these peaks and valleys would be to let research resources flow from multiyear plans. Authorizations could be 

made for 5-year periods without giving up congressional control over 

yearly appropriations. “No-year” appropriations also can help stabilize research funding.

No-year funding authorization gives the research manager the flexibility to terminate poorly performing gra nts or contracts without fear 

of losing the remaining money. In this way the remaining funds can 

be reapplied toward meeting the planned objectives.

There are a number of Federal agencies performing and supportin g 

environmental research. However, these agencies have their own missions which their research must address, and thus the results are sometimes not applicable to EPA ’s needs.

Naturally, EP A’s research results are not always applicable to other 

agencies’ needs, either.

The greater stability provided by multiyear research plans and 

multiyear authorizations would also greatly facilitate interagency 

research coordination. In this way, research agencies would not constantly be dealing with moving targets. The long-range documents 

would serve as the basis for discussion, making other agencies aware 

not only of how EP A’s research can help their mission, but also how 

their expertise, capabilities, and research can be made more responsive 

to EP A’s needs.

I would like to mention here, Mr. Chairman, that one of the gra tifying things I have noted in the last few months is the responses to our 

5-year plan that I have been getting from other agencies, a willingness 

not only to join us in conducting the research we need but also in 

making our planning effort more meaningful.

Another remedy which can improve interagency coordination in 

conjunction with multiyear planning, is the concept of a lead agency 

focusing on a specific problem with passthrough funding. This concept has worked very well in our Federal Interagency E nergy /En vironmental Research and Development Program.

In fact, in fiscal year 1977 the ORD is beginning another such 

program to determine biological and climatic effects of stratospheric 

ozone reduction. Although the program will lx* funded entirely by 

EPA , the majority of the research will be carried out through interagency agreements.

A problem which specifically inhibits EP A’s ability to do longrange planning is the number of laws to which we have to respond. 

EP A was formed through a reorganization plan which brought together some 15 programs scattered among several Federal agencies.

Similarly, the legislative auth ority for our research stems from 

nine different acts. Because each act charges EP A with different and 

possibly conflicting missions, gives EP A different responsibilities, and 

provides different regulatory remedies, it is often difficult to plan a 

coordinated attack on environmental problems.

Mr. Chairman, I appreciate the opportunity to discuss with you 

this morning our long-range planning and some of the constraints 

which restrict our ability to perform that planning. I have touched 

on a number of subjects very lightly, and we will be happy to discuss 

anv of these with you in more detail, if you wish.
9

Th is concludes my pr ep ar ed remark s, Mr. C ha irm an . My colleagues 

and I would be pleased to answ er an y questions.

Se na tor Culver. W ha t was th at last po int you mad e about the 

difficulty of coord ina tion?

Dr. T alley. It is sim ply th at we opera te un de r nin e acts. Ea ch 

was passed at a dif fer ent tim e, perceivin g dif fer ent problems. The 

Agency is t old to res pond t o each one of these separatel y, and in some 

cases how we are to resp ond .

Se na tor Culver. Give me an illustr ati on .

Dr. T alley. Th e W at er Ac t, as it prese ntly sta nd s, is basically a 

technolo gy-oriented act. In th at case, remedy for po llu tio n is to demonstra te th at it is tec hnica lly feasible fo r a po llu ter to clean up. Th e 

Air Ac t, on th e othe r ha nd , is pr im arily an effects act, healt h and 

ecological effects. In t hat case, the bu rden on the Agenc y is to d emo nstra te th at the re is an adv erse, huma n he alth effect or env ironm ent al 

effect and. there fore—t he economic bu rden no tw ith stan ding —the polluter must abate the p oll uti on.

Th is impac ts to the res earch arm of the Agenc y in th at we mu st 

org ani ze both a tech nology d eve lopment an d analy sis program and the 

lon ger ter m healt h effects p rogram .

But we are well aware, from where we s it, t hat abate me nt of w ate r 

pollu tio n or abateme nt of air pollution can pu t th e problem in the 

othe r medium.

So we deve lop a he alth bas is fo r wa ter pollu tio n as well as a tec hnology basis for air .

Se na tor Culver. Miss Daly and Dr. Bar th , do you hav e any pr epared statem ents?

Dr . Barth. No, sir.

Se na tor Culver. I would like to he ar fro m you any way. Do you 

have an ything to tell me? W ha t are yo ur problem s?

STATEMENT OF DR. DELBERT S. BARTH, DEPUTY ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR FOR HEALTH AND ECOLOGICAL EFFECTS, EPA

Dr . B arth. Speakin g from th e po sition o f a f ormer labo rator y d ire ctor in the Las Vegas envir onme nta l mo nit oring and su pp or t lab oratory, I would like to po int out th at ou r system in ORD of prog ram 

plan ning , execution , and review and evalu ation of results is designe d 

to be a tot al team effo rt.

Th e headqu art ers has th e lead role in th e pl an ning functio n; the 

field has the lead role in th e execution fu nc tion ; an d th e review and 

evalu ation is rea lly a jo in t effort with th e he ad qu arters ha vin g the 

lead , but with the field being deeply involved.

So, as I ind icated, the app roach which is used str ive s fo r real ly ha ving a team effo rt between head qu arter s an d the lab orato rie s in all 

phases of pro gra m plan ning , execution and evalu ation.

The headqu art ers a tte mpt s to ge t its plan ning in form ation o ut to the 

field early enough so there can be iteration s. Th e field can comment on 

the p lans and come bac k to h ea dq ua rter s; h ea dq ua rte rs can react to th e 

com men ts and the n go bac k to t he f iel d; the field ag ain can comm ent, 

and so fort h.
10

A couple of iterations of this sort is extremely helpful in making 

sure tha t we have adequate input from the field in the planning process, 

even though the headquarters makes the final decision. In ORD today 

the field opinions and views ar e given an opportunity to be heard.

In addition, we have a science advisory board, and we are seeking 

advice from this science advisory board more and more. This board is 

composed of nongovernmental experts and most of the people are from 

academia. We are seeking their services more and more in order to 

obtain advice on both our long-range planning and our short-range 

planning.

So the role of the science advisory board is increasing in terms of 

having more impact on our program planning.

In addition, since we must respond to the needs of the rest of the 

Agency, we do have input during our planning from the program 

offices—the air office, the water office, enforcement, and so forth and 

from all 10 regions. Our system is designed to accommodate inputs 

from all of these groups and then hopefully to allow some iteration so 

they can see what we have in the program to respond to their needs, 

and whether or not we are going to be producing our outputs in a 

timely fashion.

So my feeling is th at we have a system in ORD today that does 

allow for the kind of interaction tha t is needed between the field and 

the headquarters in order to perform our R. & D. planning, execution, 

and evaluation.

Thank you.

Senator Culver. Miss Daly ?

STATEMENT OF PHYLLIS A. DALY, DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF 

PLANNING AND REVIEW, EPA

Miss Daly. Mr. Chairman, in the spirit of the previous sessions 

tha t you have had on long-range planning and the problems thereof, 

rather than dealing with specifics of the ORD-----

Senator Culver. I am sorry. I can't hear. Can you talk into the 

microphone ?

Miss Daly. I would like to address a few comments about the problems of planning as opposed to the specific system that we have put 

into effect.

I thin k one of the key problems that we face is that planning is not 

something that has been done across-the-board in government. Therefore it is very had to intermesh and rank enviromental objective 

against other priorities in other sectors—against other problems one 

nation has to face.

It is also very difficult to reach the righ t level of detail in the sense 

of what level of planning is approp riate for congressional consideration, at OMB, at the Presidential level. It is different from the planning that is appropriate for a manager in EPA ? I think it is very 

important to recognize that there are different levels and different 

types of problems that each of the above groups should focus on.

Because th is is a new type effort. I don’t think that this realization 

has come through to the people who have to do it or to the people who 

have to review it. There is a great tendency for everybody to want a
11

lot of detail because it is concrete, by doing so, the major issues get 

lost in the detail.

Should we be in this area ? Wh at will lx? the payoffs if we actually 

did have research in this area? What are the time frames? Are they 

meaningful for any useful results? These are the critical questions 

tha t must be focused on at the congressional level, at the OMB level, 

and basically at the headquarters level of EP A and other agencies 

in order to make trade off between how much money we want to put 

into energy development, how much money we can afford to place on 

environmental research, how much money we can afford to place on 

the other very real priorities we have in this Nation.

I feel one of the drawbacks th at our current planning has is trying 

to reach the right level of detail so we can express what these major 

issues are and yet provide enough concrete detail so policymakers can 

know what kind of progress we are making, what product we can 

deliver for the resource levels tha t are proposed.

Senator Culver. W hat should be done to improve that ?

Miss Daly. Pardon ?

Senator Culver. How do von better accomplish that ?

Miss Daly. Basically, it is a n iterative process. We have tried one 

level. We have scoped out major issues that we feel the Agency should 

address, we have identified constraints which, historically, we have 

had to live within, for example, budget and personnel people.

Within those constraints, we say these are the priorities we have. 

That is why we hope to start the dialogue.

One of the biggest deficiencies in the first year’s effort is, I think, 

tha t although we did identify th e m ajor issues that the Agency should 

address in this area, we did not provide sufficient detail so that people 

had a real feel for the product if they, in fact, did carry out this 

program.

I thin k tha t is something that more careful planning and better staff 

work will help improve.

Dr. Talley. Mr. Chairman, if I can amplify, iteration is the key 

word. Iteratio n means making mistakes, and making mistakes requires 

you to follow up; to find out what you did right, do th at again; to 

find out what you did wrong and eliminate the errors in the next 

attempt.

I would say. looking at our first attempt, there were at least two 

glaring failures. Miss Dalv has mentioned one, the lack of specificity; 

the other is not adequately demonstrating the coordination that does 

occur in our research program. Reading it without understanding the 

program, I would come away thinking that there were 14 separate 

baronies within the Office of Research and Development, a totally false 

impression.

That is a result of tryin g to get the plan out on the street by February of 1976, and not taking the time for one more d raft. To do so 

was a decision on my part I feel th at this is a document in which we 

want the broadest participation in next year’s version.

Senator Culver. I am sorry. Can you talk louder? I am having an 

awful time hearing you this morning.

Mr. Talley. I am sorry. Rather than keep the document in-house 

for the next 3, or 4 months, to polish and make it slick, we put it out on
12

the street as an imperfect document and let all interested parties help 

us improve it. This is what we have done.

But in doing so, I recognize it sutlers from deficiencies.

M iss Daly. The second point th at I would like to make is that one of 

the reasons I feel long-term planning is very important for research 

programs in particular, but this is also true for other operating programs, is the time required to accomplish change or produce a research 

result.

Senator Culver. I can’t hear. I am sorry.

Miss Daly. I s the time required to accomplish research or to bring 

about change ?

Senator Culver. The time ?

Miss Daly. The time, correct. In two ways: For example, if in fact 

you were to give us double or trip le the dollar resources and even positions to go with them, I do not believe we could effectively utilize them 

in 1 to 2 veal's. It takes time to go back and seriously consider your 

priorities in the face of a rapid change in resource levels.

I feel it is foolish to put in money or people, for that matter, on a 

crash basis they have to be gradually phased in to be effectively and 

efficiently used. I think this is something that is often not recognized.

I would be very skeptical of any plan th at called for a major resource 

increase because of the problem of trying to get an effective, well 

organized, and managed plan out.

It does take time to gear up, get suitable plans and control mechanisms so tha t the money is used effectively.

So I think one problem we have to face is to spell these things out 

and to provide for gradual rates of increase in order to do the job 

effectively. I think this is an important issue that long-term planning 

can address.

The other major area, again I thin k particularly for environmental 

research is to limit the scope of the problem.

Senator Culver. What ?

Miss Daly. The scope of the problem. The environment covers everything. By this definition, a nything can be included and we should be 

working on it. I think tha t is unfortunate. I think we have to spell 

out carefully those areas that are suitable for the environmental research. those where the focus should be on the environment as opposed 

to other aspects, because we would cross every single Federal agency 

if, in fact we take the universal definition of environment.

I do not feel that EPA should “control or direct” all research in 

other agencies because it has some environmental impact.

That is why I would like to emphasize the lead agency concept 

which was mentioned in the prepared statement. There are many 

problems which cross agencies, I think long-term planning by all of 

the agencies would help us to identify these problems and assign a 

suitable lead agency for a coordinating role.

In many instances, this would not be EP A but one of the other 

agencies.

Senator Culver. I s there an existing interagency mechanism to effect 

any coordination along those lines? On the planning spectrum, where 

do you find your agency ? Is it the lead agency ? Is EP A the agency 

where there has been more congressional focus and legislative mandate to seriously increase the planning function ?
13

Dr. Talley. In terms of planning we certainly are not the first 

agency to attempt to say where we would be more tha n 1 year into the 

future. I th ink we are among the first to determine that it is necessary 

to have this a continuing proces, that you don’t put down a 5-year 

plan and then walk away or update it every 3 or 4 years, but tha t you 

commit yourselves to doing it on an annual basis.

We may be one of the very first. We have done this in anticipation 

of the congressional requirement. I understand our authorization bill 

for 1976 is due to come up again in the House.

In terms of the coordination of the activities of the agencies, as you 

are aware, Mr. Chairman, the newly established Federal coordinating 

group, for instance, engineering and technology will attempt to do 

this from the top down.

Senator Culver. W hat does that mean, from the top down? Who is 

at the top?

Dr. Talley. That will be the assistant secretaries.

Senator Culver. Which agencies are represented ?

Dr. Talley. Health, Education, and Welfare; the Energy Research 

and Development Administration; the Department of Agriculture; 

the Environmental Protection Agency; the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; and so on.

I can submit the entire list of the 12 statutory members to you for 

the record. In addition, there will be observers from almost all other 

F ederal agencies.

These people will meet in a body and attempt to sort out the problems tha t cross over more than one agency.

Now, I wouldn’t minimize the role of the Office of Management and 

Budget in coordinating research among the Federal agencies.

Senator Culver. What kind of planning department does OMB 

have ?

Miss Daly. They do not have a planning department as such. They 

have, I understand, as of last year, a small group which does provide 

crosscut studies for the budget examiners.

As you are aware, they are set up according to agency and programed for their examining units. A staff of five has been set up to 

provide some crosscut analysis.

Dr. Talley. Mr. Chairm an, under Executive Reorganization Plan 

No. 2 of 1969, I believe, the Domestic Council was created to provide 

the White House with long-range planning capability. So the fact 

that OMB has not moved out quickly on this, I think is just recognizing 

tha t there is another arm of the immediate office of the President which 

has that responsibility.

Senator Culver. It hasn’t done it.

Miss Daly. Pardon ?

Senator Culver. It hasn’t done that. W hat kind of long-range plans 

do you see coming from the White House Domestic Council ? What 

have been the results of tha t jurisdictional mandate you have just 

described ?

Dr. Talley. I don’t believe I am qualified to comment on that.

Senator Culver. If they do produce any planning worthv of the 

name in your area, wouldn't we be somewhat interested in it?
14

Dr . T alley. I n my area, I hav e y et to see a n ationa l env ironmental 

policy in sufficient d etai l to enable my agency or my a rm of the agency 

to do mu ltiye ar planning .

Se na tor Culver. W ha t have we done to be tte r acq uai nt ourse lves 

wi th the planning tec hniqu es and models of vario us foreign governme nts which may have ha d more pro gress in de ali ng with envir onme nta l questions, and have been more sop his ticate d and sensitiv e to 

these c ons iderations fo r a lon ger period of time ?

AA h at are you doi ng to review th eir activ itie s in orde r to enhance 

yo ur own efforts?

D r. T alley. I believe th e most ma tur e------

Se na tor Culver. Let me in terrup t you briefly. AVe will tak e a 2-minute recess.

[B rief recess.]

Se na tor Culver. Go ahead .

Dr. T alley. I believe th e most senior environme nta l agency in the 

world tod ay is tha t of Swed en. La st week the m inist er of t he envir onment fo r Sweden and my co un ter pa rt, the deputy fo r research, were 

in AVashington. AA7e held a discu ssion . The y were loo kin g to us f or advice as to how they could con duct long-rang e planning .

Th ey were very inter ested in ca rry ing away copies of our 5-year 

plan enti tle d “ En vironm en tal Resea rch O utlo ok, Fisca l Ye ar 1976-80.”

Se na tor Culver. They had no comparable effo rt ?

Dr. T alley. They had no com parable effort. T hey were pleased th at 

we did because it will enable th em to eliminate research pro jec ts which 

we have said we will be d oin g, and I have, in tu rn , ask ed them if they 

please w ould pla y out the ir 5-y ear plan .

Th e AATest German Gover nm ent has app roa ched us withi n the last 

4 mo nths, to find out how we ha ve done it. T hey might use it as a model.

Ce rta in co untries with even worse e nvironm ental pollu tio n prob lems 

th an ou rs are also int ere ste d, I am af ra id on tha t score we are out in th e 

fro nt.

Se na tor Culver. I saw yo ur pub lic sta tem ent abo ut the OT A review of E P A ’s 5-year pla n. How do you feel abou t th at crit ique?

AVhat would you like to sa y by way of elaboration fo r the record ?

Dr . T alley. I can find no faul t with the lis t of pro blems outline d 

in th e OT A document. I tend to view it as a lis t o f th e environmental 

research th at o ught to be don e. Ind eed , the re are very few thi ngs that 

I c an a dd to tha t list.

But it is wi tho ut reso urce constra int . My pur pose was to build a 

document which would enable me to n ot only defen d the budget, bu t 

pro vid e guidance as to how th at budget should be distr ibuted and, 

therefore, I began with a not ove rly generou s es tim ate of t he resources 

I w as goin g to ha ve in the future.

Pl an ni ng research is not a lin ea r process; th at is, i f I get 10 pe rcen t 

less f un ds than I antic ipa te. I do n’t cut a ll o f my p ro gram s 10 percent.

Si mila rly , if I get 10 perc ent more, I may a dd a dif fer ent pro gra m, 

ra th er than increase all o f them 10 perc ent.

In fact, because I add a prog ram, I may. be forced to c ut o thers to 

be sur e t hat the new one is adequately fund ed.

Th erefo re, my 5-vear plan, because it is tied in w ith the budge t p roc ­

ess, never pre ten ded to lay o ut all o f th e research that o ug ht to be done.
15

I th in k the OT A docu ment is pe rhap s the most com prehensive list 

of env ironm ent al problem s since pe rhap s the 1967 Ame rican Chemical 

Society docume nt “C lea nin g the En vironm en t” or some of the docu ­

ments issued out of the W hit e House and the Con gress in th e period 

of 1967-71.

I an tic ipate we are going to be using portions of it over the next 

few years.

Se nator C ulver. I s ther e any o th er rebutt al or reply you w ould like 

to make t o the OT A critique, o th er th an the fact th at its s tra tegy was 

too am bitiou s for reasonably an tic ipated resou rces to attack ?

I)r . T alley. R ebutt al is pe rh ap s the wrong w ord. Th ere was a m isun de rstand ing as to w hethe r o ur docu ment included all research being 

pe rfo rm ed wi thin E PA o r ju st t h at withi n the Office of Research and 

Dev elop ment.

I did no t pres ume to tell my fellow As sis tan t Adm inist rators how 

the y might tak e th eir s tud y fund s, fro m which they conduct a smaller 

researc h an d developm ent pr og ram than mine, a nd te ll them how they 

ought to spe nd it.

Some o f th e advice given by the OT A document, I t hink , is d irectly 

applicab le to the Office of Pla nn in g and Ma nag em ent w hich cond ucts 

economic im pact stud ies a nd the like.

Bu t in the main, I felt th at th e OT A docu ment was a valid and 

wo rth wh ile con trib ution to th is evo lving plan ning process.

Se na tor C ulver. W hat has been the num ber o f au tho riz ed p ositions 

in the Office o f Research and Developm ent from 1971 to da te?

Miss D aly. We have dropped from about 2,000.

Dr. T alley. In 1976, it was 1,834 autho rized pos itions. In 1971, I 

would guess th at it was be tte r th an 2,000.

Se na tor Culver. You have actua lly dro pp ed ?

Dr. T alley. Yes. We have dro pp ed .

Se na tor Culver. How many of the se were devoted t o lon g-term environme nta l problem s of the fut ur e ?

Miss Daly. You can ’t rea lly sepa rate the people th at way. Ba sicall y, th e cu ts came in a series.

Se na tor Culver. I am sorr y ?

Miss Daly. Ce rtain prog rams were reduced. Pa rtic ul ar ly in tec hnology are as in waste tre atm en t we received a person nel cut. In the 

radiation area we also received one.

Bu t the skills really aren ’t associated with program s them selves. 

W hat the impact of being in a sh rin king , if you will, person nel ceiling means is th at we have been unabl e, as new prog ram s come on, to 

rec ruit the skil ls th at we need to su pplem ent our exp an ding program s.

It has had a dra ma tic impac t on the effects prog ram pa rticul ar ly , 

which are where the lon ger ter m research is conducted. It has been 

definitely a l im iti ng fac tor.

Dr. Talley. Mr. Ch airma n, th is se parat ion into long-ra nge research 

and quick re sponses to the agency is really arti ficial.

Th e effects of the PCB’s t hat we now see in the Hu dson Ri ve r and 

the Gr ea t Lakes were found th ro ug h research . O ur ab ility to pro vide 

imm ediate response to the agenc y’s need f or expertise today, was developed over a peri od fro m 1967 until ab ou t 1972.
16

At tha t time, what was essentially a 4- to 5-year research program 

was ended because we felt we had bounded the problem. There was 

a voluntary industry agreement that PC B’s would no longer be generally released into the environment.

Suddenly, the fruits of a long-term research program had become of 

immediate interest to the agency.

I would be ha rd pressed in an accounting exercise to say whether 

the expertise that lias been developed on PCB ’s should be changed to 

long-term research which is now phased down or to quick, immediate 

response to agency needs.

Senator Culver. What would lie the optimum authorization levels 

of personnel and funding for environmental research ?

Obviously, and good bureaucrat would want all tha t the traffic would 

bear and more, but do you have any ballpark figures?

You have been up against the magnitude of the challenge and you 

have seen the limitations of meeting the necessary objectives of your 

department.

What kind of thoughts do you have about authorized personnel and 

funding levels?

Dr. Talley. Mr. Chairman, rather than give the bureaucratic answer of more or double or 10 percent increase each year forever, I think 

I would rather pick certain areas where I think additional funds 

would be needed.

I understand tha t a t one point Congressman Oberstar added a $5- 

million revolving fund so that the agency could provide for immediate 

response needs.

This was recognizing that the impact of asbestos on the Duluth 

laboratory had taken 30 percent of its manpower for a year. In the 

ORD response to the kepone incident, I believe the agency has now 

committed $1.65 million. Of that, $1.35 million has come out of the 

Office of Research and Development.

If a revolving fund had been available dedicated to emergency response, I would not be in the position of reprograming money that 

I feel ought to go to research and development for agency needs.

In other areas where we have begun programs tha t look promising, I would like increased funds to carry them to completion. But 

I don’t think I can give you a blanket double my budget, double the 

number of people.

I do not think that we could absorb large, generalized chunks of 

money. I think it would be better to have targeted increases.

Senator Culver. What kind of—in an ideal world—structural and 

institutional changes would you envision to more effectively perform 

this function of research and development within the Government?

Would there be anv advantages in creating one or several national 

environmental laboratories attached to the Office of Research and Development at EPA , as the National Institutes of H ealth are attached 

to IIE W? Should such laboratories be more independent, similar to 

the arrangement at Argonne, Brookhaven, and E RDA ?

What sort of thoughts do you have for us in this regard ?

Dr. T alley. I believe that we are going to find over the next 5 to 10 

years tha t of the problems this country is going to face, problems 

for which research and development might be able to offer possible 

solutions or at least bound the problems, fewer and fewer of them are 

going to come under the province of only one agency.
17

I sincerely believe that interagency coordination—with a lead agency 

getting the funding, passing it through and managing it with Congress 

and the Office of Management and Budget accounting as a court of 

appeal—will allow this country to take the limited resources that we 

are going to have and most effectively utilize them.

Specifically for my program, I would like to see exploration of a 

contractor laboratory operation, not to replace the Federal laboratory 

system we have now, but to supplement it and complement them.

I have mixed feelings on national environmental laboratories. On 

the one hand, I can see them as offering the possible site for the conduct of the long-range basic research on the environment th at I think 

we need.

But, on the other hand, I can also see them as being insulated from 

the need to produce answers in a time frame and a forum th at will be 

useful for the Congress and the administration in making their 

decisions.

So while I believe some changes in organizational and management 

structure are needed, I am not convinced that the national environmental laboratories are the way to go.

Senator Culver. What kind of current interaction do you have with 

the Congressional Budget Office in terms of its 5-year planning 

obligations?

Do you have any ongoing coordination with that organization?

Miss Daly. No.

Dr. T alley. I am aware of the exercises that they have performed, 

but I don't believe in this first yea r’s planning exercise they have 

reached down to the level of detail that would enable us to have effective coordination.

Miss Daly. They contacted us during the budget process last year. 

That was just really to touch base on specific issues. There has been no 

attempt made to coordinate our plan with them.

Dr. Talley. I believe Mr. Castle, Assistant Director of the CBO, 

who has responsibility for our agency, does intend to get more detail 

on what the environmental and research development effort throughout 

the Government ought to be. However, I don't know that he has yet 

done so.

Senator Culver. When I was in the House of Representatives, I 

served on a committee to modernize committee jurisdictions.

One of the things I was tryi ng to develop was a foresight capability 

among the congressional committees in order to institutionalize a process whereby we would be exposed to longer term implications of current trends. This would let us consider future public policy issues and 

various future scenarios and so on.

I feel tha t the cost and waste which result from our dealing with 

obsolete data banks, and from not gettin g out ahead of any of these 

problems, are just incalculable.

On a more systematic basis, what feedback system do you see in 

terms of your agency being able to cross the border of appropriate 

committee jurisdiction ?

Obviously the Senate Public Works and other committees would be 

primary. Your agency cuts across so many different committees.

Have you given any consideration to taking one-half dozen major, 

potential public policy questions on the horizon and working with

79-3 97 0 - 7 7 - 3
18

committee staff to str uc ture heari ng s in ord er to deve lop more aw are ­

ness by th e com mittee of the need to get out ahead and to star t fo rmulating public policy in an tic ipation of the req uir em ents and 

pre ssu res ?

Hav e yo u given some th ou gh t a bout such a shared c oo rdinati on role ?

I)r . T alley. I t is an appealing, a ttr ac tiv e idea, Mr. Ch airm an .

I thin k we will be ta ki ng you up on it.

My personal feeling —an d it is share d by man y of my colleagues 

with in the Office of Re search and Develop ment—is t ha t with in 5 years 

we will be spendin g more o f ou r a gency’s atten tio n not on imm ediate 

tox ic effects of the pa rtic ul ar po llu tan ts, but tryi ng to con trol the 

adv erse effects of chron ic exp osure to low-level conta mi nants . These 

may have delaye d irrevers ible effec ts such as carcino genesis, m ut agenesis, dam age to the c entral nervo us system, and th e like. In order 

to est ablish the da ta base fo r effective actio n 5 o r 10 yea rs hence, we 

must conduct or begin to conduct the necessary res earch now.

Bu t in orde r to build the con stituen cy, I shall need first to get the 

bu dget and the n to defen d it. Betw een now a nd the n, I a m ob ligated to 

document tha t we have someth ing more th an a hunch.

We are now constru cting position papers, lay ing out what we feel 

the research pro gra m oug ht to be, what the final prod ucts of th at 

res ear ch will be and comm unica tin g within the age ncy , within the 

exe cutive bra nch of the Government and I an tic ipate with con gres ­

sional staffs. Realis tica lly, I dou bt th at we will be able to do all the 

R. & D. ourselves.

Se na tor Culver. I am very sorry . I have to leave fo r the Clean Air 

Ac t Conference. I hav e a significant num ber of question s tha t I would 

like to hav e answered fo r th e record. I also have some questions for 

Dr . Sansom if he would be kind enough to remain.

I wou ld like to ask Mr. Whiteside, our counsel, to come forw ard 

an d c ontinue the hearing.

Would th at be possible? I will go to the conference and make a 

quorum and tr y to come back . I hope we will view th is as jus t an 

initi al ge t-togeth er because I would like to work mo re closely with 

you in some o f these areas.

I think the re is much th at we can do to more effectively develop 

a prog ram th at is received well here in the Con gress, too.

I think so of ten we do these thing s in a v acuum. Con sequently, a lot 

of good work dies, and the rest of the country suff ers from the inade qua cy of the public policy.

So I would like t o view th is a s ju st an ini tial exc han ge, and we can 

get toge ther again both inform ally and for ma lly.

Mr. Wh ites ide from th e committee staff, and Mr. Oshlo from my 

staff will stay .

I would like to get thro ug h a lot of these quest ion s th at I hav e for 

you. If we ru n out of tim e, pe rhaps we will subm it some of them to 

you. and you could give us wr itten answers for th e record.

Dr. T alley. D elig hted.

Se na tor C ulver. D r. San som . would th at be agree abl e to you ?

Mr. Sansom. Yes.

Se na tor Culver. I will t ry to come back.

Mr. W hiteside. On the research coo rdination que stio n the re seems 

to be some questions about the lead agency role.
19

In the energy area, it seems to be quite clear that you have a leading 

role, and in ozone health effects, you seem to be developing that, but 

those were your two examples. It does not seem to be clear that EP A is the Federal lead agency 

for environmental research. Is that correct? If so, how could we clarify 

this legislatively ?

I)r. Talley. Mr. Whiteside, two responses: The first is that not only 

was EPA made the lead agency for the short-term effects research 

program of ozone depletion, but a t a later meeting of the old Federal 

Council for Science and Technology, that council concluded that EPA 

should become the lead agency for 15- or 20-year programs on atmospheric research. That is to say we had done our job well in energy and 

that we appeared to be doing it well for the short-term program.

The ozone issue has exposed the fact that we don’t have an adequate basic understanding of the atmosphere and it was decided that 

EPA ought to have the lead for that despite the fact that NOAA 

and NASA would be the ones conducting most of the research.

The Congress, specifically the House Science and Technology Committee, did consider in the 1977 authorization legislation for the Environmental Protection Agency’s research program a specific amendment that EP A would be given the responsibility for coordinating 

environmental research throu ghou t the Federal Government, but it 

was struck in the full committee.

So at present there is no legislative mandate for EPA to be the lead 

agency.

Mr. Whiteside. Does tha t mean you would find it useful to have that 

type of language in the legislation somewhere, undergirding the E PA 

program ?

That provision was struck not for legislative reasons, but for jurisdictional reasons and I am just wondering whether there is some way 

your basic legislative undergirding could be strengthened.

Dr. Talley. Mr. Whiteside, if we are unable to achieve effective 

coordination through the lead agency concept, then I think that perhaps some agency should be designated as the lead. But I don’t think 

we have explored lead agency and other forms o f coordination.

Miss Daly. I think you hit it on the head when you said th e amendment was dropped for jurisdictional reasons. That was a legitimate 

reason. As I pointed out in my earlier comments, the environmental 

definition covers everything. I think that when you give someone 

authority that covers everything, it becomes diluted because it is impossible to actually carry it out. Before our charter is changed or some 

kind of broader based authority given, I think a more specific definition as to what environmental area is should be coupled with it.

That way we would not have to cover everything tha t every other 

agency has a legitimate role in enforcing.

I think that is the key thing as far as jurisdiction goes.

That is why the lead concept is one way of handling it because what 

you are doing is identifying key problems with environmental focus 

which do cross agency lines and, therefore, you establish a lead agency 

that would pass through funds.

I would underscore passthrough funds because tha t is the means of 

control, of leverage that you would have.
20

Dr. Talley. Mr. Whiteside, let me also add that I would like some 

environmental problems to be coordinated by an agency other than 

EP A to demonstrate that i t will work that way.

For instance, T would anticipate in the next 3 to 5 years tha t the 

production of food and fiber without severely impacting on the 

Nation’s energy, water and environmental resources is going to be a 

severe problem.

I believe that USDA should have the lead for coordinating the solution to that particular difficulty.

Mr. Whiteside. The question comes up in areas such as the ozone 

area, especially where you have passthrough funds. In that particular 

case, how much funding was added to your agency budget in order to 

handle this new problem ?

Dr. T alley. Mr. Whiteside, the basic program, biological and climatological effects program is funded entirely from within our 1976 and 

1977 appropriations. The $4 million we are passing to the other agencies comes at the expense of our own research.

Mr. Whiteside. Could I ask Dr. Barth whether lie finds that to be a 

problem in continuing his program ?

Dr. B arth. Obviously, it is a problem because we had planned on the 

availability of those funds fo r other research efforts. In my judgment, 

it was not possible to take the funds from a proper mix across our 

total program.

For example, in the health and ecological area, due to the time 

constraints on getting the money, we had to go to areas where funds 

could be decommitted because they had not yet lieen obligated. This 

led to one part of our program taking the majority of the cut just 

because of the time constraints.

Mr. Whiteside. Which part was that ?

Dr. Barth. The part th at took the most severe cut in 1976 was our 

air health epidemiology program.

Mr. Whiteside. It seems to me in Dr. Talley’s testimony lie mentioned that as one of the areas that he felt was understaffed already. 

Is that correct?

Miss Daly. That cut would not affect the number of people onboard. 

It was a cut in extramural effort. When we go into the reprograming, 

we first look to the low prio rity programs and the extramural programs which we have not committed. Tha t means we don’t have to 

cancel a contract or ongoing work and those are the candidate areas 

you would use for reprograming.

Mr. Whiteside. So the main effect of this would then be to turn programs on and off. giving an absence of long-range continuity of extramural programs? Is that the kind of effect you get?

Miss Daly. That is correct .

Dr. Talley. Yes, sir; that is true. The time constraint was simply 

that a group of about 100 experts from 9 or 10 Federal agencies had 

been working for 3 or 4 months planning the research program and 

contract proposals and grant applications were being readied and hard 

sources of funds had to be identified within a week’s time or that effort 

would come to naught.

Miss Daly. I think it is also important to point out that this is one 

program where time is critical. It is aimed at providing the data th at
21

the A dm inist rator is go ing to need fo r a d ecision in 2 years. Theref ore , 

it was very im po rta nt th at those contr act s get ou t the doo r in this 

tim e fram e.

Mr. Whiteside. I am not tryi ng to u nd errate th e importance of th is 

program . I am jus t tr yin g t o see how it was d ealt with. Tha t leads to 

the last question we have here in this series on decisio nmaking. I think 

it might be a question th at you would wa nt to answer for the record.

Ha ve the re sults of you r lon g-term environme nta l rese arch been adequate ly factored into Fe de ra l dec isio nmaking at E PA a nd elsewhere? 

Please give examples.

I recall a repo rt th at E P A p ut out a co uple of ye ars a go abou t longran ge e nvironm ent al pro ble ms t hat identified maybe 14 or 15 areas of 

pro blems that were em erg ing , “ Dev elopment of P redictions of Fu tu re 

Po llu tio n Problems, March 1974.”

T hat pre dates yo u Dr. Ta lle y, at EPA , bu t I am sure you would be 

able to check on w hat hap pe ned to tha t.

Dr. T alley. As you know, Mr. W hiteside, th is re po rt was brou gh t to 

my attention by th is pan el. It was very interesti ng las t week to read 

th ei r lis t of the problems identif ied in 1974. I am pleased th at , comple tely ind epe ndent of th is work , th e rese arch prog ram which we have 

un de r way includes in one way or a no the r all 10 major areas. In fact, 

some o f them have been give n increased emphasis in our 1977 plan nin g.

Mr. Whiteside. L et us tu rn to researc h planning . In terms o f decisio nm aking in o the r offices of E PA , I w ond er i f you m ight get a chance 

to look into th at a little bit and repo rt back to us fo r the record on a 

problem-b y-problem basis.

Dr. T alley. We would be delighte d to com ment fo r the record.

Mr. Whiteside. I have a few more questions, if you have about 5 

more minutes, Dr. Ta lley .

The first one is to wha t ex tent are ecosystems being used as early 

warning systems for en vir onme nta l problem s by setti ng asid e a variety 

of ecosystem ty pes fo r ba seline monitoring?

Dr. Barth. We hav e some prog ram s ongoing in th at area and we 

also hav e some ad ditio na l prog rams pla nned which are pertinent.

I th in k th at the ans wer to*the question, with rega rd to o ur ong oing 

prog ram that is most pe rti ne nt , is a prog ram which we call mussel 

watch which is opera ted o ut of o ur N ar raga ns ett E colog y La boratory . 

The purpo se is at, I believe, 25 selected sites, to sa mple a single k ind of 

shellfish, a mussel, and to deter mi ne the bu ild up of vario us kin ds of 

po llu tants in the flesh of these mussels.

Th is, I think , does c on sti tute an e arl y warning system because as we 

detect things build ing up in th e mussels, we the n beg in to search for 

reason s fo r this and do a little e xtrapo lat ion to determine wheth er or 

not we are mov ing into a situ atio n where we m ight have u nacceptable 

adv erse effects.

Dr . T alley. We will exam ine it and sub mit it fo r the reco rd, but I 

believe it is four types. Th e mate ria ls th at we are loo kin g fo r are the 

heavy metals, the hydrocarb ons, the rad io nucleics and chlorina ted 

org anics. T his, as Dr. B ar th me ntioned, is a wo rld wide program . T here 

is no reas on why we cann ot use other bio acc um ula tin g species as 

ind ica tors.
22

[Dr. Ta lley sup plied the following for the record:]

Question. Wh at specific toxicants are being measured in the "Mussel Watch” 

monitoring system, and what organisms are being sampled?

Answer. A species of edible clam, Mytilus edulis, was chosen for monitoring 

because it has a widespread distribution in the world’s oceans. The "Mu ssel 

Watch” monitoring program is jus t beginning in this coun try, and 35 stat ion s 

have now been s et up. Efforts are being made to expand this program to an internatio nal one. Tissue residues are analyzed for petroleum hydrocarbons, chlorinated 

hydrocarbons (PCB , pesticides), heavy metals (cadium, mercury, zinc, copper, 

etc.), and radionuclides.

Mr. M hitesid e. L ou sort of touched on the nex t question when you 

said othe r assis tan t ad minist rators do resear ch and plann in g also. But 

perha ps yo u can am plify . In or der to get the bac kgroun d for i mpe nd ­

ing r egulato ry decisions, s ho uld n't th ere be a mechan ism for assessing 

social and economic imp acts as well as the phy sical, biological, an d 

chem ical effects th at are included in the scientific and technological 

assessment rep orts?

Dr. Talley. M r. Wh ites ide, I agre e th at sort of a n assessment is an 

intern al req uir em ent in the Agency, where we are pe rm itted by law. 

Pr og ram offices an d the Office of Pl an ni ng and Ma nag em ent conta in 

by fa r the largest per cen tage o f Ph . D. ’s, economists, and sim ila r pr ofessionals. It is the offices’ responsi bility, as the y propose reg ula tio n, 

to assess the cost, the imp act in terms o f the economy and , where possible, th e society as a whole.

Mr. White side. W ou ldn ’t i t be useful to gro up p ollutants a nd tox ics 

and look at them in terms of those th at share a c ommon biochemical 

geochemical cycle instea d of one by one, as in the so-called po llu tantof-the -inonth approa ch ?

Dr. Barth. I ag ree completely. O ur pla ns fo r the fu ture are definitely 

to deal more and more with complex wastes, just, as th ey are foun d in 

natur e. These are the kin ds of wastes th at huma n bein gs are expo sed 

to. Also variou s flora and fau na in ou r terres tri al ecology a nd aquatic 

ecology systems are exposed to the com plex wastes. We have alread y 

sta rte d these program s, we will be pu sh ing more into the se are as in the 

fu ture—we will tr y to develop me tho ds fo r dealing w ith the complex 

wastes by first de ali ng with the total wastes as the ma ter ial s are put 

into the env ironm ent . Then we will attempt to sep ara te these wastes 

into gro ups of sim ila r chemical and materials ju st as ind icated.

So I agre e 100 percent. We do need to move in this dir ection, and 

we are.

Mr. W hitesid e. Th an k you.

Th at is t he en d of th e questions we h ave here rig ht now. Th ere m ay 

be a few more th at will arise as we look throug h the tes tim ony . I hope 

you will accept them and perhap s answ er them in wr iting , in due 

course.

I ju st wo nder if you. Dr. Talley , or any of the witnesses wi th you, 

would like to make a clos ing sta tem ent before you de pa rt? Th en we 

will con tinue wi th the questioning of Dr. Sansom fo r a few mi nutes 

because I know you have to leave.

Dr. T alley. I h ope th at you will pass all my comments to the cha irman when he returns. I am pleased at the op po rtu nity to come here 

tod ay and disc uss what we have att em pted to do so fa r, in ter ms of 

lon g-range planning .

I th in k the co un try will be well served as more and more elements 

get involve d in pla nning . Lo ng-range plan ni ng s hould not beg in and
23

end with the research arm of the Agency, but should finally culminate 

in some sort of continuing organic, continually being reexamined national policy for enhancement and preservation of environmental 

quality. I think t hat the dialogue we have had here today is a very produc­ tive first step in the communication between my office and the Senate.

Mr. W hiteside. Thank you for coming. I am sure Senator Culver 

would thank you if he could be back here. It looks like he is going to 

spend the morning on air pollution itself.

Thank you again. I)r. Sansom, if you would give us about 15 more minutes or so of your valuable time, we would appreciate it. If you do have a time constraint, we would be glad to know about that. Is there any problem ?

Mr. Sansom. I would like to leave in about 15 minutes.

Mr. Whiteside. All right.

We are particularly interested in the fact that you worked on the OTA assessment of the E PA 5-year plan. In reading that assessment, 

I just wonder whether the conclusions that OTA reached aren’t a bit 

harsh considering th at it was EP A’s first try at such a plan.

Mr. Sansom. I think you have to reflect in reaching a conclusion like 

that the number of outside experts tha t were involved in the three- panel effort to review the plan and in a considerable effort on the p art of the Office of Technology Assessment staff to tone down the views 

of these outside experts. I was the chairman of one of three panels, the overview panel, but I can only report to you that the strong words that survive in the docu­ ment were those of the outside experts. I would be reluctant for bureaucratic or any other reasons to temper tha t outside advice. I think that it was clear in all of the three panels. I not only was chairman of one of the panels, but I observed the other two, th at the group felt that the document in the sense of laying out objectives and coupling budget levels with delivering objectives and allowing some people to understand the issues th at have been discussed this morning in terms of funding levels, people over a 5-year time frame, that the 

plan did not do that job. I can't report to von tha t there was any significant group of three 

panels that said that it did.

Mr. Whiteside. You are saying the report was already tempered by 

the time it reached print ?

Mr. Sansom. Yes, I think it was. I agree with one of the points. 

There also, at the staff level, an effort to add the word “long-range.’' In my prepared remarks, I tried to get into the issue of definitions and Mr. Talley mentioned that I thin k in this area of chronic exposures 

to low level of pollutants. These are the kinds of generic environmental problems that need more definition by EPA in a document like this so that th e public can understand what would happen if we funded another 10 epidemi­ ologists in more toxicological work on why more pollutants? How far 

would that get the country ? Wha t would we find out ? I th ink this is what the group of panels were looking for or alternatively within a budget restraint, if you reduced the support and put more in the technological effects, what would you get for it ? It was those kind of trade offs that the document didn’t permit the panelists 

to grapple with.
24

Mr. M hiteside. Th en, in terms of wh at Miss Daly said , pe rhap s 

the docu ment di dn 't have a sufficient level of detail for you to atta ch 

dollars to option s in th e various program s.

Mr. Sansom. I th in k it is more th an th at . I hav e been involve d in 

these thin gs on the defe nse and natio nal sec urity side. It has to h ave a 

fram ework so you can understand, Mr. Ta lley said one law was tec hnology, one law was he alt h effects.

I disagree with th at . They seem t o have eleme nts of both. The issue 

is conceptu ally w ha t shou ld be the r ela tive e mp has is n aturally in these 

two areas. So I th in k th at is wh at the docume nt ought to try to lay 

out. It is not prod uc ing a compendium of end researc h projects. It is 

ra th er d oing th at in some overall con text th at a Senator o r Congres sman o r high-level ad min istrat or or th e pub lic can deal with.

Mr. Whiteside. I wonder wheth er you hav e any suggestions on the 

way the Agency is stru ctur ed to deal with these things ; the re was 

some restr uc turin g in 1975, a nd Congres sma n Br ow n’s committee, in 

look ing at t ha t, sug gested th at be given a chance to work. Tha t seems 

reasonable.

I wonder if you th in k th at on the whole it pro vid es a reasonable 

basis for fu rthe r pro gre ss, o r are there specific things you might sugges t th at could enhance its chance of success ?

Mr. S ansom. I am sorry . Are you talking about OR D ?

Mr. Whiteside. Yes.

Mr. Sansom. I th in k th e feeling of the panelists was, as Con gressman Brow n’s effort concluded , th at it ought to be given a chance to 

work. I think only in t he socioeconomic ar ea was there a ma jor concern 

th at the bre aking u p of t hi s gro up and its disp ers ion m igh t organizatio na lly jeopa rdize the a bilit y to g rapp le with the socioeconomic issues 

relat ed to clean up.

Mr. Whiteside. I was curio us in looking at th is 5-year plan th at 

there was a ch art , a tab le on various sub pro gram s, 14 differen t subpro gra ms , you ma y recall. Th ere seems to be one sort of str uctur e, 

con ceptually, in terms of pro blems and the re seems to be an entirely 

different structur e, organizatio nally .

Mr. Sansom. No. I th in k th at was a majo r difficulty th at the pa nelists had, that the budget line item s presen ted in th is docu ment were 

no t rea lly or di dn 't rea lly say an yth ing . They rea lly didn ’t divulge 

the relative pro gra m em phasi s in these areas. Th is goes back to what 

I c all the consensual frame wo rk.

You have to staid with some definition o f these areas and then relate 

the budget definitio ns to th e—are you worrie d about the imm ediate 

tox ic effects or the ch ron ic effects.

If you break out the he alth effects in th at way, then the ecological 

effects, th en you star t to see the bu dget rela ted to some o f the real issues 

th at Mr. T alley was dis cus sing th is m orning.

Mr. Whiteside. If there was some coincidence betw een these goals 

and budget line items, would you be able to tra ck thes e things a little 

be tte r?

Mr. Sansom. Yes. We actuall y went back to the proje ct level and 

bu ilt up the budget in way s th at they fou nd more me aning ful . These 

di dn ’t surv ive in the final record.
25

I think it sounded, from what the OKU people said, that that is what they are trying to do for the next plan. The detail has to be 

grouped in some useful way.

Mr. Whiteside. Going to a different kind of question, in terms of resources, I was surprised to hear that despite a cut of 10 percent in EP A’s research personnel, the Agency doesn't seem to be arguing strongly that they really need more people inside the Agency to do 

their testing. How do you feel about that ?

Mr. Sansom. I think the OTA panelists felt tha t there was, despite their confusion and inability to grapple with the tradeoffs the way they wanted to, a presumption of inadequate resources, particularly in the transport area, in the monitoring and in the health effects area. They felt there might be a presumption of too much effort in the technology area. They didn’t go to the issue, and I am not prepared to go to the issue of inside versus outside research. I think Mr. Talley 

is in a better position to judge that. But I think overall, there ought to be more resources.

Mr. Whiteside. That, from what you say, is especially true in the long-range kind of things. Health and ecological effects is where most 

of the long-range research occurs. Is that right?

Mr. Sansom. That is righ t. I think that the example Mr. Talley gave, I think it was PCB ’s, were long range became short range, in­ dicates that that word should be used very carefully by anyone who 

is trying to critique EPA 's program. T thin k that better to use other words and talk about it in those terms 

than it is to say long range.

Mr. Whiteside. You also mentioned the OTA report’s conclusion that maybe EPA should not do so much in terms of technology devel­ opment. I wonder if you feel qualified to compare this with the ac­ tivities of other agencies in energy technology development ? And, I wonder if it really is inappropriate since we do have very significant Federal involvement in development of potential sources of pollution, or whether it is not quite reasonable to have Federal involvement in 

development of pollution control as well.

Mr. Sansom. You mean the other agencies involved in that ?

Mr. W hiteside. Yes. In other words, other agencies arc developing energy sources. Is it really unreasonable for EP A to be developing control technologies to go with those sources ?

Mr. Sansom. I think that, one, to come up with more resources in ORD, the ecological effects, other areas other than technology, the much larger budgets—Mr. Talley’s budget is about a quarter of a billion dollars. The fossil energy budget of ERDA, just in the coal conversion area, is half of a billion dollars a year.

So I think to take the SO2

 scrubber, which is the big budget item in EP A’s budget, before it was ever— I don't want to suggest EPA should have had that program, but now it may be time to move that program over to ERDA and couple it with the gasification and that 

type of program that they have. I don't know how that issue would get addressed. It would have to be an OMB issue, or the Congress would have to address it.

Mr. Whiteside. I wasn’t talking so much about where that develop­ ment would be located. There are arguments one way or the other on
26

tli at, wh eth er the re sho uld be involvem ent in the d eve lopment of contro l tech nology , as such, by th e F edera l G overnment.

Fo i exam ple, the OT A stu dy imp lied th at the prog ram on su lfu r 

dio xid e scru bbers has pre tty much been c om ple ted ; it is on the r unout 

phase. I just wonder wh eth er we shouldn t have an equ ivalent progr am com ing up on. let us say nitrog en oxide con trol from sta tio nary 

sources ?

Mr. Saxsom. I think th ere is a need for EPA involvement in the 

techno logy area in OR D, if th at is wh at you are ask ing . But I think 

when it comes to the budget num bers , the OR D 5-y ear plan, the only 

op tio n, the only va rian t they had in th ei r 5-year plan was the tec hnology varia nt.

It had a water control techno logy of R. & D. in the late seventies. 

I th in k wh at the pane ls are s ay ing is not th at she should get out of the 

business, bu t m aybe thei r role sho uld be more in dia gnosing based upon 

the analy sis of the emission s in c ertain in dustr ies where the techno logy 

pro blems, surfa cin g now, th at maybe somebody else sho uld fund th at 

rese arch.

Mr. iiiteside. S uppos e we remove t hat bu dget constra int and talk 

in ter ms of policy ra th er t ha n ju st policy under a confined budget. If 

there are these tasks th at need to be done, envir onme nta lly speakin g, 

an d E PA were able to e xp and its bu dget ade quately to do that, would 

th at seem like a reasona ble course of a ction to you?

Mr. Saxsom. T he re is n ot hi ng inhere ntl y contradictory about it excep t t he difficulty is a real one in th at ther e is a bud get c onstrain t, and, 

in my own personal view, the increment of resources should go into 

the he alt h effects and ecological effects a nd the mo nitori ng, lo ng-range 

tran sp or t, and tha t kin d o f a rea a nd no t in the technology’ area.

M lie reas E RD A has a $5 billion per an num budget, they have sola r 

technology’, conserv ation, adv anc ed automotiv e car system pr og ra m ; 

if you are g oing to talk about control on anyth ing, it is going to be on 

one of those technologies or some d erivative o f the cur re nt technology.

So it is ha rd for me to go as fa r as you are tryi ng to get me to go, 

to say th at EPA has to h ave a ma jor technology prog ram . I think in 

the scrub bin g issue, w hich was th e bigges t r eg ulato ry issue oth er tha n 

the ca talyst th at I was involved in with EPA , E P A ’s research was 

esse ntial.

Th ey have to hav e the op tio n of doing th at to prote ct its reg ula ­

tory mission.

Mr. W hiteside. Do you th in k we would have scrubber s bein g insta lle d tod ay, to the deg ree that they are, if we had not had th at EPA 

research and developm ent prog ram ?

Mr. S axsom. I have reflected on tha t quite a lot. It is in ter estin g th at 

the tw o most successful SO 2

 sc rub bin g d em onstrations were done with ­

out E PA fund ing; one in Ja pan , that I relied on. In fac t, the thr ee 

most successful ones, th e first one that I relied on in pu sh ing th e scrubber at E PA was the Ja pa ne se pla nt; the second one was the last, an 

electric pla nt at Louisville, Ivy., which did not receive EPA fund ing 

un til a ft er they’ ha d alr eady achie ved breakthrou gh , an d they got some 

sludge f un ding recen tly.

Th e th ird one was at th e Mohave plan t, at the south ern Ca lifornia 

Edison. All of these were t ot al ly priv ate effo rts. E P A moneys fo r technology for hardw are went to the E PA .
I always had tro ub le with that. Th e best spen t money E PA expen ded in the S O2

 scru bb ing are a was not on the h ard wa re, b ut on the 

technical sem inars th at OR D held and still holds, bringing together 

the scientific a nd engin eerin g com mun ity. I remember one pa rtic ula r conferen ce in New Orleans, where they were ta lking about the technic al issues in ad dressin g these in the sc ien­ tific papers. Th is wa s absolutely ind ispensab le to com mu nicating wi thin th e engin eerin g com munity to w hat could be achieved with the 

scrubber. I think those bucks are bette r spent t ha n th e ha rdwa re dollars.

Mr. Whiteside. O ne othe r question, in a lit tle different f ram ework.

Do you have an opini on as to the g ene ral con cept o f natio nal envi­ ron me nta l lab orato ries, as suggested by Go rdo n MacDo nald and 

others ?

Mr. Sansom. I th in k th at the streng th of lon g-range rese arch is 

wh at it derives from the str ess of th e effo rt to find ou t w hat is h ap pe n­ ing in issues like ke pone. I th in k the re is a lot of drawback s to havin g 

th at kind of isola ted ac tiv ity . I would agree wi th th e more diplo ma tic position tak en by Mr. Ta lley, th at I th in k the streng th of th e rese arch prog ram , lon g-rang e 

research pro gra ms deriv es a lot of stre ng th from its invo lvem ent in tr yin g to see and un de rstand the problems th at are occurrin g tod ay. I don’t see why those two can't be com patible in the OR D framework. I am also aware, t hr ou gh some o f th e w ork that we are inv olved w ith with ER DA , th at there are a lot of pro blems of the fossilization in some of these research cen ters—I do n't want to ge t into the names. But there is a need fo r flex ibility in some of these inh eri ted lon gsta nd in g researc h c enter s th at don't have th at kind o f flexibility.

Mr. Whiteside. Th ere seems to be some so rt of in-betwe en models 

th at exist in Government. The National In stitut es o f He alth, I think, is closer to H E W th an th e ER DA La bo rat ories are to ER DA . Is 

th at correct?

Mr. Sansom. That is righ t. I do n't rea lly hav e any firsthand experience there. So I wo uldn ’t wa nt to comment. I can't say th at the re 

is any reason to conclude the utili ty of such an insti tutio n.

Mr. Whiteside. You have warned about the detac hm ent, ge tting 

too far from the Agen cy. We skipp ed an op po rtun ity to talk about fu nd in g and personnel. You spoke of $250 millio n research budget at E PA . and if we look 

at the total Fe deral environme nta l researc h budget it would be sig ­

nifica ntly larger th an th at , no matter how he defined it. I wonder if you have a sense as to the adequa cy of it and as to wh eth er a specific hi gh er level would be a level th at we could feel wou ld be adequate fo r a na tio na l policy o f an tic ipat ing env ironmental pro blems and dev elopin g soluti ons to them befo re it is too late.

Mr. Sansom. I was ap pa lle d to h ea r what was don e in the wav of 

com ing up with bud get fu nd s fo r—was it kepone or one of t he o ther exa mples you went thro ug h wi th Mr. Talley? He re at the time most people a re concerned about the se air p ollutan t effects E P A was ta ki ng 

mon ey out of th at program to f un d a crisis. The OT A panel felt there ought to be th is s ep arate budget account fo r th ese po llu tan t-o f-the-m on th elements. Tha t is evidence of a bud get 

co nstra int r ig ht there .
28

Whether you want to say, I would be comfortable with the 10 percent increase and I might even go to 20, but I would like to know a 

a ^°

u t these budget categories than we are able to find out at 

the OTA assessment, before I go tha t far.

Mr. Whiteside. Along tha t line, this particular hearing has come 

at the end of a series of hearings focused on long-range, future concerns, while the committee is concerned with EP A’s bud wet in its 

totality.

One of the points that keeps being made is th at the long-range suffers because the short-range concerns do drain resources.

^heie are four deputy assistant administrators in various areas in 

ORD, now. I wonder if there should he a fifth one created which office 

would have a specific responsibility and funding for long-range types 

of problems. ‘

. M ould that, be a structural change that would help to assure continuity and visibility for that aspect of the program?

Mr. Sansom. I think tha t is a possible reform tha t would have 

utility. Having been in the kind of position Dr. Talley was in, I would 

be reluctant to see the Congress specifically require that. I t might be a 

special assistant. ou see in the health and ecological effects area where 

most of the money would be called long-range, you could have problems with having one deputy administrator who had a c harter there 

but didn’t have the budget,

I here is a lot issues that would have to be resolved. Rut that could 

be a solution.

Mr. HiT ES iD E. I don’t think the Congress is planning to reorganize 

the charter of the Agency. But we may, in fact, discuss with them from 

time to time some of these ideas and see how we can get further 

progress.

Do you have any fu rther remarks you would like to make?

Mr. Sansom. One clarification; that, is, I think Mr. Talley and the 

OTA report both raised this need for a personnel reform to permit 

ORD to function like ERDA in the way it hires people and pays 

people, if you are going to get medical doctors, and so on, the people 

of that caliber in the research program. I think that is the kind of 

reform that is long overdue.

Mr. Whiteside. Can you be specific as to the nature of that reform ?

Mr. Sansom. I am not an expert in all of the civil service proceedings, but ERD A operates under completely different controls on grade 

levels and salaries than E PA does.

I think ORD should be treated like ERDA, let me iust leave it at 

that.

That is all I have. I appreciate the opportunity of discussing it 

with you.

Mr. Whiteside. Thank you for coming, especially on short notice 

We appreciate the testimony this morning.

[Dr. Talley’s responses to written questions follows:]
29

UNIT ED STA TE S E N VIR O N M EN TAL PR OTE CTION AG ENCY

W ASHIN G TO N . D C. 20460

1 >' ' . ' I ',q?G

O F F IC E O F

R E S E A R C H A N D D E V E L O P M E N T

Honorable John C. Culver 

Chairman, Panel on Environm ental 

Science and Technology 

Committee on Public Works 

United Sta te s Sena te

Washington, D.C. 20510 

Dear Sen ator Culver:

Thank you for your le tte r of November 5, 1976 requ es tin g 

fu rt her inform atio n on the O ffic e of Research and Development 

as a re su lt of my app earance be fo re the Panel on Environmental 

Science and Technology on September 28, 1976. Enclosed ar e our 

answers to your sp ec if ic qu es tion s. If we can provide any thing 

fu rt h er, plea se le t me know.

Si nc er ely

JV M fil so h K. Ta lley

^ s is ta n t Admin istrator for 

/Research and Development

Enclosure
30

QUESTICN; In what s p e c if ic are as o f research under EPA 

ju ris d ic tio n is th ere a need fo r a d ditio na l 

funds and pe rson ne l? What increases would be 

requ ire d to reach optimum le vels ? Miat are the 

ob stac les to reac hing these le vels ?

ANSWER: Wh ile nearly a ll o f our research areas co uld

be s ig n if ic a n tly improved thro ugh increa sed 

fund ing and s ta ffin g , curr ent p r io r ity areas 

includ e s c ie n tif ic and en gine ering su pp ort fo r 

the E ff lu e n t G uid elin es Program, re so lu tio n o f 

the p o te n ti a l s u lf a te ae roso l pro ble m, completion 

o f the national analy sis o f carcino gens in 

a ir and drinkin g w ate r, development o f a range 

o f c o s t- e ff e c ti v e con tr o ls fo r no np oint-sou rce 

wa ter p o ll u tio n , and bu ild in g sound in fo rm ation 

bases to supp ort th e new req uirem ents in to x ic s 

control and reso urce co ns erva tio n and re co ve ry.

I t is estim ated th a t to adequately respond to 

these areas, an increa se o f 30 to 50 m il li o n 

d o lla rs an nu ally fo r a few years would be 

neces sary, supplemented by up to 100 new p o s it io n s .

The overr id in g obsta cle in expanding researc h 

programs o f th is na tu re is perso nnel re cru itm ent. 

Th is is caused by a combin ation o f in f le x ib ilit ie s 

in the Federal pe rson ne l system and a ba sic 

shortage o f appro priate s k ills in the employment 

market.

Due to personnel system in f le x ib ilit ie s , i t is 

d if f ic u lt to make s h ift in s k il l- m ix in sh ort 

pe rio ds o f tim e. Further program requ irements 

fo r s k ills must th ere fo re be anticip ate d through 

long -ra ng e plan ning so th a t de sire d perso nnel 

can be hired and gain experience in an appro priate 

tim e frame.

Certain con str a in ts on f le x ib ilit y in h ir in g 

researchers w ith the rig h t c a p a b il it ie s are 

alread y c r it ic a l. One o f these is the a b ility 

to h ir e me dic al docto rs . The curr ent C iv il 

Se rvice sala ry str u c tu re sim ply does no t pr ovide 

the monetary in cen tive to a ttra c t and re ta in 

hig h ly q u a li fi e d and experienced ph ysic ia ns.

One way o f re li e v in g the se constr ain ts is to 

supplement our curr e nt C iv il Se rvice la bo ra to ri e s 

w ith a contract la bo ra to ry system, li k e th a t o f 

the Energy Research and Development A dm in is tr ation. 

The a b ility to re c ru it and maintain hig h ly 

q u a li fi e d s c ie n tif ic s ta ffs is gr ea tly 'enh an ce d 

in such a system.
31

A related p rob lem in research capa bilities is 

the lack of exp ertise in ce rtai n critical 

skills. For example, OR D and other research 

organiza tion s have a clear need for epidemiologists, but there is a v er y small number of 

epid emio logi sts in th e country and the supply is 

not rapidl y increas ing.

QUESTI ON: The Comm ittee might hold he arings next year on several specific major lon g-t erm public pol icy questions 

related to the envi ronm ent, and the research that 

will be needed to a ddress these issues in due course. 

If so, whic h p rob lem s would you suggest we address ?

ANSWER: Ihe following are five poten tial major issues:

(1) Wha t pric e gro wth? Where, if at all, should 

there be restra int s or redirect ion? Should 

EPA play a ma jor role in these d ete rmi nations?

(2) lb w hat ex tent are regu latio ns v s incentives (or req ues ts lacking the force of 

law) appropr iate , desi reabl e, or needed

for environmental prot ection? Wha t relianc e 

should be plac ed on technological means of 

controll ing poll ution, and who s hould develop 

such tech nology? Who or wha t should make those 

decis ions ?

(3) Land use legisla tion , policy, federal role 

and involvement, and scope of envi ronmental 

coverage - is the need real and necessary 

to com plete EPA au thor izations for e nvi ronmental protec tio n?

(4) Wha t are the needs, just ific atio ns and 

divisio ns of responsibilities in env ironmenta l pla nning at the local, state, regi onal 

and nati onal lev els? Do we need them all, if 

so, wha t are their inte rrel ation ships?

(5) lb wh at e xte nt shou ld other gove rnmental mission s 

(i.e., e ner gy development) be assesse d and 

moni tore d w it h respect to en viro nmen tal impacts 

by EPA? Sho uld EPA be allowed to o ver view

and infl uenc e the plans of developing thos e 

miss ions ?

QUEST ION: Have the resul ts of your long-term env ironmental

research been a deq uately factored into Federal 

decision-m akin g at EPA and elsewhere? Please giv e 

examples.
32

ANSWER: EPA "long-te rm " research is prim arily aimed

at qu an tifying he alth and ec olog ical effects of 

environmental polluta nts . Outputs from th is 

part of the program are in te gra l, ro ut ine inpu ts 

to Agency re gu latory a c ti v it ie s , such as re vising 

ambient a ir and water q u a lity standards and 

re gis tr ation of pest ic id es. Since ambient 

standards are p ri n c ip a lly implemented by 

the states and usu ally impact a broad range of 

a c ti v it ie s , the re sults permeate fa r beyond the 

Federal estab lishm ent.

Spe cific examples are as fo llo ws:

The "Advance No tice fo r Proposed Rulemaking - 

Organic Chemical Contaminants - Co ntrol Options 

in Drinking Water" published in the Federal 

Register Ju ly 14, 1976 was based on research 

re sults produced or gathered by the water supply 

research program of ORD. To accompany the 

No tice, the Water Supply Research D ivis io n, 

Municipal Environmental Research Laboratory,

ORD wrote an In te rim Treatment Guide fo r the 

Co ntrol of Chloroform and Other Trihalomethanes 

so th at m unic ip alit ie s cou ld have altern ative 

co ntrol options availa ble . This guide was 

accompanied by a video cassette program which 

discusses the control op tio ns .

We are curr ently doin g research sp e cific a lly 

directed toward prov iding data fo r Agency 

decisionmaking on (1) whether the cu rren t N0x

na tio na l ambient a ir q u a lity standard is pro te ctin g 

the pub lic he alth and (2) whether regu latory 

ac tio n on selected sulfate s is warranted.

An example of how our research re sults have 

impacted decision-ma king in oth er Agencies deals 

with gas bubble dise ase in fi s h . Because of ORD 

research re sults, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 

has expended over $10 m il lio n to modify dams on 

the Snake and Columbia Rivers in an attempt to 

reduce supersaturation and the re sultant losses 

of fish .

Although not a ll questions related to supersaturation 

causes and effects have been answered and the 

subje ct is s t i l l a problem of s c ie n ti fi c in te re st, 

enough data has been compiled and documented to enable 

stat e and Federal o ffic ia ls to set standards fo r 

pr otec tin g migratory fi s h in the natio n's 

waterways from th is hazard.
33

QUESTI ON : In March 1974, EPA publish ed a repor t : "Developmen t of Pre dic tions of Future Pol lution Problems." 

App are ntl y y ou are do ing resea rch in all the 

major areas whi ch it identified. Is that a 

result of mana gem ent deci sions base d on that 

report, or similar ones?

ANSWER: We w ere do ing research in the m ajor areas

identified in the 1974 report prior to the 

initiati on of the work the report doc umen ts. A 

purpose o f the stud y was to provide an aid in 

esta blis hing future research priorities. This 

and s imil ar type studies are one of the inputs 

used in dev elo pin g overall priori tie s and plans.

The rec ommendations of this p arti cula r study are 

con sistent wi th the later "Outlook Report" 

publish ed in 1976.

QUESTION: Dr. T alley spoke of a Federal coor dina ting

gro up (transc ript page 320). Whic h twelve 

agencies are members, and w hat spec ific pr oblems 

do they coordi nat e?

ANSWER: Public La w 94-282, the "Natio nal Sci enc e and

Techn olo gy Policy , Orga nizat ion, and Priorities 

Act of 1976" esta blished the Federa l Coor dinating 

Council for Science, Engineering, and Technology.

The Co unc il is compos ed of the Direc tor of the 

Office of Sci ence and Technology Po licy and one 

representative of each of the foll owin g Federal 

agencies: Depart men t of Agr iculture , Department 

of Co mmerce, Depa rtment of Defense, Department 

of Health, Educ ation, and Welfare, Dep art men t of 

Housing and Urban Development, Dep art men t of the 

Interior, Dep art men t of State, Dep art men t of 

Tran spor tation, Veterans' Administra tion ,

National Aer ona utics and Spac e Admi nistration, Nat ional Science Foundation, Envi ronm enta l 

Pro tection Ag ency , and Energy Res earch and 

Dev elo pme nt A dministra tion .

The FCC SET is compri sed of 10 Co mmi tte es and 

their func tions are as follows:

Eart h and Natur al Res our ces - Solid earth scien ces, non-r enew able 

reso urce s (including the area s of mat erials earl ier covered by 

CO MA T) , land use, and wate r management.

Health and Medicin e - C arcinogens and car cinogen testing, basic 

resea rch in biology and medici ne, nut rition r esear ch, genetic 

engineering, and p rotection of huma n subjec ts in co nduct of 

biomedi cal research.

79 -397 0 - 77 - 4
34

Food and Renewable Resources - World food and fi b e r production and 

d is tr ib u ti o n : planning and co ordina tio n of basic research ( u t ilizin g Federal Advisory Committee with representative s from land 

gr an t co lle ge s, stat e experiment sta tions, e tc .) , inform ation 

on nation's food research and deliv ery programs, improved management and research of other renewable resources — es peci al ly 

fi b e rs , fo re st products and non-e dib le o il s .

Tran sp ortatio n and Communication - Improving and op tim izing tra ns ­

port ation and communication systems: consider fa cto rs , e .g ., economic, 

energy, and environmental co ns iderations .

Human Resources and Community Development - In div id ual and community 

se rvices : R&D in so cial and behavio ral sciences needed fo r polic y 

making releva nt to na tio na l gro wth, human service deliv ery systems, 

cr im in al ju stice and public safe ty , so cial and demographic accounting, 

human and economic development, etc .

Atmosphere and Oceans - Marine and atmospheric environmental areas 

includ ing climate: atmospheric p o llu tio n , instrumen tatio n, weather 

m odific ation, ocean resources (tr ansp ortatio n, sa fety and co n tr o l) , 

ocean p ollution abatement and contr ol, oceanographic research, 

inad ve rte nt clima te m odific ation, air/s ea in te ra ction, clim ate 

modeling and pre dic tion, etc .

In te lle c tu a l Property and Inform ation - In s ti tu ti o n a l areas concerned 

with s c ie n ti fi c and tech nica l inform ation (in clud ing issues such as 

Federal support fo r s c ie n ti fi c and tech nica l public ation and payment 

o f page charges from Federal awards) and paten t polic y.

SE&T Resources and Research D is cip lin es - Eroad in s ti tu ti o n a l area 

concerned with SF&T manpower and oth er resources and with the 

tr a d it io n a l research dis cip lin e s (e .g ., astronomy, high energy 

phys ic s) .

R&D Management, Organization and F a c il it ie s - Broad area concerned with 

R&D in s ti tu ti o n a l resources, technology tr ansfe r, R&D management, 

and Government procurement.

In te rn ational SE&T - Co ordin ation of agency follo w-up to fo re ign 

po licy in it ia tiv e s , p o licie s and pr ac tic es rega rding SE&T cooperation , 

mechanisms fo r de fin ing U.S. pxasitio ns fo r in te rn ational conferences, 

globa l impacts of large sca le experiments or environmental hazards, 

p o licy gu idelines fo r in te rn ational transfer of in te lle c tu a l prop erty, 

in te rn ational agreements reg ardin g SE&T inform ation, adequacy, 

co or dina tio n and u ti li z a tio n o f in te rn ational s c ie n ti fi c research, 

educa tion and polic y an alys is.
35

Mr. Whiteside. This will be the end of the hearing for today. This 

will also be the end of this series for this year. It will provide a starting 

point, we hope, for the new Congress tha t comes in next year to 

address these issues. [Whereupon, at 10:30 a.m., the panel adjourned, to reconvene subject to the call of the Chair.]

A P P E N D IX A

ENVIRONMEN TAL RES EAR CH OUTLOOK 

FISC AL YEARS 1976-80

E P A -6 0 0 /9 -7 6 -0 0 3 

February 19 76

U .S . ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY 

ENVIRONMENTAL RESFARCH OUTLOOK 

FY 19 76 through 19 80 

Report to Congress

Prepared by the

Offi ce of ^ search and Development

U .S . Environmental Protection Agen cy

Washingt on, D.l. 20460

(39)
40

T H IS REPORT HAS BEEN RE VIEW ED BY TH E O FFIC E OF RESEARCH AND DE VE LO PM EN T, 

U .S . EN VI RO NM EN TA L PR OT EC TION AG EN CY , AND APPROVED FOR P U B L IC A T IO N . 

ME NT ION OF TR AD E NAMES OR CO MM ER CIAL PRODUC TS DOES NOT CO NSTI TU TE 

ENDORS EMENT OR RECO MMENDATION FOR U S E .

i i
41

PREFACE

Prudent en vir on men tal management must re st on a sound te ch nical 

and s c ie n tif ic basis . The development o f such a base depends on a 

stro ng , via ble and ti m e ly researc h e ffo r t. I s tr o n g ly belie ve th at 

EPA's research must be both a n ticip a to ry as w ell as responsive to the 

needs of an Agency whose mandate is to re sto re , enhance and pro te ct 

the q u a lity of th e en viron men t.

This document re pr es en ts the f i r s t attem pt by the O ffic e of 

Research and Development to pres en t a 5-Year overvie w of ORD's res earch program, p r io r it ie s and tren ds. We have attempted to ra is e 

issues and id e n ti fy where we see environmental problems and p r io r it ie s 

occ urrin g. By p ro je c ti n g beyond the ne xt budget ye ar, I hope th at the 

document w ill in it ia t e a dialo gu e w ith enough lea d tim e to b u ild a more 

meaningful program.

Moreover, I re co gn ize th at th is is a f ir s t attempt and th at as such, 

suffers from the usu al weaknesses or de ficie ncie s th a t are associa ted w ith 

bein g a f ir s t . In ad ditio n to su bst an tiv e c rit ic is m s of the pr oje ct ed 

res earch program, I in v it e your comments and sugg es tions to improve subsequent versions of th is document.

W ils onK . T alle y \ 

Assis ta nt Adm in is trato r 

O ffic e of Research and Development

i l l
42

U.S. Environmental Pro te ction Agency 

Environ mental Research Outlook 

FY 1976-1980

Table of Contents

Page

Preface i

Par t I Enviro nmental Research Ou tlook .......................... 1

Par t II ORD Program Des cr iptio ns

Se ction I Health and Eco logica l E ffects . . . . 24

Se ction 2 In d ustr ia l Processes ......................... 65

Se ction 3 Pub lic Se ctor A c tiv it ie s .............. 85

Se ction 4 Mon ito rin g and Technic al Support . 102

Sec tio n 5 EnergyZEnvironm ent ......................... 117

Appendix A Environmental Research and Development in

Other Federal Agencies 144

lv
TABLES AND FIGURES

Ta bles Pages.

Ta ble I ORD Pro gra m S tr u ctu re . 5

Ta ble 2 R e la ti o n s h ip Between ORD O rg a n iz a tio n a l

and Program S tr u c tu re 7

Ta ble 3 A u th o ri z in g L e g is la ti o n fo r EPA Program 12

Ta ble 4 ORD A uth orized P o s it io n s

z FY 1973 - FY 1976 15

Ta ble 5 P ro je cte d ORD Resource Needs 16

Ta ble 5a ORD Le vel Budget w ith "S pik e" In cr ease 17

Ta ble 5b ORD Le ve l Budget w it h o u t "S pik e" Inc re ase 18

Figu re s

Fig ure I ORD Organ I z a ti o n a l Chart 4

Fig ure 2 Flow C hart o f En vir on men t R&D 21
44

PART I

Envir onme ntal Rese arch Outlook
45

The U .S . E n v ir o n m e n ta l P r o t e c t i o n A gen cy (EPA) ’ wa s 

c r e a t e d by P r e s i d e n t i a l o r d e r in Dec em be r o f 19 70 . T h is o r d e r b ro u g h t t o g e t h e r 15 p ro gra m s s c a t t e r e d among s e v e r a l F e d e r a l G ove rn m en t a g e n c ie s t o mo un t a c o o r d in a te d a t t a c k on e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s . T h e se p ro b le m s i n c lu d e a i r an d w a te r p o l l u t i o n , s o l i d w a s te m an ag em en t, p e s t i c i d e s , w a te r 

s u p p ly , r a d i a t i o n , n o is e an d t o x i c s u b s t a n c e s .

EPA m us t m a in t a in an d en h a n ce e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y in 

a wa y t h a t i s c o n s i s t e n t w it h o t h e r n a t i o n a l q o a l s . 

F u n c tio n s p e rfo rm e d by EPA in c lu d e : s e t t i n g and e n f o r c in g e n v ir o n m e n ta l s t a n d a r d s ; r e s e a r c h in g th e c a u s e s , e f f e c t s an d c o n t r o l o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s; a s s i s t i n g s t a t e s an d 

l o c a l go v ern m e n ts th ro u g h a v a r i e t y o f p la n n in g an d w a s te tr e a tm e n t f a c i l i t y c o n s t r u c t i o n g r a n t s ; d is s e m in a tin g 

in fo r m a t io n on e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s and s o l u t i o n s ; d e m o n s t r a t io n s ; e d u c a tin g th e p u b l i c ; d e m o n s tr a tin g ; 

d e m o n s tr a tio n s o f how t o p r o t e c t an d en h an ce th e e n v ir o n m e n t; an d p r o v id in g o f t e c h n i c a l a s s i s t a n c e in th e 

s o l u t i o n o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s.

In s u p p o r t o f th e A g e n c y 's m is s io n th e O f f i c e o f 

R e s e a rc h and D evelo pm en t (ORD) c o n d u c ts a co m p re h e n s iv e and 

i n t e g r a t e d r e s e a r c h an d d e v e lo p m e n t (R&D) pro gr am t o 

p r o v i d e :

• The s c i e n t i f i c an d t e c h n i c a l b a s e f o r r e a s o n a b le 

s t a n d a r d s an d r e g u l a t i o n s .

• S t a n d a r d iz e d m et hod s t o m ea su re an d a s s u r e q u a l i t y 

c o n t r o l in pro gra m s t o a s s e s s e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y , 

im p le m en t r e g u l a t i o n s an d e n f o r c e s t a n d a r d s .

• C o s t - e f f e c t i v e p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y and 

i n c e n t i v e s f o r a c c e p t a n c e o f e n v ir o n m e n t a lly so un d 

o p t i o n s .

• S c i e n t i f i c , t e c h n i c a l , s o c io - e c o n o m ic and

i n s t i t u t i o n a l m e th o d o lo g ie s n ee ded to ju d g e 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l m an ag em en t o p t io n s an d b a la n c e t h e s e 

o p t io n s a q a i n s t co m p eti n q n a t i o n a l n e e d s .

OR D' s r e s e a r c h i s su p p le m e n te d by g e n e r a l s c i e n t i f i c 

an d t e c h n i c a l r e s e a r c h i n o t h e r f e d e r a l a g e n c i e s , c o l l e g e s an d u n i v e r s i t i e s an d e ls e w h e r e . ORD a l s o s u p p o r ts th e 

A g e n c y 's in v o lv e m e n t in many i n t e r n a t i o n a l o r g a n i z a t i o n s 

w it h m utu al e n v ir o n m e n ta l R6D c o n c e r n s .

2
46

Mo re g e n e r a l f u n c t i o n s o f ORD i n c lu d e : (1 ) 

m a in ta in e n c e o f in h o u s e e x p e r t i s e c a p a b le o f q u i c k l y 

r e s p o n d in g t o e m e r g e n c ie s an d g i v i n g e x p e r t c o n s u l t a t i o n 

and te s tim o n y wh en n e c e s s a r y ; (2) s h a r in g th e r e s u l t s o f 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l R&D w it h a w id e ra n g e o f i n d i v i d u a l s , g r o u p s , 

an d a g e n c ie s in w ay s t h a t a r e m e a n in g fu l an d p r a c t i c a l ; an d 

(3) g i v i n g e x p e r t s c i e n t i f i c an d t e c h n i c a l a s s i s t a n c e t o 

o t h e r EPA o f f i c i e s t o h e lp them f o r m u la t e e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

p o l i c y .

What f o l l o w s i s a r e p o r t on t h e f i r s t f i v e - y e a r 

R e s e a rc h P la n . I t g e n e r a l l y d e s c r i b e s ORD 's p r o j e c t e d 

r e s e a r c h p ro gr am f o r th e FY 19 76 - FY 198 0 p e r io d i n c lu d in g 

i t s r a t i o n a l e , r e s o u r c e n e e d s , an d p r i o r i t i e s . Th e r e p o r t 

w i l l be u p d a te d y e a r l y .

ORD ORGANIZATIONAL AND PROGRAM STRUCTURE

Th e r e s e a r c h p ro gra m , o f n e c e s s i t y , i s 

m u l t i d i s c i p l i n a r y and m u lt im e d ia in n a t u r e . I t i s 

m u l t i d i s c i p l i n a r y b e c a u s e th e R&D p ro gra m c o v e r s v i r t u a l l y 

e v e r y EPA r e s p o n s i b i l i t y an d p r o v id e s s u p p o r t t o e a ch o f 

E P A 's pro gr am an d r e g i o n a l o f f i c e s . I t i s m u lt im e d ia 

b e c a u s e c o r r e c t i o n o f on e p o l l u t i o n p ro b le m ca n r e s u l t in 

o t h e r p o l l u t i o n p ro b le m s i f c a r e i s n o t ta k e n ( e . g . , 

e m is s io n s p r e v e n t e d fr om p o l l u t i n g th e a i r h a ve th e 

p o t e n t i a l t o be co m e a w a te r p o l l u t i o n o r la n d d e g r a d a t io n 

p r o b le m ).

OR D' s p ro gra m i s a l s o m u lt im e d ia b e c a u s e go od 

man ag em en t p r a c t i c e s r e q u ir e t h a t u n n e c e s s a r y d u p l i c a t i o n 

o f e f f o r t , f a c i l i t i e s o r e x p e r t i s e be a v o id e d . As s u c h , 

ORD i s d iv id e d i n t o f o u r o f f i c e s t h a t o p e r a t e a lo n g 

f u n c t i o n a l l i n e s (s e e F ig u r e 1) .

The R&D pro gr am i t s e l f i s d iv id e d i n t o f i v e 

p ro g ra m m a ti c a r e a s a s show n i n T a b le 1 . T h ese a r e d iv id e d 

f u r t h e r i n t o su bp ro gra m a r e a s . P a r t I I o f t h i s r e p o r t 

p r o v id e s a d e t a i l e d d e s c r i p t i o n o f e a c h su bp ro gra m .

ORD’ s o n g o in g a c t i v i t i e s s u p p o r tin g im m e d ia te 

o p e r a t i o n a l r e q u ir e m e n ts o f EPA a r e in th e O f f i c e o f 

M o n it o r in g an d T e c h n ic a l S u p p o rt (OM TS). T h ese a c t i v i t i e s 

in c lu d e : d e ve lo p m e n t an d d e m o n s tr a tio n o f m o n it o r in g 

s y s te m s ; q u a l i t y c o n t r o l o f p o l l u t a n t m ea su re m en t an d 

m o n it o r in g t e c h n iq u e s ( q u a l i t y a s s u r a n c e ) ; t e c h n i c a l 

in fo r m a t io n d is s e m in a t io n ; an d t e c h n i c a l s u p p o r t s e r v i c e s . 

W h il e t h i s o f f i c e p r o v id e s c e n t r a l p la n n in g f o r t e c h n i c a l 

s u p p o r t , su ch s u p p o rt i s g iv e n t o EPA by o t h e r ORD 

o f f i c e s / l a b o r a t o r i e s as a p p r o p r i a t e .

3
Fig ure 1. ORD O r g a n iz a ti o n a l Ch art

U S ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

OFFICE OF RESEARCH ANO DEVELOPMENT
Table I. ORD Program Structure

Health and Eco logical Effe cts Program 

Health Effe cts

Ecological Processes and Effects 

Transport and Fate of Po llu tants

Indu stria l Processes Program

Mineral, Processing, and Manufacturing 

Renewable Resources

Pu blic Sector A c ti v it ie s Program 

Waste Management 

Water Supply

Environmental Management

Monitoring and Technical Support Program

Monitoring Techniques and Equipment Development 

Qlia lity Assurance

Technical Support

Energy/Environment Program

Health and Ecological Effects 

Ex traction and Processing Technology 

Cons er va tio n- Utilization Technology Assessments
49

R e s e a rc h a c t i v i t i e s f o r lo n g e r - t e r m r e q u ir e m e n ts a r e 

c a r r i e d o u t by t h e t h r e e o t h e r o f f i c e s .

The O f f i c e o f H e a lt h an d E c o l o g i c a l E f f e c t s (OHEE) i s 

r e s p o n s i b l e f o r d e te r m in in g t h e human h e a l t h an d e c o l o g i c a l 

e f f e c t s o f p o l l u t i o n .

Th e O f f i c e o f E n e r g y , M in e r a ls , an d I n d u s t r y (OEMI) i s 

r e s p o n s i b l e f o r a s s e s s i n g , d e v e lo p in g , an d d e m o n s tr a tin g 

t e c h n o lo g y t o a b a t e p o l l u t i o n fr om i n d u s t r i a l p o in t 

s o u r c e s . T h is o f f i c e a l s o p la n s an d a d m in is t e r s a 

c o m p re h e n s iv e f e d e r a l e n e r g y and e n v ir o n m e n ta l r e s e a r c h , 

d e v e lo p m e n t, an d d e m o n s tr a tio n p ro gra m .

The O f f i c e o f A i r , L an d , an d W ate r Use (OALWU) i s 

r e s p o n s i b l e f o r : r e s e a r c h , d e v e lo p m e n t, an d d e m o n s tra tio n 

o f e n v ir o n m e n t a lly so und w a t e r s u p p ly s y s te m s an d w a ste 

m an ag em en t a c t i v i t i e s ( in c lu d in g m u n ic ip a l w a s te w a te r 

t r e a t m e n t an d h a za rd o u s and o t h e r s o l i d w a s te man ag em ent 

s y s t e m s ) ; c o n t r o l o f p o l l u t i o n fr om a g r i c u l t u r e and 

f o r e s t r y (r en ew a b le r e s o u r c e i n d u s t r i e s ) ; t r a n s p o r t and 

f a t e o f p o l l u t a n t s i n t h e e n v ir o n m e n t; an d a r e a -w id e 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l m an ag em en t s t r a t e g i e s .

T he r e l a t i o n s h i p o f th e f o u r O f f i c e s and fo u r t e e n 

s u b j e c t - r e l a t e d r e s e a r c h su b p ro g ra m s a r e sh ow n i n T a b le 2. 

N o te t h a t th e " p la n n in g r e s p o n s i b i l i t y " f o r an y su bpro gr am 

i s g e n e r a l l y in o n e O f f i c e w h ile t h e " im p le m e n ta tio n 

r e s p o n s i b i l i t y " i s o f t e n th e r e s p o n s i b i l i t y o f s e v e r a l 

o f f i c e s . Th e te rm , " p la n n in g r e s p o n s i b i l i t y , " r e f e r s t o 

th e e s t a b lis h m e n t o f s p e c i f i c m a jo r o b j e c t i v e s , t h e i r 

r e l a t i v e p r i o r i t i e s a n d r e s o u r c e l e v e l s f o r e a c h . The 

te r m , " im p le m e n ta ti o n r e s p o n s i b i l i t y , " r e f e r s t o 

d e v e lo p m e n t o f th e p a r t i c u l a r a p p ro a ch in p u r s u i t o f each 

o b j e c t i v e an d s u p e r v i s i o n o f r e q u ir e d w ork .

The ORD m is s io n i s 

e f f o r t s o f a b o u t 1, 8 0 0

a c h ie v e d th r o u g h t h e co m bin ed 

t e c h n i c a l an d s u p p o r t p e r s o n n e l. 

More th a n 60 d i f f e r e n t p r o f e s s i o n a l d i s c i p l i n e s and 

s p e c i a l i t i e s lo c a t e d th r o u g h o u t th e N a ti o n in 15 

l a b o r a t o r i e s and th e W a s h in g to n , D .C . h e a d q u a r t e r s a r e 

i n c l u d e d . OR D's b u d g e t i n FY 19 76 i s a p p r o x im a te ly $250 

m i l l i o n .

P r o j e c t s a r e c o n d u c te d : (1 ) th r o u g h in h o u s e R&D by ORD 

s c i e n t i s t s an d e n g in e e r s , (2) th ro u g h a l a r g e e x tr a m u r a l 

g r a n t an d c o n t r a c t p ro gram i n c o o p e r a t io n w ith c o l l e g e s and 

u n i v e r s i t i e s , i n d u s t r i a l o r g a n i z a t i o n s , r e s e a r c h 

i n s t i t u t e s , an d s t a t e an d l o c a l go v ern m en ts an d (3) th ro u gh 

i n t e r a g e n c y a g re e m e n ts w i t h o t h e r f e d e r a l a g e n c i e s .

79 -3 97 0 - 77 - 5

6
50

Table Z- R e la ti o n s h ip Between ORD O rg a n iz a tio n a l and 

Program S tr u c tu re

Subprogram Area

Pla nnin g (P ) and 

Im plem en tin g ( I )

ORD O ff ic e s

OHEE OEMI OALWU OMTS

H ealth E ff e c ts P I I I

E c o lo g ic a l Processes and

E ff e c ts P I I I

T ra n sp o rt and Fa te o f

P o ll u ta n ts P I I

M in e ra l, P ro ce ss in g, and 

M anufa ctu ring I P I I

Renewable Resources P I

Waste Management P I

Water Su pp ly I P I I

Environm enta l Management P I

M o n it o rin g Techniqu es and 

Eq uip ment Developm ent P I P I

Q u a li ty Assurance I P I

T echnic al Su pp ort P I

H ealth and E co lo g ic a l 

E ff e c ts /E n e rg y I P I I

E x tr a c ti o n and Pro ce ss in g 

Tec hnology/Energ y P I

C onserv ation, U tiliz a t io n and 

Te ch no logy As se ss men ts/E ne rg y P I I

7
51

In FY 19 7 6 , a b o u t 25 p e r c e n t o f ORD 's fu n d s a r e u se d 

f o r in h o u s e a c t i v i t i e s ; a b o u t 55 p e r c e n t f o r g r a n t s and 

c o n t r a c t s ; an d a b o u t 20 p e r c e n t f o r in t e r a g e n c y a g re e m e n ts .

RESEARCH APPROACHES

EP A’ s o v e r a l l r e s e a r c h pro gr am m us t s u p p o r t t h e m is s io n 

o f a r e g u l a t o r y a g e n c y . S p e c i f i c r e s e a r c h o b j e c t i v e s and 

p r i o r i t i e s d e r i v e fr om o b j e c t i v e s an d p r i o r i t i e s t h a t EPA 

e s t a b l i s h e s in f u l f i l l i n g i t s t o t a l l e g i s l a t i v e m andate . 

A c c o r d i n g l y , th e r e s e a r c h pro gr am i s " m is s io n o r ie n t e d " 

w ith e m p h a sis on p r o d u c tio n o f t im e ly an d q u a l i t y o u t p u t s , 

i . e . , , r e s e a r c h r e s u l t s t h a t a r e d i r e c t l y u s e f u l t o 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l d e c is io n - m a k e r s , r e g u l a t o r y o f f i c i a l s and 

p o l l u t e r s .

T h e f o l lo w i n g g u i d e l i n e s w er e u se d t o d e v e lo p a 

c o m p re h e n s iv e r e s e a r c h p ro gram t o s u p p o r t E P A 's m is s io n :

• E m phas is i s g iv e n t o r e s e a r c h d e s ig n e d t o p r o t e c t 

human h e a lt h and w e l f a r e , i n c lu d i n g th e i n t e g r i t y o f 

n a t u r a l e c o s y s t e m s . In t h i s c a t e g o r y i s r e s e a r c h 

a s s e s s i n g b o th s h o r t - an d lo n g - te r m lo w -d o s e e f f e c t s 

o f p o ll u t a n t s on human h e a l t h , e x p o s u r e t o p o t e n t i a l 

h e a lt h h a z a r d s in a v a r i e t y o f w a y s , i n t e r a c t i v e 

e f f e c t s o f p o l l u t a n t s on b o th h e a l t h an d e c o l o g i c a l 

s y s te m s , t r a n s p o r t an d f a t e o f, p o l l u t a n t s and 

t e c h n o lo g i e s f o r c o n t r o l o f t o x i c o r h a za rd o u s 

p o l l u t a n t s .

• A r e a s o n a b le b a la n c e m us t be m a in ta in e d bet w ee n 

r e s p o n s iv e n e s s t o im m ed ia te t e c h n i c a l s u p p o r t and 

c o n tin u in g in fo r m a t io n n ee d s o f EP A, an d lo n g e r - t e r m 

r e s e a r c h t o m ee t f u t u r e and e m ergin g e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

p ro b le m s in d e v e lo p in g and e v a l u a t i n g e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

p o l i c y .

• Bot h d o l l a r an d ma npow er r e s o u r c e s . s h o u ld be 

r e s e r v e d f o r s h o r t - t e r m t e c h n i c a l s u p p o r t .

5

• D e l i b e r a t e a t t e n t i o n s h o u ld be g iv e n t o t im e ly and 

e f f e c t i v e d is s e m in a t io n o f t e c h n i c a l in fo r m a t io n and 

t o t e c h n o lo g y t r a n s f e r .

• An a d e q u a te p ro g ram o f q u a l i t y a s s u r a n c e f o r E PA 's 

p o l l u t i o n m o n ito r in g an d m ea su re m en t a c t i v i t i e s m us t 

be m a in ta in e d .

8
52

• E n v ir o n m e n ta l m anagem ent m eth o d s an d te c h n o lo g y 

d e v e lo p m e n t and d e m o n s tr a tio n e f f o r t s i n p o l l u t i o n 

a b a te m e n t and e n v ir o n m e n ta l r e s t o r a t i o n sh o u ld 

a tte m p t t o :

(a , S ti m u l a te , a s s e s s and s u p p o r t d e v e lo p m e n t o f 

t e c h n i c a l l y an d e c o n o m ic a ll y f e a s i b l e

t e c h n o l o g i c a l s o l u t i o n s , i n c l u d i n g c o n tr o l 

te c h n o lo g y ( e . g . , s ta c k g a s s c r u b b e r s , ad v an ced 

w a s te t r e a t m e n t , s lu d g e u t i l i z a t i o n an d 

d i s p o s a l , e t c . ) ; s u b s t i t u t i o n o f a l t e r n a t e , 

m or e e n v ir o n m e n ta lly a c c e p t a b le p r o c e s s e s an d 

p r a c t i c e s ( e . g . , c lo s e d lo o p s y s te m s , 

b i o l o g i c a l p e s t c o n t r o l s , e t c . ) ; an d m a t e r i a l s 

an d e n e rg y c o n s e r v a tio n m e a s u re s ( e . g . , 

r e c y c l i n g , s o i l e r o s io n c o n t r o l , w a te r r e u s e , 

m or e e f f i c i e n t c o m b u ti o n p r o c e s s e s , e t c . ) ;

(b) I d e n t i f y a n d f o s t e r im p ro v ed m an ag em en t 

te c h n iq u e s t h a t im p ro v e e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y 

th r o u g h n o n s t r u c t u r a l and n o n tr e a tm e n t m e th o d s, 

th e r e b y r e d u c in g r e q u i r e d c a p i t a l c o s t s ( e . g . , 

ch an g e fa rm in g m e th o d s, i n s t i t u t e p r o f i t a b l e 

i n d u s t r i a l p r o c e s s ch an g es a n d m o d if y la n d u se 

p a t t e r n s ) ;

(c) I d e n t i f y and e v a l u a t e i n s t i t u t i o n a l a p p ro a c h e s 

t o im p le m e n t te c h n o l o g ic a l o p t i o n s ( e . q . , 

im p ro v e r e g u l a t o r y a p p ro a c h e s , p r o v id e econom ic 

in c e n t i v e s o r s a n c t i o n s , e t c . ) .

• S o lu t io n s t o e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s t h a t m in im iz e 

c o s t s , e n e rg y u s a g e and u n d e s i r a b l e t r a n s f e r o f 

p o l l u t a n t s to o t h e r m edia sh o u ld be e m p h a s iz e d .

C o m p re h en siv e e n v ir o n m e n ta l/s o c io - e c o n o m ic 

a s s e s s m e n ts w i l l c o n tin u e t o be s u p p o r te d , an d 

i n t e g r a t e d w h e re v e r p o s s i b l e i n t o r e s e a r c h p ro g ra m s. 

S c i e n t i f i c an d t e c h n i c a l in f o r m a tio n s h o u ld be 

p r e s e n te d in a wa y t h a t a ll o w s r i s k s , b e n e f i t s an d 

c o s t s t o be c o m p a re d , p a r t i c u l a r l y t o g u id e 

d e c is io n s on w h a t p o l l u t i o n l e v e l s a r e t o l e r a b l e in 

th e e n v ir o n m e n t.

• M e th o d o lo g ic a l t o o l s sh o u ld b e d e v e lo p e d f o r

a s s e s s i n g e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s , m e a su ri n g 

e f f e c t i v e n e s s o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l c o n t r o l s an d

p r e d i c t i n g c o n s e q u e n c e s o f a l t e r n a t i v e p o l l u t i o n 

c o n t r o l s t r a t e g i e s .

9
• F l e x i b i l i t y t o a d d r e s s u n fo r e s e e n p ro b le m s m us t be 

m a in ta in e d .

W h il e EPA i s r e s p o n s i b l e f o r d e v e lo p in g an d r e f i n i n g a 

co m p re h e n siv e f e d e r a l r e s e a r c h pro gr am f o r e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

p r o t e c t i o n , a c t u a l r e s e a r c h i s c a r r i e d o u t by many o t h e r s . 

T h ese i n c l u d e , b u t a r e n o t l i m i t e d t o : EPA l a b o r a t o r i e s ; 

o t h e r go vern m en t a g e n c ie s e i t h e r th r o u g h fu n d ed in t e r a g e n c y 

a g re e m e n ts o r th ro u g h c o o r d in a t io n w it h i n d i v i d u a l 

D ro gr am s; an d t h e u s e r co m m u nit y, i n c l u d i n g S t a t e an d l o c a l 

g o v e rn m e n ts , i n d u s t r y an d c o l l e g e s an d u n i v e r s i t i e s .

An exam p le o f i t s c o o r d in a t io n r o l e i s OR D's E n er gy and 

E n v ir o n m e n ta l P ro gra m . EPA w as d i r e c t e d by th e C o n g r e s s t o 

c o o r d in a t e an e n e r g y and e n v ir o n m e n ta l r e s e a r c h , 

d e v e lo p m e n t, and d e m o n s tr a tio n p ro gra m t o e n s u r e t h a t 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l f a c t o r s w er e c o n s id e r e d a lo n g w it h a c t i v i t i e s 

t o i n c r e a s e t h e N a t i o n 's p r o d u c tio n o f e n e r g y . To m ee t 

t h i s q o a l , ORD u n d e rto o k th e r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r m an ag in q 

an d i n t e g r a t i n g t h e e f f o r t s o f 18 f e d e r a l a g e n c ie s in a 

c o o r d in a te d f e d e r a l p ro gra m . ORD 's O f f i c e o f E n e rg y , 

M in e r a ls , an d I n d u s t r y a d m in is t e r s " p a s s - t h r o u g h " m onie s to 

o t h e r f e d e r a l p ro q ra m s t o m in im iz e d u p l i c a t i o n o f e f f o r t 

an d e n s u r e e f f i c i e n t u s e o f r e s o u r c e s .

AUTHORITIES AND CONSTRAINTS

Le g i s l a t i v e

In d e v e lo p in g th e r e s e a r c h p ro gra m , c e r t a i n 

a u t h o r i z a t i o n s an d c o n s t r a i n t s mus t b e r e c o g n iz e d . Ke y 

amo ng t h e s e a r e th e l e g i s l a t i v e a u t h o r i z a t i o n s an d 

m a n d a te s. Th e m a jo r p i e c e s o f l e g i s l a t i o n u n d er w h ic h EPA 

o p e r a t e s c o n t a in b ro a d , e s s e n t i a l l y a ll- e n c o m p a s s in g 

a u t h o r i z a t i o n s f o r r e s e a r c h an d d e v e lo p m e n t on th e 

" c o n t r o l , p r e v e n t i o n , a b a te m e n t, e f f e c t s " o f p o l l u t i o n . 

O v e r la p p in g t h e s e b ro a d a u t h o r i z a t i o n s a r e many s p e c i f i c 

a u t h o r i z a t i o n s o r e ven m an date s t h a t r e l a t e t o wor k on 

s p e c i f i c p ro b le m s ( e . g . , a c i d m in e d r a in a g e , la k e 

r e s t o r a t i o n , e t c . ) , o r t h a t a u t h o r i z e c e r t a i n s p e c i a l ty p e s 

o f fu n d in g f o r e l i g i b l e g r a n t e e o r c o n t r a c t o r 

o r g a n i z a t i o n s . In a d d i t i o n t o t h e s e c o m p l e x i t i e s , t h e r e 

a r e o t h e r m an d ate s f o r R5D t h a t d e r i v e fr om im p le m e n ta tio n 

d a t e s f o r m a jo r e n v ir o n m e n ta l p r o t e c t i o n s ta n d a r d s an d 

r e g u l a t i o n s . T h e s e , o f c o u r s e , r e q u i r e c o n c e n t r a te d R5D 

e f f o r t s .
54

The b ro a d l e g i s l a t i v e a u t h o r i t y f o r EPA ’ s p ro g ra m s 

com es p r i m a r i ly fr o m n in e s e p a r a te A c ts : The C le a n A ir A ct 

(CAA) , Th e F e d e r a l M a te r P o l l u t i o n C o n tr o l A c t (FWPCA) , Th e 

S a f e D rin k in g W ate r A ct (SDWA), Th e S o lid W as te D is p o s a l 

A ct (SWDA) , The F e d e r a l I n s e c t i c i d e , F u n g ic id e , an d 

R o d e n tic id e A ct (F IF R A ), Th e P u b lic H e a lth S e r v ic e A ct 

(PHS A) , The N o is e C o n tr o l A c t (NCA), The M ari n e P r o t e c ti o n 

R e s e a rc h and S a n c t u a r i e s A ct (MPRSA), a n d Th e N a tio n a l 

E n v ir o n m e n ta l P o li c y A ct (NEPA) . Th e m o st r e l e v a n t 

s e c t i o n s t h a t g iv e a u t h o r i z a t i o n s to ORD 's p ro g ra m a r e 

d e s c r ib e d an d i d e n t i f i e d i n T a b le 3.

In a d d it io n to t h e d i r e c t i o n o f a u t h o r i z i n g A c ts , o th e r 

C o n g r e s s io n a l m a n d a te s a r e o f t e n fo u n d i n A p p r o p r ia tio n s 

R e p o r ts . I n FY 1 976, f o r ex a m p le , t h e C o n g re s s io n a l 

A p p r o p r ia tio n s an d C o n fe re n c e R e p o rts c o n ta i n e d s p e c i f i c 

g u id a n c e f o r R&D o n : a s s e s s m e n t o f th e p o t e n t i a l 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l, s o c i a l , an d econom ic im p a c ts o f th e p ro p o s e d 

c o n c e n t r a t i o n o f pow er p l a n t s in t h e lo w e r O hio R iv e r 

B a s in ; an d a n a s s e s s m e n t o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l f a c t o r s h a v in g an 

a d v e r s e im p a c t on th e C h esap eak e B ay , in c l u d in g 

e s t a b li s h m e n t o f d a ta c o l l e c t i o n and m o n ito r in g s y s te m s , 

d e te r m i n a ti o n o f g o v e rn m e n ta l u n i t s t h a t h a v e m an ag em en t 

r e s p o n s i b i l i t y an d how su ch r e s p o n s i b i l i t y can be 

s t r u c t u r e d so t h a t c o m m u n ic a ti o n an d c o o r d i n a t i o n can be 

im p ro v e d amo ng a l l c o n c e rn e d p a r t i e s . T h e se r e q u e s t s p la c e 

s p e c i f i c r e s e a r c h dem ands up on ORD.

ORD Com m itm en ts

In f o r m u la tin g i t s r e s e a r c h p ro g ra m , ORD m u st a ls o 

re m a in aw are o f s p e c i a l com m it m ents mad e f o r in te r a g e n c y 

c o o p e r a tio n an d in t r a a g e n c y s u p p o r t. T h ese co m m it m ents an d 

how ORD i n t e r f a c e s w it h o th e r f e d e r a l a g e n c ie s a r e 

d is c u s s e d i n A p p en d ix A.

R e s o u rc e C o n s t r a i n t s

The econom ic c l i m a t e i n r e c e n t y e a r s h a s n e c e s s i t a t e d 

r e s t r a i n e d g o v e rn m e n ta l s p e n d in g . I t i s l i k e l y t h a t t h i s 

n e e d f o r f i s c a l r e s t r a i n t w i l l c o n tin u e th ro u g h o u t th e 

p e r i o d c o v e re d by t h i s p ro g ra m p la n . A c c o rd in g ly , t h i s 

p la n r e f l e c t s a d e c i s i o n t o k e e p t o t a l r e s o u r c e ( d o l l a r s 

and p o s i ti o n s ) l e v e l s w ith i n r e a l i s t i c b o u n d s. T h is 

a p p ro a c h w i l l p r o v id e f o r th e e s s e n t i a l r e s e a r c h an d 

d e v e lo p m e n t p ro g ra m r e q u i r e d t o m eet th e N a t i o n 's c u r r e n t 

an d a n t i c i p a t e d e n v ir o n m e n ta l an d d e v e lo p m e n t n e e d s . T h is 

p la n d o es n o t , h o w e v e r, r e f l e c t a l e v e l o f r e s o u r c e s 

s u f f i c i e n t t o f u l l y p e rfo rm a l l a n t i c i p a t o r y r e s e a r c h and 

d e v e lo p m e n t w hic h w ould a llo w ORD t o g e t a h e a d s t a r t on

11
55

S e c ti o n s

T able 3. A u th o ri zin g L e g is la ti o n fo r EPA Program

L e g is la ti o n G en er al R&D A u th o ri z a ti o n

Clean A ir 

Act (CAA)

The C le an A ir A ct, as am ended, d ir e c ts th e A d m in is tr a to r to e s ta b lis h a n a ti o n a l re s e a rc h an d dev el op m en t prog ram fo r th e p re ­ v e n ti o n an d c o n tr o l o f a i r p o llu tio n and s h a ll conduct, and pro mo te th e c o o rd in a ti o n and a c c e le ra tio n of re s e a rc h in v e s tig a ti o n s an d experi m ents r e la tin g to th e c a u s e s, e f f e c t s , e x te n t, p re v e n ti o n , 

and c o n tro l o f a i r p o llu tio n .

10 3,

10 9,

11 9,

30 3,

10 4, 108, 

11 1, 112, 

20 2, 211, 

31 2, 313

F ed era l 

W ater 

P o ll u ti o n 

C ontr ol Act 

(FWPCA)

The 1972 am endm ent s e s ta b lis h re s e a rc h pr og ra m s fo r th e p re v e n ti o n , re d u c ti o n , an d e li m in a ti o n o f p o llu tio n in n a v ig a b le w ate rs o f th e 

U ni te d S ta te s . S p e c if ic a lly , th e ag en cy mus t re n d e r te c h n ic a l a d v ic e , an d conduct re s e a rc h , in v e s t ig a ti o n s , experi m ents , tr a in in g , d e m o n str a ti o n s, su rv e y s, an d s tu d ie s ; e s ta b lis h ad v is o ry co m m itte es to e v a lu a te re s e a rc h p ro g re ss an d p ro p o s a ls ; e s ta b lis h a w ate r q u a lity s u r v e illa n c e sy stem to m onitor th e q u a lity of n av ig ab le w ate rs and i n i t i a t e s tu d ie s m easu ri ng th e s o c ia l and eco nomic c o s ts and b e n e f its o f w ate r p o llu tio n c o n tr o l a c t i v i t i e s . The Admini­ s t r a t o r mus t e s ta b lis h f ie ld la b o r a to r ie s an d re s e a rc h f a c i l i t i e s , in v e s tig a te th e har m fu l e f f e c ts o f p o llu ta n ts on th e h e a lt h and w e lf a re o f p e rs o n s , and make a co m pre hen si ve stu dy o f th e p o ll u ti o n 

o f th e G re at L akes. O il s p i l l s an d th erm al d is c h a rg e mu st be in v e s tig a te d . A m aj or re s e a rc h de ve lo pm en t an d dem onst ra ti on e f f o r t i s re q u ir e d to dev el op c o n tr o l te chnolo gy and man agem ent metho ds n e c e s sa ry to e li m in a te th e d is c h a rg e o f p o llu ta n ts in to 

w at er w ay s.

Safe D rink in g 

W ater A ct , 

(SDWA)

The A d m in is tr a to r may co ndu ct re s e a rc h , s tu d ie s , and dem o n st ra ti o n s r e la tin g to th e c a u s e s .d ia g n o s is , tr e a tm e n t, c o n tr o l, and p re v e n tio n o f p h y s ic a l an d m enta l d is e a s e s an d o th e r im pa irm en ts of man r e s u ltin g d i r e c t l y o r in d ir e c tly fro m con ta m in an ts in w a te r, o r to 

th e p ro v is io n o f a dep en dab ly s a fe supply o f d rin k in g w ate r.

Sec . 14 42 , 1444

S o li d Waste 

D is p o sa l A ct, 

(SWDA)

T his Ac t d i r e c t s th e A d m in is tr a to r to conduct an d co o p era te re s e a rc h e f f o r t s r e la tin g to an y ad v ers e h e a lth an d w e lf a re e f f e c ts o f th e r e le a s e in to th e en vironm en t of m a te ria l p re s e n t in s o li d 

w ast e, an d m et ho ds to e li m in a te su ch e f f e c t s ; th e o p e ra ti o n and fin a n c in g o f s o lid w ast e d is p o s a l pro gra m s; th e re d u c ti o n o f th e amount o f su ch w ast e and u n salv a g e a b le m a te r ia ls ; th e de ve lo pm en t and a p p lic a tio n o f new and im proved metho ds o f c o lle c tin g and d is p o sin g o f s o lid w ast e an d p ro c e ss in g an d re c o v e rin g m a te ria ls 

and en er gy fro m s o lid w a ste s.

12
56

Table 3 (Cont.)

Legislation General R&D Authorization Sections

Federal

Insecticide,

Fungicide,

and

Rodenticlde 

Act (FIFRA)

The Administrator shall undertake research to carry out the 

purposes of the Act, giving priority to the development of 

biologically integrated alternatives for pest control. The Administrator shall formulate a national plan for monitoring pesticides 

and undertake activities in suppor of it.

20, 27

Public

Health Servic< 

Act (PHSA)

The Administrator, under the Public Health Service Act, has 

authority to determine levels of radiation in the environment, 

their pathways to man, and the health risks from these doses. EPA 

is cooperating in a study of health effects of radiation along with 

monitoring the environment (particularly around nuclear power 

plants) to calculate the populatio n’s total exposure to various 

forms of radiation. EPA is also conducting a complete review of 

poesent radiation standards, along with an assessment of the entire 

nuclear fuel cycle.

301

Noise Control 

Act (NCA)

This law enables the Administrator to establish a comprehensive 

research program in the area of noise. Sucha a program enables

EPA to undertake the necessary investigations into the health 

effects of noise under varying conditions of magnitude, duration, 

background, etc. Such information is currently lacking in most 

areas. This program examines those technological aspects of noise 

control and abatement not currently being treated.

Sec. 14, 19

Marine 

Protection, 

Research and 

Sanctuaries

Act (MPRSA)

The Administrator in coordination with the Secretary of Commerce 

and the Coast Guard shall initiate a comprehensive and continuing 

program of monitoring and research regarding the effects of the 

dumping of material into the ocean water or waters which ebb or 

flow into the Great Lakes and report the effects not less frequently 

then annually. The Administrator is responsible for offering 

consultation to the Secretary of Commerce on the possible longrange effects of pollution, overfishing and man-induced changes of 

ocean ecosystems.

201, 202

National 

Environmental 

Policy Act 

(NEPA)

The National Environmental Policy Act October of 1969 (NEPA) 

requires Federal Agencies to prepare environmental impact statements 

(E1S) for legislative proposals and for other "major federal actions 

that significantly affect the quality of a human environment." In 

preparing these EIS ’s, a Federal agency must consult with other 

agencies having Jurisdiction by law or special expertise over such 

environmental considerations. Since EPA's purview is the total 

environment, it must be consulted for most EIS's.

13

102(2)(C)
57

n ew ly e m erg in g p ro b le m s o r on im p ro v in g th e q u a l i t y o f 

e x i s t i n g a b a te m en t an d m o n ito r in g m et hods an d e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

q u a l i t y an d e f f e c t s d a t a .

Of c o u r s e , ORD w i l l dr aw t o t h e maximum e x t e n t p o s s i b l e 

on r e s e a r c h b e in g fu n d ed and c o n d u c te d b y o t h e r go v ern m e n t 

a g e n c i e s , in d u s t r y an d f o r e i g n c o u n t r i e s . ORD i s 

c o n t i n u a l l y e x p lo r in g o t h e r w a y s t o o b t a in an d t r a n s f e r 

d a t a an d t e c h n o lo g y .

P e r s o n n e l l i m i t a t i o n s h a v e ha d a s i m i l a r c o n s t r a i n i n g 

e f f e c t . R e c e n t ly , m ajo r d o l l a r r e s o u r c e s w ere p r o v id e d t o 

EPA f o r a m u lt ia g e n c y e n v ir o n m e n ta l r e s e a r c h p ro gra m to 

p a r a l l e l an d le a d ERDA’ S p ro g ram o f e n e r g y d e v e lo p m e n t. 

W h il e fu n d s w er e p r o v id e d , p e r s o n n e l t o s t a f f t h i s 

m u lt ia g e n c y e n e r g y p ro gr am h ad t o be dr aw n fr om OR D' s 

e x i s t i n g s t a f f .

O ver t h e p a s t fe w y e a r s , t h e s t a f f a v a i l a b l e f o r th e 

r e s e a r c h pro gra m has c o n t i n u a l l y d im in is h e d (s e e T a b le 4 ) . 

D u rin g t h e same p e r io d , new p ro b le m a r e a s h a ve em er ge d t h a t 

r e q u i r e p e r s o n n e l w it h d i f f e r e n t s k i l l s o r in c r e a s e d 

e f f o r t . As a r e s u l t , ORD h a s s h i f t e d s t a f f a n d / o r 

c o n t r a c t e d o u t g r e a t e r p o r t i o n s o f th e w or k.

In FY 19 7 5 , t h e r e was a m a jo r r e e x a m in a tio n o f ORD 's 

mode o f c o n d u c tin g i t s o p e r a t i o n s t h a t h a s c o n tin u e d in FY 

19 7 6 . W h il e t h i s h a s r e s u l t e d i n a s h i f t o f p e r s o n n e l from 

a d m i n i s t r a t i v e d u t ie s t o d i r e c t r e s e a r c h f u n c t i o n s , t h e r e 

re m a in s a s k i l l mix p ro b le m . The s u b s t a n t i a l fu n d in g 

i n c r e a s e f o r th e e n v ir o n m e n ta l an d e n e r g y pro gra m in FY 

19 7 5 , c o u p le d w it h a d e c l i n e i n s t a f f , h a s r e q u i r e d a 

f u r t h e r s h i f t in th e b a la n c e b e tw ee n in h o u s e an d e x tr a m u r a l 

w or k to w a rd th e l a t t e r .

A c c o r d i n g l y , t o a d d r e s s p e r s o n n e l r e s o u r c e n e e d s , 

EPA/ORD i s c o n d u c tin g an in - d e p t h r e v ie w o f i t s r e s e a r c h 

n e e d s in r e l a t i o n to t h e s k i l l m ix an d s t a f f i n g l e v e l s 

g iv e n c u r r e n t an d a n t i c i p a t e d r e s e a r c h r e q u ir e m e n ts . The 

s t u d y w i l l in c lu d e a p la n t o a l t e r th e t e c h n i c a l s k i l l mix 

o v e r a p e r io d o f y e a r s w it h a m in im al i n f l u x o f new 

p o s i t i o n s t a r g e t e d a t s p e c i f i c s k i l l s n e e d e d . ORD w i l l 

make a d ju s tm e n ts by f i l l i n g v a c a n c ie s a s t h e y o c c u r w it h 

s p e c i f i c s k i l l s t h a t a r e n e e d e d .

14
58

T a b le 4. ORD A u th o riz e d P o s i t i o n s FY 19 73 - FY 19 76

FY 1973 FY 1974 FY 1975 FY 1976

F u l l Tim e P erm an en t 18 97 184 2 1753 175 2

R e im b u rs a b le 134 113 112 82

TOTAL 203-1 1955 1865 183 4

PROGRAM PR IO RI TI ES AND TRENDS

The p ro p o s e d r e s o u r c e n e e d s f o r ORD’ s p ro g ra m a r e 

p r e s e n te d i n T a b le 5. Th e b u d g e t i s b ro k e n o u t by r e s e a r c h 

p ro g ra m an d a p p r o p r i a t i o n . T h e se p ro g ra m s a r e i n d i v i d u a l l y 

d e s c r ib e d in f u l l d e t a i l i n s u b s e q u e n t s e c t i o n s . FY 1975 

fu n d in g i s a ls o show n t o s e r v e a s a b a s e . F u r t h e r , tw o 

b u d g e t o p t i o n s a r e p r e s e n te d i n T a b le s 5a an d 5b t o sh ow a 

le v e l b u d g e t f o r FY 197 7 and b e y o n d .

T a b le 5 sh ow s t h a t o v e r t h e f i v e - y e a r p e r io d FY 19 76 -F Y 

1980, p r i o r i t y has b e e n g iv e n to s t r e n g th e n i n g t h e H e a lt h 

an d E c o lo g i c a l E f f e c t s P ro g ra m t o d e v e lo p th e d a ta b a s e 

n e e d e d t o s u p p o r t EPA’ s r e g u l a t o r y a c t i v i t i e s . R e c e n t 

j u d i c i a l d e c i s i o n s r e q u i r e EPA to d e v e lo p m or e d e t a i l e d 

in f o r m a t io n on e f f e c t s o f p o l l u t a n t s .

A n o th e r p r i o r i t y a r e a i s t h e I n d u s t r i a l P r o c e s s e s 

P ro g ra m . The p ro p o se d " s p ik e " in c r e a s e in .r e s o u r c e s f o r 

i n d u s t r i a l p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l te c h n o lo g y R6D i s n e e d e d i f 

th e a p p r o a c h in g 198 5 w a te r q u a l i t y q o a ls a r e to b e mor e 

c l o s e l y m e t. T h is " s p ik e " i n c r e a s e in r e s o u r c e s w i l l 

e n s u r e t h a t f u l l - s c a l e d e m o n s tr a tio n s of c o n t r o l te c h n o lo g y 

r e q u i r e d by FWPCA c a n b e c o m p le te d f o r th o s e i n d u s t r i e s 

h a v in g t o x i c e f f l u e n t s m o st h a rm fu l to th e e n v ir o n m e n t. 

ORD w i l l c o n ti n u e to r e l y h e a v i l y on i n d u s t r i a l e x p e r t i s e 

an d r e s o u r c e s f o r m ajo r c o n t r i b u t i o n s t o d e v e lo p th e n e e d e d 

new te c h n o lo g y .

P r i o r i t y i s a l s o b e in g g iv e n t o th e M o n ito rin g an d 

T e c h n ic a l S u p p o rt P ro gra m . L ik e e f f e c t s w ork , r e s e a r c h in 

m o n ito r in g an d q u a l i t y a s s u r a n c e i s m o tiv a te d by th e n eed 

f o r b e t t e r d a ta to s u p p o r t A ge nc y r e g u l a t o r y a c t i o n s . 

C r e d i b i l i t y o f EPA’ s a c t i o n d e p e n d s g r e a t l y on th e q u a l i t y 

o f p o l l u t a n t m easu re m en t and m o n ito r in g d a t a . ORD m ust

15
Table 5. Pro jected ORD Resource Needs ($M)*

Program Area FY 1975 FY 1976 FY 1977 FY 1978 FY 1979 FY 1980

He alth and Eco logica l

E ffects 64 72 67 88 90 92

In d u s tr ia l Processes 23 20 20 54 60 32

Pub lic Sector A c tiv it ie s 28 30 28 37 37 38

M on ito rin g and Technical 

Sup port 19 27 27 35 37 37

Oth er (ORD Program Sup port & 

Management ADP, e tc .) 9 7 7 7 8 8

Su btotal Base ORD 143 156 149 221 232 207

Energ y/E nvironm ent 134 100 96 118 121 120

To tal ORD Program 277 256 245 339 353 327

Does no t includ e Agency program management co sts charged again st R&D appro priation.
Table 5a. Op tion A:- ORD Level Budget w ith "S pike" Inc rea se ($M)

Program Area FY 1975 FY 1976 FY 1977 FY 1978 FY 1979 FY 1980

He alth and Eco logica l

E ffects 64 72 67 56 55 64

In d u s tr ia l Processes- 23 20 20 54 60 32

Pub lic S e c to r A c tiv it ie s 28 30 28 20 19 27

M onito rin g and Technic al 

Sup port 19 27 27 24 24 30

Oth er (ORD Program Sup port & 

Management, ADP, e tc .) 9 7 7 7 7 7

Su btotal Base R&D 143 156 149 161 165 160

Energ y/E nvi ronment 134 100 96 84 80 85

To tal ORD Program 277 256 245 245 245 245

* Does no t includ e Agency program management co sts charged again st R&D appro priation.
Table 5b. Option B: ORD Level Budget w ithout "S pike " Inc rea se ($M)

Program Area FY 1975 FY 1976 FY 1977 FY 1978 FY 1979 FY 1980

He alth and Eco logica l

E ffects 64 72 67 69 69 69

In d u s tr ia l Processes 23 20 20 16 16 16

Public S e c to r A c tiv it ie s 28 30 28 32 31 31

M on ito rin g and Technic al 

Support 19 27 27 31 32 32

Other (ORD Program Support & 

Management, ADP, e tc .) 9 7 7 7 7 7

Su btotal Base R&D 143 156 149 155 155 155

Energ y/E nvi ronraent 134 100 96 90 90 90

Total ORD Program 277 256 245 245 245 245

Does no t includ e Agency program management costs charged again st R&D appro priation.
62

e x te n d i t s a c t i v i t i e s i n t h i s a r e a , e s p e c i a l l y i f EPA i s 't o 

s a t i s f y r e q u ir e m e n ts o f d r i n k in g w a te r l e g i s l a t i o n an d o f 

FWPCA. T h is p ro g ra m w i l l e x p e r ie n c e g r a d u a l g ro w th o v e r 

th e n e x t f i v e y e a r s .

I n a d d i t i o n to OR D's p r o j e c t e d r e s o u r c e n e e d s sh ow n in 

T a b le 5, tw o o p tio n s a r e p r e s e n te d on th e b o u n d a ry 

c o n d it io n t h a t th e t o t a l r e s o u r c e s f o r FY 1977 an d b ey o n d 

w i l l re m a in a t th e FY 1977 l e v e l . The o p tio n p r e s e n t e d i n 

T a b le 5a p r o v id e s t h e r e s o u r c e s n eed ed f o r c o n t r o l 

te c h n o lo g y R&D i f th e g o a ls in FWPCA a r e to be m or e c l o s e l y 

m et by i n d u s t r i a l d i s c h a r g e r s . In o r d e r to accom m odate th e 

'• s p ik e '' i n c r e a s e f o r t h e i n d u s t r i a l p ro gra m w i t h i n th e 

c o n s t r a i n t o f a le v e l b u d g e t f o r FY 197 7 th ro u g h FY 1980, 

s i g n i f i c a n t r e d u c t io n s i n o t h e r ORD p ro g ra m s w oul d h a v e t o 

be m ad e. S p e c i f i c a l l y , r e s e a r c h on h e a l t h and e c o l o g i c a l 

e f f e c t s , t r a n s p o r t an d f a t e o f p o l l u t a n t s , w a ste m an agem ent 

and w a te r s u p p ly w ou ld h a v e t o b e c u t b a c k . M o d e ra te 

r e d u c t io n s w o u ld be r e q u i r e d i n m o n ito r in g te c h n i q u e s and 

e q u ip m e n t d e v e lo p m e n t. A d d itio n a l r e d u c t io n s m u st a l s o be 

ma de i n t h e e n e rg y /e n v ir o n m e n t p ro g ra m , p ro b a b ly i n th e 

c o n t r o l te c h n o lo g y a r e a w h ic h w ould s t r e t c h o u t th e 

d e v e lo p m e n t o f t h i s te c h n o lo g y .

A g a in , w ith i n th e l e v e l r e s o u r c e c o n s t r a i n t . O p ti o n B 

w hic h i s sh o w in in T a b le 5 b , t r a d e s o f f th e " s p ik e " 

i n c r e a s e f o r i n d u s t r i a l p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l te c h n o lo g y R&D 

f o r i n c r e a s e s in w a te r s u p p ly , m o n ito r in g and t e c h n i c a l 

s u p p o r t, a n d h e a lt h an d e c o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s r e s e a r c h , 

w ith o u t th e " s p ik e " i n c r e a s e , t h e r e w i l l n o t be s i g n i f i c a n t 

a d v a n c e s in c o n t r o l te c h n o lo g y t o im p a c t th e a c h ie v e m e n t o f 

th e 19 85 w a te r q u a l i t y g o a l s . T h e r e f o r e th e i n d u s t r i a l 

p ro g ra m i s s t r e t c h e d o u t e v e n f u r t h e r b e in g re d u c e d fr om $4 

t o $1 0 m i l l i o n t o p ro v id e r e s o u r c e s i n o th e r a r e a s . A g a in , 

su c h p ro g ra m in c r e a s e s c a n o n ly b e a c c o m p li s h e d by some 

r e d u c t io n in t h e e n e rg y /e n v ir o n m e n t p ro g ra m .

I n t e r n a l p r i o r i t i e s o f s e v e r a l p ro q ra m s w i l l s h i f t o v e r 

th e n e x t f i v e y e a r s . T h ese s h i f t s a r e d e s c r ib e d in g r e a t e r 

d e t a i l i n P a r t I I . B ut b e f o r e t h e d e t a i l e d p ro g ra m 

d e s c r i p t i o n s a r e g iv e n , a l l th e i n t e r c o n n e c t i o n s o f ORD’s 

e f f o r t s m ust b e u n d e rs to o d .

19
63

ORD PROGRAM OVERVIEW

O R D 's r e s e a r c h , d e v e lo p m e n t a n d d e m o n s t r a t i o n 

a c t i v i t i e s m u st b e v ie w e d a s a n i n t e r r e l a t e d s e t . ORD's 

" m i s s i o n - o r i e n t e d 1' o r " p r o b l e m - o r i e n t e d " a p p r o a c h t o 

s p e c i f i c p r o b le m s o f t e n r e q u i r e s c o o r d i n a t i o n o f ORD 

o f f i c e s .

F o r e x a m p le , t h e t o t a l ORD e f f o r t c a n b e d e s c r i b e d a s 

a n i n t e r c o n n e c t e d s y s te m o f r e s e a r c h p u r s u i t s w i t h s i x 

m a jo r e le m e n t s a s i n d i c a t e d i n F i g u r e 2 . T h e s e e le m e n ts 

a r e : (1 ) e n v ir o n m e n t a l l o a d i n g a n d c o n t a m i n a t i o n 

a s s o c i a t e d w i t h hu man a c t i v i t i e s a n d n a t u r a l s o u r c e s ; (2) 

e n v i r o n m e n t a l p r o c e s s e s t h a t r e s u l t i n p o l l u t a n t 

t r a n s f o r m a t i o n , t r a n s p o r t , a n d re m o v a l p r o c e s s e s ; (3) 

p o l l u t a n t i d e n t i f i c a t i o n , c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n a n d m e a s u r e m e n t; 

(4 ) d e v e lo p m e n t o f m e a s u r e m e n t an d m o n it o r i n g m e th o d s ; (5) 

d e t e r m i n a t i o n o f h e a l t h , e c o l o g i c a l a n d o t h e r w e l f a r e 

e f f e c t s ; a n d (6) d e v e lo p m e n t o f a l t e r n a t e c o n t r o l 

t e c h n o l o g i e s a n d m an a g em e n t m e th o d s t o a f f e c t e n v ir o n m e n t a l 

e n h a n c e m e n t a n d r e s t o r a t i o n .

n a t u r a l 

c a n be 

( i . e . , 

a n d o t h e r

T h e e n v ir o n m e n t a l l o a d i n g e le m e n t r e l a t e s t o

l a t t e r s o u r c e s 

m o b ile , p o i n t 

a g r i c u l t u r a l )

a n d m an-m ade " s o u r c e s . " T h e s e 

c h a r a c t e r i z e d a s s t a t i o n a r y o r 

i n d u s t r i a l ) o r n o n p o i n t ( i . e . , 

k i n d s o f hum an , o r m ore s p e c i f i c a l l y , m u n ic i p a l a c t i v i t i e s 

E m i s s io n s a n d w a s te s fro m e a c h s o u r c e m u st b e c h a r a c t e r i z e d 

b y p h y s i c a l a n d c h e m ic a l p r o p e r t i e s i n t h e p r o c e s s s tr e a m 

a n d a t t h e s o u r c e o u t p u t .

E n v ir o n m e n ta l l o a d i n g s a r e s u b j e c t t o c o m p le x p h y s i c a l 

a n d c h e m ic a l t r a n s f o r m a t i o n , t r a n s p o r t a n d re m o v a l 

p r o c e s s e s . T h e s e i n t e r a c t i o n s m u st b e a s s e s s e d an d 

u n d e r s t o o d f o r e n v i r o n m e n t a l p o l l u t a n t s t o b e e f f i c i e n t l y 

c o n t r o l l e d .

C a p a b i l i t i e s t o c h a r a c t e r i z e e n v ir o n m e n t a l c o n ta m in a n ts 

( i . e . , d e te r m i n e t h e i r c h e m ic a l c o m p o s itio n ) a n d m e a su re 

a m b ie n t c o n c e n t r a t i o n s m u s t b e d e v e l o p e d . E f f e c t s r e s e a r c h 

d e p e n d s c r i t i c a l l y on t h e a v a i l a b i l i t y o f e f f e c t i v e 

c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n a n d m o n i t o r i n g t e c h n i q u e s f o r a l l fo rm s o f 

w a s t e s i n c l u d i n g g a s e s , l i q u i d s , s o l i d s an d e n e r g y .

O v e r a l l a s s e s s m e n t o f h e a l t h , e c o l o g i c a l , a n d o t h e r 

w e l f a r e e f f e c t s m u st b e f i g u r e d on c o n c e n t r a t i o n s , a s w e l l 

a s p h y s i c a l p r o p e r t i e s a n d c h e m ic a l c o m p o s i t i o n , o f t h e 

e n v i r o n m e n t a l p o l l u t a n t o b s e r v e d . T h e e le m e n t o f 

e n v i r o n m e n t a l l o a d i n g m u s t p r o v i d e t h e n e c e s s a r y

20
Figure 2. FLOWCHART OF ENVIRONMENTAL R&D

054-
65

q u a n t i t a t i v e and q u a l i t a t i v e in p u t i n t h e p r o p e r fo rm a t t o 

a s s e s s e x p o s u re o f a l l r e c e p t o r s i n c lu d i n q hu m an s, o t h e r 

a n im a ls , p l a n t s , m a t e r i a l s , e t c . The e f f e c t s e le m e n t i s 

c o n c e r n e d w it h a c u t e , s u b a c u te an d c h r o n ic e f f e c t s and 

e f f e c t s c h a r a c t e r i z e d a s r e v e r s i b l e an d i r r e v e r s i b l e . 

S i n c e e s t a b lis h m e n t o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l s t a n d a r d s an d 

r e q u l a t i o n s a r e r e a s o n s f o r much o f t h i s r e s e a r c h , c l o s e 

c o o r d in a t io n an d fe e d b a c k o f e f f e c t s r e s e a r c h an d ab ate m en t 

m eth ods R&D a r e e s s e n t i a l .

The l a s t e le m e n t c o n c e r n s i t s e l f w it h i d e n t i f i c a t i o n 

an d d e v e lo p m e n t o f c o s t - e f f e c t i v e a p p ro a c h e s t o p o ll u t i o n 

c o n t r o l . O b v io u s ly , r e l e v a n t c o s t s , r i s k s an d b e n e f i t s o f 

f e a s i b l e c o n t r o l o p t i o n s m us t be e v a lu a t e d . Such c o n t r o l 

m e a su re s ca n ra n g e fr o m '•hard '’ t e c h n o lo g y m o d if ic a t io n s 

( e . g . , add-o n d e v i c e s , p r o c e s s ch a n g e , r e s o u r c e r e c o v e r y , 

e t c . ) t o s o c io - e c o n o m ic im p le m e n ta tio n in s t r u m e n t s ( i . e . , 

i n c e n t i v e s , la n d u s e r e g u l a t i o n s , e t c . ) . F i n a l l y , a 

q u a l i t y a s s u r a n c e e f f o r t o f m o n it o r in g m eth ods i s r e q u ir e d 

f o r im p le m e n ta tio n an d e f f e c t i v e e n fo r c e m e n t o f any 

s ta n d a r d o r r e g u l a t i o n .

ORD’ s 14 r e s e a r c h su b p ro g ra m s a r e i n t e g r a t e d i n t o t h i s 

ku pd o f fr a m ew o rk . No one R&D e f f o r t ca n s t a n d a lo n e ,

1 . e . , m os t o f ORD’ s o u t p u t s c o n ta in i n t e r r e l a t e d in p u t s o f 

m or e th a n on e su b p ro g ra m . Th e m is s io n o f EPA r e q u i r e s su ch 

an d t h e n a tu r e o f s o l u t i o n s t o e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s 

de man d no l e s s .

P a r t I I g i v e s a d e t a i l e d lo o k a t e a c h o f th e 

su b p ro g ra m s gro u p ed w i t h i n th e pro gr am s t r u c t u r e in T a b le

2 . F o r ea ch su b p ro g ra m , t h e r e w i l l b e : a d e s c r i p t i o n o f 

t h e r e s e a r c h e f f o r t an d an i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o f b o th n e a r-te rm 

an d f i v e - y e a r o u t p u t s . A b ro a d o v e r v ie w o f e a c h pro gr am i s 

a l s o g iv e n .

79-3 97 0 - 77 - 6

22
66

PART I I

Pr og ra m D e s c r ip tio n s

23
67

HEALTH AND ECOLOGICAL EFFECTS PROGRAM

O v erv ie w

The H e a lt h 

fu n d a m e n ta l t o 

s t a n d a r d s , and

a n d E c o lo g ic a l E f f e c t s P ro gra m i s 

E PA 's r e s p o n s i b i l i t y t o s e t c r i t e r i a , 

g u i d e l i n e s t o p r o t e c t an d e n h a n c e 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y . S c i e n t i f i c in f o r m a t io n on huma n 

h e a l t h e f f e c t s o f p o l l u t a n t s and e c o s y s te m s t r u c t u r e , 

f u n c t io n a n d p a r t s i s e s s e n t i a l i n d e v e lo p m e n t o f 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y s t a n d a r d s an d e f f e c t i v e p o l l u t i o n 

c o n t r o l s t r a t e g i e s . Th e l i n k b e tw e e n e x i s t e n c e o f a

dam agin g p o l l u t a n t an d th e way i t g o t i n t o th e e n v ir o n m e n t 

m u st a l s o be u n d e r s to o d by p o lic y - m a k e r s . T h a t i s why 

r e s e a r c h on p o l l u t a n t t r a n s p o r t and f a t e i s e s s e n t i a l .

The H e a lth a n d E c o lo g ic a l E f f e c t s P ro g ra m p r o v id e s 

in f o r m a tio n f o r e s t a b l i s h m e n t an d r e e v a l u a t i o n o f w a te r 

q u a l i t y c r i t e r i a , a i r q u a l i t y c r i t e r i a , o c e a n d is p o s a l 

c r i t e r i a , p e s t i c i d e r e g i s t r a t i o n g u i d e l i n e s , e f f l u e n t 

s t a n d a r d s f o r t o x i c an d h a z a rd o u s m a t e r i a l s and r a d i a t i o n 

s t a n d a r d s .

S tu d ie s w i l l c o n tin u e in th e H e a lth E f f e c t s S u bpro gra m 

on p o l l u t a n t s w ith s e t a m b ie n t a i r q u a l i t y s ta n d a r d s t o 

e n a b le a c o n t i n u i n g r e e v a l u a t i o n o f s u c h s t a n d a r d s . Such 

r e s e a r c h w i l l g r a d u a l ly be re d u c e d o v e r th e n e x t f i v e y e a r s 

w h ile r e s e a r c h ( i . e . , -d e v e lo p in g d o s e - r e s p o n s e in f o rm a tio n ) 

on n o n c r i t e r i a p o l l u t a n t s , e s p e c i a l l y * s u l f a t e s , n i t r a t e s , 

a n d r e s p i r a b l e su s p e n d e d p a r t i c u l a t e s w i l l be a c c e l e r a t e d . 

R e s e a rc h on e n v ir o n m e n ta lly - in d u c e d c a r c i n o g e n e s i s h a s j u s t 

b eg u n and w i l l fo c u s on q u a n t i t a t i v e a s s e s s m e n t o f 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l l e v e l s o f c a r c in o g e n s and a s s o c i a t e d r i s k 

f a c t o r s . E f f o r t s t o i d e n t i f y c h r o n ic e f f e c t s o f e x p o s u re 

t o s p e c i f i c e n v ir o n m e n ta l c h e m ic a l a g e n ts w i l l be e x p a n d e d . 

A c o m p re h e n siv e i n h a l a t i o n to x ic o lo g y an d b io m e d ic a l d a ta 

b a s e w i l l a l s o b e d e v e lo p e d t o a s c e r t a i n h e a l t h r i s k s o f 

e m is s io n p r o d u c ts fr om c a t a l y t i c c o n v e r t e r - t r e a t e d a u to 

e x h a u s t an d p o t e n t i a l c a t a l y s t a t t r i t i o n p r o d u c ts su c h a s 

s u l f u r i c a c i d ; s u l f a t e s , c a rb o n d i s u l f i d e , h y d ro g e n 

s u l f i d e , p a lla d iu m , p la tin u m an d al um in um o x id e .

H e a lt h e f f e c t s r e s e a r c h on p e s t i c i d e s w i l l i n c r e a s i n g l y 

r e c e i v e e m p h a s is a n d w i l l p ro v id e n e c e s s a r y s u p p o r t t o 

r e g u l a t o r y an d c o n t r o l f u n c t i o n s o f EPA i n r e g a r d to r i s k s 

o f p e s t i c i d e s t o p o p u la t io n g ro u p s i n g e n e r a l .

24
68

R e s e a rc h on c h e m ic a l s u b s t i t u t e s p r o v id e s s c i e n t i f i c 

in fo r m a t io n on co m po un ds i n c u r r e n t u se t h a t EPA c o n s id e r s 

a s p o t e n t i a l s u b s t i t u t e s f o r p e s t i c i d e s t h a t h a v e be en 

su sp en d ed o r c a n c e l l e d . ORD 's a c t i v i t i e s in t h i s a re a h e lp 

t h e O f f i c e o f P e s t i c i d e s Pro gr am s (OPP) i n im p le m e n ta ti o n 

o f t h e F e d e r a l I n s e c t i c i d e , F u n g ic id e , and R o d e n tic id e A ct 

(FI FRA) a t b o th f e d e r a l an d S t a t e l e v e l s .

R e s e a r c h on h e a l t h i m p l i c a t i o n s o f la n d d i s p o s a l o f 

w a s te w a te r s an d s lu d g e s ( e . g . , e f f e c t s o f a e r o s o l s 

c o n t a in in g b a c t e r i a o r v ir u s e s ) h as r e c e n t l y i n c r e a s e d and 

w i l l c o n tin u e t o r e c e i v e h ig h p r i o r i t y .

A r e l a t e d su b p ro g ra m . W at er S u p p ly , su p p le m e n ts 

r e s e a r c h in t h e H e a lt h E f f e c t s Subpro gra m w it h a d d i t i o n a l 

f u n d s . T h is r e s e a r c h f o c u s e s on h e a l t h e f f e c t s o f 

c o n ta m in a n ts fo u n d in d r in k in g w a t e r . D e t a i l s o f w a te r 

s u p p ly h e a lt h e f f e c t s r e s e a r c h a r e d is c u s s e d in th e W at er 

S u p p ly Subp ro gra m .

Th e E c o l o g i c a l P r o c e s s e s and E f f e c t s Su bpro gr am w i l l 

g r a d u a l l y b ro a d en i t s c u r r e n t e f f o r t t o d e v e lo p w a te r 

q u a l i t y r e q u ir e m e n ts f o r r e p r e s e n t a t i v e o r g a n is m s . I t w i l l 

in c lu d e a g r e a t e r em p h asis on e v a l u a t i o n o f w h o le 

e c o s y s te m s an d on d e v e lo p in g e c o l o g i c a l m o d els w it h m in im al 

in fo r m a t io n r e q u ir e m e n ts . H ow ev er , t h e n ee d t o d e te rm in e 

c r i t e r i a f o r s p e c i f i c p o l l u t a n t s w i l l c o n t in u e .

As c u r r e n t l y r e q u ir e d c r i t e r i a a r e d e v e lo p e d , r e s o u r c e s 

w i l l s h i f t to w a rd i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o f new p o l l u t a n t p ro b le m s. 

E s p e c i a l l y em p h asiz ed w i l l be d e v e lo p m e n t o f a t h e o r e t i c a l 

u n d e r s ta n d in g an d a b i l i t y t o p r e d i c t an d a s s e s s em ergin g 

p ro b le m s, d e v e lo p m e n t o f e c o l o g i c a l c r i t e r i a f o r o t h e r 

p o l l u t a n t s an d r e v i s i o n , w h ere n e c e s s a r y , o f a lr e a d y - 

e s t a b l i s h e d c r i t e r i a .

E e c a u s e t r a n s f o r m a t io n an d f a t e o f a p o ll u t a n t in an 

e c o s y s te m i s an e c o l o g i c a l p r o c e s s , th e E c o l o g i c a l 

P r o c e s s e s an d E f f e c t s Su bpro gr am n o t o n ly r e s e a r c h e s 

e f f e c t s o f p o l l u t a n t s on e c o s y s te m s an d t h e i r co m p o n en ts , 

b u t a l s o r e s e a r c h e s e f f e c t s o f e c o s y s te m s on p o l l u t a n t s . 

Su ch c o n s i d e r a t i o n s a r e im p o rta n t d e te r m in a n ts o f how 

q u i c k l y p o l l u t a n t s w i l l be tra n s fo rm e d i n t o h a rm le s s 

m a t e r i a l s , p e r s i s t an d a c c u m u la te t o d a n g e r o u s l e v e l s o r be 

ch a n g e d i n t o mor e h a rm fu l m a t e r i a l s th a n th e p a r e n t 

s u b s t a n c e . T h a t i s why r e s e a r c h d a ta on th e f a t e , 

t r a n s p o r t , an d e c o s y s te m im p a ct o f s p e c i f i c p o l l u t a n t s i s 

n e c e s s a r y t o s u p p o r t " e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y c r i t e r i a 

d e v e lo p m e n t an d p e s t i c i d e r e g i s t r a t i o n .

25
69

Information on the fate and transport of pollutants in 

time and space is needed by E PA’s regional offices and 

States to implement standards, basin planning, and waste 

load allocations. Specific emphasis will be on: transport 

and fate of metals in soils and plants; coupling nonpoint 

source loading models to basin water qu ality models for use 

in assessing water quality impacts of both nonpoint and 

point sources; devel opment of pollution loading functions 

by source with appropriate user manuals; assessment of the 

air transport and alteration of sulfates on both a regional 

and global scale; research on the formation and transport 

of oxidants locally and regionally; and continuation of the 

St. Louis Regional Air Pollution Study (RAPS).

Emerging problems, such as those of freon and other 

potentially hazardous substances, will likely receive 

increased attention. Resear ch will focus on what the longterm pollutant loading capacity of the environment is 

globally, regionally, and locally; what the likely effects 

are of different pollutant load levels; and on predictive 

capability for forecasting local, regional, and global 

environmental quality under varying pollutant loadings and 

environmental conditions.

Funds from ORD's Energy/Environment Program supplement 

much of the research in the Health and Ecological Effects 

Program. In some cases such funding allows for more 

intensive research in activities already planned by the 

base program. In other cases, research activities with a 

much broader scope are made possible. The comprehensive 

EPA-coordinated Energy/Environment Program is discussed 

later.

Another emphasis in the Health and Ecological Effects 

Program will be on socio-economic assessments. This work 

will focus on: asses sment of health and we lfare benefits of 

pollution abatement; development of methods for predicting 

and evaluating pollution problems related to exposure; and 

economic impact assessment. Emphasis in benefit studies is 

expected to be on pesticides, toxic substances, and 

drinking water. Ad hoc studies will also be conducted on 

specific EPA issues as they arise.

26
70

H e a lth E f f e c t s

S u b p ro g ra m D e s c r i p tio n

E n v ir o n m e n ta l h e a l t h h a s em erg ed a s a m a jo r new 

r e s e a r c h a r e a . EPA i s r e s p o n s ib l e f o r t r a n s l a t i n g r e s u l t s 

o f t h i s r e s e a r c h i n t o e f f e c t i v e c o n t r o l p o l i c y . E PA 's 

h e a l t h e f f e c t s r e s e a r c h i s c a r r i e d o u t by th e l a r g e s t 

s i n g l e g ro u p o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l h e a l t h p r o f e s s i o n a l s e v e r 

a s s e m b le d . T h is p ro g ra m i s d iv id e d i n t o t h e f o llo w in g 

s e v e n m ajo r c a t e g o r i e s :

• A ir E x p o su re

A ir p o l l u t i o n h a s b e e n h i s t o r i c a l l y re c o g n iz e d a s an 

e n v ir o n m e n t f a c t o r i n p u b li c h e a l t h . In i t s f i r s t f i v e 

y e ^ r s o f e x i s t e n c e , EPA h a s c o n tin u e d a n d ex p an d ed a i r 

p o l l u t i o n r e s e a r c h o f i t s p r e d e c e s s o r a g e n c ie s . 

A lt h o u g h much re m a in 's t o be le a r n e d , m e a n in g fu l 

p r o g r e s s h a s b e e n ma de to w a rd u n d e r s ta n d in g th e 

r e l a t i o n s h i p s b e tw e e n a i r q u a l i t y an d p u b li c h e a l t h . 

The d a ta o a s i s f o r th e e x i s t i n g s i x a m b ie n t A ir Q u a lity 

S ta n d a r d s i s b e in g s u b s t a n t i a l l y im p ro v e d an d in c r e a s e d 

e m p h a sis i s b e in g g iv e n t o c a t e g o r i e s o f a i r p o l l u t a n t s 

n o t c o n t r o l l e d no w. A ls o , s in c e 70% o f o u r ti m e i s 

s p e n t in d o o r s , e m p h a s is sh o u ld b e g iv e n t o a s s e s s i n g 

t h e h e a lt h h a z a r d s a s s o c i a t e d w ith in d o o r p o l l u t a n t 

l e v e l s .

• T r a n s p o r ta t io n

A lt h o u g h q u i t e p r o p e r ly a s u b c a te g o r y o f A ir 

E x p o s u r e s ,, p u b li c h e a l t h i m p l i c a t i o n s o f p o l l u t a n t s 

s p e c i f i c a l l y a s s o c i a t e d w it h t r a n s p o r t a t i o n m e r it 

s e p a r a te a t t e n t i o n . Com pl ex i n t e r a c t i o n s o f m o b il e 

s o u r c e e m is s io n s c o m p lic a te s tu d y o f t h e i r h e a l t h 

e f f e c t s . R e l a t i v e l y r a p i d i n t r o d u c t i o n o f new c o n t r o l 

te c h n o lo g y and f u e l a d d i t i v e s f u r t h e r c o m p lic a te s 

d e f i n i t i o n o f h a z a r d s a s s o c ia te d w ith a l t e r e d 

e m is s io n s . A t t e n t i o n s p e c i f i c a l l y i s d i r e c t e d to 

e v a lu a tio n o f h e a l t h i m p l i c a t i o n s o f c a t a l y t i c d e v ic e s , 

t h e s h i f t to y a r d i n c r e a s e d u se o f d ie s e l- p o w e r e d 

v e h i c l e s and i n t r o d u c t i o n o f s y n t h e t i c f u e l s .

• W at er E x p o su re s

As w it h a i r p o l l u t i o n , p u b li c h e a l t h c o n s e q u e n c e s o f 

w a te r p o l l u t i o n h a v e a lo n g h i s t o r y . Two s a l i e n t 

d i f f e r e n c e s e x i s t , h o w e v e r. Man co n su m es w a te r a s he

27
71

d o e s a i r , b u t n o t c o n ti n u o u s l y . F o r t h a t , r e a s o n , 

p o l l u t e d w a te r c a n b e t r e a t e d b e f o r e c o n su m p ti o n , 

w h e re a s p o l l u t e d a i r , f o r m o st p r a c t i c a l p u rp o s e s , 

c a n n o t. A ir p o l l u t i o n h e a l t h r e s e a r c h i s r e c e n t 

co m p are d to w a te r h e a l t h r e s e a r c h . T h e re a r e v e ry 

a d e q u a te d a ta f o r c o n t r o l o f m ic r o b ia l w a te r p o l l u t i o n 

co m p are d t o any p a r t o f t h e d a ta b a s e f o r a i r p o l l u t i o n 

c o n t r o l . F i n a l l y , a m a jo r a s p e c t o f w a te r e x p o su re 

in v o l v e s u se o f w a te r f o r r e c r e a t i o n a l p u r p o s e s , 

p ro d u c in g a m a jo r i n t e r f a c e b etw een h e a l t h e f f e c t s an d 

e c o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s r e s e a r c h .

• R a d ia n t E n erg y

G re a t d is c r e p a n c y e x i s t s b etw een h e a l t h s t a n d a r d s 

f o r n o n io n iz in g e le c tr o m a g n e ti c e n e rg y e x p o s u r e i n t h i s 

c o u n tr y and a b r o a d . L a rg e d i f f e r e n c e s i n hum an 

e x p o s u re t o e le c tr o m a g n e ti c e n e rg y d e n s i t i e s e x i s t . 

I n c r e a s e d u s e o f t h e e le c tr o m a g n e ti c sp e c tru m f o r 

c o m m u n ic a ti o n a n d p o t e n t i a l l y f o r pow er t r a n s m i s s i o n 

r e q u i r e im p ro v ed u n d e r s ta n d in g o f n o n th e rm a l e f f e c t s o f 

hu man e x p o s u re t o n o n io n i z in g r a d i a t i o n .

I n c r e a s e d u s e o f n u c le a r pow er g e n e r a t i o n w i l l 

r e q u i r e in c r e a s e d f u e l r e p r o c e s s i n g w ith t r i t i u m an d 

K ry p to n -8 5 r e l e a s e i n t o th e e n v ir o n m e n t. EPA i s 

c o n ti n u in g h e a l t h r e s e a r c h in t h i s a r e a w ith r e s e a r c h 

p la n n e d to be p h a s e d i n t o t h a t o f ERDA o v e r th e n e x t 

tw o y e a r s .

• P e s t i c i d e s

I n c r e a s e d u s e o f p e s t i c i d e s ( h e r b i c i d e s , 

i n s e c t i c i d e s , r o d e n t i c i d e s an d f u n g i c i d e s , , im p ro v ed 

u n d e r s ta n d in g o f s o i l c h e m is tr y and d e v e lo p m e n t o f new 

p l a n t s t r a i n s i n a d d i t i o n t o in c r e a s e d u s e o f

f e r t i l i z e r s h a v e r e v o l u t i o n i z e d 

p e s t i c i d e s p o se s e r i o u s h e a l t h 

a c c u m u la ti o n o f so m e p e s t i c i d e s 

c r e a t e s s p e c i a l p ro b le m s . A n o th e r p ro b le m a r i s e s fr om 

t h e i n t r o d u c t i o n o f t o x i c c o n ta m in a n ts d u r in g th e 

m a n u f a c tu r e o f p e s t i c i d e com pounds, e . g . , d io x in s

a g r i c u l t u r e . Some 

h a z a r d s f o r man an d 

i n t h e e n v ir o n m e n t

fo rm e d d u rin g 

T r ic h l o r o p h e n o l .

t h e m a n u fa c tu re o f 2 ,4 ,5

T o x ic S u b s ta n c e s

Mod ern te c h n o lo g y i n t r o d u c e s th o u s a n d s o f 

p o t e n t i a l l y t o x i c s u b s ta n c e s i n t o t h e e n v ir o n m e n t 

d a i l y . T h e ir p o t e n t i a l e f f e c t s , su c h a s c a r c i n o g e n e s i s

28
o r m u ta g e n e s is , may r e q u i r e y e a r s t o be co me .e v id e n t. 

The y a l s o c a n h av e d i r e c t t o x i c e f f e c t s . Many o f th e 

sa m e te c h n i q u e s u se d t o e v a lu a te t o x i c i t y o f p e s t i c i d e s 

a r e u se d t o t e s t t h e s e o t h e r t o x i c s u b s ta n c e s . In ORD, 

th e s e tw o a c t i v i t i e s a r e c o n d u c te d in th e same 

l a b o r a t o r i e s .

• New P ro g ra m s

E n v ir o n m e n ta l h e a l t h r e s e a r c h m u st b e a d a p ta b le t o 

c h a n g in g c ir c u m s ta n c e s in a r a p i d l y c h a n g in g 

i n d u s t r i a l i z e d s o c i e t y . U n if y in g c o n c e p ts in 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l m e d ic in e an d r e s e a r c h m an ag em en t a r e 

b e in g d e v e lo p e d and u se d to a s s u r e r e s p o n s iv e , q u a l i t y 

h e a l t h e f f e c t s r e s e a r c h . Th e t h r e e m a jo r c a u s e s o f 

d is e a s e an d d e a th a r e now: c h r o n i c r e s p i r a t o r y

d is e a s e an d c a n c e r . T h ese 

h av e m u l t i f a c t o r i a l c a u s e s , 

man y s u s p e c te d t o b e c l o s e l y r e l a t e d t o e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

f a c t o r s . F o r t h a t r e a s o n , h e a l t h r e s e a r c h in EPA h a s a 

m a jo r r e s p o n s i b i l i t y t o d e te r m in e w h at e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

f a c t o r s h av e a m a jo r r o l e in t h e s e t h r e e s c o u r g e s o f 

m od er n m ankin d s o t h a t t h e s e e n v ir o n m e n ta l f a c t o r s can 

b e e li m i n a te d o r c o n t r o l l e d .

d i s e a s e , c a r d i o v a s c u l a r 

t h r e e d i s e a s e c a t e g o r i e s

Eac h o f th e s e v e n a s p e c t s o f E PA 's e n v ir o n m e n ta l h e a l t h 

r e s e a r c h a r e c o n d u c te d by p r o b le m - o r ie n te d s c i e n t i s t s who 

w or k w it h o t h e r - e x p e r t s t o p ro v id e d a ta on w h ic h t o b a s e a 

c o m p re h e n siv e p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l p o l i c y . More d e t a i l e d 

p ro g ra m d e s c r i p t i o n s a lo n g w it n p r o j e c te d d a t e s f o r m a jo r 

a c c o m p li s h m e n ts ma ke up th e re m a in d e r o f t h i s s e c t i o n .

A ir E x p o su re s

R e se a rc h in f o r m a t io n i s r e q u i r e d t o c l a r i f y e x p o s u r e - 

e f f e c t r e l a t i o n s h i p s b e tw e e n p o l l u t a n t s a n d hum an h e a l t h 

f o r d e v e lo p m e n t o f a d a ta b a s e t o d e te r m in e w h e th e r 

r e s t r i c t i n g e x p o s u re t o p a r t i c u l a r p o l l u t a n t s i s n e e d e d t o 

p r o t e c t h e a l t h an d i f s o , t o w h at d e g re e e x p o s u r e sh o u ld be 

r e s t r i c t e d . F o r e x a m p le , in t h e c a s e o f 's u l f a t e s , 

n i t r a t e s , and o t h e r r e s p i r a b l e

a v a i l a b l e in f o r m a t io n i n d i c a t e s

a m b ie n t c o n c e n t r a t i o n s may b e n e c e s s a r y . Th e e s s e n t i a l 

q u e s t io n s a b o u t t h e s e p o l l u t a n t s r e l a t e t o t h e d e g re e o f 

c o n t r o l r e q u i r e d . H e a lth e f f e c t s d a ta f o r a l l th e s e 

p o l l u t a n t s a r e o b t a i n e d fr om d i r e c t t o x i c o l o g i c a l , 

c l i n i c a l , and e p id e m io l o g ic a l s t u d i e s . A ll th r e e 

a p p ro a c h e s p r o v id e a c o m p li m e n ta ry u n d e r s ta n d in g o f th e 

p ro b le m : What a r e t h e h e a l t h b e n e f i t s o f r e d u c in g p o l l u t a n t 

l e v e l s ?

su s p e n d e d p a r t i c u l a t e s , 

t h a t r e s t r i c t i n g t h e i r
73

Among c r i t e r i a p o l l u t a n t s t h e r e a r e i n s u f f i c i e n t d a ta 

o n : e x p o s u r e a v e ra g in g ti m e s ; ad eq u acy o f e x i s t i n g s a f e t y 

m a r g in s ; h e a l t h b e n e f i t s o f m e e ti n g th e s t a n d a r d s an d 

h e a l t h r i s k s o f e x c e e d in g t h e s t a n d a r d s . Im p le m e n ta tio n 

an d a d ju s tm e n t o f a m b ie n t a i r q u a l i t y s t a n d a r d s w i l l be 

i n f l u e n c e d s u b s t a n t i a l l y by t h e s e d a ta .

Among n o n c r i t e r i a p o l l u t a n t s h e a l t h e f f e c t s r e s e a r c h i s 

p r i m a r i l y d i r e c t e d a t d e v e lo p in g a d a ta b a s e f o r s u l f a t e s , 

n i t r a t e s , an d r e s p i r a b l e p a r t i c u l a t e s . T h e re i s som e 

e v id e n c e t h a t sh ow s p o s s i b l e h a rm fu l e f f e c t s t o human 

h e a l t h . Th e g o a l o f t h i s r e s e a r c h i s t o d e te r m in e 

e x p o s u r e - r e s p o n s e r e l a t i o n s h i p s o f t h e s e p o l l u t a n t s by 

th e m s e lv e s an d in c o m b in a ti o n w it h c r i t e r i a p o l l u t a n t s .

T he e p id e m io lo g y r e s e a r c h i s e v o lv in g i n t o t a r g e t e d 

p o p u la t io n s t u d i e s d e s ig n e d t o t e s t h y p o th e s e s d e v e lo p e d 

fr o m e a r l i e r CHESS (C om m un ity H e a lth E f f e c t s S u r v e i l l a n c e 

S tu d i e s ) r e s u l t s . S p e c i f i c s t u d i e s on s u l f a t e an d n i t r a t e 

a e r o s o l s a r e in p r o g r e s s . T h e se s t u d i e s a r e c o n d u c te d i n : 

th e S o u th C o a st A ir B a s in o f C a l i f o r n i a p r e s e n t i n g a 

s p e c i a l p ro b le m a s u s e o f h ig h e r s u l f u r - c o n t a i n i n g f u e l i s 

i n c r e a s e d in an a r e a o f h ig h o x id a n t l e v e l s ; th e 

N o rth w e s te rn in te r m o u n ta in r e g i o n w here h ig h s u l f a t e l e v e l s 

o c c u r i n c o n ju n c tio n w it h s m e l t e r o p e r a t i o n s ; a n d i n h ig h ly 

i n d u s t r a l i z e d a r e a s e a c h o f t h e M i s s i s s i p p i an d s o u th o f 

th e G r e a t L akes w h ere t h e p o t e n t i a l e x i s t s f o r l a r g e 

r e g i o n a l s u l f a t e p ro b le m s a r i s i n g fr o m lo n g - te r m 

t r a n s f o r m a t i o n and lo n g - r a n g e t r a n s p o r t a t i o n o f s u l f u r 

o x id e s , m o s tl y fr om s t a t i o n a r y s o u r c e s . P o p u la tio n s t u d i e s 

h a v e a l s o b een i n i t i a t e d i n S o u th e rn C a l i f o r n i a t o r e f i n e 

e x p o s u r e - r e s p o n s e e s t i m a t e s f o r o x id a n t e f f e c t s . T h ese 

s t u d i e s a ll o w c o m p a ris o n o f s u l f a t e e f f e c t s i n t h e p re s e n c e 

o f h ig h o x id a n t l e v e l s w ith th o s e e f f e c t s w h ere o x id a n t 

l e v e l s a r e r e l a t i v e l y lo w .

P a r t i c u l a t e e f f e c t s w i l l r e e v a l u a te d i n B ir m in gham in 

FY 19 77 t o a s s e s s t h e b e n e f i t s o f im p ro v ed a i r q u a l i t y . 

Th e lo n g - te r m e f f e c t o f p r e v i o u s h ig h n it r o g e n o x id e l e v e l s 

i n C h a tt a n o o g a w i l l a l s o b e r e a s s e s s e d . Th e co m p le x a i r 

p o l l u t i o n p ro b le m an d l a r g e p o p u l a t i o n - a t - r i s k i n th e 

C h ic a g o -G a ry r e g io n w i l l b e e v a lu a te d . F i n a l l y , tw o new 

a r e a s o f h ig h a i r s u l f a t e l e v e l s w i l l be i d e n t i f i e d an d 

s t u d i e s i n i t i a t e d . T he O h io R iv e r V a lle y i s t h e l i k e l y 

c a n d id a te f o r th e s e s i t e s . To im p ro v e th e b a s i s f o r a 

s h o r t - t e r m n it r o g e n o x i d e s s t a n d a r d , a new p o i n t s o u r c e 

n i t r o g e n o x id e a r e a w i l l b e i d e n t i f i e d an d s t u d i e d .

30
74

FY 19 76 P la n

• R e f in e e s t im a t e s o f h e a l t h e f f e c t s r e l a t e d t o s h o r t ­

te rm n it r o g e n o x id e s e x p o s u r e aro un d p o in t s o u r c e s .

• R e f in e t h e a c id s u l f a t e a e r o s o l h e a lt h im p a c t an d 

im p a c t o f t r a c e m e ta ls in p rim a ry s m e lt e r 

co m m u n it ie s .

• D e l i n e a t e c h e m ic a l c o m p o s it io n an d p a r t i c l e s i z e and 

c o n d u c t t o x i c i t y s c r e e n i n g f o r s e l e c t e d p o l l u t a n t s .

• C h a r a c t e r i z e s u l f u r o x id e an d o x id a n t i n t e r a c t i o n in 

t h e S o u th e rn C a l i f o r n i a a r e a .

• E v a lu a t e h e a lt h c o n s e q u e n c e s o f c o n v e r s io n fr om f u e l 

o i l t o c o a l i n s e l e c t e d e l e c t r i c pow er g e n e r a t in g 

p l a n t s .

• D e v e lo p s h o r t - t e r m e x p o s u r e d a ta f o r s u l f u r o x i d e s , 

n i t r o g e n o x i d e s , o x i d a n t s , an d s e l e c t e d 

p a r t i c u l a t e s .

F i v e - Y e a r P la n

• R e a s s e s s e x p o s u r e - r e s p o n s e d a ta f o r c r i t e r i a and 

o t h e r p o ll u t a n t s c o l l e c t e d fr om CHESS.

• D e v e lo p b e t t e r e x p o s u r e - r e s p o n s e f u n c t i o n s f o r 

e s t i m a t in g h e a l t h r i s k s o f c r i t e r i a p o l l u t a n t s , 

s u l f a t e , an d n i t r a t e a e r o s o l s .

• D ete rm in e th e s i g n i f i c a n c e o f p o t e n t i a l l y d a n g e ro u s 

t r a c e s u b s t a n c e s , h a z a rd o u s m a t e r i a l s and 

u n s u s p e c te d t o x i c s u b s t a n c e s t o man.

• I d e n t i f y t h e i n t e r a c t i o n s in h e a lt h e f f e c t s o f 

c r i t e r i a and n o n c r i t e r i a p o l l u t a n t s .

• D e s c r ib e i n t e r a c t i v e e f f e c t s o f m u lt ip le e n v ir o n m e n t 

s t r e s s f a c t o r s .

• E v a lu a t e a d v e r s e h e a l t h r i s k s a s s o c i a t e d w ith in d o o r 

p o l l u t a n t s .

31
T r a n s p o r ta tio n

A s p e c ia l id e n t i f i e d a re a o f re s e a rc h r e la t e d t o a i r 

p o llu t io n exp o su re s i s t r a n s p o r t a t io n . A b io m e d ic a l d a ta 

base needs t o be d e v e lo p e d t o a s c e r ta in h e a lth r is k s 

a s s o c ia te d w ith e m is s io n p ro d u c ts fr o m c a t a ly t ic c o n v e r te r - 

tr e a te d a u to e x h a u s t su ch as s u l f u r ic a c id , s u lf a t e s , 

c a rb o n d i s u lf id e , an d h y d ro g e n s u lf id e . P o s s ib le ad vers e 

e f f e c t s fr o m a t t r i t i o n p ro d u c ts such as p la tin u m , 

p a ll a d iu m , an d alu m in um o x id e m ust a ls o be e v a lu a te d . 

S p e c if ic fo c u s s h a ll be d ir e c t e d to th e e f f e c t s o f s u l f u r ic 

a c id , s u lfa t e s , an d r e la t e d s u lf u r co mpo un ds g e n e ra te d as 

a e ro s o ls by o x id a tio n c a t a ly s t s . The p o t e n t ia l h e a lt h 

e f f e c t s o f e m is s io n s fr o m f u e l a d d itiv e s , a lt e r n a t iv e po wer 

s o u rc e s an d f u e ls and e m is s io n s a s s o c ia te d w ith 

t r a n s p o r t a t io n o f a l l ty p e s w i l l be a s c e rta in e d .

A d o p ti o n o f c a t a ly t ic c o n v e rte rs t o c o n t r o l re g u la te d 

p o llu t a n t s fr o m m o b ile s o u rc e s ha s becom e a m a tte r o f 

c o n tro v e r s y . T o x ic o lo g ic a l an d h e a lth e f f e c t s d a ta 

c o n c e rn in g s u l f u r ic a c id m is t, s u lfa t e s an d a nu mbe r o f 

o th e r s u lf u r compounds a re u r g e n tly ne ed ed by EPA t o 

e s t a b lis h m o b il e so u rc e s ta n d a rd f o r s u lf a t e s . In fo r m a tio n 

on p o s s ib le b io lo g ic a l e f f e c t s o f d ie s e l e m is s io n s is a ls o 

in a d e q u a te .

A ir p o ll u ta n ts re la te d to tr a n s p o rta tio n re ceiv e sp ecia l a tt e n ti o n in 

ORD's h ea lth e ff e c ts re searc h.

CREDIT: EPA/DOCUMERICA - Gene D anie ls
76

FY 19 76 P lh n

• D e te rm in e t o x i c o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s o f s u l f u r i c a c i d , 

s u l f a t e s an d o 't h e r s u l f u r co m po unds r e s u l t i n g fr om 

e m is s io n s o f c a ta l- y s t- e q u ip p e d a u to m o b ile s .

• D e s c rib e t h e c o m p a r a ti v e to x i c o lo g y o f e m is s io n s 

fr om e n g in e s e q u ip p e d w it h c a t a l y s t s v s . e n g in e s 

e q u ip p e d w ith o th e r c o n t r o l s y s te m s .

• A s c e r t a in t o x i c i t y o f r e s p i r a b l e s u l f u r co m po un ds 

an d a ir b o r n e r e s p i r a b l e p a r t i c u l a t e m i s t s .

• P ro v id e e m is s io n c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n , m easu re m en t 

m eth o d s an d e m is s io n f a c t o r s f o r r e g u l a te d and 

n o n r e g u la te d p o l l u t a n t s fr om c u r r e n t , f u t u r e and 

a l t e r n a t i v e e n g in e -p o w e re d m o to r v e h i c l e s a s r e l a t e d 

to f u e l c o m p o s itio n and f u e l a d d i t i v e s .

F iv e -Y e a r P la n

• A s c e r t a in p u b li c h e a l t h c o n s e q u e n c e s o f a l l m a jo r 

co m p o n en ts o f th e su s p e n d e d p a r t i c u l a t e / s u l f a t e m ix .

• R e fin e th e e s t i m a t e s o f e x p o s u re s t o t o x i c m a t e r i a l s 

fr om c a t a l y s t - e q u i p p e d c a r s , an d i d e n t i f y th e m ost 

s i g n i f i c a n t h e a l t h h a z a r d s .

• S tu d y th e a t t r i t i o n p r o d u c ts p ro d u c e d d u rin g th e 

c a t a l y s t d e g r a d a t io n s t a g e .

• I n i t i a t e a d d i t i o n a l f u e l a d d i t i v e s t u d i e s a f t e r 

c o m p le ti o n o f o n g o in g c a t a l y s t e x p o su re 

i n v e s t i g a t i o n s .

W a te r E x p o su re s

Th e w a te r q u a l i t y h e a l t h e f f e c t s r e s e a r c h c u r r e n t l y 

f o c u s e s on h e a l t h i m p l i c a t i o n s o f la n d a p p l i c a t i o n o f 

w a s te w a te r an d se w age s lu d g e s . O th e r a r e a s o f s tu d y 

i n c l u d e h e a l t h e f f e c t s o f se w age tr e a tm e n t p l a n t s an d f r e s h 

an d m a rin e r e c r e a t i o n a l w a te r s .

H e a lth in f o r m a tio n f o r d e v e lo p m e n t a n d d e fe n s e o f 

c r i t e r i a t o in s u r e p r o t e c t i o n o f huma n h e a l t h fr o m d is p o s a l 

o f w a s te w a te r and s lu d g e s i s i n s u f f i c i e n t . Lan d tr e a tm e n t 

an d d is p o s a l o f t h e s e w a te r s a lo n g w ith t h e i r d i s p o s a l i n t o 

w a te r s h a s i n c r e a s e d . A ls o , t h e r e h a s b e e n a m ajo r 

n a t i o n a l e f f o r t t o i n c r e a s e th e nu m be r an d s i z e o f se w ag e

33
77

tre a tm e n t p la n ts . Suc h in s t a lla t io n s may c o n t r ib u te to 

some human h e a lth h a z a rd s w h il e a lle v i a t in g o th e r s .

To d e te rm in e th e p o s s ib le a d v e rs e h e a lth e f f e c t s 

a s s o c ia te d w ith la n d tr e a tm e n t an d d is p o s a l o f w a s te w a te r 

an d s lu d g e s , re s e a rc h i s pla n ned t o : d e te rm in e th e 

d is p e r s io n o f p a th o g e n s , e s p e c ia lly v ir u s e s in a e ro s o ls 

fo rm e d by s p ra y i r r i g a t i o n o f s lu d g e s an d w a s te w a te rs ; 

d e te rm in e p e rs is te n c e and tr a n s p o r t o f p a th o g e n s in th e 

s o i l o f la n d a p p lic a t o r s it e s ; d e te rm in e in c o o p e ra tio n 

w ith FDA an d USDA th e p e rs is te n c e an d movem en t o f t o x ic 

s u b s ta n c e s in th e s o i l , in gro un d w a te r an d in th e fo o d 

c h a in (m e ta ls , o r g a n ic s , in o r g a n ic s , p e s t ic id e s ) ; and 

a s s e s s th e h e a lth o f p o p u la tio n s l i v i n g n e a r w a s te w a te r 

tr e a tm e n t p la n ts an d in lo c a le s wher e la n d d is p o s a l o f 

w a s te w a te r an d s lu d g e s i s p r a c tic e d . T h is re s e a rc h 

o b v io u s ly t ie s in c lo s e ly w ith th e e c o lo g ic a l p ro c e s s e s and 

e f f e c t s re s e a rc h d e s c rib e d la t e r .

H ealt h stu die s In v e s ti g a te th e ad ve rse e ff e c ts o f w ate r p o ll u ta n ts .

CREDIT: EPA/DOCUMERICA - Er1k Cal onl us

34
78

In .addition to research associated with land 

application, study of water disposal of these wastes is 

needed. These include; determination of tolerable 

pathogen concentrations that ma y occur without jeopardizing 

health of humans in primary contact with marine water; 

development of valid microbiological criteria for shellfish 

growing waters (in cooperation with FDA); and quantitative 

correlation of human health effects to select indices of 

pollution in recreational fresh waters. Where possible, 

research is coordinated with the U.S. Army and u.s . 

Department of Agriculture who also have ongoing programs in 

this area.

This research will be expanded in FY 1977 to deal with 

viral problems related to land application of wastewater 

and sludges and to viruses in shellfish from marine waters. 

Plans for the FY 1977 program ,include increased health 

effects research related to aerosols produced by sewage 

treatment plants.

From these research results will come water quality 

criteria for recreational water and shellfish growing 

waters.

Another related resear ch area. Water Supply Health 

Effects, supplements this research program. Funds are 

received from the Office of Air, Land, and Water Use 

(OALWU) to conduct health effects research on problems 

specifically

associated with drinking water. Details of the water 

supply research program related to health effects are 

included in the description of the Water Supply Subprogram. 

FY 1976 Plan

• Determine the potent ial of virus survival and 

movement at land reclamatio n sites utilizing sewage 

sludge.

• Correlate human health effects with selected indices 

of pollution in primary contact fresh recreational 

water.

• Report on health implications of aerosols from a 

municipal wastewater treatment plant.

• Determine the concentratio n of pathogens that can be 

permitted in marine recreational waters without 

jeopardizing human health.

35
79

Five-Year Plan

• Define health effects associated with exposure to 

land sites using treated wastewater effluents.

• Report on health implications of aerosols produced 

by use of treated sewage effluents for spray 

irrigation.

• Determine the potential of contaminants particularly 

trace metals present in sludge applied to land 

entering the food chain.

• Report on results of laboratory and field 

investigations to provide acceptable methods of 

sampling and analyzing sludge.

• Establish health effects criteria related to levels 

of sanitary, nutrien t and thermal pollution for 

marine beaches.

Radiant Energy

The Public Health S ervice Act, as amended in 1970, 

gives the Administrator authority to conduct radiation 

research. Such research will provide scientific data for 

formulation of radiation standards.

Because of great conce rn about biological hazards from 

electromagnetic radiation, the Office of Telecommunications 

Policy (OTP), Executive Office of the President, initiated 

and is coordinating a multi-agency "Program for Control of 

Electromagnetic Pollution of the Environment: The

Assessment of Biological Hazards of Nonionizing 

Electromagnetic Radiation." OR D’s health effects research 

represents the greater part of EPA’s total contributio n to 

the OTP coordinated program. Health effects resear ch is 

aimed at identifying bi olog ical effects that are caused by 

envir onmentally occurring electromagnetic radiation 

freguencies and power densities.

This research includes controlled animal experiments 

and basic mechanism studies with emphasis on long-term, 

low-level exposures. EPA's nonionizing radiation health 

effects research emphasizes the extent that the general 

population , is exposed frcm sources such as UHF-TV 

broadcasts, microwave ovens, industrial heaters and radar. 

In addition to studies on nonionizing radiation, research 

is carried out on adverse health effects of exposure to 

tritium and Krypton-85.

36
80

Th e l e v e l o f e f f o r t f o r n o n io n iz in g r a d i a t i o n r e s e a r c h 

w i l l re m a in a b o u t t h e sa m e f o r th e n e x t f i v e y e a r s . The 

r e s e a r c h on i o n i z i n g r a d i a t i o n w i l l be p h a se d i n t o t h e -ERDA 

p ro g ra m in FY 19 77 an d t h e r e a f t e r .

FY 1976 P la n

• R e p o rt o f m ic ro w ave e f f e c t s on immu ne r e s p o n s e .

• R e p o rt on c y t o g e n e tic e f f e c t s o f m ic ro w av e 

expo s u r e s .

• R e p o rt on t e r a t o g e n i c and m u ta g e n ic e f f e c t s o f 

m ic ro w av e on m ic e and r a t s .

• R e p o rt on n e u r o p h y s io lo g ic a n d b e h a v io r a l re s p o n s e 

o f r a t s t o m ic ro w a v e s.

F iv e -Y e a r P la n

• R e p o rt on b i o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s o f c h r o n ic e x p o s u re t o 

m ic ro w a v e s in r a t s .

• D e te r m in a tio n o f s i z e o f p o p u l a t i o n - a t - r i s k i n 

n o n o c c u p a tio n a l e x p o s u re t o h ig h po w er e l e c t r i c 

t r a n s m i s s i o n l i n e s .

P e s t i c i d e s

Th e p e s t i c i d e s h e a l t h e f f e c t s r e s e a r c h e v a l u a t e s a c u te 

and c h r o n ic e x p o s u r e t o p e s t i c i d e s , t h e i r r e s i d u e s and 

t h e i r m e t a b o l i t e s . I n d i c e s o f e f f e c t s in c lu d e m o r t a l i t y , 

g ro w th r a t e , c l i n i c a l s ig n s o f p o is o n in g , h e m a to lo g ic 

f a c t o r s an d r e p r o d u c ti o n . L a b o r a to r y s t u d i e s w ith 

e x p e r im e n ta l a n im a ls and com m un ity e p id e m io lo g ic s t u d i e s o f 

human e x p o s u re t o p e s t i c i d e s a r e c o n d u c te d .

T h is r e s e a r c h e v a lu a te s p o t e n t i a l h a z a r d s o f p e s t i c i d e s 

now r e g i s t e r e d by EPA and i n common u s e . I n a d d i t i o n , th e 

huma n s a f e t y o f "n ew g e n e r a t io n " p e s t c o n t r o l a g e n ts su c h 

a s i n s e c t v i r u s e s , p a th o g e n ic b a c t e r i a , c h e m o s t e r i l a n t s , 

a t t r a c t a n t s an d horm ones i s e v a lu a te d . Th e d e v e lo p m e n t and 

v a l i d a t i o n o f ne w t o x i c o l o g i c a l m eth o d s t h a t c a n be u se d t o 

r e g i s t e r p e s t i c i d e s a n d d e v e lo p m e n t an d a p p l i c a t i o n o f 

a n a l y t i c a l m e th o d s t o d e t e c t th e s e a g e n ts in e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

sa m p le s an d huma n t i s s u e , i s a m a jo r p a r t o f th e p e s t i c i d e s 

h e a l t h e f f e c t s r e s e a r c h .

37
81

R e s e a r c h d a ta an d i n t e r p r e t a t i o n a r e g iv e n t o th e 

O f f i c e o f P e s t i c i d e s P ro g ra m s (OPP) in a fo rm u s e f u l f o r : 

a s s i s t i n g th e r e r e g i s t r a t i o n p r o c e s s , f o r m u la t in g p o l i c i e s 

on th e r e g i s t r a t i o n o f new c l a s s e s o f p e s t c o n t r o l a g e n t s , 

im p ro v in g th e p r o t o c o ls r e q u i r e d in r e g i s t e r i n g p e s t i c i d e s , 

o p e r a t i n g th e human m o n ito r in g pro gr am an d p r o v id in g h e a lt h 

an d c h e m ic a l in fo r m a t io n f o r e n fo rc e m e n t o f EPA a c t i o n s 

r e l a t i n g t o th e F e d e r a l I n s e c t i c i d e , F u n g ic id e , and 

R o d e n t ic id e A c t (FIFRA) . R e p o r t s w i l l b e i s s u e d a t l e a s t 

y e a r l y f o r b a se -p ro g ra m s t u d i e s . S p e c i a l p r o j e c t s 

i n v o l v i n g t e c h n i c a l a s s i s t a n c e w i l l be r e p o r t e d on 

c o m p le t io n . T h ese a c t i v i t i e s a s s i s t OPP i n i t s 

im p le m e n ta tio n o f FIFRA a t b o th f e d e r a l an d S t a t e l e v e l s .

Work by t h e N a tio n a l C e n t e r f o r T o x i c o l o g i c a l R e s e a rc h 

(NCTR) in c o o p e r a t io n w it h t h e Fo od an d Dru g A d m in is t r a t io n 

(FDA) i s d e v e lo p in g an d v a l i d a t i n g new t o x i c o l o g i c a l 

m eth ods t o e v a lu a t e e x p o s u r e - e f f e c t r e l a t i o n s h i p s o f new 

p e s t i c i d e s t h a t a r e c a n d i d a t e s f o r r e g i s t r a t i o n .

FY 19 76 P la n

• D e te rm in e th e t o x i c i t y ra n g e o f c a c o d y l i c a c i d .

• M easu re p e s t i c i d e e x p o s u r e s an d h e a l t h h a z a r d s o f 

p e r s o n s w o rk in g a s p e s t i c i d e a p p l i c a t o r s an d f o r 

o t h e r f i e l d w o r k e r s .

• A s s e s s an d q u a n t i f y r e p r o d u c t iv e an d p r e n a t a l 

e f f e c t s o f H e x a c h lo r o b e n z e n e (HC B).

• R e p o r t on a c u t e , s u b a c u t e an d c h r o n ic s t u d i e s by 

v a r io u s e x p o s u re r o u t e s o f s e l e c t e d p e s t i c i d e s .

• S c r e e n s e l e c t e d c a r b a m a te s an d o rg a n o p h o s p h a te e s t e r 

p e s t i c i d e s f o r n e u r o t o x i c i t y .

F i v e - Y e a r P la n

• R e p o r t on s p e c i a l hum an h e a lt h h a z a r d p ro b le m s 

a s s o c i a t e d w it h p e s t i c i d e s , in c lu d i n g d e g r a d a t io n 

an d d e c o n ta m in a tio n o f s u r f a c e s w h ere s p i l l s h ave 

o c c u r r e d d u r in g t r a n s p o r t a t i o n an d s t o r a g e and 

h a z a r d s r e l a t e d t o d i s p o s a l o f s m a ll q u a n t i t i e s o f 

p e s t i c i d e s on fa r m s .

• A s s e s s and q u a n t i f y t h e t o x i c i t y an d t e r a t o g e n i c 

e f f e c t s o f s u b s t i t u t e d c h lo r o p h e n o l (SC P, co m pounds.

79-397 0 - 77 - 7

38
82

Determine human exposure to 

pesticides and their metabolites, 

pesticidal compounds included 

investigations are: (a) substituted carbamates,

ureas and nitrogen-containing pesticides and 

herbicides, including nitro compounds and 

substituted triazines, (b) substituted phenols and 

amines, (c) organophosphorus-containing compounds 

and (d) halogenated compounds and derivates.

biodegradeable 

Some classes of 

in these

• Develop and standardize identification and 

monitoring techniques for Baccilovirus pesticides.

• Develop standardized procedures for identification, 

isolation and purification of insect pathogens and 

their products.

Toxic Substances

The purpose of the toxic substances work is to assess 

toxicity of inorganic and organic contaminants that reach 

oeople in a number of ways. The current research evaluates 

through use of animal testing, health effects of fibrous 

aniphiboles, lead and the pesticide Baygon, cadmium, organic 

pollutants as influenced by trace metals and dioxin and 

dibenzofuran. This work supports the air and water health 

effects research as well and anticipates legislation on 

toxic substances control.

FY 1976 Plan

• Report on toxicity of fibrous amphiboles considered 

as carcinogens and co-factors.

• Report on the combi ned effects of Certain trace 

metals and certain pesticides on the rate of 

metabolism of aminopyrene and antipyrene in rats.

Five-Year Plan

• Report on carcinoge nicit y and toxicity of fibrous 

amphiboles.

• Development of bioc hemical methods to screen organic 

and inorganic poll utant s for specific biological 

activity potentially hazardous to human health.

39
83

F u tu r e P ro gra m s

A m a jo r r e o r i e n t a t i o n o f EPA ’ s h e a l t h r e s e a r c h i s i t s 

f o c u s on c h r o n ic , d e b i l i t a t i n g d i s e a s e s kno wn t o be r e l a t e d t o e n v ir o n m e n ta l f a c t o r s . T h is r e p r e s e n t s r e o r i e n t a t i o n b e c a u s e p a s t r e s e a r c h d e s ig n w as in te n d e d t o d e s c r i b e w hat d i s e a s e s may be r e l a t e d t o s p e c i f i c p o l l u t a n t s . En ough p r o g r e s s h a s bee n mad e t o . d e f i n i t e l y r e l a t e c h r o n ic lu n g d i s e a s e , c a r d i o v a s c u l a r d i s e a s e an d c a n c e r t o e n v ir o n m e n ta l p o l l u t i o n . EPA m us t now d e te r m in e how t h e s e d i s e a s e s a r e i n f l u e n c e d by s p e c i f i c a g e n t s so t h a t an e f f e c t i v e c o n t r o l 

p o l i c y ca n be fo r m u la te d .

Of c o u r s e , many o t h e r e n v i r o n m e n t a l l y - r e l a t e d d i s e a s e s 

o c c u r . Th e m e ta b o li c and n e u r o b e h a v io r a l c o n s e q u e n c e s o f e x p o s u r e t o h e a v y m e t a ls , p e s t i c i d e s an d o t h e r t o x i c s u b s t a n c e s do n o t f i t i n t o t h e s e b ro a d d i s e a s e c a t e g o r i e s . R e s e a r c h w i l l c o n tin u e i n t h e s e a r e a s . H ow ev er , E P A 's e n v ir o n m e n ta l h e a lt h r e s e a r c h w i l l h a v e a m a jo r i n f l u e n c e on p u b l i c h e a lt h in t h e i n d u s t r i a l i z e d w o r ld i f e n v ir o n m e n ta l f a c t o r s sh ow n t o be m a t e r i a l l y i n v o lv e d in c a r d io p u lm o n a r y d i s e a s e and c a n c e r a r e i d e n t i f i e d an d 

b r o u g h t u n d er c o n t r o l .

He alth effects research keeps pace w ith the Increased use of pe sticides and substitu te 

chemicals.

CREDIT: EPA/DOCUMERICA - Charles O'Rear

40
84

E c o lo g ic a l P r o c e s s e s a n d E f f e c t s

S u b p ro g ra m D e s c r ip tio n

EPA h a s th e r e s p o n s i b i l i t y t o s e t a d e g u a te c r i t e r i a , 

s t a n d a r d s an d g u id e l in e s t o p r o t e c t an d e n h a n c e 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y . E c o lo g i c a l p r o c e s s e s and e f f e c t s 

r e s e a r c h p r o v id e s EPA w ith a bod y o f know le dge an d 

t h e o r e t i c a l s t r u c t u r e on w h ic h t o b a s e e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

c r i t e r i a , s t a n d a r d s an d r e g u l a t i o n s .

E c o lo g y i s th e s c i e n t i f i c d i s c i p l i n e an d body o f 

k n o w le d g e t h a t s h o u ld u n d e r l i e m an ag em en t an d u s e o f th e 

e n v ir o n m e n t. E c o lo g ic a l r e s e a r c h p ro v id e s th e d a t a b a s e 

e s s e n t i a l to d e v e lo p in g g u i d e l i n e s , w a te r q u a l i t y 

s t a n d a r d s , s e c o n d a ry a i r q u a l i t y , s t a n d a r d s , p e s t i c i d e 

r e g i s t r a t i o n , o c e a n d is c h a r g e c r i t e r i a an d e f f l u e n t 

s t a n d a r d s f o r t o x i c an d h a z a rd o u s m a t e r i a l s , a s w e ll a s 

d i r e c t l y c o n t r i b u t i n g t o ma ny o t h e r a g e n c y a c t i v i t i e s .

S e v e r a l fu n d a m e n ta l f e a t u r e s o f e c o l o g i c a l r e s e a r c h 

s h o u ld be e m p h asiz ed in c o n n e c tio n w it h EPA’ s r e g u l a t o r y 

r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s . P ro b le m i d e n t i f i c a t i o n s u c h a s th e 

d i s c l o s u r e t h a t p o l l u t a n t X c a u s e s huma n c a n c e r im p lie s 

r e g u l a t o r y c o n s i d e r a t i o n a n d a l s o g e n e r a t e s a p l e t h o r a o f 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u e s t io n s c o n c e rn in g p o l l u t a n t X. 

C o n s e q u e n tly , huma n h e a l t h e f f e c t s c a n n o t b e d iv o r c e d fr om 

th e e c o l o g i c a l fr am ew o rk , a s i l l u s t r a t e d by th e f o llo w in g 

q u e s t i o n s .

• How d o e s p o l l u t a n t X b e h a v e i n t h e e n v ir o n m e n t an d 

p a r t i c u l a r l y how d o e s i t g e t t o th e huma n s u b j e c t ?

• I s p o l l u t a n t X a c c u m u la te d o r c o n c e n t r a te d by hum an 

fo o d o rg a n is m s ? W ha t i s t h e e f f e c t o f p o l l u t a n t X 

on th e s e and o t h e r n o n t a r g e t o rg a n is m s ?

• Doe s p o l l u t a n t X h a v e s i g n i f i c a n t e f f e c t s on 

e c o l o g i c a l s y s te m s t h a t s u p p o r t human u s e s an d w hat 

i s a s i g n i 'f i c a n t e f f e c t ?

(

• What f e a t u r e s o f t h e f a t e , e f f e c t s o r t r a n s p o r t o f 

p o l l u t a n t X a llo w f o r i t s c o n t r o l o r w i l l b e u s e f u l 

f o r r e g u l a t o r y d e l i b e r a t i o n s ?

• What a r e s e c o n d a r y e f f e c t s o f a b a te m e n t o r 

r e g u l a to r y s t r a t e g i e s ?

41
85

• How avail able is pollutant X in the natural 

environment?

The above questions illustrate the scope and purpose of 

ecological research: that of assessing, predicting and limiting the extent of environmental pollution problems and 

enhancing environmental quality where possible.

Ecolcgical research activities respond to EPA's 

administration of environmental law and to changes in these 

laws. For example, P.L. 9 2 -5 0 0 represents a major new 

direction i-n water quality regulation--a switch in emphasis from receiving-water standards to effluent standards. This change involves a greater overall emphasis on consideration of the ecological effects of process and control 

technologies and management methods.

To set an effluent standard that is strict enough to 

offer reasonable protection to aquatic environments and no stricter than necessary, requires prediction with reasonable accura cy of dispersion, transformation, accumulation and effects and economic damages of pollutants from the time they enter the environment to the time they are diluted to harmless levels (if that happens, . Given the complexity of wastes as well as ecosystems, ecological research activities must be carefully examined and properly ordered to make best use of limited resources. These activities support the evaluation of efflue nt standards and 

discharge activities.

The Ecological Processes and Effects Subprogram is 

structured to recognize both broad ecos ystem types and major research needs. Three ecosystem types— freshwater, marine and terrestrial--are sufficiently unique to justify separate treatment. Within each of these types, research is subdivided into "Ecological Criteria Development" and 

"Systems Characteriz ation and Impact Assessment".

"Ecological Criteria Development" includes laboratory 

studies such as bioassays to establish to lerab le pollutant levels. It also includes determination of single species effects or higher level effects such as those obtained from well-defined microcosm simulation. As a generalization, work performed under "Ecological Criteria Development" is performed in direct response to legislative mandates to define numerical standards for pollut ant release. This work directly determines both the need for and extent of control or abatement measures. Since establishment of a pollutant level implies treatment or control measures and practices, this programmatic activity has serious and far

42
86

r e a c h i n g econom ic i m p l i c a t i o n s . T h is e c o n o m ic c o n c e rn 

e n c o u ra g e s wor k t h a t i s e x a c t and p r e c i s e .

"S y ste m s C h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n a n d Im p a c t A sse ss m e n t" 

b r o a d ly c o v e rs p r o j e c t s t h a t i n c l u d e : f i e l d s t u d i e s ; 

t h e o r e t i c a l o r m a th e m a tic a l s i m u l a ti o n s ; d e v e lo p m e n t o f 

m e th o d o lo g ie s t o a s s e s s s o c io -e c o n o m ic im p a c ts o f 

p o l l u t a n t s , in c l u d in g a s s e s s m e n t o f r e s o u r c e u t i l i z a t i o n ; 

an d c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n o f l a b o r a t o r y m odel e c o s y s te m s o r 

m ic ro c o sm s f o r p o t e n t i a l u s e i n c r i t e r i a d e v e lo p m e n t. In 

c o n t r a s t to th e f i r s t c a t e g o r y , t h i s c a te g o r y d o e s n o t 

i n c l u d e r o u t in e u se o f w e ll c h a r a c t e r i z e d m odel e c o s y s te m s 

f o r c r i t e r i a d e v e lo p m e n t.

I n a d d i t i o n t o n u m e r ic a l c r i t e r i a f o r a i r a n d w a te r 

p o l l u t a n t s , t e c h n i c a l c r i t e r i a a r e d e v e lo p e d t o p ro v id e 

p o l i c y m ak ers w it h g u i d e l i n e s on th e e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c t 

o f m u n ic ip a l, i n d u s t r i a l , a g r i c u l t u r a l and e n e rg y r e s o u r c e 

g ro w th an d d e v e lo p m e n t. T h e se d e c is io n c r i t e r i a a ll o w 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c t t o b e c o n s id e r e d i n e a r l y s t a g e s o f a 

d e v e lo p m e n t p la n n in g c y c l e .

As su ch th e e c o l o g i c a l c r i t e r i a p o r t i o n o f OR D's 

p ro g ra m p ro v id e s a r e l a t i v e l y q u ic k r e s p o n s e t o EPA 

r e q u e s t s f o r t e c h n i c a l an d n u m e ric a l c r i t e r i a on th e 

e f f e c t s o f s p e c i f i c p o l l u t a n t s on s e n s i t i v e c o m p o n e n ts o f 

a i r , w a te r and t e r r e s t r i a l s y s te m s . S yst em s 

C h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n an d Im p a c t a s s e s s m e n t p r o v id e s lo n g e r 

r a n g e r e s e a r c h n e c e s s a r y t o ma ke n u m e ric a l c r i t e r i a more 

m e a n in g fu l f o r w hole s y s te m s . R e s e a rc h o u tp u t s fr om b o th 

c a t e g o r i e s a r e n e c e s s a r y t o m eet o b j e c t i v e s o f th e 

E c o lo g i c a l P r o c e s s e s an d E f f e c t s S u b p ro g ra m .

In th e f u t u r e , h o w e v e r, mor e e f f o r t w i l l b e p la c e d on 

s y s te m s s t u d i e s d e s ig n e d t o y i e l d in f o r m a tio n on p o l l u t a n t 

e f f e c t s on e n t i r e s y s te m s . In th e p a s t , ORD c r i t e r i a f o r 

e f f e c t s w ere b a se d on s t u d i e s c f s e l e c t e d s p e c i e s . C u rre n t 

s c i e n t i f i c o p in io n an d r e c e n t j u d i c i a l p r o c e e d in g s i n d i c a t e 

a n e e d t o e v a lu a te th e im p a c t o f p o l l u t a n t s on e n t i r e 

s y s te m s a s w e ll a s on i n d i v i d u a l s p e c i e s . U n f o r t u n a te l y , 

s a t i s f a c t o r y m eth o d s f o r su c h sy s te m s e v a l u a t i o n a r e s t i l l 

i n a d e q u a te .

T he fo llo w in g s e c t i o n s d e s c r ib e m a jo r a s p e c t s o f t h e FY 

19 76 e c o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s p ro g ra m to g e t h e r w ith a f i v e - y e a r 

p la n d e s c r ib in g a n t i c i p a t e d m a jo r o u tp u t s a n d r e s e a r c h 

a p p r o a c h e s .

43
87

F r e s h w a te r E c o lo g ic a l C r i t e r i a D evelo pm ent

The f r e s h w a t e r e c o l o g i c a l c r i t e r i a d e v e lo p m e n t r e s e a r c h f o c u s e s on d e te r m in in g e f f e c t s o f p o l l u t a n t s o r o th e r s t r e s s e s on a q u a ti c o r g a n is m s , in c l u d in g d e te r m i n a ti o n o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l re q u ir e m e n ts a n d l i m i t s . T h is w ork w i l l a l s o d e te r m in e g e n e r a l p r i n c i p a l s g o v e rn in g th e t r a n s f o r m a t i o n , a c c u m u la tio n an d u l t i m a t e f a t e o f p o l l u t a n t s i n f r e s h w a t e r e c o s y s te m s and by m eans o f l a b o r a t o r y - s c a l e m od el e c o s y s te m s an d f i e l d s t u d i e s , th e e c o sy s te m l e v e l e f f e c t s 

o f p o l l u t a n t s and o th e r s t r e s s e s .

The c o m p le te d in f o r m a t i o n fr om t h e s e r e s e a r c h a c t i v i t i e s w i l l be u se d by f e d e r a l and S t a t e r e g u l a t o r y a g e n c i e s t o e s t a b l i s h s t a n d a r d s f o r p o l l u t a n t s su c h a s c h l o r i n e and c h l o r i n e s u b s t i t u t e p e s t i c i d e s , o t h e r o r g a n ic co m p o u n d s, a s b e s to s a n d a s b e s t o s l i k e f i b e r s a n d h eav y m e t a ls . In a d d i t i o n , r e s e a r c h r e s u l t s w i l l g iv e u s e r s u p - t o - d a t e m eth o d s t o d e te r m in e th e im p a c t o f p o l l u t a n t s on 

f r e s h w a t e r o rg a n is m s .

Problems asso ciated with lake eu trophic at io n ar e addressed by research on eco lo gic al processes and

e ff e c ts . CREDIT: EPA/DOCUMERICA - Be lin da Rain

44
88

Con tinued r e s e a r c h i s ne ed ed t o d e v e lo p and im pr ov e 

c r i t e r i a as new p o llu t a n t pr ob lem s and our aw ar en es s o f 

them ch an ge s and a s ' new and im pr ov ed a n a l y t i c a l te c h n iq u e s , 

p o ll u t io n c o n t r o l te c h n o lo g y and u n d ers ta n d in g o f 

eco sy st em s d e v e lo p s . An in c r e a s e d em pha si s o v er th e n ex t 

f i v e y e a rs w i l l be on su p ple m en ti n g p o llu t a n t c r i t e r i a 

b ase d on s p e c i f i c r e p r e s e n t a t iv e org an is m s w it h d ata 

o b ta in e d fro m c u r r e n tly -b e in g -d e v e lo p e d sta n d a rd iz e d 

la b o r a t o r y model eco sy ste m s and m ic ro co sm s.

FY 197 6 Pla n

• Det er m in e th e t o x i c i t y o f d i s i n f e c t e d w ast ew ate r 

e f f lu e n t s an d th e b io a ccu m u la ti o n o f o rg a n ic 

compounds by f is h ex po su ed to th e s e and o th e r 

w a s te s .

• Det er m in e th e d i s t r i b u t i o n , e f f e c t s on a q u a tic l i f e 

( s in g ly and in com bin at io n w it h o th e r p o ll u ta n ts ) 

and in te rm e d ia tr a n s p o r t o f a s b e s tif o r m f i b e r s .

• E v a lu a te a c u t e , c h r o n ic , s y n e r g i s t i c , a n ta g o n is t ic 

and a d d it iv e e f f e c t s o f s e le c t e d o r g a n ic and 

in o rg a n ic p o llu t a n t s and p o ll u ta n t co m b in ati o n s.

• D et er m in e b e h a v io r a l resp o n se s o f a q u a tic or ga nis m s 

to s e le c t e d p o llu t a n t s and o th e r s t r e s s e s .

• C h a r a c te r iz e th e d e g ra d a ti o n o f o r g a n ic p o ll u ta n ts 

in c o ld c li m a te eco sy ste m s.

• Deter m in e e f f e c t s o f d is s o lv e d gas s u p e r s a tu r a tio n 

on s e le c t e d s p e c ie s o f sa lm onid and no ns al m on id 

f i s h e s .

F iv e -Y e a r Pla n

• D ev el op c r i t e r i a f o r th e c o n t r o l o f p o ll u ta n t 

e f f e c t s in A r c t i c and S u b a r c tic fr e sh w a te r 

ecosy st em s.

• In c re a s e em pha si s on d ete rm in in g re sp o n se o f a q u a ti c 

l i f e to co m b in a ti o n s o f t o x ic a n t s and o th e r 

s t r e s s e s .

• Det er m in e mo vem ent, d e p o s itio n , tr a n s fo r m a tio n , and 

e f f e c t s o f p o llu t a n t s in la r g e , s e m ic o n tr o ll e d 

e x p eri m e n ta l st re am ch an n e ls open t o en vir on m en ta l 

v a r i a t i o n s .

45
89

• D e te rm in e fa t e an d e f f e c t s o f p o llu t a n t s i n 

la b o r a to r y - s c a le m odel eco syste m s.

• Use la b o r a to r y s c a le m odel ecosyste m s f o r r a p id s c re e n in g o f p o llu t a n t s t o is o la t e p o t e n t ia lly 

p ro b le m m a te r ia ls .

• D e te rm in e e x te n t an d s ig n if ic a n c e o f th e s o r p tio n o f p e s t ic id e s , m e ta ls and o th e r to x ic a n t s o n to 

p a r t ic u la t e m a tte r.

• Im p ro ve know le dge o f d is s o lv e d oxygen re q u ir e m e n ts o f im p o rta n t in v e r t e b r a t e s and w arm w ate r f is h e s .

• D e te rm in e th e r o le o f a q u a tic o rg a n is m s in tr a n s fo r m in g heavy m e ta ls as th e m e ta ls e n te r th e 

e n v ir o n m e n t.

F re s h w a te r Syste m s C h a r a c te r iz a tio n an d Im p a c t A ssessm ent

The fre s h w a te r syste m s c h a r a c t e r iz a t io n an d im p a c t assessm ent re s e a rc h fo c u s e s o n : d e te rm in in g th e s o u rc e , t r a n s p o r t , tr a n s fo r m a tio n e f f e c t s an d u ltim a t e f a t e o f p o llu t a n t s in s p e c if ic fre s n w a te r e c o s y s te m s , w ith on s p e c ia l em phasis th e G re a t L a k e s ; u n d e rs ta n d in g th e e u tr o p h ic a tio n pro ce ss in fr e s h w a te r eco syste m s, d e v e lo p in g m eth ods f o r e v a lu a tin g th e t r o p h ic s ta tu s o f n a t u r a l w a te rs and d e v e lo p in g met ho ds t o re v e rs e o r r e d ir e c t u n d e s ir e a b le e f f e c t s o f c u l t u r a l e u t r o p h ic a t io n ; d e te rm in in g th e e f f e c t s o f m an -i nd uce d s tre s s e s on A r c t ic e co s y s te m s ; an d c h a r a c t e r iz in g la b o r a to r y m odel ecosyste m s t o be used f o r 

e c o lo g ic a l c r i t e r i a d e v e lo p m e n t.

F ie ld s tu d ie s c a r r ie d o u t in t h i s a re a a re e s s e n t ia l in v a lid a t in g d a ta o b ta in e d fr o m la b o r a to r y s tu d ie s , in a s s e s s in g im p a c ts o f e n v ir o n m e n t s tre s s e s an d o f s tr e s s d e c re a s e s f o llo w in g c o n t r o l pro gra m s an d in id e n t if y in g new p ro b le m s b e fo r e th e y become s e r io u s . EPA* s re s e a rc h com m itm ent to th e U .S .— Can ad a G re a t Lakes W ate r Q u a lit y Agre em ent o f 1972 i s f u l f i l l e d th ro u g h t h i s re s e a rc h 

a c t i v i t y .

An im p o r ta n t new a re a o f em phasis i s d e v e lo p m e h t, c h a r a c t e r iz a t io n and s t a n d a r d iz a tio n o f la b o r a to r y m od el eco syste m s o r m ic ro cosm s. Suc h m odels can be used t o s tu d y fr e s h w a te r an d m u lt im e d ia e c o lo g ic a l p ro c e s s e s an d e f f e c t s u n d e r c o n t r o lle d c o n d itio n s an d t o q u ic k ly s c re e n p o llu t a n t s m ost e c o lo g ic a lly h a z a rd o u s . Among th e im p o r ta n t o u tp u ts o f t h is a re a o v e r th e n e x t f i v e y e a rs

46
90

will be: , an integrated set of predictive mathematical 

models of key chemical, physical and biological processes 

in the Great Lakes; a thorough analysis of National 

Eutrophication Survey data on a nationwide basis to 

determine relationships between land use, nutrient source, 

and lake trophic status; and assessment of full-scale lake 

restoration activities carried out under the Clean Ldkes 

Program.

FY 1976 Plan

Continue the National Eutrophication Survey: a 

systematic inventory of trophic conditions of 

selected lakes in the continental U.S.

• Develop and apply eutrophication and algal 

production models of Lakes Ontario, Erie, and Huron 

to predict consequences 6f nutrient control 

programs.

• Continue assessment and identification of pollution 

problems in the Great Lakes such as accumulation of 

polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and other organics 

in Great Lakes fish.

• Evaluate advanced waste treatment, nutrient 

. diversion, nutrient inactivation and biological

manipulation as lake restoration techniques.

• Develop and refine predictive , models of the

eutrophication process.

• Characterize laboratory model ecosystems as

potential research and screening tools for

evaluating and predicting ecosystem effects of 

pollutants.

Five-Year Plan

• Develop improved understanding of functioning and 

vari ability of natural ecosystems by support of 

relevant baseline and theoretical research.

• Evaluate the rate and extent of recovery of 

ecosystems following removal of a stress to better 

predict the effectiveness of particular pollution 

control options.

47
91

• C o n tin u e r e s e a r c h on G r e a t L a k e s e c o s y s te m s o r i e n t e d to w a rd s i d e n t i f y i n g an d a s s e s s i n g p o l l u t i o n 

p ro b le m s.

• D e te rm in e t h e e f f e c t i v e n e s s o f n u t r i e n t c o n t r o l p ro gra m s in t h e G r e a t L a k e s an d o t h e r f r e s h w a t e r 

e c o s y s t e m s .

• C o n tin u e t o c h a r a c t e r i z e a d d i t i o n a l l a b o r a t o r y - s c a l e m od el e c o s y s te m s f o r u se a s t o x i c s u b s t a n c e s 

s c r e e n in g an d e f f e c t s r e s e a r c h t o o l s .

• E v a lu a t e th e e c o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s an d e f f e c t i v e n e s s o f l a k e r e s t o r a t i o n p r o j e c t s c a r r i e d o u t u n d e r th e C le a n L akes Pro gr am and o t h e r a c t i v i t i e s , i n c lu d i n g 

Sh ag aw a L ake.

• C o m p le te th e N a t io n a l E u t r o p h ic a t io n S u r v e y (NES) an d p erfo rm d e t a i l e d a n a ly s e s o f t h e NES d a t a b a se t o d e te rm in e r e l a t i o n s h i p s among l a n d - u s e , p o in t and n o n p o in t s o u rc e i n p u t s an d la k e t r o p h i c s t a t u s .

• D e v e lo p an d c h a r a c t e r i z e new an d im p ro ved m eth ods o f l a k e r e s t o r a t i o n , in c lu d i n g e c o s y s te m l e v e l a p p ro a c h e s su ch a s b i o l o g i c a l a l t e r a t i o n .

M a ri n e an d E s t u a r in e E c o l o g i c a l C r i t e r i a D evelo p m en t

A nu mbe r o f s u c c e s s f u l e f f o r t s , in c lu d i n g an a s s e s s m e n t o f p r o g r e s s on e s t u a r i e s and r e s e a r c h i n f l u e n c i n g E PA 's d i r e c t i o n in a d m in is t e r in g P .L . 92 -5 00 h ave le d t o c h a n g e s i n ORD r e s e a r c h p la n n in g i n th e a r e a o f M a ri n e and E s t u a r i n e . ORD n ee d s t o c o n t in u e d e v e lo p m e n t o f s i n g l e s p e c i e s an d s i n g l e p o l l u t a n t b io a s s a y m et hods r e s e a r c h and c o n c u r r e n t r e s e a r c h in c h e m ic a l a n a ly s e s t o s u p p o r t th e p o l l u t a n t b io a s s a y s as i n p u t s i n t o r e g i o n a l p e r m it pro gr am n e e d s . T h e se e f f o r t s w i l l c o n t in u e , t a p e r i n g o f f t o 

c o n c lu s i o n a f t e r 19 80.

A lt h o u g h much o f th e r e s e a r c h b e in g c a r r i e d o u t in FY 19 76 w i l l be c o n ti n u e d i n t h e f o l lo w i n g y e a r s , ORD f o r e s e e s c h a n g e s in th e ty p e o f r e s e a r c h o u t p u t . T h e re w i l l be l e s s e m p h a sis on th e s i n g l e p a r a m e te r w a te r q u a l i t y c r i t e r i a (su mmary r e p o r t s on t o x i c i t i e s o f s p e c i f i c m e ta ls , p e s t i c i d e s , d i s i n f e c t a n t s an d o t h e r c r i t e r i a t o be p u b lis h e d p e r i o d i c a l l y th r o u g h 198 0) an d mo re e m p h a sis on d e v e lo p in g t e s t s y ste m s f o r e v a l u a t i n g t h e n e a r f i e l d im p a c t o f a c h e m ic a lly c o m p le x e f f l u e n t . ORD b e l i e v e s t h a t su ch in fo r m a t io n w i l l be o f b e t t e r u se in t h e d e v e lo p m e n t o f l e g a l l y d e f e n s i b l e w a t e r q u a l i t y c r i t e r i a , e f f l u e n t

48
92

l i m i t a t i o n s an d g u i d e l i n e s f o r d i s p o s a l o f num ero us 

i n d u s t r i a l and d o m e s ti c e f f l u e n t s . I t w i l l b e b a s e d 'o n 

a n a l y s i s o f co m ple x i n t e r a c t i v e s y s te m s t h a t fo rm th e 

e n v ir o n m e n t, so a s t o g u a rd a g a i n s t e c o l o g i c a l im b a la n c e . 

In p a r t i c u l a r , c o m p le ti o n o f t h i s r e s e a r c h w i l l p ro d u c e 

in f o r m a t io n on im p a c t o f d i s p o s a l o f d re d g e s p o i l s on 

c o a s t a l an d m a rin e e n v ir o n m e n ts , so m e th in g t o w h ic h EPA h a s 

b een a s k e d t o re s p o n d .

FY 19 76 P la n

• D e te rm in e f a t e a n d e f f e c t s o f o r g a n ic an d in o r g a n ic 

p o l l u t a n t s , s i n g l y , i n c o m b in a ti o n a n d i n m ix ed 

w a s te s , a s d is c h a r g e d i n t o e s t u a r i n e an d c o a s t a l 

a r e a s .

• D e te rm in e th e e c o l o g i c a l im p a c t o f v a r i o u s l e v e l s o f 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l p a r a m e te r s su ch a s , b u t n o t l i m i t e d 

t o , te m p e r a tu r e , d i s s o l v e d oxygen an d s a l i n i t y .

• D e te rm in e c r i t e r i a f o r w a ste o u t f a l l s i n t h e m a rin e 

e n v ir o n m e n t.

• A s s e s s th e e c o l o g i c a l s i g n i f i c a n c e o f i n d i c e s o f 

com m un ity s t r u c t u r e a n d p o p u la tio n d y n a m ic s an d th e 

u s e o f su ch i n d i c e s a s c r i t e r i a f o r m e a s u rin g th e 

" h e a l t h " o f m a rin e e c o s y s te m s .

• D e te rm in e th e e f f e c t s o f a n t i f o u l i n g b i o c i d e s an d 

d i s i n f e c t a n t s on m a rin e s p e c ie s an d e c o s y s te m s .

F iv e - Y e a r P la n

• D ev elo p c r i t e r i a f o r d re d g e m a t e r i a l d i s p o s a l .

• D ev elo p c r i t e r i a f o r lo n g - te r m , lo w - le v e l th e r m a l

p o l l u t i o n in

e n v ir o n m e n ts .

b o th p o ll u te d and u n p o llu te d

• R e p o rt on f a t e 

e n v ir o n m e n t.

o f m e ta ls in an e s t u a r i n e

• D evelo pm ent o f m u l t i p l e s p e c i e s

p o l l u t a n t b io a s s a y p r o c e d u r e s .

and m u l ti p le

• D evelo pm ent o f c r i t e r i a f o r t h i r d g e n e r a t io n

p e s t i c i d e s .

49
93

C rite r ia fo r ocean dumping p rac ti ce s are be ing de veloped.

CREDIT: EPA/DOCUMERICA - Gary E. M il le r

50
• Dev el op m en t o f a r a p id s c re e n in g te c h n iq u e f o r 

t e s t i n g s u b s ta n c e s f o r m u ta g e n ic it y an d t o x i c i t y .

• R e v is io n o f' bio ars sa y p ro c e d u re s f o r th e oce an 

du mp ing p e rm it pro gra m .

M ar in e an d E s tu a r in e Syst em s C h a r a c te r iz a tio n an d Im pac t 

A ss ess m ent

Th e FWPCA (P .L . 92- 500 ," c o n ta in s a c l e a r m an da te from 

C ongre ss f o r EPA t o em ploy ec o lo g y a s a p r e d ic tiv e s c ie n c e . 

T h is r e q u ir e s r e s e a r c h on me ans to d e s c r ib e q u a n t i t a t i v e l y 

w hat a "b a la n c e d in d ig e n o u s p o p u la ti o n " i s an d to d e f in e 

q u a n t i t a t i v e l y w hat am ou nt o f s t r e s s w i l l d r iv e e c o lo g ic a l 

com m unit ie s in q u e s tio n o u t o f " b a la n c e " .

The r e s e a r c h e f f o r t p r e s e n tly in c lu d e s la b o ra to r y 

m o d eli n g , s im u la tio n o f s p e c i f i c e s tu a r in e ec o sy ste m s, 

c o n c u r re n t f i e l d m eas ure m en ts an d v e r i f i c a t i o n o f mo de l 

r e s u l t s an d im p act a s se ss m e n t. Much o f th e r e s e a r c h 

c a r r i e d o u t in FY 1976 w i l l be c o n ti n u e d i n t o th e fo ll o w in g 

y e a r s . The f i r s t f i v e y e a r s o f e f f o r t sh o u ld pro duce a 

p r e d ic tiv e p h y s ic a l mod el o f ecosy st em dynam ic s f o r on e o r 

tw o e s t u a r i e s , v e r i f i e d by co m put er m odeli ng o f wha t ORD 

b e lie v e s to be e c o lo g ic a lly a c tiv e f a c t o r s an d f i e l d 

v a l id a t io n in th e e s t u a r i e s m od el ed .

ORD e x p e c ts to a p p ly kn ow ledg e g a in e d i n t h i s f iv e - y e a r 

e f f o r t to p ro m u lg a te an d u p d ate g u id e lin e s f o r oce an 

o u t f a l l s i t i n g , ocean du m pi ng , im p act a sse ss m e n t o f th e rm a l 

an d chem ic al d is c h a r g e s an d a v a r ie ty o f s p e c i f i c r e g io n a l 

p e rm it pro ble m s. F o ll o w in g s u c c e s s fu l te c h n o lo g y tr a n s f e r 

t o th e p r iv a t e s e c t o r , th e r e s e a r c h pro gra m may be re duced 

t o a le v e l s u i t a b l e t o m a in ta in Ag ency e x p e r tis e an d a c t on 

o c c a s io n a l uniq ue p o llu t io n e p is o d e s an d h e lp in g 

co m m unit ie s a f f e c t e d . I t w i l l th e n become a te c h n ic a l 

a s s is ta n c e e f f o r t .

FY 1976 P la n

• D et er m in e th e dynam ic s o f r e l a t i v e l y u n p o ll u te d 

n a tu r a l e s tu a r in e ec o sy ste m s.

• D ev el op c o n c e p tu a l, co m pute r an d m a th e m a ti c a l m od el s 

of s to r a g e an d fl ow o f n a t u r a l p ro d u c ts an d 

p o llu t a n ts in p o llu te d an d r e l a t i v e l y u n p o ll u te d 

e s tu a r ie s an d c o a s t a l e n v ir o n m en ts .
• D ev el op sim u la te d eco sy ste m s u sin g n a tu r a l and 

a r t i f i c a l e s t u a r in e co m m un itie s to p r e d ic t th e f a t e 

and e f f e c t s o f p o llu t a n t s .

• Pro duce p ro ced u re s and g u id e li n e s fo r a s s e s s in g , p r e d ic t in g and d em o n str a ti n g en vir o n m en ta l im pact 

fro m oc ea n d is p o s a l p r a c t i c e s .

• D et er m in e th e f a t e -and e c o lo g ic a l e f f e c t s o f p etr ole u m and p etr o le u m d e r iv e d hyd ro ca rb on s and pro duce g u id e li n e s f o r damage ass ess m en t and metho ds f o r p r e d ic tin g im p a cts from new so u r c e s .

• A s s e s s th e e f f e c t s o f e x i s t i n g s t r e s s e s fro m v a r io u s i n d u s t r i a l and m u n ic ip a l w a st es on S u b a r c tic m ar in e 

en vir on m en ts .

F iv e -Y e a r P la n

• D et er m in e th e f a t e and e f f e c t s o f v ir u s e s in tr o d u c e d 

in t o th e m ar in e and e s t u a r in e eco sy st em .

• D et er m in e th e f a t e an d e f f e c t s o f th e oce an d is p o s a l 

o f s ta c k scru b b er w a ste m a te r ia l.

• R ep ort on th e im p act an d g u id e li n e s _ f o r p r e d ic t in g 

th e im pac t o f dre dge s p o i ls and se wag e s lu d g e .

• R ep ort on th e d i s t r i b u t i o n o f c a r c in o g e n ic com pou nds 

d e r iv e d fro m p etr ole u m h yd ro ca rb on s.

• A ss es sm ent o f b i o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s o f oc ea n d is p o s a l o f se wag e w a st e i n so u th ern C a l i f o r n i a , New Yo rk 

B ig h t and A r c t ic c o a s t a l w a te rs.

• A ss es sm ent o f e c o l o g i c a l im pa ct fro m d re d g in g and 

d re dge s p o i l d i s p o s a l.

• D et er m in e th e f a t e an d e f f e c t s o f i n e r t in g r e d ie n t s 

fo un d in p e s t i c i d e s .

T e r r e s t r i a l E c o lo g ic a l C r i t e r i a Dev elo pm en t

Th e T e r r e s t r i a l E c o lo g i c a l C r i t e r i a Dev elop m en t Are a fo c u s e s on su p p o rti n g a i r p o llu t io n c o n t r o l s t r a t e g i e s th a t w i l l p r o t e c t p u b lic w e lfa r e by d ete rm in in g th e e c o lo g i c a l and p h y s io lo g ic a l e f f e c t s o f a i r p o llu t a n t s an d o th e r p o llu t a n t s on t e r r e s t r i a l f l o r a and fa una when th e y are c o u p le d w it h v a r io u s e n vir o n m e n ta l s t r e s s e s . Th e wo rk in
96

p r o g r e s s w i l l d e te r m in e g e n e r a l p r i n c i p l e s g o v e rn in g 

t r a n s f o r m a t i o n , a c c u m u la tio n and e v e n tu a l f a t e o f a i r , 

p e s t i c i d e , -and o th e r p o l l u t a n t s in t e r r e s t r i a l e c o s y s te m s . 

S uch d e te r m in a tio n s w i l l be ma de by mea ns -, o f f i e l d , 

g re e n h o u s e an d l a b o r a t o r y s t u d i e s and by u se o f s c a l e m od el 

m ic ro co sm e c o s y s te m s .

I n p a r t i c u l a r , c o m p le tio n o f t h e s e s t u d i e s w i l l 

s t r e n g t h e n and d o cu m en t c r i t e r i a f o r s u l f u r o x id e s , 

n i t r o g e n o x id e s , p h o to c h e m ic a l o x id a n t s an d n o n c r i t e r i a 

p o l l u t a n t s . T h ese d a ta h a v e b een r e q u e s te d by E P A 's O f f ic e 

o f A ir Q u a lity P la n n in g and S ta n d a r d s . F u rth e rm o r e , th e 

c o m p le te d r e s e a r c h w i l l a ll o w EPA to a c h ie v e t h e s c h e d u le d 

u p d a te s on c r i t e r i a p o l l u t a n t s p r e s c r ib e d i n t h e C le a n A ir 

A c t.

I n f o r m a tio n on s e l e c t e d 

m e ta ls ) p o l l u t a n t s w i l l be 

c o m p le te d d a ta w i l l p r o v id e 

p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l s t r a t e g i e s .

n o n c r i t e r i a ( e . g . , h eav y 

s i m i l a r l y u p d a te d . And th e 

th e Ip a sis f o r f u t u r e a i r 

F i n a l l y , c o m p le tio n o f th e

r e s e a r c h w i l l p r o v id e t h e b a s i s f o r e v a l u a t i o n o f th e 

s i g n i f i c a n c e o f n a t u r a l l y o c c u r r in g a i r p o l l u t a n t s su ch a s 

h y d ro c a rb o n s and e th y l e n e .

FY 1976 P la n

• D ev elo p and r e f i n e s c i e n t i f i c b a s i s f o r se c o n d a ry 

a i r q u a l i t y s t a n d a r d s and f o r c o n t r o l s t r a t e g i e s a s 

c i t e d i n th e C le a n A ir A c t,

• D ev elo p a s c i e n t i f i c b a s i s f o r c o n t r o l and 

r e g u l a t i o n o f s e l e c t e d p e s t i c i d e s 'a n d o th e r t o x i c o r 

h a z a rd o u s m a t e r i a l s .

• D e te rm in e t h e e c o l o g i c a l an d p h y s i o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s 

o f p e s t i c i d e s an d o th e r t o x i c s u b s ta n c e s on 

t e r r e s t r i a l e c o s y s te m s by u se o f s im u la te d m o d els 

and e c o s y s te m s .

• M easu re a c u t e and c h r o n ic t e r r e s t r i a l e c o sy ste m 

r e s p o n s e s t o v a r i o u s p o l l u t a n t s , s i n g ly and in 

c o m b in a tio n s .

• D e te rm in e ; u s e f u l n e s s o f e c o l o g i c a l in d i c e s a s 

p o l l u t a n t s t r e s s i n d i c a t o r s an d e n fo rc e m e n t t o o l s .

53
97

F iv e - Y e a r P la n

• D e ve lo p t e r r e s t r i a l e c o l o g i c a l m o d els d e s c r i b i n g 

p o l l u t a n t p a th w a y s , t r a n s f o r m a t io n , an d f a t e .

• C o n tin u e d e v e lo p m e n t o f s c i e n t i f i c b a s i s f o r 

s e c o n d a ry a i r q u a l i t y s t a n d a r d s .

• D ete rm in e m ov em en t, d i s p o s i t i o n , t r a n s f o r m a t io n an d 

e f f e c t s o f p o l l u t a n t s in m ic ro cosm t e r r e s t r i a l 

e c o s y s te m s .

• D e ve lo p p o l l u t a n t f a t e an d n u t r i t i o n a l e le m e n t 

r e c y c l i n g e f f e c t s o f a c id r a i n on p l a n t co m m u n it ie s 

and s o i l s y s t e m s .

• D ete rm in e and d e v e lo p c r i t e r i a g u i d e l i n e s f o r 

r e g i s t e r i n g t h i r d g e n e r a t io n p e s t i c i d e s .

• D ete rm in e p o l l u t a n t t r a n s p o r t p a th w a y s ,

t r a n s f o r m a t io n an d e c o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s o f p e s t i c i d e s 

in u rb an u s e .

T e r r e s t r i a l E c o s y ste m s C h a r a c t e r iz a t i o n an d Im pact 

A ss e s sm e n t

Th e T e r r e s t r i a l E co sy ste m s C h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n and 

P o l l u t i o n Im p act A ss e s sm e n t w or k f o c u s e s on s c i e n t i f i c c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n o f d is r u p t e d a n d / o r n a t u r a l t e r r e s t r i a l e c o s y s te m s o r t h e i r p a r t s t h a t h a ve b e e n , a r e , o r a r e a b o u t t o be im p a cte d by a i r - o r r a in - b o r n e p o l l u t a n t s . Su ch p o l l u t a n t s o c c u r s i n g l y o r i n c o m b in a tio n in v a r y in g c o n c e n t r a t i o n s an d f o r v a r y in g e x p o s u re p e r i o d s . Th e d a ta ca n be m a th e m a t ic a lly m odel ed o r s u b j e c t t o i n t e r p r e t a t i o n 

w ith o u t b e in g m o d e le d . F in d in g s w i l l be u se d t o p r e d i c t e i t h e r e c o l o g i c a l o r eco n o m ic da mag e t o t e r r e s t r i a l e c o s y s te m s b a s e d on p r o j e c t e d p o l l u t a n t c o n c e n t r a t i o n s , e x p o s u r e d u r a t io n an d a m b ie n t e n v ir o n m e n ta l c o n d i t i o n s a s t h e y a c t on t y p i c a l b i o t a o f a g iv e n r e g i o n , l o c a t i o n o r 

s i t e .

F u tu r e s t u d i e s w i l l a llo w d e v e lo p m e n t o f p r o t o ty p e 

c o n t r o l s t r a t e g i e s r e l a t e d t o e n t i r e e c o s y s te m s . A ls o , e f f e c t s o f p o l l u t a n t s on s t a b i l i t y o f v i t a l b i o l o g i c a l p r o c e s s e s in v i a b l e f o r e s t , g r a s s la n d , and a g r i c u l t u r a l e c o s y s t e m s , w i l l b e m e a n in g fu lly f i t t e d i n t o e co s y s te m c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n s . Th e b i o l o g i c a l p r o c e s s e s w i l l in c lu d e p h o t o s y n t h e s is , n i t r o g e n f i x a t i o n an d n u t r i e n t r e c y c l i n g . C o m p le te d s t u d i e s w i l l a l s o r e v e a l a c t u a l r a t e s o f

79-39 7 0 - 77 - 8

54
ecosystem degradation of a coniferious forest ecosystem 

under oxidant stress.

FY 1976 Plan

• Determine and characterize impact of air pollutants 

on flora and fauna of a grassland plains savannah 

ecosystem.

• Determine and characterize impact of air pollutants 

on a coniferous we stern forest ecosystem.

• Determine and characterize pollutant impacts on 

ecosystem components of disturbed, e.g. , 

agricultural, ecosystems.

• Develop predictive terrestrial ecosystems models 

that may include socio-economic and demographic 

analysis and resource utilization evaluations.

Five-Year Plan

• Determine and characterize air pollutant effects on 

deciduous, grassland, and coniferous ecosystems.

• Develop and verify ecosystem predictive and 

transport models of pollutant impact studies for 

major ecosystems.

• Develop population dynamic models for microbiotic 

communities under pollutant stress.

Transport and Fate of Pollutants

Subprogram Description

Development of effective pollution control strategies 

requires linking pollutant impacts to sources. The 

Transport and Fate Subprogram is primarily responsible for 

development of empirical and analytical techniques that 

relate air and water pollution source emissions and 

discharges to ambient exposures. This requires research 

and model development in: (a) atmospheric soil and aquatic 

ecosystem processes and effects for determination of 

pollutant sources, interactions, transport, transformation 

and sinks; (b) effects of air pollutants on visibility, 

rainfall, and climate; and (c) impacts of water pollutants 

of water quality.
99

Following is a description of the tr anspo rt and fate 

research as divided into air and water and an 

identification of major outputs over the nex t five years.

Air

The Clean Air Act of 1970 introduced an era of 

stringent standards and deadlines for achieving air quality 

goals. However, some ramifications of achieving clean air 

have only recently, come sharply into focus. The direct 

costs of achieving clean air by control of stationary and 

mobile sources are better known and the indirect impacts on 

land use, energy supplies and other goals have become more 

apparent. Sophis ticat ed "hardware" controls alone are no 

longer considered enough or the sole solution to air 

quality improvement.

In this period, knowledge of many a tmospheric processes 

governing transport and transformation of pollutants in the 

atmosphere has progressed. However, available new 

information has re veal ed significant information gaps that 

may hinder progress in effectively managing atmospheric 

quality. The gaps most likely to receive attention in the 

near-term include the transport and alteration of sulfates 

under both regional and global conditions and on the wellestablished problem of oxidants in local and regional 

areas. Emerging problems, such as freon and other 

hazardous substances, are also likely to receive more 

attention.

Processes that lite r air pollutants In the atmosphere are dynamic and must be understood 1n order to

develop effective abatement strategies.

CTEOIT: EPA/DOCUMERICA - Gene Daniels

56
100

D u ri n g th e p a s t t h r e e y e a r s , th e ORD h a s c o n d u c te d a , 

m a jo r R e g io n a l A ir P o l l u t i o n S tu d y (RAPS) i n S t . L o u is t o 

d e v e lo p and v a l i d a t e r e g i o n a l - s c a l e m o d els f o r c r i t e r i a a i r 

p o l l u t a n t s . P la n n e d a c c o m p li s h m e n ts in c l u d e : (a)

c o m p le tio n o f e m is s io n in v e n to r y m e th o d o lo g ie s , (b)

d e v e lo p m e n t o f m o d e ls f o r n o n r e a c tin g p o l l u t a n t s , (c) 

d e v e lo p m e n t o f m o d els i n d i c a t i n g t r a n s f o r m a t i o n , an d (d) 

im p ro v e d u n d e r s ta n d in g o f p o l l u t a n t / p r e c u r s o r pem ov al 

p r o c e s s e s .

F ie l d i n v e s t i g a t i o n s w i l l so o n be c o n d u c te d t o 

d e te r m in e th e p h y s i c a l an d c h e m ic a l d e s c r i p t i o n o f 

a tm o s p h e ric g a s e o u s an d p a r t i c u l a t e m a t t e r . Th e m a jo r 

a tm o s p h e ric e f f e c t s , in c l u d in g a c id r a i n f a l l , v i s i b i l i t y 

r e d u c t i o n , c lim a to lo g y an d r a d i a t i o n b a l a n c e , w i l l be 

s t u d i e d . I d e n t i f i c a t i o n an d q u a n t i f i c a t i o n o f r e g u l a te d 

an d im p o r ta n t n o n r e g u la te d p o l l u t a n t s w i l l b e d e te rm in e d i n 

b o th u rb a n and n o n u rb a n a tm o s p h e re s .

A m bie nt p o l l u t a n t l e v e l s w i l l be q u a n t i t a t i v e l y 

d e s c r ib e d i n te r m s o f c o n t r i b u t i n g e m is s io n s o u r c e s . 

S u b je c t s in c lu d e d a r e : (a ) o x id a n t t r a n s p o r t , (b ) p h y s ic a l 

a n d c h e m ic a l c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n o f a tm o s p h e r ic a e r o s o ls and 

g a s e s , (c ) s o u r c e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o f a m b ie n t p o l l u t a n t s 

( e . g . , n a t u r a l v s . p o w e rp la n t v s . a r e a s o u r c e s ) and (d) 

f r e o n and h a lo c a rb o n a b u n d a n c e i n th e tr o p o s p h e r e .

A ir q u a l i t y s i m u l a ti o n m o d els w i l l a l s o b e d e v e lo p e d , 

e v a lu a te d an d v a l i d a t e d t o p r o v id e q u a l i t a t i v e and 

q u a n t i t a t i v e m eth o d s f o r p r e d i c t i n g an d d e s c r ib in g a i r 

q u a l i t y fr om a v a r i e t y o f e m is s io n s s o u r c e s . In c lu d e d h e re 

a re ,: - (a ) m od el d e v e lo p m e n t f o r im p o r t a n t p o l l u t a n t 

c a t e g o r i e s an d c o n f i g u r a t i o n s

s o u r c e s , a r e a s o u r c e s , e t c . ) ; 

m o d el t e s t i n g p r o t o c o l s a n d (d) 

m o d el u s e .

( e . g . , h ig h w a y , p o in t 

(b) m odel e v a l u a t i o n ; (c) 

g u i d e l i n e s f o r p h y s ic a l

FY 19 76 P la n

• R e p o rt on t h e e v a l u a t i o n o f t h e se c o n d g e n e r a tio n 

p h o to c h e m ic a l' m o d e l.

• A d a p a ta tio n o f tw o u rb a n a i r q u a l i t y m o d els to S t. 

L o u is (R e g io n a l A ir P o l l u t i o n S tu d y ) .

• R e p o rt su m m a riz in g c u r r e n t k n o w le d g e on h y d ro c a rb o n - 

p h o to c h e m ic a l r e a c t i v i t y .

57
101

• Report on plu me r i s e c li m a to lo g y f o r th e U.S . f o r 

e v a lu a ti o n of p o w e rp la n t s i t e s .

• R eport on p h o to - o x id a ti o n p ro d u c ts fr om NO an d 

a ro m a ti c h y d ro ca rb o n p o l l u t a n t s .

• Summary r e p o r t on a c id r a i n f a l l d i s t r i b u t i o n o v er 

th e U .S .

• R ep o rt on th e e f f e c t s o f a i r p o l l u t a n t s in th e 

u r b a n - r u r a l r a d i a t i o n b a la n c e .

• In te rim r e p o r t on th e r e l a t i v e c o n t r i b u tio n s of a re a 

so u rc e s an d l a r g e p o in t so u rc e s o f am b ie n t s u l f a t e 

le v e ls .

• R eport on abundance o f flu o ro c a rb o n s an d o th e r 

im p o rta n t h a lo c a rb o n s in th e tr o p o s p h e r e .

• R e p o rt r e s u l t s o f 1975 sum mer e x p e r ie n t, 

p h o to ch em ic al o x id a n t tr a n s p o r t in lo w er New 

E ngla nd.

• R ep o rt on sa m p li n g an d a n a ly s i s te c h n iq u e s f o r 

p a r t i c u l a t e m a tte r e m is sio n s o f d ie se l- p o w e re d 

high way v e h i c l e s .

• U rb an-R ura l A ir P o llu tio n C h a r a c te r iz a tio n and 

Sourc e I d e n t i f i c a t i o n .

F iv e -Y e a r P la n

• Dev el op m en t o f sa m pli ng and a n a ly s i s te c h n iq u e s f o r 

i d e n t i f i c a t i o n an d m ea su re m en t o f : c o n d e n s ib le em is sio n s 

fr om m obil e s o u rc e s ; c o n d e n s ib le e m is sio n s from s t a tio n a r y 

s o u r c e s ; o rg a n ic s from ch em ic al an d p e tr o c h e m ic a l p la n ts ; 

r e g u la te d p o l l u t a n t e m is s io n s fro m m o b il e s o u r c e s .

• U rb a n -ru ra l a i r p o llu tio n c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n an d

so u rc e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n :

R e p o rt on n o n re g u la te d p o l l u t a n t s in th e New

York-New J e r s e y a r e a ;

R e p o rt on n a t u r a l s o u rc e s o f o x id a n t

p r e c u r s o r s ;

58
102

R e p o rts on n o n r e g u la te d p o l l u t a n t s in 

B irm in gha m ;

A g r i c u l t u r a l a r e a in R eg io n V I I ; and Lo s 

A n g e le s.

• I d e n t i f i c a t i o n an d. c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n o f e m is s io n s 

fr om s t a t i o n a r y s o u r c e s in c l u d in g t o x i c m e ta ls an d 

o r g a n ic e m is s io n s fr o m p e tr o c h e m ic a l s o u r c e s .

• R e g io n a l A ir P o l l u t i o n S tu d y :

D ev elo pm ent u rb a n s u l f a t e m odels t o be u se d 

a g a i n s t RAPS d a t a b a s e ;

E v a lu a tio n o f s u l f a t e and n o n s u l f a t e m o d e ls .

• A ir q u a l i t y s i m u l a t i o n m o d e li n g .

• Re mov al m echanis m s f o r a tm o s p h e ric n i t r a t e s .

• P ro g r e s s r e p o r t o n th e r c l e o f p r e c i p i t a t i o n w ash o u t 

an d r a i n o u t on s u l f a t e s an d n i t r a t e s r e l a t i v e to 

lo n g - ra n g e t r a n s p o r t .

• R e p o rt on re c o m m e n d a ti o n s f o r c o n t r o l o f f i n e 

p a r t i c u l a t e s .

• A tm o sp h e ri c e f f e c t s :

Im p act o f a i r p o l l u t i o n on s e l e c t e d b o d ie s o f 

w a te r.

T re n d s in v i s i b i l i t y .

A sse ssm e n t o f a i r p o l l u t i o n m o d i f i c a ti o n o f 

r e g i o n a l w e a th e r an d c li m a t e .

• F in a l r e p o r t on t h e r e l a t i v e c o n t r i b u t i o n s o f a re a 

s o u r c e s and l a r g e p o in t s o u r c e s t o a m b ie n t s u l f a t e 

l e v e l s .

• F in a l r e p o r t on o x id a n t t r a n s p o r t s t u d i e s .

59
103

Water

The establishment of water quality criteria and 

standards, the developmen t of load allocations and 

subsequent issuance of permits, the devel opment of basin 

manaqement strategies and pursuit of enforcement actions 

depend on a knowledge of how contaminants are transported 

and transformed in the aquatic environment. This 

scientific information is necessary in order to: (a) 

establish -environmentally judicious wate r quality 

standards; (b) assume scientifically defensibl e positions 

in litigations; (c) predict stream assimilation capacities 

and pollution impact in order to establish optimum waste 

load allocations and basin management on a compound-bycompound basis; (d) optimize design and co nstruction costs; 

and (e) attain optimum environmental protection with 

maximum energy conservation.

The near-term primary objective of this research is to 

develop information and tools necessary to support Agency 

requirements arisinq from P.L. 92-500 and other 

legislation. Since passage of P.L. 92-500, EPA has 

initiated many activities including: development of water 

quality criteria that will be issued in the near future as 

a basis for revising State water quality standards; 

development of first-generation load allocations and 

permits; designatio n of area-wide basin management 

authorities; and initiation of several enforce ment actions.

ORD expects that revision of water quality criteria 

will be required in the 1978-79 time period to meet 1983 

water quality goals; that more sophisticated load 

allocations, incorporating heavy metals, pesticides and 

other constituents, will be necessary for second generation 

permits; and that compre hensi ve basin plans will require 

more advanced technical tools and scientific information to 

provide equitable controls among point and nonpoint sources 

and to identify mechanisms for their implementation.

Research objec tives involve identifying and assessing 

present and future water quality problems and providing 

OWHM with research data on fate, transport, and aquatic 

ecosystem impact of specific pollutants. This information 

is needed to support water quality criteria development and 

pesticide registration. Form and impact of pollutants in 

time and space must be provided in the regions and States 

for basin planni ng and waste load allocations in water 

quality limited systems.

60
104

Comprehensive basin water quality models with point and 

nonpoint source inputs, socio-economic implications and 

energy conservati on inputs will be provided in research 

applications reports, scientific papers and problem 

reports, including model user manuals and card decks and 

hands-on demonstration, technical assistance, and feedback. 

Research application and problem-oriented reports include 

an analysis of the environmental applicability and 

limitation of available information.

FY 1976 Plan

• Development of an evaluative model for predicting 

the distribution and half-life of pesticides among 

the various substrates of fresh surface water 

ecosystems and calibrating it for malathion.

• Development of an evaluative model for predicting 

the distribution and half-life of mercury among the 

various substrates of fresh surface water 

ecosystems.

• Development of procedures for estimating water 

quality (relative to sediment and nutrients) that 

would exist in a given watershed under various 

hypothetical land use practices (including return to 

a "natural" state).

• Development of additional source loading functions 

to predict pollutant loads to streams from nonpoint 

sources.

• Coupling of nonpoint source loading models to basin 

water quality models for use in assessing water 

quality impacts (relative to BOD, sediment, and 

nutrients) of both nonpoint and point sources.

Five-Year Plan

• Provide EPA's Office of Toxic Substances (OTS) and 

ORD/OHEE with suitable multimedia microcosm 

techniques (and user instructions) for use as tools 

in predicting environmental distribution of various 

classes of pollutants that would result if released 

into the environment.

• Complete laboratory evaluation of heavy metals (in

water) submodel; verify (in laboratory and

experimental field systems) and calibrate for

61
105

m e rc u r y . P r o v id e u s e r m an ual t o OTS , an d EPA’ s 

O f f i c e o f P e s t i c i d e P ro gram s (OPP) an d O f f i c e o f 

W at er P la n n in g an d S t a n d a r d s (OWPS).

• Exp an d p e s t i c i d e ( in w a te r ) su bm odel t o h a n d le 

p e r s i s t e n t p e s t i c i d e s an d h i g h l y v o l a t i l e 

p e s t i c i d e s ; v e r i f y ( in l a b o r a t o r y an d e x p e r im e n t a l 

f i e l d sy ste m s) an d c a l i b r a t e w it h A t r a z i n e 

( r e p r e s e n t a t i v e o f p e r s i s t e n t p e s t i c i d e s ) and 

T r i f l u r a l a n ( r e p r e s e n t a t i v e o f h i g h l y v o l a t i l e 

p e s t i c i d e s ) . P r o v id e u s e r m anu al s t o OP P, OTS , an d 

OWPS.

• P r o v id e m an ua l t o OWPS, r e g io n s an d "2 0 8 " p la n n in g 

a g e n c ie s on m e th o d o lo g y f o r e s t im a t in g " n a u t r a l " (o r 

b a ck g ro u n d , w a te r g u a l i t y (w it h r e s p e c t t o s ed im en t 

an d n u t r i e n t s ) t h a t w o u ld e x i s t i n a g iv e n w a te r s h e d 

o r b a s in under v a r i o u s h y p o t h e t i c a l la n d u se 

p r a c t i c e s ( i n c l u d i n g n o n -u se) g iv e n s o i l , 

g e o m o rp h ic , c li m a t e an d g ro u n d w a te r c h a r a c t e r i s i t c s .

• D e v e lo p s o u r c e l o a d i n g f u n c t i o n s t o p r e d i c t 

p o l l u t a n t lo a d s t o str e a m s f o r t h o s e n o n p o in t 

s o u r c e s i d e n t i f i e d i n th e p r o j e c t , " N a t io n a l 

A sse ssm en t o f N o n p o in t S o u r c e s " , a s s i g n i f i c a n t and 

w her e f u n c t io n s a r e e i t h e r n o t a v a i l a b l e o r 

u n r e l i a b l e . P r o v id e u s e r m an ua l on u s e o f th e s e 

lo a d in g f u n c t i o n s t o OWPS, r e g i o n s an d "2 08" 

p la n n in g a g e n c i e s .

• A s s e s s c u r r e n t l y a v a i l a b l e n o n p o in t s o u r c e (NPS) 

lo a d in g m odels ( f o r e s t im a t in g NPS p o l l u t i o n 

c o n t r i b u t i o n s o f BOD, se d im e n ts an d n u t r i e n t s from 

v a r io u s s o u r c e s ) d e v e lo p e d i n o t h e r p ro gra m s and 

im p ro ve an d d e v e lo p a d d i t i o n a l m odels a s r e q u ir e d t o 

c o u p le w it h b a s in w a t e r q u a l i t y m o d els f o r u se by 

th e r e g io n s an d "2 0 8 " p la n n in g a g e n c i e s in a s s e s s i n g 

w a te r q u a l i t y im p a c t s ( r e l a t i v e t o BOD, s e d im e n ts , 

an d n u t r i e n t s ) o f b o th n o n p o in t an d p o in t s o u r c e s .

• P r o v id e im p ro ved o r a d d i t i o n a l NPS lo a d in g m odel s 

c o u p le d t o b a s in w a t e r q u a l i t y m o d e ls .

62
106

Soci o-E co nom ic S tu d ie s

Th e so cio -e co n o m ic r e s e a r c h u se s i n t e r d i s c i p l i n a r y 

te c h n iq u e s an d s k i l l s t o d e f in e e n v ir o n m en ta l p ro ble m s and 

a p p ro a c h e s to s o lu tio n s o f pro ble m s t h a t a r e n o t in th e 

im m ed ia te s h o r t- te r m p u rv ie w o f EPA’s pro gra m o f f i c e s . 

T h is r e s e a r c h g iv e s EPA an a b i l i t y to co pe w it h c u r r e n t and 

f u tu r e e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s an d is s u e s t h a t may be 

c r i t i c a l in th e lo n g - te r m ,' b u t a r e n o t pro ble m s now .

Th e g ro u p s doin g t h i s w or k w i l l be ass em ble d i n FY 1976 

and be a t f u l l o r n e a r ly f u l l s tr e n g th by th e b e g in n in g o f 

F¥ 19 77 . S in ce t h i s a c t i v i t y i s now b ein g s tr u c t u r e d th e 

f iv e - y e a r p la n can n o t b e d e s c r ib e d w it h an y c e r t a i n t y now. 

How ev er , fo ll o w in g a r e a s a r e l i k e l y c a n d id a te s fr om whi ch 

th e f iv e - y e a r pr og ra m w i l l b e ass em ble d:

• Ec on om ic E p id em io lo gy. T h is a re a c o n s id e r s s o c io ­

ec on om ic an d dem ogra phic f a c t o r s a s s o c ia te d w it h 

en v ir o n m e n ta l h e a l t h . The se d a ta w i l l s e rv e to 

co m plem en t th e m e d ic a l ep id em io lo gy an d p ro v id e d a ta 

f o r b e n e f its s t u d i e s .

• B e n e f it S tu d ie s . T h is a re a d e v e lo p s e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

b e n e f it m e th o d o lo g ie s an d u ses them t o d e te rm in e th e 

g a in s o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l pro gra m s. E m pha si s w ill 

p ro b ab ly be on p e s t i c i d e s , to x ic s u b s ta n c e s an d 

d rin k in g w a te r.

• F u tu re P o llu ta n t P ro b le m s an d P o llu ta n t A sse ss m en t. 

T h is a re a i s an i n t e r d i s c i p l i n a r y one t h a t a tte m p ts 

to " g e t ah ea d of th e pro ble m ” an d i d e n t i f y f u tu r e 

p o llu tio n pro ble m s e a r ly en ou gh t o d e v is e c o n tr o l 

s t r a t e g i e s t h a t p r o t e c t a t much lo w er c o s t th a n 

r e q u ir e d when th e pro ble m i s s e r io u s .

• Ad Hoc S tu d ie s . T h ese a r e s tu d i e s o f s h o r t d u r a tio n 

( th re e to s ix m on th s) on s p e c if ic EPA is s u e s a s th e y 

a r i s e . The s tu d i e s a r e p a r t i c u l a r l y u s e f u l f o r two 

r e a s o n s : F i r s t , th e y a ll o w EPA t o u se r e s o u r c e s n o t 

a v a ila b le e ls e w h e re f o r s h o r t- te r m i s s u e s ; an d 

se co n d , i t g iv e s r e s e a r c h e r s d i r e c t e x p o su re to 

EPA*s pro ble m s. T h ese a c t i v i t i e s wou ld h e lp a s s u re 

th e re le v a n c y o f th e so c io -e co n o m ic r e s e a r c h t o r e a l 

Ag ency pro ble m s.

• C o n se rv a ti o n I s s u e s . T his a re a w i l l d e f in e th e 

pro bl em o f e v a lu a tin g n a tu r a l e n v ir o n m e n ts and 

o u t l i n e v a rio u s a p p ro a c h e s f o r co p in g w it h c o n f l i c t s

63
107

o f i n t e r e s t s bet w een c o n s e rv a ti o n o f n a t u r e ’ s uniq ue 

f e a s u re s ^n d ec onom ic d evelo pm ent.

• H ast e R e d u c ti o n . T h is a re a w i l l e x p lo r e . (1) 

re s o u rc e d e p le tio n pro ble m s . an d e n v ir o n m e n ta l and 

ec on om ic b e n e f i t s o f re d u c in g th e am ou nt o f w a ste s; 

(2) m et ho ds of e n c o u ra g in g m a te r ia ls c o n s e rv a ti o n 

an d consequences o f a l t e r n a t i v e m an ag em en t m et hods .

• M etho ds an d Model D ev el op m en t. Where a p p r o p r ia te 

m et ho ds an d m odels a p p r o p r ia te f o r use in 

en v ir o n m e n ta l a n a l y s i s w i l l be d e v e lo p e d , v e r f re d 

an d p re p a re d f o r so c io -e c o n o m ic a s s e s s m e n ts .

64
108

INDUSTRIAL PROCESSES PROGRAM

O v e rv ie w

T h is p ro g ra m in c l u d e s tw o r e s e a r c h su b p ro g ra m s: 

M in e r a ls , P r o c e s s in g a n d ' M a n u fa c tu rin g I n d u s t r i e s ; an d 

R en ew ab le R e s o u rc e s I n d u s t r y . Th e s p l i t i s mad e on th e 

c h a r a c t e r o f s o u r c e s b e in g i n v e s t i g a t e d - - p o i n t an d n o n p o in t 

s o u r c e s , r e s p e c t i v e l y .

The M in e r a ls , P r o c e s s in g an d M a n u fa c tu rin g I n d u s t r i e s 

S u b p ro g ra m c o n s id e r s p o i n t s o u r c e s o f w a te r , a i r an d 

r e s i d u e p o l l u t i o n p ro d u c e d by i n d u s t r y . R e s e a rc h , 

d e v e lo p m e n t an d d e m o n s tr a tio n in t h i s su b p ro g ra m fo c u s e s on 

m in in g , m a n u f a c tu r in g , s e r v i c e and t r a d e i n d u s t r i e s w it h 

a c t i v i t i e s t h a t r a n g e i n sc o p e fr om e x t r a c t i o n to 

p r o d u c tio n o f ra w m a t e r i a l s and p r o c e s s in g o f m a t e r i a l s 

i n t o in te r m e d ia t e an d c o n su m e r p r o d u c ts .

R e se a rc h on w a te r i n d u s t r i a l p r o c e s s e s s u p p o r ts th e 

" B e s t A v a ila b le T e c h n o lo g y " (BAT) r e q u ir e m e n ts o f th e 

F e d e r a l W ate r P o l l u t i o n C o n tr o l A c t (FWPCA, th ro u g h 

d e v e lo p m e n t an d d e m o n s tr a tio n o f new o r im p ro v e d c o s t - 

e f f e c t i v e te c h n o lo g y w ith in d u s tr y - w id e a p p l i c a b i l i t y , 

s h o r t - t e r m a c h i e v a b i l i t y an d lo n g - te rm v i a b i l i t y . T h is 

r e s e a r c h p ro v id e s p rim a ry d a ta f o r e s t a b l i s h i n g 

e c o n o m ic a lly 'a n d t e c h n i c a l l y f e a s i b l e e f f l u e n t g u id e l in e s 

an d tr e a tm e n t p a r a m e te r s f o r i n d u s t r i a l l i q u id - w a s t e 

d is c h a r g e p e r m its . Th e r e s e a r c h a l s o c o n s i d e r s te c h n o lo g y 

f o r p r e v e n tin g an d c o n t r o l l i n g a c c i d e n t a l s p i l l s o f 

h a z a rd o u s m a t e r i a l s .

I n d u s t r i a l p r o c e s s e s w a te r r e s e a r c h w i l l fo c u s on 

d e v e lo p m e n t and d e m o n s tr a tio n o f t e c h n o l o g ie s f o r c lo s e d - 

c y c l e s y s te m s e x c e p t w hen : o p e n -c y c le te c h n o lo g y r e s e a r c h 

i s r e q u i r e d f o r s t a n d a r d s v e r i f i c a t i o n ; o r c l o s e d - c y c l e i s 

n o t f e a s i b l e . R oughly 32 o f th e t o t a l 59 3 r e g u l a to r y 

c a t e g o r i e s w i l l be a f f e c t e d by th e m or e v i a b l e te c h n o l o g ie s 

d e m o n s tr a te d . Th e a r e a - w id e co m bin ed w a te r r e s e a r c h w i l l 

c o n ti n u e t o show th e e c o n o m ic and t e c h n i c a l v i a b i l i t y o f 

c o m b in e d p o in t s o u r c e w a s te w a te r m an ag em en t w it h s p e c i a l 

e m p h a s is on d e v e lo p in g t e c h n i c a l c r i t e r i a f o r p e n d in g 

p r e t r e a t m e n t s t a n d a r d s .

H azard o u s i n c i d e n t r e s e a r c h w i l l c o n tin u e on c o n tr o l 

an d m in im iz a tio n o f s p i l l da m ag e an d t o p r o v id e d a ta f o r 

th e new EPA s p i l l r e g u l a t i o n s f o r h a z a rd o u s m a t e r i a l s .

65
109

O ve r th e lo n g e r - t e r m i n d u s t r i a l p r o c e s s e s w a te r 

r e s e a r c h w i l l c o n t in u e t o re s p o n d t o t e c h n o lo g y 

r e q u ir e m e n ts o f th e FWPCA. I n c r e a s e d a t t e n t i o n w i l l be 

d i r e c t e d t o h a z a rd o u s w a s t e d i s p o s a l an d d e m o n s tr a tio n s o f 

t e c h n o lo g y f o r s p e c i f i c c r i t i c a l i n d u s t r i a l s o u r c e s . The 

i n t e g r a t e d r e g i o n a l h a z a r d o u s w a s te d i s p o s a l f a c i l i t y w i l l 

be c o n tin u e d .

R e s e a rc h .on a i r i n d u s t r i a l p r o c e s s e s s u p p o r t s th e 

t e c h n o lo g y re q u ir e m e n ts o f th e C le a n A i r A c t (CAA) th ro u g h 

d e v e lo p m e n t an d d e m o n s t r a t io n o f new o r im p ro v e d c o s t - 

e f f e c t i v e t e c h n o lo g y w it h in d u s t r y - w id e a p p l i c a b i l i t y , 

s h o r t - t e r m a c h i e v a b i l i t y an d lo n g -te r m v i a b i l i t y . T h ese 

r e q u ir e m e n ts s u p p o rt im p le m e n ta tio n o f a m b ie n t a i r q u a l i t y 

s t a n d a r d s an d th e d e v e lo p m e n t o f New S o u r c e P e rf o rm an ce 

S ta n d a r d s (N SP S).

S i n c e a s i g n i f i c a n t am ount o f a i r p o l l u t i o n co m es from 

e n e r g y p r o d u c tio n an d u s e , i t i s r e a s o n a b le t o e x p e c t 

c o n s i d e r a b l e o v e r la p b etw een t h i s an d th e 

E n erg y /E n v ir o n m e n t P ro gra m d e s c r ib e d l a t e r in t h i s r e p o r t . 

Th e M in e r a ls , P r o c e s s in g and M a n u fa c tu r in g Subp ro gra m and 

th e e n e r g y - r e l a t e d r e s e a r c h h a v e been c a r e f u l l y s t r u c t u r e d 

t o co m ple m ent ea ch o t h e r f o r t h a t r e a s o n .

N e a r -te rm a i r p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y r e s e a r c h 

f o c u s e s on a s s e s s i n g t h e m agn it u d e o f p ro b le m s an d th e 

s t a t e - o f - t h e - a r t f o r c o n t r o l o f n o n c r i t e r i a an d h a za rd o u s 

p o l l u t a n t s ( i . e . , h y d r o c a r b o n s an d m e t a l l i c p a r t i c u l a t e s ) 

w h ile c o m p le tin g s e v e r a l d e ve lo p m e n t an d d e m o n s tr a tio n 

p r o j e c t s on c r i t e r i a p o l l u t a n t c o n t r o l s y s t e m s . Work has 

a l s o begu n on t r a n s f e r r i n g te c h n o lo g y f o r p a r t i c u l a t e 

c o n t r o l t o in d u s t r y (s e e d e s c r i p t i o n o f T e c h n o lo g y T r a n s f e r 

A c t i v i t i e s ) . Th e r e s u l t s o f th e a s s e s s m e n t s t u d i e s w i l l 

p r o v id e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n , c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n an d p r i o r i t i z a t i o n 

o f i n d u s t r i a l s o u r c e s o f h a za rd o u s p o l l u t a n t s . T h is 

in f o r m a t io n w i l l p e r m it d e v e lo p m e n t o f n a t i o n a l s t r a t e g i e s 

t o c o n t r o l i n d u s t r i a l a i r p o l l u t i o n .

O v e r th e lo n g e r - t e r m , a c t i v i t i e s w i l l c o n t in u e t o 

c h a r a c t e r i z e an d a s s e s s a i r p o ll u t i o n p ro b le m s from 

i n d u s t r i a l s o u r c e s an d i d e n t i f y a v a i l a b l e t e c h n o lo g y f o r 

p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l an d i t s eco n om ic i m p l i c a t i o n s . T h is 

in fo r m a t io n w i l l c o n tin u e t o be use d t o fo r m u la t e s p e c i f i c 

t e c h n o lo g y re q u ir e m e n ts an d s t r a t e g i e s t o c o n t r o l a i r 

p o l l u t i o n fr om i n d u s t r i a l s o u r c e s . D e m o n s tr a tio n s o f 

c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y f o r h ig h p r i o r i t y s o u r c e s w i l l a ls o 

c o n t i n u e .

66
110

Th e R e n e w a b le R e so u rc e I n d u s tr y S ubpro gra m i n c l u d e s : 

(a) d e v e lo p m e n t o f t o t a l m an ag em en t s y s te m s , i n c l u d i n g 

p r e d i c t i v e m e th o d o lo g y , t o c o n t r o l a i r , w a te r and la n d 

p o l l u t i o n r e s u l t i n g fr om p r o d u c tio n an d h a r v e s tin g o f fo o d 

and f i b e r a n d t h e i r r e l a t e d r e s i d u a l w a s te s ; an d (b) th e 

a s s e s s m e n t o f p r o b a b le tr e n d s i n p r o d u c tio n o f re n e w a b le 

r e s o u r c e s a n d t h e i r r e s u l t i n g e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c t, 

i n c l u d in g e f f e c t s o f c ro p p r o d u c tio n on i r r i g a t e d and 

n o n i r r i g a t e d l a n d s , s i l v i c u l t u r e p r a c t i c e s and a n im a l 

p r o d u c tio n .

T h is r e s e a r c h s u p p o r ts d e v e lo p m e n t o f g u i d e l i n e s t o 

i d e n t i f y and e v a l u a t e t h e n a tu r e an d e x t e n t o f a g r i c u l t u r a l 

and s i l v i c u l t u r a l s o u r c e s o f p o l l u t i o n an d p r o c e s s e s .

p ro c e d u r e s a n d m eth ods 

s o u r c e s (a s r e q u i r e d by 

n e c e s s a r y s u p p o r t i n

t o m an ag e p o l l u t i o n fr om t h e s e 

FWPCA). A ls o v i t a l i s g iv i n g 

a s s e s s m e n t an d m an ag em en t o f 

p o l l u t a n t s r e s u l t i n g fr om p ro d u c tio n o f re n e w a b le r e s o u r c e s 

a s r e q u i r e d b y S t a t e an d l o c a l a g e n c ie s in c a r r y i n g o u t 

a r e a - w id e w a s te m an ag em en t r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s u n d e r S e c tio n 

2 0 8 , P .L . 9 2 -5 0 0 .

S tu d i e s r e l a t e d t o a n im a l p r o d u c tio n an d la n d 

a p p l i c a t i o n o f w a s te s fr o m c o n fin e d a n im a ls , m an ag em en t o f 

a n im a l w a s te s fr om o p e r a t i o n s n o t c o v e re d by th e N a tio n a l 

P o l l u t i o n D is c h a rg e E le m in a tio n S y st em s (NR.DES) 

r e q u ir e m e n ts a n d w a s te d i s p o s a l w her e la n d a p p l i c a t i o n i s 

n o t f e a s i b l e , a r e b e in g p e rf o rm e d . I r r i g a t e d c r o p 

p r o d u c tio n s t u d i e s , in c l u d in g i r r i g a t i o n sy ste m m an ag em en t 

and p r e d i c t i v e m e th o d s, t o m an ag e an d re d u c e m as s lo a d in g 

o f p o l l u t a n t s in i r r i g a t i o n r e t u r n flo w s y s te m s a r e a l s o 

b e in g c o n d u c te d . R e se a rc h on n o n i r r i g a t e d c ro p p r o d u c tio n 

r e l a t e s t o c h e m ic a l an d s e d im e n t m an ag em en t s y s te m s , 

p r e d i c t i v e m o d e li n g an d lo n g - te r m t r e n d s .

In t h e lo n g e r - t e r m , p ro b le m s t o b e a d d re s s e d in a n im a l 

p r o d u c tio n r e s e a r c h a r e : p o t e n t i a l r u n o f f and r e s u l t i n g 

p o l l u t i o n fr o m la n d a p p l i c a t i o n o f a n im a l w a s te s ; 

d e v e lo p m e n t and a s s e s s m e n t o f c o s t - e f f e c t i v e te c h n iq u e s f o r 

m an ag em en t o f la n d r u n o f f an d d e v e lo p m e n t o f c o s t - e f f e c t i v e 

sy s te m s t o m an ag e p o l l u t i o n fr om non-N PD ES o p e r a t i o n s , 

in c l u d in g w a s te h o ld in g s t r u c t u r e s .

S i v i c u l t u r e a c t i v i t i e s a r e d i r e c t e d t o d e v e lo p m e n t o f 

f o r e s t r y m an agem ent s y s te m s an d te c h n i q u e s t h a t p r e d i c t 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l c o n s e q u e n c e s o f t h e s e s y s te m s . An a s s e s s m e n t 

w i l l a l s o be mad e o f s h o r t - and lo n g - te r m t r e n d s in 

f o r e s t r y a s th e y im p a c t e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y .

67
A ls o , o v e r t h e lo n g e r - t e r m , a c t i v i t y w i l l be i n c r e a s e d 

t o exp and up on t h e i n i t i a t i o n o f a s s e s s m e n t o f s h o r t - an d 

lo n g -te r m t r e n d s i n a g r i c u l t u r a l p r o d u c tio n a s th e y im p a ct 

on e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y . T h is wor k w i l l fo c u s on s p e c i f i c 

a n a l y s i s o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c ts fr o m h ig h e s t p r i o r i t y 

a g r i c u l t u r a l s y s te m s su ch as l a r g e - s c a l e fa r m in g , 

c o n v e r s io n o f m a r g in a l la n d s t o c r o p la n d , c h e m ic a l an d 

e n e r g y i n t e n s i v e p r a c t i c e s an d t h e l i k e l y i n c r e a s e in 

i r r i g a t i o n .

M in e r a ls , P r o c e s s i n g , an d M a n u fa c tu r in g I n d u s t r ie s 

Subpro gra m D e s c r i p t i o n

I n d u s t r i a l p o l l u t i o n i s th e s o u r c e o f a b o u t h a l f th e 

b i o l o g i c a l o x y g e n de mand (BOD) o f th e N a t i o n 's l a k e s , 

r i v e r s an d s t r e a m s . I n d u s t r y a l s o p ro d u c e s m os t o f th e 

w a te r p o l l u t i o n lo a d o f r e f r a c t o r y , h a z a r d o u s an d t o x i c m a t e r i a l s , i n c l u d i n g h e a v y m e t a ls , o r g a n i c s an d d i s s o lv e d 

s o l i d s . S i m i l a r l y , e v e n w it h c o n t r o l l e v e l s r e q u ir e d u n d er 

New S o u r c e P e rfo rm a n c e S ta n d a rd s (N SP S), h a l f t h e e m is s io n s 

o f p a r t i c u l a t e s an d a s i g n i f i c a n t f r a c t i o n o f th e e m is s io n s 

o f s u l f u r o x id e s (SO x) i n t o th e a tm o s p h e re com e fr om 

i n d u s t r i a l s o u r c e s . And m os t h a z a r d o u s a tm o s p h e ric 

p o l l u t a n t s com e fr om i n d u s t r i a l s o u r c e s .

W h il e s o l i d w a s t e s fr om i n d u s t r i a l s o u r c e s a r e a 

r e l a t i v e l y s m a ll f r a c t i o n (a b o u t o n e - f i f t h ) o f th e t o t a l 

w a s t e s g e n e r a te d fr om a l l s o u r c e s , i n d u s t r i a l s o u r c e s h ave 

a s i g n i f i c a n t im p a ct b e c a u s e o f t h e i r h a z a r d o u s an d t o x i c 

n a t u r e du e in p a r t t o p r o d u c tio n o f l a r g e am ou nt s o f 

s l u d g e s w ith h e a v y m e t a ls .

To a d d r e s s t h e s e i n d u s t r i a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l p o l l u t i o n 

p r o b le m s , a r e s e a r c h , d e v e lo p m e n t an d d e m o n s tr a tio n (R,D£D) 

p ro gra m t o i d e n t i f y , p r e v e n t , c o n t r o l an d m an ag e p o ll u t i o n 

fr o m i n d u s t r i a l a c t i v i t i e s h a s been e s t a b l i s h e d . Th e 

M in e r a ls , P r o c e s s in g , an d M a n u fa c tu r in g I n d u s t r ie s Subpro gra m in c lu d e s s o u r c e s o f w a t e r , a i r an d r e s id u e 

p o l l u t i o n fr om i n d u s t r i a l a c t i v i t i e s - - m i n i n q , 

m a n u fa c tu r in g , s e r v i c e an d t r a d e i n d u s t r i e s . The 

a c t i v i t i e s in v o lv e d r a n g e fr om e x t r a c t i o n t o p r o d u c tio n o f 

ra w m a t e r i a l s an d p r o c e s s i n g o f m a t e r i a l s i n t o in t e r m e d ia t e 

an d co nsu m er p r o d u c ts . T h is r e s e a r c h c o v e r s a l l o r p a r t o f 

t h i r t y m a jo r q r o u p in g s i d e n t i f i e d in t h e S ta n d a rd 

I n d u s t r i a l C l a s s i f i c a t i o n .

I n d u s t r i a l p o l l u t i o n p ro b le m s c a n n o t be e f f e c t i v e l y 

c o n t r o l l e d by a t t a c k i n g o n ly a s i n g l e mediu m ( i . e . , a i r , 

w a te r o r l a n d ) . A mo re e f f e c t i v e a p p ro a ch i s t o d e a l w it h
D o llu t io n a s p ro b le m s w hose s o l u t i o n s may im p a c t on a l l 

m e d ia . A s y s te m s a p p ro a c h t h a t ta k e s a i r , w a te r a n d la n d 

i n t o a c c o u n t t o t r e a t p o l l u t i o n p ro b le m s a v o id s 

t r a n s f e r r i n g p o l l u t i o n im p a c ts fr om one me dium t o a n o th e r , 

e . g . , t r e a t m e n t o f l i g u i d e f f l u e n t s in a way t h a t p ro d u c e s 

no s e c o n d a r y a i r p o l l u t i o n o r la n d d is p o s a l p ro b le m s .

Po llu tio n run off from mining ope rations continue to be a problem 1n many

areas.

CREDIT: EPA/DOCUMERICA - B il l G il le tte
113

To e m p h a siz e a c o o r d i n a t e d , m u lti m e d ia a p p ro a c h t® 

i n d u s t r i a l p o l l u t i o n p ro b le m s , th e r e s e a r c h a c t i v i t i e s a r e 

o r g a n iz e d a lo n g i n d u s t r i a l l i n e s . R e s p o n s i b i l i t y . f o r t o t a l 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l p r o t e c t i o n i s a s s ig n e d t o e a c h i n d u s t r i a l 

c o m p o n e n t. F our r e s e a r c h c a t e g o r i e s - - M a t e r i a l s P r o d u c tio n , 

M a t e r i a l s P r o c e s s in g , C om bi ne d S o u rc e s an d H azard o u s 

M a t e r i a l s I n c i d e n t s - - c o m p r i s e th e M in e r a ls , P r o c e s s in g , an d 

M a n u f a c tu rin g S u b p ro g ra m . S in c e i n d u s t r y g e n e r a l l y 

c o n s i d e r s i t s e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s t o be m u lt im e d ia 

p ro b le m s , i t i s e s s e n t i a l t h a t e a c h r e s e a r c h c a te g o r y 

i n c l u d e a l l e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s a s s o c i a t e d w ith t h a t 

c a t e g o r y .

M a t e r i a l s P ro d u c tio n i n c l u d e s p ro b le m s o f i n d u s t r i e s 

c o n c e rn e d w it h e x p l o r a t i o n f o r and e x p l o i t a t i o n an d 

p r o d u c t io n o f ra w m a t e r i a l s su c h a s s t e e l , alu m in um an d 

li m e s t o n e . N ot in c lu d e d i n t h i s c a te g o r y i s e x t r a c t i o n o f 

n o n re n e w a b le r e s o u r c e s u s e d p r i m a r i l y a s a s o u r c e o f 

e n e r g y , su ch a s c o a l , o r re n e w a b le r e s o u r c e s , su c h a s 

a g r i c u l t u r a l p r o d u c ts .

M a t e r ia ls P r o c e s s in g c o v e r s many i n d u s t r i a l a c t i v i t i e s 

t h a t m e c h a n ic a lly o r c h e m i c a ll y c h a n g e a m a t e r i a l fr om one 

fo rm t o a n o th e r . F o r e x a m p le , m e ta l w o rk in g an d 

e l e c t r o p l a t i n g , a s w e ll a s p r o d u c tio n o f i n o r g a n i c an d 

o r g a n i c c h e m ic a ls , a r e in c l u d e d in t h i s c a te g o r y .

C om bi ne d S o u rc e s c o v e r s th e d e v e lo p m e n t o f te c h n o lo g y 

t o t r e a t i n d u s t r i a l w a s te s fr om s e v e r a l p l a n t s w ith i n a 

r e g i o n w ith a s i n g l e f a c i l i t y o r i n c o m b in a ti o n w it h 

m u n ic ip a l w a ste m an ag em en t. H azard o u s M a t e r i a l s I n c i d e n t s 

d e v e lo p s m eth o d s t o t r e a t s p i l l s o f h a z a rd o u s m a t e r i a l s a s 

r e q u i r e d in th e FWPCA.

A c o a l o f t h i s r e s e a r c h i s t o s e r v e a s a c a t a l y s t to 

p ro m o te c o o p e r a tio n a n d c o o r d i n a ti o n b e tw e e n f e d e r a l 

a g e n c i e s , S t a t e s an d te c h n o lo g y u s e r s t o a c h ie v e l e v e l s o f 

p o l l u t a n t c o n t r o l m a n d a te d by EPA’ s l e g i s l a t i v e 

a u t h o r i t i e s . R e se a rc h o b j e c t i v e s a r e p la n n e d t o m eet th e 

ti m in g f o r r e d u c t io n o r e l i m i n a t i o n o f p o l l u t a n t d is c h a r g e 

r e q u i r e d by th e FWPCA a n d th e CAA. P o l l u t i o n a b a te m e n t 

g o a ls w i l l be h e lp e d by t h i s p ro g ra m th r o u g h R,D6D 

te c h n o lo g y on a ; w id e s p e c tr u m o f i n d u s t r i a l a c t i v i t i e s , 

c u lm in a t in g in d e m o n s tr a tio n o r p ro m o ti o n o f c o s t - e f f e c t i v e 

p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l t e c h n o l o g i e s .

I n d u s t r i a l o r g a n i z a t i o n s w i l l c o n tin u e t o be 

r e s p o n s i b l e f o r m ost d e v e lo p m e n t and d e m o n s tr a tio n e f f o r t s 

r e q u i r e d t o m eet p o l l u t i o n a b a te m e n t g o a l s . S o l u t i o n s t o 

i n d u s t r i a l p o l l u t i o n p ro b le m s may in c l u d e c o m m e rc ia ll y -

79-397 0 -77 - 9

70
114

a v a i l a b l e t r e a t m e n t t e c h n o lo g y o r a d a p t a t io n s o f c o n t r o l 

t e c h n o lo g y in u s e on o t h e r p r o c e s s e s . P o l l u t i o n p ro b le m s 

may a l s o be p r e v e n t e d o r c o n t r o l l e d by m o d i f i c a t i o n s in 

p r o c e s s d e s ig n o r o p e r a t i o n - - s o l u t i o n s t h a t may be s p e c i f i c 

t o a s i n g l e p l a n t an d w h o lly u n d e r p u rv ie w o f t h e p la n t 

o p e r a t o r . In c e r t a i n c r i t i c a l c a s e s , h o w e v e r, f e d e r a l l y 

f i n a n c e d , in d e p e n d e n t R,D&D may n ee d t o be c o n d u c te d t o 

e n s u r e t h a t n a t i o n a l p o ll u t i o n a b a te m e n t g o a ls w i l l be m et.

f e a s i b l e c o s t - 

Some i n d u s t r i e s

P r o g r e s s i s b e in g mad e to w a rd r e d u c t i o n o r e li m in a t i o n 

o f i n d u s t r i a l p o l l u t a n t d i s c h a r g e s . R e s u lt s a r e 

in c o m p le t e , h o w e v e r , b e c a u s e o f a l a c k o f

e f f e c t i v e t e c h n o lo g y t o m ee t s t a n d a r d s .

a r e c h a r a c t e r i z e d by s m a ll o r g a n i z a t i o n s w it h m o d est o r no

R,D&D co m p o n en ts . T h e se i n d u s t r i e s may n o t be a b l e t o 

a d a p t o r d e v e lo p p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l m eth ods w ith o u t e x t e r n a l 

s o u r c e s o f r e s o u r c e s an d e x p e r t i s e . O th e r i n d u s t r i e s h a ve 

c h a lle n g e d th e t e c h n i c a l an d e co n o m ic b a s e s o f r e g u l a t i o n s - 

- b o t h t h o s e c u r r e n t l y a p p l i c a b le an d t h o s e s c h e d u le d t o 

come i n t o e f f e c t in th e f u t u r e .

F i n a l l y , th e o b v io u s ne ed f o r new s t a n d a r d s t o c o n t r o l 

o r p r e v e n t d is c h a r g e o f t o x i c an d h a z a r d o u s p o l l u t a n t s fr om 

i n d u s t r i a l s o u r c e s w i l l p ro d u ce new r e q u ir e m e n t s . 

P r o t e c t i o n m e a su re s r e q u ir e d un der s u c h s t a n d a r d s may be 

s i g n i f i c a n t l y d i f f e r e n t fr om t h o s e

i n d u s t r i a l p o l l u t i o n a b a te m e n t, an d may 

c o o p e r a t i v e e f f o r t s t o m ee t s t a n d a r d s .

co mmon ly u se d in 

r e q u i r e i n t e n s i v e

Th e d e v e lo p m e n t an d a p p l i c a t i o n o f b o th e x i s t i n g an d 

f u t u r e a b ate m en t t e c h n o lo g y i s a c o r n e r s t o n e o f FWPCA. 

T h is l e g i s l a t i o n mak es i t n e c e s s a r y t o d e v e lo p a d va n ced 

tr e a tm e n t t e c h n o lo g y t o e li m in a t e t h e d is c h a r g e o f 

i n d u s t r i a l p o l l u t a n t s i n a m an ne r t h a t n e i t h e r c r e a t e s 

o t h e r p o l l u t i o n p ro b le m s n o r i s u n a c c e p t a b ly d i s r u p t i v e t o 

th e ec on om y. A s s o c ia t e d w it h t h a t c o n s t r a i n t i s th e 

n e c e s s i t y t o p r o v e eco n o m ic v i a b i l i t y an d r e a s o n a b le n e s s o f 

in t e r im p o l l u t a n t c o n t r o l l e v e l s b y 19 8 5 .

Un de r th e FWPCA, t h e r e a r e a p p r o x im a te ly 593 r e g u l a t o r y 

i n d u s t r i a l c a t e g o r i e s , e a ch w it h f o u r l e v e l s o f c o n t r o l to 

be a c h ie v e d w it h in a 1 0 - y e a r s p a n . E f f l u e n t G u id e lin e s 

h a ve bee n e s t a b l i s h e d by EPA in 33 i n d u s t r i e s an d more 

g u i d e l i n e s w i l l be p ro m u lg a te d in 19 7 5 an d 1 9 7 6 . P r o g r e s s 

to w a rd a c h i e v i n g l e v e l s o f c o n t r o l m andate d by th e A ct 

d epend b o th on r e s o l v i n q l e g a l d i f f e r e n c e s bet w ee n EPA and 

i n d u s t r i e s t h a t mus t co m ply w it h th e A c t an d p r o v is io n o f 

th e s u b s t a n t i v e b a s i s f o r t e c h n i c a l an d eco n om ic 

f e a s i b i l i t y .

71
115

U nder th e CAA, s e v e r a l r e g u l a t o r y p a th s a r e a v a i l a b l e 

f o r d e v is in g s t r a t e g i e s t o e n s u r e t h a t m a n d a te s o f th e A ct 

a r e m e t. I n d u s t r i a l te c h n o lo g y r e s e a r c h s u p p o r ts each o f t h e s e r e g u l a t o r y a p p r o a c h e s . A m bie nt A ir Q u a l i t y S ta n d a r d s 

(AAQS) h av e b e e n e s t a b l i s h e d f o r s i x p o l l u t a n t s , known a s c r i t e r i a p o l l u t a n t s . Th e S t a t e s h a v e s u b m it te d 

im p le m e n ta tio n p la n s t h a t p ro v id e f o r a t t a i n m e n t o f th e 

AAQS. Many a r e a s w i l l n o t a t t a i n t h e AAQS b e c a u s e th e y 

l a c k a v a i l a b l e c o n t r o l te c h n o lo g y , c o n t r o l i s to o c o s t l y , 

o r f u e l s u p p l i e s a r e l i m i t e d .

Th e s ta f id a r d c a n be a t t a i n e d in som e c a s e s . B ut th e 

l i k e l i h o o d i s t h a t e x i s t i n g te c h n o lo g y w i l l n o t p e rm it th e 

s t a n d a r d to be m a in ta in e d i n th e f u t u r e b e c a u s e o f a n t i c i p a t e d g ro w th o f i n d u s t r i a l c a p a c i t y a n d c o n s e g u e n tly , e i t h e r i n s t a n c e , t h e g o a l o f th e 

a n d M a n u fa c tu rin g S ub p ro g ra m i s t o 

a n d e c o n o m ic a ll y

o f e m is s io n s . In 

M i n e r a ls , P r o c e s s in g , 

p r o v id e t e c h n i c a l l y

t h a t a ll o w a t t a i n m e n t a n d m a in te n a n c e o f AAQS.

f e a s i b l e p r o c e s s e s

New S o u rc e P e rfo rm a n c e S ta n d a r d s (NSPS) f o r th e s i x 

c r i t e r i a p o l l u t a n t s h a v e b e e n p ro m u lg a te d f o r 12 i n d u s t r i e s an d p ro p o s e d f o r 8 o t h e r s u n d e r t h e CAA. The e x p e c t a tio n 

i s t h a t a n o th e r 25 c r i t e r i a p o l l u t a n t s w i l l be p ro m u lg a te d 

b e tw e e n 1976 and 19 78 f o r o t h e r i n d u s t r i a l c a t e g o r i e s . Th e n e e d f o r a te c h n o lo g y R,D&D p ro g ra m t o s u p p o r t th e s e an d 

f u t u r e s t a n d a r d s i s c r i t i c a l .

EPA h as a lr e a d y e s t a b l i s h e d o r i s i n th e p r o c e s s o f 

s e t t i n g e m is s io n s t a n d a r d s f o r c e r t a i n o t h e r h a z a rd o u s 

( n o n c r i t e r i a ) p o l l u t a n t s su ch a s m e rc u ry , f l u o r i d e s , 

a s b e s t o s , v i n y l c h l o r i d e , b is c h lo r o m e th y l e t h e r an d h e x a c h lo ro b e n z e n e . B e c a u se o f in a d e q u a te u n d e r s ta n d in g o f 

e f f e c t s o f i n d u s t r i a l c h e m ic a ls and m a t e r i a l s i n th e 

e n v ir o n m e n t, i t i s l i k e l y t h a t th e p o l l u t a n t - o f - t h e - m o n t h sy n d ro m e w i l l c o n t i n u e . A t t h i s tim e , a t l e a s t 17 s o u r c e s 

h a v e a lr e a d y b e e n i d e n t i f i e d t h a t e m it t o x i c m a t e r i a l s in 

q u a n t i t i e s t h a t a r e p r o b a b ly o f c o n c e rn .

E x p e rie n c e in d e a l i n g w it h h a z a rd o u s m a t e r i a l s ( e . g . , 

a s b e s t o s an d v i n y l c h l o r i d e ) i n d i c a t e s t h a t t h e r e i s 

u s u a l l y i n s u f f i c i e n t h e a l t h e f f e c t s d a ta t o e s t a b l i s h a 

" s a f e " e x p o s u re l e v e l . EPA m ust t h e r e f o r e r e l y on a 

te c h n o lo g y - b a s e d s t a n d a r d to e n s u r e t h a t e x p o s u r e s do n o t p r e s e n t s u b s t a n t i a l r i s k s t o p e o p le . A n t i c i p a t o r y R,D6 D on 

c o n t r o l o f e m is s io n s o f p o t e n t i a l l y h a z a rd o u s m a t e r i a l s can s e r v e th e N a ti o n w e ll by p r o v id in g a s s e s s m e n ts f o r th e 

f e a s i b i l i t y o f c o n t r o l o f su ch m a t e r i a l s .

72
116

F i n a l l y , t h e FWPCA r e q u i r e s t h a t a l i s t o f h a z a r d o u s 

m a t e r i a l s be i s s u e d and t h a t t h e l i s t s e r v e as a b a s i s f o r 

r e c o v e r y f o r da mag es r e s u l t i n g fr om s p i l l o f su ch 

m a t e r i a l s . The e x p e c t a t io n i s t h a t o v e r 50 0, p r i m a r i l y 

i n d u s t r i a l m a t e r i a l s , w i l l be i d e n t i f i e d . Th e c a p a b i l i t y 

t o c o n t a in and c le a n - u p s p i l l s o f so many m a t e r i a l s i s j u s t 

b e g in n in g t o em er ge fr om t h e h a za rd o u s s p i l l s R,D SD 

a c t i v i t y .

S t a t u s o f T e c h n o lo g y

To d a t e , t h i s t e c h n o lo g y R,D6D h a s p r o v id e d th e 

t e c h n i c a l b a s i s f o r an e s t im a t e d 100 i n d u s t r i a l c a t e g o r i e s 

a t th e B e s t P r a c t i c a l T e c h n o lo g y (1 9 77) an d B e s t A v a i l a b l e 

T re a tm e n t (1 983) l e v e l s o f c o n t r o l . A d d it io n a l t e c h n o lo g y 

g a p s an d a s s o c i a t e d R,D5D n e e d s , i f a n y, f o r s p e c i f i e d B e s t 

be i d e n t i f i e d in l e g a l 

a r e , h o w e v e r, R,D&D 

T e c h n o lo g y , New S o u r c e

P r a c t i c a l T e c h n o lo g y l e v e l s may 

t e s t s o f r e g u l a t i o n s . T h e re 

r e q u ir e m e n ts f o r B e s t A v a i l a b l e

P e rfo r m a n c e S ta n d a r d s , 

S t a n d a r d s .

P r e t r e a t m e n t S ta n d a rd s an d T o x ic

Th e d a ta b a se on w h ic h d e c i s io n s ca n be made f o r 

i n d u s t r i a l a i r p o ll u t i o n c o n t r o l i s g e n e r a l l y w ea k. 

C o n s e q u e n t ly , a l a r g e a s s e s s m e n t pro gr am h a s been i n i t i a t e d 

t o d e te r m in e w ha t s o u r c e s .m a y r e q u i r e c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y 

R,D SD i n t h e f u t u r e . A c o m p lic a t in g f a c t o r i s t h e l a r g e 

nu mbe r o f i n d u s t r i a l s o u r c e s t h a t ca n be a d d r e s s e d . To 

p r o v id e p r i o r i t i e s f o r a i r p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l e f f o r t s , 

a v a i l a b l e e m is s io n s d a ta ( c a l c u l a t e d , m e a su red , o r 

o t h e r w is e e s tim a te d ) w ere u s e d t o c a l c u l a t e a r e l a t i v e 

r a n k in g o f 600 i n d u s t r i e s . The r a n k in g to o k i n t o a c c o u n t 

t h e s p e c i f i c p o ll u t a n t s e m it t e d , th e r e l a t i v e t o x i c i t y o f 

th e p o l l u t a n t , th e p h y s i c a l c o n f i g u r a t i o n o f th e e m it t in g 

s o u r c e an d t h e p o p u la t io n i n c l o s e p r o x im it y t o th e s o u r c e . 

As a r e s u l t , mo re d e t a i l e d a s s e s s m e n ts h ave been s t a r t e d 

f o r th e UO h ig h e s t p r i o r i t y i n d u s t r i e s . New i n d u s t r i e s 

w i l l be ad ded to th e s tu d y l i s t a s o n g o in g a s s e s s m e n ts a r e 

c o m p le t e d - - s u b j e c t t o a v a i l a b i l i t y o f fu n d s . F u r t h e r , 

m u lt im e d ia a s s e s sm e n ts t o f u l l y c o n s id e r in te r m e d ia 

t r a n s f e r s a r e b e in g i n i t i a t e d .

F i v e - Y e a r P la n

To s i g n i f i c a n t l y e n h a n ce p r o t e c t i o n o f th e e n v ir o n m e n t 

fr om i n d u s t r i a l p o ll u t i o n s o u r c e s by th e mid 19 8 0 ’ s , th e 

M in e r a ls , P r o c e s s in g , an d M a n u fa c tu rin g Subpro gra m i s 

r e c o g n iz e d a s a h ig h p r i o r i t y R,D&D a r e a . B e c a u se o f th e 

tim e r e s t r a i n t s in t h e FWPCA to a c h ie v e t h e s t r i n g e n t 

c o n t r o l l e v e l s e s t a b l i s h e d an d a n t i c i p a t e d t im in g o f

73
117

a d d i t i o n a l New S o u rc e P e rf o rm a n ce an d H a za rd o u s M a t e r ia ls 

S ta n d a r d s an d new T o x ic S u b s ta n c e s S t a n d a r d s , RSD m us t be 

a c c e l e r a t e d i f i n d u s t r y i s t o m ee t t h e s e r e g u l a t i o n s an d 

s t a n d a r d s in FY 19 78 an d FY 19 7 9 . R e s o u r c e s ca n be 

s u b s t a n t i a l l y re d u c e d i n FY 198 0 an d beyo n d a s e f f o r t s move 

b eyo n d d e m o n s tr a tio n t o t e c h n o lo g y t r a n s f e r t o i n d u s t r i e s 

t h a t ca n b e n e f i t fr om t h e i n t e n s i v e o n g o in g R,D SD e f f o r t . 

By a n t i c i p a t i n g su ch a " s p i k e " i n c r e a s e in r e s o u r c e s f o r FY 

19 78 an d FY 19 7 9 , i t w i l l be p o s s i b l e t o p la n c o o p e r a t iv e 

p ro gram s w it h th e a f f e c t e d i n d u s t r i e s t o m a xim iz e u se o f 

t o t a l r e s o u r c e s - - b o t h f e d e r a l an d p r i v a t e .

Methods th at e ffe c tiv e ly control a ll w aste s -l n e lu d ln , a ir . wa ter and solid waste pollut1 on~fr on

larg e In dustr ia l sources are needed.

CREDIT: EPA/DOCUMERICA - Paul Sequelra

74
118

A m a jo r, i n d u s t r i a l a i r and w a te r p o l l u t e r i s th e ir o n 

an d s t e e l i n d u s t r y . D e v ic e s s u i t a b l e f o r r e t r o f i t to 

e x i s t i n g co k e o v e n s h a v e b een d e m o n s tr a te d f o r c o n t r o l o f 

a i r e m is s io n s d u rin g c h a r g i n g and p u sh in g o p e r a t i o n s . A 

s y s te m f o r c o n t r o l l i n g b o th a i r and w a te r d is c h a r g e fr om 

p u s h in g an d q u e n c h in g o p e r a t i o n s i s s c h e d u le d f o r 

c o m p le tio n in FY 1976 a n d w i l l s e r v e in p a r t a s t h e b a s i s 

f o r a New S o u rc e P e rfo rm a n c e S ta n d a r d . I t i s e x p e c te d t h a t 

i n FY 1977, an i n t e g r a t e d t o t a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l c o n tr o l 

p r o j e c t w i l l be i n i t i a t e d f o r a f u l l y i n t e g r a t e d i r o n an d 

s t e e l f a c i l i t y . T h is p r o j e c t w i l l t r e a t b o th a i r a n d w a te r 

p o l l u t i o n an d s h o u ld be c o m p le te d by FY 1980 .

F in e p a r t i c u l a t e s a l s o p r e s e n t a s e r i o u s p ro b le m t o th e 

i r o n a n d s t e e l i n d u s t r y . F o r t h a t r e a s o n , p la n s f o r two 

d e m o n s tr a tio n s o f d i f f e r e n t ad v a n c e d c o n t r o l te c h n iq u e s 

w i l l be i n i t i a t e d d u rin g FY 1976 and c o m p le te d d u r in g th e 

f o l lo w in g f i s c a l y e a r . One o f th e s e d e m o n s tr a tio n s w i l l 

in v o lv e f i n e p a r t i c u l a t e c o n t r o l in t h e s t e e l m ak in g 

p r o c e s s an d th e o th e r w i l l b e in c lu d e d i n p r o d u c tio n o f 

f e r r o a l l o y s . Th e e x p e c t a t i o n i s t h a t an e l e c t r o s t a t i c 

p r e c i p i t a t o r sy s te m an d f l u x f o r c e c o n d e n s a tio n o r o th e r 

a d v a n c e d sy ste m w i l l be d e m o n s tra te d f o r f i n e p a r t i c u l a t e 

c o n t r o l b e g in n in g in FY 1 9 7 7 .

I n m e ta l f i n i s h i n g an d e l e c t r o p l a t i n g , f u l l - s c a l e 

d e m o n s tr a tio n s o f a c id r e t a r d a t i o n and io n e x c h a n g e t o 

r e c o v e r p h o s p h o ric a c i d fr o m b r i g h t alu m in um w a s te w a te r s 

c o n t a i n i n g c y a n id e an d r e v e r s e - o s m o s i s t r e a tm e n t f o r n ic k e l 

p l a t i n g w a s te w a te r , w i l l be c o m p le te d in FY 1976 . 

A c c e le r a t e d e f f o r t s on way s t o t r e a t h ig h ly t o x i c an d o f t e n 

h e a v y -m e ta l la d e n w a s te s fr o m t h e s e i n d u s t r i e s w i l l be 

la u n c h e d in FY 1978 and FY 1 9 7 9 .

A n o th e r h ig h p r i o r i t y i n d u s t r y i s t h e

i n d u s t r y . D e m o n s tr a ti o n o f c lo s e d c y c le

c o n t r o l p o l l u t i o n fr om t h i s i n d u s tr y 

P e tr o c h e m ic a l f a c i l i t i e s a r e m a jo r

n i t r o g e n co m po un ds i n t o w a te r s and

p e tr o c h e m ic a l 

te c h n o lo g y t o 

w i l l be i n i t i a t e d , 

e m i t t e r s o f o rg a n o - 

m a jo r s o u r c e s o f

h y d ro c a rb o n a tm o s p h e ric e m i s s i o n s . T h re e i n v e s t i g a t i o n s to 

b e c o m p le te d in FY 19 76 in c lu d e : (a ) u se o f a u to m a te d 

c o n t r o l o f th e n o v e l "BTOX” sy ste m f o r t r e a t m e n t o f 

o r g a n i c a l l y c o n ta m in a te d b r i n e s g e n e r a te d i n g ly c o l 

p r o d u c t io n , (b) th e d e v e lo p m e n t o f t o t a l r e c y c l e sy s te m s 

f o r w a s te b r i n e s c o n ta i n in g r e f r a c t o r y o r g a n i c s an d (c ) th e 

d e v e lo p m e n t o f t r e a t m e n t an d c o n t r o l te c h n o lo g y f o r 

r e f r a c t o r y p e tr o c h e m ic a l w a s t e s . T h ese s t u d i e s w i l l s e r v e 

a s t h e b a s i s f o r f u l l - s c a l e i n d u s t r i a l d e m o n s tr a tio n s t o be 

u n d e r ta k e n w ith i n d u s tr y b e g in n in g i n FY 19 78 .

75
119

C lo s e l y a s s o c i a t e d w it h t h e p e t r o c h e m ic a l w a s te tr e a t m e n t pro gr am a r e R,D6 D e f f o r t s on d i s p o s i t i o n o f c h l o r i n a t e d w a s te r e s i d u e s p ro d u ced in p u r i f i f y i n g c h l o r i n a t e d s o l v e n t s . E n g in e e r in g d e s ig n s t u d i e s , i n c l u d i n g s p e c i f i c a t i o n s an d c o s t s , a r e c u r r e n t l y under w ay f o r d e s ig n , c o n s t r u c t i o n an d o p e r a t io n o f a f u l l - s c a l e c h l o r o l y s i s r e g i o n a l w a s te d i s p o s a l f a c i l i t y . Th e d e m o n s tr a tio n p h a se o f t h i s f a c i l i t y s h o u ld b e g in in FY 1 9 7 7 . U t i l i z a t i o n o f t h i s p r o c e s s w i l l s u b s t a n t i a l l y r e d u c e d is c h a r g e o f h a z a r d o u s r e s id u e s t o t h e e n v ir o n m en t an d e f f e c t i v e l y e li m i n a t e a m a jo r s o u r c e o f c h l o r i n a t e d h y d r o c a r b o n s t o r e c e i v i n g s tre a m s an d g r o u n d w a te r .

D u ri n g FY 19 7 6 , R,D&D e f f o r t s i n t h e r u b b e r , p l a s t i c an d in o r g a n ic c h e m ic a ls a r e a s w i l l le a d t o : (a ) a d e m o n s tr a tio n o f re m o v a l o f n i t r o c e l l u l o s i c f i n e s by 

u l t r a f i l t r a t i o n a l lo w i n g w a te r r e u s e an d n i t r o c e l l u l o s e r e c o v e r y ( t h i s t e c h n iq u e h as a p p l i c a t i o n t o b o th e x p l p s i v e s an d p l a s t i c s i n d u s t r i a l w a s t e w a t e r s ) ; (b) d e m o n s tr a tio n o f B e st A v a i l a b l e T e c h n o lo g y f o r w a s te w a te r t r e a t m e n t in th e s y n t h e t i c ru b b e r i n d u s t r y ; (c) an a s s e s s m e n t o f th e t e c h n o lo g y a v a i l a b l e f o r th e a lu m in a r e f i n i n g in d u s t r y (B a y e r P r o c e s s Re d M u d s) ; an d (d) a p i l o t d e m o n s tr a tio n o f i n d u s t r i a l w a s te w a te r r e n o v a t io n by an e v a p o r a t i v e p r o c e s s t h a t re m ove s d i s s o l v e d s o l i d s ( t h i s a p p ro a ch has a p p l i c a t i o n to a c id m in e d r a in a g e w a t e r , p o w e r p la n t c o o lin g w a t e r an d blow do wn s t r e a m s ) . T h ese e f f o r t s w i l l s e r v e as th e b a s i s f o r f u l l - s c a l e i n d u s t r i a l d e m o n s tr a tio n s 

b e g in n in g in FY 19 78 .

A ls o in FY 19 7 6 , th e r e s u l t s o f ' a f u l l - s c a l e d e m o n s tr a tio n o f u s e o f a c t i v a t e d c a rb o n i n c o n ju n c t io n w ith a i r f l o t a t i o n t o t r e a t w a s te w a te r s fr om a n a v a l s t o r e s (w oo d c h e m ic a ls ) p r o d u c tio n f a c i l i t y , a r e t o be p u b lis h e d . T h is c a rb o n a b s o r p t io n u n i t i s t h e l a r g e s t i n d u s t r i a l t r e a t m e n t f a c i l i t y o f i t s k in d in th e w o rld an d w i l l s e r v e a s t h e p r o t o ty p e f o r o t h e r i n d u s t r i a l u n i t s .

The t o x i c p o l l u t a n t t e c h n o lo g y d e m o n s tr a tio n pro gr am h a s d e v e lo p e d t o th e p o in t w her e s t u d i e s o f p i l o t t o f u l l - s c a l e p r o c e s s e s a r e u n d erw ay t o t r e a t w a s t e w a t e r s from th e m a n u fa c tu r e o f PCBs,' e n d r in , h e p t a c h lo r , c h lo r d a n e an d DDT. C o n tin u e d r e s e a r c h ; i s n e c e s s a r y b e c a u s e t h e s e an d o th e r c h e m ic a ls may s t i l l be p ro d u ced an d e x p o r t e d even w h ile d o m e s tic u se s h o u ld b e s i g n i f i c a n t l y r e d u c e d . T h is r e s e a r c h w i l l be e xp a n d e d t o in c l u d e to x a p h e n e , a l d r i n , d i e l d r i n an d o t h e r t o x i c s tre a m s in FY 19 78 an d FY 19 79.

76
120

Maximum c l o s u r e o f t h e p r o c e s s w a te r lo o p i p an 

i n t e g r a t e d n e u t r a l s e m i- c h e m ic a l p u lp and p a p e r b o a r d m i l l 

w i l l be a c h ie v e d in FY 19 7 6 . In a d d i t i o n , a 300 t o n - p e r - 

day m u l t i - s t a q e o x yg en b le a c h in g sy ste m f o r p r o d u c in g 

har dw ood k r a f t p u lp w i l l be d e m o n s tr a te d . N ot o n ly w i l l 

th e l a t t e r p r o j e c t b e th e f i r s t d e m o n s tra tio n o f o x y g e n 

b le a c h in g i n N ort h A m e ric a , b u t i t w i l l a l s o be t h e f i r s t 

a p p l i c a t i o n o f i n t e g r a t i o n o f o x y g en t e c h n o lo g y i n t o an 

e n t i r e m i l l s y s te m . K r a f t p u lp m i l l o d o r c o n t r o l p r o j e c t s 

f o r b o th r e t r o f i t an d new r e c o v e r y b o i l e r s a r e b e in g 

c o m p le te d . T h e se d e m o n s tr a tio n s r e p r e s e n t s t a t e - o f - t h e - a r t 

c o n t r o l u s in g p r o c e s s m o d i f i c a t i o n s f o r re d u ce d s u l f u r 

co m po un ds fr om r e c o v e r y f u r n a c e s . The u s e o f a c t i v a t e d 

c a rb o n t r e a t m e n t o f k r a f t p u lp b le a c h in g e f f l u e n t s t o g e t h e r 

w it h a c h ie v e m e n t o f e c o n o m ic a l p r o d u c tio n o f a c t i v a t e d 

c a rb o n a s a b y -p r o d u c t fr om k r a f t p u lp in g l i q u o r s , i s a l s o 

b e in g c o m p le te d . T hese t e c h n o lo g y d e v e lo p m e n ts an d 

d e m o n s tr a tio n s w i l l be t r a n s f e r r e d to th e p u lp an d p a p e r 

i n d u s t r y .

In t h e fo o d p r o c e s s in g a r e a , d e m o n s tr a tio n o f th e r e u s e 

o f p o u l t r y an d fo o d and v e g e t a b l e p r o c e s s in g w a t e r s w i l l be 

c o m p le te d , i n c lu d i n g e v a lu a t i o n o f a c c e p t a b i l i t y o f u s in g 

t h o s e t r e a t e d w a te r s a s a r e c y c l e d s tre a m . T h e se p r o j e c t s 

w i l l be " p a t h f i n d e r s " f o r s i m i l a r a p p ro a c h e s in o t h e r fo o d 

p r o c e s s in g i n d u s t r i e s .

In FY 19 7 7 , a d e m o n s tr a tio n o f n it ro g e n -c o m p o u n d 

re m o v a l fr om , m ea t p a c k in g p l a n t e f f l u e n t s t o m eet B e s t 

A v a i l a b l e T e c h n o lo g y l i m i t s w i l l be c o m p le te d . Th e main 

e m p h asis i n t h e fo o d p r o c e s s in g a r e a w i l l be on r e d u c t io n 

an d e li m in a t i o n o f w a te r d i s c h a r g e s by d e m o n s tr a tio n in 

s e l e c t e d h ig n w a te r use se g m e n ts o f th e i n d u s t r i e s . Byp ro d u c t r e c o v e r y f o r se g m e n ts o f th e i n d u s t r y - - p o t a t o 

p r o c e s s in g an d b e v e ra g e p r o d u c t i o n - - w i l l b e i n i t i a t e d in 

th e l a t e 1 9 7 0 's an d co m p le te d i n 19 8 0 .

A m an ua l f o r th e d e s ig n o f r e n d e r i n g - p l a n t o d o r - c o n t r o l 

s c r u b b e r s w i l l be d i s t r i b u t e d t h i s y e a r . T h is m an ua l i s 

th e r e s u l t o f a j o i n t In d u s tr y / E P A s t u d y t o p r o v id e 

t e c h n i c a l s u p p o r t f o r o d o r c o n t r o l p ro g ra m s. A ir p o l l u t i o n 

c o n t r o l o f f u g i t i v e d u s t s fr o m s o u r c e s su ch a s r e n d e r in g 

p l a n t s w i l l be co m p le te d in FY 19 7 8 .

The H a za rd o u s S p i l l s w or k i s in t h e p r o c e s s o f 

d e m o n s tr a tin g t h r e e s y s te m s f o r th e t r e a t m e n t , c o n ta in m e n t 

an d c o l l e c t i o n o f h a za rd o u s s p i l l s . To be c o m p le te d i n FY 

19 76 a r e : (a) f u l l - s c a l e d e m o n s tr a tio n o f a m o b il e 250 

g a llo n s - p e r - m i n u t e " d y n a c t o r " tr e a t m e n t sy ste m t h a t h a s 

b ro a d r a n g e a p p l i c a t i o n t o s p i l l s c o n t a in in g t o x i c m e t a ls ,

77
in o r g a n i c s an d o r g a n i c s an d p e s t i c i d e s ; (b) d e v e lo p m e n t and 

d e m o n s tr a tio n o f an i n s i t u foam d ik in g s y ste m f o r s p i l l s c o n ta in m e n t; an d (c ) d e m o n s tr a tio n o f a s e l f - c o n t a i n e d c o l l e c t i o n bag s y s te m f o r c o n t a in in g h a z a r d o u s s p i l l s . In f u t u r e y e a r s , t e c h n o lo g y w i l l be d e v e lo p e d an d d e m o n str a te d t o c o n ta in an d c le a n - u p h a z a r d o u s m a t e r i a l s s p i l l s on la n d an d f o r th o s e r e s u l t i n g in a i r p o l l u t i o n i n c i d e n t s .

R e n e w a b le R e s o u rc e s I n d u s t r y

Subp ro gra m D e s c r i p t i o n

The re n e w a b le r e s o u r c e s in d u s t r y i n c l u d e s f o o d , f i b e r , an d wood p r o d u c tio n an d r e l a t e d a c t i v i t i e s r a n g in g fr om a g r i c u l t u r a l p r o d u c tio n th ro u g h h a r v e s t i n g . T h is r e s e a r c h a r e a en co m p a sse s: (a) m et hods f o r p r e d i c t i n g th e w a te r q u a l i t y im p a ct o f v a r i o u s a g r i c u l t u r e and s i l v i c u l t u r e p r a c t i c e s t o a i d i n e s t a b lis h m e n t o f w a te r q u a l i t y s t a n d a r d s ; an d t o a s s e s s t h e im p act o f a l t e r n a t e man ag em en t m e th o d s: (b) B e s t M an ag em en t P r a c t i c e (BMP) a l t e r n a t i v e s d e s ig n e d t o r e d u c e o r p r e v e n t r u n o f f o f p o l l u t i o n d i s c h a r g e s o r e m is s io n s t h a t a d v e r s e l y a f f e c t a i r , la n d o r w a t e r , i n c lu d in g c o s t - e f f e c t i v e d e t e r m in a t io n s and e v a l u a t i o n o f s o c i a l an d e co n o m ic im p a c t s ; (c ) a ss e s sm e n t o f p r o b a b le t r e n d s i n p r o d u c tio n o f r e n e w a b le r e s o u r c e s and t h e i r r e s u l t i n g s o c io - e c o n o m ic an d e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c ts ; an d (d) d e v e lo p m e n t o f n o n c h e m ic a l p e s t m an ag em en t c o n t r o l s t o r e d u c e p ro b le m s o f r u n o f f fr om a g r i c u l t u r a l p e s t i c i d e s .

The e x p e c t a t i o n i s t h a t p r e s s u r e w i l l mou nt f o r th e U .S . t o s i g n i f i c a n t l y i n c r e a s e a g r i c u l t u r a l p r o d u c tio n in th e l a s t g u a r t e r o f t h i s c e n t u r y . T h is p r e s s u r e w i l l l i k e l y mount a s t h e p r o d u c tio n - t o - c o n s u m p t io n g a p o f h ig h ly p o p u la t e d u n d e r d e v e lo p e d c o u n t r i e s w id e n s , a s d e v e lo p e d c o u n t r i e s a t t a i n i n c r e a s e d a f f l u e n c e an d a s w o rld p o p u la t io n i n c r e a s e s . E n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s o f a bro ad s c o p e a r e l i k e l y t o ac co m pan y any d r a s t i c e f f o r t s t o i n c r e a s e a g r i c u l t u r a l p r o d u c tio n i n th e U .S . M o re o ver, s i g n i f i c a n t c o n f l i c t s ma y a r i s e betw een e n e r g y d e v e lo p m e n t, p r o d u c t io n an d u s e s , co m m unity d e v e lo p m e n t and re n e w a b le r e s o u r c e s a c t i v i t i e s . Th e lo n g -te r m p ro b le m t h e n , f o r th e U .S . w i l l be t o i n c r e a s e a g r i c u l t u r a l p r o d u c tio n w it h m in im al e n v ir o n m e n ta l d e g r a d a t io n an d c o n f l i c t w ith o t h e r 

n a t i o n a l g o a l s .

The lo n g -te r m r e s e a r c h in t h i s a r e a w i l l be t o : (a) d e v e lo p th e c a p a b i l i t y t o a s s e s s an d p r e d i c t e n v ir o n m e n ta l e f f e c t s o f e x i s t i n g an d a d v a n c e d a p p ro a c h e s t o in c r e a s e d p r o d u c tio n o f e a ch r e n e w a b le r e s o u r c e an d b e tw e e n r e s o u r c e s a t t h e l o c a l , r e g i o n a l , an d n a t i o n a l l e v e l s ; an d (b)
122

d e v e lo p c o s t - e f f e c t i v e a l t e r n a t i v e t e c h n o l o g i c a l , 

m an ag em en t a n d i n s t i t u t i o n a l a p p ro a c h e s t o a s s u r e in c r e a s e d 

p r o d u c tio n a t t h e l e a s t e n v ir o n m e n ta l c o s t .

Th e m or e im m e d ia te p ro b le m c o n f r o n tin g EPA e v o lv e s fr om 

P .L . 92-5 00 an d t h e n eed t o man ag e d is c h a r g e s fr o m n o n p o in t 

s o u r c e s . Th e p ro b le m i s : To p ro v id e S t a t e an d l o c a l w a te r 

q u a l i t y m an ag em en t a g e n c i e s w it h t o o l s t h e y n e e d t o c a r r y 

o u t t h e i r a r e a - w id e w a s te m an ag em en t r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s u n d e r 

S e c ti o n 20 8, P .L . 9 2 -5 0 0 . Th e t o o l s in c l u d e : (a) 

g u i d e l i n e s f o r i d e n t i f y i n g , a s s e s s i n g an d e v a l u a t i n g th e 

n a t u r e an d e x t e n t o f a g r i c u l t u r a l and s i l v i c u l t u r a l s o u r c e s 

o f p o l l u t i o n , and (b) p r o c e s s e s , p ro c e d u r e s an d m eth o d s t o 

m an ag e and c o n t r o l p o l l u t i o n fr om th e s e s o u r c e s , a s 

d e l i n e a t e d u n d e r S e c ti o n 3 0 4 (e ) o f FWPCA.

ORD h a s c o n d u c te d r e s e a r c h t h a t w i l l p a r t i a l l y a d d r e s s 

an d p ro v id e a b a s e f o r some a s p e c t s o f lo n g - te r m re n e w a b le 

r e s o u r c e o b j e c t i v e s . T h e se e f f o r t s , h a v e p r e v i o u s l y been 

l i m i t e d in sc o p e an d d e s ig n e d t o p r o v id e o p e r a t i o n a l 

s u p p o r t n eed ed t o s o l v e s p e c i f i c n e a r - te r m p ro b le m s . 

C o n s e q u e n tl y , an a s s e s s m e n t o f s h o r t - and lo n g - te r m tr e n d s 

i n a g r i c u l t u r a l p r o d u c tio n a s th e y a f f e c t e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

q u a l i t y i s b e in g i n i t i a t e d t o mor e f u l l y a d d r e s s th e 

lo n g e r - te r m r e s e a r c h n e e d s .

EPA h a s p u b lis h e d g u i d e l i n e s on m e th o d s t o i d e n t i f y 

s i g n i f i c a n t a g r i c u l t u r e a n d n o n p o in t s o u rc e a c t i v i t i e s . In 

t h e n e a r f u t u r e , EPA w i l l p u b li s h B e s t M an ag em en t P r a c t i c e 

(BMP) p o s i t i o n p a p e rs f o r u se by r e g i o n a l an d S t a t e 

p e r s o n n e l. ORD h a s an o n g o in g a c t i v i t y t o d e v e lo p 

p r e d i c t i v e te c h n iq u e s t o d e te r m in e p o l l u t a n t lo a d i n g s a s a 

f u n c t i o n o f m e a s u ra b le s o u r c e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s . I t h a s a ls o 

d e v e lo p e d m eth ods t o c o n t r o l o r m an ag e w a s te s an d r u n o f f 

fr o m s p e c i f i c a g r i c u l t u r e s o u r c e s f o r l i m i t e d a r e a s o f th e 

N a tio n , w id e v a r i a t i o n in c l i m a t e , r a i n f a l l a n d h y d ro lo g y , 

g e o lo g ic c o n d it io n s a n d p r o d u c tio n p r a c t i c e p r e c lu d e th e 

r a p i d d e v e lo p m e n t o f c o m p re h e n s iv e a l t e r n a t i v e m an ag em en t 

p r a c t i c e s in a l l a r e a s .

O th e r f e d e r a l a g e n c i e s , su ch a s USDA, h a v e bee n 

in v o lv e d in r e l a t e d a c t i v i t i e s . B ut t h e i r e f f o r t s h av e n o t 

b e e n p r i n c i p a l l y d i r e c t e d a t e n v ir o n m e n ta l p r o t e c t i o n . For 

e x a m p le , th e S o il C o n s e r v a tio n S e r v ic e (SCS) h a s d e v e lo p e d 

s o i l c o n s e r v a tio n m e a s u re s to p r e v e n t s o i l l o s s . Th e r o l e 

o f th e s e in d i v i d u a l m e a s u re s i n m e e ti n g w a te r q u a l i t y 

s t a n d a r d s , h o w ev er, n e e d s to b e d e te r m in e d i n te rm s o f 

t h e i r c o s t / b e n e f i t an d s o c io -e c o n o m ic im p a c ts .

79
123

The n e a r -te r m a p p ro a c h i n th e R en ew ab le R e s o u rc e s 

I n d u s t r y Su bpro gr am c o n c e n t r a t e s on f i v e a c t i v i t i e s : 

a n im a l p r o d u c tio n , i r r i g a t e d c r o p p r o d u c tio n , n o n i r r i g a t e d 

c r o p p r o d u c tio n , s i l v i c u l t u r e an d a l t e r n a t i v e p e s t 

m an ag em en t.

A n im al P r o d u c t io n

M a jo r em p h asis i s on la n d a p p l i c a t i o n o f w a s te from 

c o n fin e d a n im a l p r o d u c t io n . T h is i n c lu d e s th e d e v e lo p m e n t 

o f m e th o d o lo g ie s t o d e te r m in e e n v ir o n m e n t a lly s a f e and 

c o s t - e f f e c t i v e w a s te a p p l i c a t i o n t e c h n o l o g i e s f o r op tim um 

c r o p u t i l i z a t i o n o r f o r d i s p o s a l a lo n e w h ere c r o p p r o d u c tio n i s n o t t h e g o v e r n in g f a c t o r . To be in c lu d e d 

a r e : im p a c ts on s u r f a c e an d g r o u n d w a te r ; lo n g - te r m e f f e c t s 

on s o i l s an d p r o d u c t i v i t y ; p o t e n t i a l h e a l t h e f f e c t s ; r a t e s 

o f a p p l i c a t i o n o f t e c h n o lo g y a s f u n c t i o n s o f c li m a t e , 

s l o p e , s o i l , cro D , e t c . ; and tim in g o f a p p l i c a t i o n .

A s e c o n d p ro ble m a r e a i s th e d e v e lo p m e n t o f c o s t - 

e f f e c t i v e w a s te m an ag em en t s y ste m s f o r a n im a l p r o d u c tio n 

o p e r a t i o n s . In c lu d e d a r e : c o n t r o l l i n g r u n o f f fr o m s m a ll c o n fi n e m e n t a r e a s , b a r n y a r d s , and p a s t u r e s ; p r e p a r a t io n o f 

g u i d e l i n e s f o r s t o r a g e o f r u n o f f an d pum p-o ut o f r e t e n t i o n 

f a c i l i t i e s ; an d a s s e s s m e n t o f p ro b le m s fr om a n im a ls w it h 

a c c e s s t o s u r f a c e w a t e r s .

A t h i r d p ro ble m a r e a i s t h a t o f w a s te d i s p o s a l w her e 

la n d a p p l i c a t i o n i s n o t f e a s i b l e . E m phasi s i s on 

e v a l u a t i o n o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c ts and c o m p a r a tiv e 

e c o n o m ic s o f a l t e r n a t i v e s t o la n d d i s p o s a l f o r h a n d lin g o f 

a n im a l w a s t e s .

Ir rig ate d Crop Produ ctio n

S t u d i e s on t h i s t o p i c i n c lu d e : e v a l u a t i o n o f th e 

e f f e c t o f p r e s e n t i r r i g a t i o n p r a c t i c e s on s a l t lo a d s 

e n t e r i n g r i v e r s y s te m s , p a r t i c u l a r l y th ro u g h g ro u n d w a te r 

d r a in a g e s y s te m s ; d e v e lo p m e n t o f p r e d i c t i o n t e c h n iq u e s t h a t 

a p p ly t o w a te r q u a l i t y p ro b le m s o f i r r i g a t i o n r e t u r n flo w ; 

i n c o o p e r a t io n w ith t h e B ure au o f R e c la m a tio n , a 

d e m o n s tr a tio n t h a t im p ro v ed fa rm w a te r man ag em en t o f f e r s a 

f e a s i b l e me ans t o m in im iz e s a l t an d n u t r i e n t d e g r a d a t io n o f 

r e t u r n f lo w w ith o u t s a c r i f i c i n g c r o p y i e l d s ; d e v e lo p m e n t 

an d d e m o n s tr a tio n o f fu n d a m e n ta l t e c h n o lo g y r e q u ir e d f o r 

p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l in i r r i g a t e d a r e a s , in c lu d i n g s t r u c t u r a l c h a n g e s , o n -fa rm w a te r m an ag em en t an d new c o n c e p t s r e l a t i n g 

t o s o l u t e mo vem ent and s t o r a g e ; an d e v a l u a t i o n o f th e 

l e g a l , e c o n o m ic , an d i n s t i t u t i o n a l c o n s t r a i n t s t o im p ro ved 

w a te r m an ag em en t.

80
124

N o n ir r i g a t e d C ro p P r o d u c tio n

S t u d i e s a r e un derw ay i n t h i s a r e a t o : e v a lu a t e 

p o l l u t i o n a s p e c t s o f e x i s t i n g a g r i c u l t u r a l p r a c t i c e s and 

t e c h n i c a l e f f i c i e n c y an d c o s t - e f f e c t i v e n e s s o f a v a i l a b l e 

c o n t r o l m eth o d s; recom me nd c h a n g e s in p r a c t i c e s t o a c h ie v e 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p ro vem en t; d e v e lo p v e r i f i e d p e s t i c i d e and 

p l a n t n u t r i e n t m a th e m a tic a l m o d els w it h w a te r s h e d and g r o s s 

b a s in - w id e p r e d i c t i v e an d s i m u la t i v e c a p a b i l i t y an d 

n a t io n w id e a p p l i c a b i l i t y f o r a l l m a jo r p e s t i c i d e s an d p la n t 

n u t r i e n t s (n it r o g e n an d p h o s p h o r u s ); b a se d on t h e m o d e ls , 

fo r m u la t e c o s t - e f f e c t i v e r e g i o n a l c o n t r o l s y s te m s t o 

p r e v e n t p e s t i c i d e and p l a n t n u t r i e n t p o l l u t i o n a t t h e i r 

s o u r c e s ; an d a s s e s s r e d u c t io n i n p o ll u t a n t lo a d in g f o r an y 

s p e c i f i e d man ag em ent o r e n g in e e r in g p r a c t i c e an d l e g a l 

c o n s t r a i n t .

S i l v i c u l t u r e

Th e em p h asis h e r e i s o n : e v a lu a t i o n o f p o l l u t a n t s and 

t h e i r s o u r c e s r e s u l t i n g fr om c u r r e n t f o r e s t m an ag em en t 

a c t i v i t i e s ; d e v e lo p in g c o s t - e f f e c t i v e s t r u c t u r a l and 

n o p s t r u c t u r a l p r a c t i c e s d e s ig n e d t o re d u ce p o l l u t i o n ;

Alternative nanagewent nethods for controlling runoff due to tM>er harvesting

practices are being Investigated 1n the Renewable Resources Area.

CREDIT: ERA/OOOMRICA - Thoms Sennett

81
125

d e v e lo p in g v e r i f i e d p o l l u t a n t r u n o f f m o d els w ith w a te r s h e d 

an d b a s in - w id e c a p a b i l i t i e s t o d e te r m in e . p o t e n t i a l 

p o l l u t i o n lo a d s an d t o e v a l u a t e an d o p t im iz e u s e o f 

m an ag em en t s y s te m s ; an d b a s e d on m o d e li n g e f f o r t s , l e g a l 

c o n s t r a i n t s and s o c io - e c o n o m ic f a c t o r s , d e v e lo p in g c o n t r o l 

s y s te m s t o m ee t 198 3 w a t e r q u a l i t y g o a l s .

A l t e r n a t i v e P e s t M an ag em en t

r e g u l a t io n 

e c o s y s te m s

The o b j e c t i v e h e r e i s t o d e v e lo p a l t e r n a t i v e 

n o n c h e m ic a l m e th o d o lo g ie s f o r p e s t c o n t r o l f o r a v a r i e t y o f 

c r o p s an d c o n d i t i o n s . To do t h i s w i l l r e q u ir e d e ve lo p m e n t 

o f v a r io u s s t r a t e g i e s and t a c t i c s o f p e s t p o p u la t io n 

and c o n t r o l i n m ajo r f r u i t an d v e g e t a b le 

T h ese e c o s y s te m s a r e t o be s t u d i e d e i t h e r 

s im u lt a n e o u s ly a s i n t e r a c t i n g g ro u p s o r i n d i v i d u a l l y w he re 

c o n t r o l o f i n s e c t an d w ee d p e s t s i s n eed ed u s in g a v a r i e t y 

o f n o n p e s t i c i d e m ea ns. Such m e a n s’may in c lu d e i n s e c t and 

p l a n t p a th o g e n s , e . g . , v i r u s e s , b a c t e r i a an d i n s e c t 

p h ere m on es an d h a rm o n es. S t r a t e g i e s f o r n o n p e s t ic id e 

c o n t r o l o f u rb an p e s t s , s u c h as c o c k r o a c h e s an d m o s q u it o e s , 

n eed d e v e lo p m e n t. T h is w or k i s c o o r d in a te d w ith th e 

N a t io n a l S c ie n c e F o u n d a tio n an d th e U .S . D ep art m en t o f 

A g r i c u l t u r e .

FY 19 7 6 P la n

O f t h i s o v e r a l l R e n e w a b le R e s o u rc e s S u b p ro g ra m , m ajo r 

FY 19 76 o u tp u ts w i l l be a s f o l lo w s ;

• P u b li c a t i o n o f an a g r i c u l t u r a l c h e m ic a ls u s e r 's 

man ua l t h a t a s s e s s e s e x i s t i n g fa rm p r a c t i c e s on 

t h e i r e n v ir o n m e n ta l p r o t e c t i n g m e r i t s .

• A sse ssm en t o f c o s t - e f f e c t i v e n e s s o f re co m m en de d s o i l 

c o n s e r v a t io n p r a c t i c e s (s e d im en t c o n t r o l , f o r w a te r 

q u a l i t y c o n t r o l .

• C o m p le ti o n o f a l i m i t e d a s s e s s m e n t r e p o r t on th e 

m agn it u d e o f p o t e n t i a l p ro b le m s an d d e v e lo p m e n t o f 

i n i t i a l g u i d e l i n e s f o r c o s t - e f f e c t i v e e n fo rc e m e n t o f 

p e s t i c i d e r e g u l a t i o n s a t th e p r o d u c e r , d i s t r i b u t o r 

an d u s e r ' l e v e l s ( f o r use b y S t a t e a g e n c ie s in 

d e s ig n in g t h e i r p ro g ra m s and a l l o c a t i n g r e s o u r c e s ) .

• E v a lu a t io n o f t h e w a te r p o l l u t i o n p o t e n t i a l o f 

a n im a l w a s te s a p p l i e d t o la n d f o r op tim um c r o p 

p r o d u c tio n .

79-397 0 - 77 - 10

82
126

• E v a lu a t io n o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c ts fr om w a s t e s 

g e n e r a t e d by u n c o n fi n e d a n im a l p r o d u c tio n .

• Sum mary o f an im al w a s t e u t i l i z a t i o n ( r e s o u r c e 

r e c o v e r y ) p r a c t i c e s , in c lu d in g t h e i r c o s t s and 

c o m p a r a tiv e eco n o m ic e v a l u a t i o n r e l a t i v e t o la n d 

a p p l i c a t i o n o f t h e s e w a s t e s .

• C o m p le ti o n o f a s t a t e - o f - t h e - a r t do cu m en t a s s e s s i n g 

t h e te c h n o lo g y an d d a ta b a se f o r d e v e lo p m e n t o f 

p r e d i c t i v e t e c h n iq u e s t o d e te rm in e w a te r p o l l u t a n t 

l o a d i n g from f o r e s t e d w a te r s h e d s .

Five-Year Plan

In FY 19 7 7 , s u b j e c t s t o b e a d d r e s s e d by m anual s 

d e v e lo p e d in anim al p r o d u c tio n r e s e a r c h a r e a s in c lu d e : 

p o t e n t i a l r u n o f f an d r e s u l t i n g p o ll u t i o n fr o m la n d 

a o p l i c a t i o n o f w a s t e s , c o s t - e f f e c t i v e t e c h n iq u e s o f la n d 

a p p l i c a t i o n an d m eas ure s f o r man ag em en t o f r u n o f f fr o m la n d 

a p p l i c a t i o n , an d c o s t - e f f e c t i v e sy ste m s t o man ag e p o l l u t i o n 

fr om non -NP DES o p e r a t io n s ( in c lu d in g w a s te h o ld in q 

s t r u c t u r e s , .

S l ^ S n t a V l J i J a c U . 1 p r a c t 1 c e s a r e b e i n 9 w a t c h e d c 1 o s e 1 y t o an ti cip ate p o ss ib le 

CREDIT: EPA/DOCUHERICA - Ch ar les O'Re ar

83
127

E f f o r t s t o c o m p le te a t o t a l - p a c k a g e s a l i n i t y c o n t r o l p r o j e c t i n th e u p p e r C o lo ra d o R iv e r B a s in , i n c l u d in g e v a l u a t i o n o f v a r i o u s s a l i n i t y c o n t r o l m e a s u re s s t u d i e d , w i l l c o n ti n u e . To d a t e , th e d e m o n s tr a tio n o f m an ag em en t p r a c t i c e s i s n e a r i n g c o m p le tio n . Eco nom ic and i n s t i t u t i o n a l c o n s t r a i n t s o f i r r i g a t i o n w a te r m an ag em en t re fo rm and s a l i n i t y c o n t r o l w i l l be e v a lu a te d . And a m u l t i l e v e l o p t i m i z a t i o n m odel f o r c o s t - e f f e c t i v e s a l i n i t y c o n t r o l m e a s u re s i n t e g r a t i n g d e s a l i n a t i o n w i l l be d e v e lo p e d 

i n t h e a r e a o f i r r i g a t e d c ro p p r o d u c t io n .

C o m p le ti o n o f v e r i f i c a t i o n o f an d d e v e lo p m e n t o f a 

u s e r 's m anual f o r b o th p e s t i c i d e an d p l a n t n u t r i e n t w a te rs h e d m o d e ls f o r t h e P ie d m o n t an d G r e a t L ake R e g io n s w i l l b e a c h ie v e d f o r n o n i r r i g a t e d c r o p p r o d u c tio n . And 

e f f o r t s r e l a t e d t o s i l v i c u l t u r e w i l l be c o n tin u e d .

P la n s in f u t u r e y e a r s c a l l f o r : c o n t i n u a t i o n and 

i n t e n s i f i c a t i o n o f o n g o in g p r o j e c t s ; i n c r e a s e d a c t i v i t y in a s s e s s m e n t o f s h o r t - an d lo n g - te r m p r a c t i c e s in a g r i c u l t u r a l p r o d u c t io n a s th e y im p a c t on e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y in c l u d in g (1) s p e c i f i c a n a l y s i s o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c ts fr om a g r i c u l t u r a l s y s te m s o f h i g h e s t p r i o r i t y , (2) c o n v e r s io n o f m a r g in a l la n d to c r o p la n d an d (3) i n v e s t i g a t i o n o f s o c i a l a n d eco n o m ic a s p e c t s o f p o l l u t i o n c o n tr o l/ m a n a g e m e n t m eth o d s i n th e re n e w a b le r e s o u r c e i n d u s t r y . M ajo r e m p h a s is w i l l b e on i d e n t i f y i n g em e rg in g a g ro n o m ic tr e n d s t h a t c a n be ma de e n v ir o n m e n ta lly so und b e f o r e co m in g i n t o g e n e r a l u se t o e a s e th e im p a c t o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l c o n t r o l s on a g r i c u l t u r a l ec on om y and s o c i o - i n s t i t u t i o n a l s y s te m s . A nnual r e p o r t s w i l l b e d e v e lo p e d a s s e s s i n g r e c e n t d e v e lo p m e n ts in a g r i c u l t u r e ( i . e . , i r r i g a t e d an d n o n i r r i g a t e d c ro p p r o d u c t io n , a n im a l p r o d u c tio n an d s i l v i c u l t u r e ) an d e m p h a s iz in g s o c io -e c o n o m ic 

a s p e c t s o f t r e n d s on a n a tio n w id e b a s i s .

84
PUBLIC SEC TOR ACT IVITI ES PROGRAM

O v e rv ie w

S e v e r a l p ro b le m a r e a s t h a t EPA m ust a d d r e s s can be 

l i n k e d to g e t h e r i n a g ro u p b e c a u s e o f t h e i r s i g n i f i c a n c e in 

com m unity e n v ir o n m e n ta l m an ag em en t. T h re e r e s e a r c h 

su b p ro g ra m s h e r e a r e :

• W as te M an ag em en t

• W at er S u p p ly

• E n v ir o n m e n ta l M an ag em en t.

Th e W as te M an ag em en t S ubpro gra m f o c u s e s on p r e v e n tio n , 

c o n t r o l , tr e a tm e n t an d m an ag em en t o f p o l l u t i o n p ro d u c e d by 

co m m u n it y , r e s i d e n t i a l o r o th e r n o n i n d u s t r i a l a c t i v i t i e s . 

T h is r e s e a r c h c o n c e rn s m u n ic ip a l an d d o m e s ti c w a s te w a te r 

an d c o l l e c t i o n / t r a n s p o r t s y s te m s , u rb a n la n d s u r f a c e 

r u n o f f , m u n ic ip a l s o l i d w a s te s and a s s o c i a t e d a i r 

p o l l u t a n t s .

The m ajo r t h r u s t s o f th e s o l i d w a s te r e s e a r c h in c lu d e : 

p r e p a r a t i o n o f c o m p re h e n siv e e f f e c t s d o c u m e n ts d e s ig n e d to 

s u p p o r t r e g u l a t o r y e f f o r t s f o r h a z a rd o u s w a s te s d i s p o s a l , 

c o n t r o l te c h n o lo g y d e v e lo p m e n t f o r tr e a tm e n t and d is p o s a l 

o f p e s t i c i d e s an d o th e r t o x i c c h e m ic a ls , i n v e s t i g a t i o n s to 

d e te r m in e th e p o t e n t i a l f o r m ig r a tio n th r o u g h s o i l s o f 

h a z a rd o u s i n d u s t r i a l w a s te s , s t u d i e s t o e v a lu a te 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l e f f e c t s o f s a n i t a r y l a n d f i l l s and d e v e lo p m e n t 

o f r e s o u r c e s r e c o v e r y s y s te m s f o r e n e rg y an d m a t e r i a l 

r e t r i e v a l .

A m a jo r e f f o r t i s u n d e rw a y t o p r o v id e d e p e n d a b le an d 

s a f e s u p p l ie s o f d r i n k i n g w a te r . T h is i n c l u d e s wor k on 

h e a l t h e f f e c t s t h a t r e s u l t d i r e c t l y o r i n d i r e c t l y fr om 

c o n ta m in a n ts in d r i n k in g w a te r . The W ate r S u p p ly 

S u b p ro g ra m p r o v id e s f o r d e v e lo p m e n t o f a n a l y t i c a l m eth ods 

t o a s s e s s d r in k in g w a te r q u a l i t y and d e v e lo p m e n t o f w a te r 

t r e a t m e n t p r o c e s s e s t o re m ove an d re d u c e u n d e s i r a b le 

c o n ta m in a n ts in w a te r s u p p l i e s t h a t c u r r e n t m eth o d s m is s.

W a te r s u p p ly r e s e a r c h in c l u d e s t h r e e a r e a s o f 

c o n c e n t r a t i o n : h e a l t h e f f e c t s , w a te r t r e a tm e n t an d sy ste m s 

m anagem ent and g ro u n d w a te r m an agem ent. Th e m a jo r o b j e c t i v e 

o f w a te r s u p p ly h e a l t h e f f e c t s r e s e a r c h i s t o d e v e lo p v a li d 

c r i t e r i a f o r s e t t i n g d r i n k i n g w a te r q u a l i t y s t a n d a r d s .
S p e c i f i c a l l y , t h i s r e s e a r c h w i l l p r o v id e s c i e n t i f i c 

kno w le d ge n e c e s s a r y t o e s t a b l i s h s t a n d a r d s f o r o r g a n ic , 

in o r g a n i c an d m i c r o b i o l o g i c a l c o n ta m in a n ts in d r in k in g 

w a t e r . Th e p r im a r y p u rp o s e o f w a t e r s u p p ly c o n t r o l 

t e c h n o lo g y R&D i s t o e v a l u a t e , im p ro v e an d d e v e lo p c o s t - 

e f f e c t i v e c o n t r o l t e c h o lo g y n e c e s s a r y t o a c h i e v e d r in k in g 

w a te r s t a n d a r d s . T h is i n v o l v e s b o th t h e a d a p t a t io n o f 

l a r g e - s c a l e t e c h n o lo g y t o s m a ll w a te r s u p p ly s tre a m s and 

d e v e lo p m e n t o f new o r s p e c i a l t e c h n o l o g i e s .

Th e o b j e c t i v e o f th e E n v ir o n m e n ta l Man ag em en t 

Subpro gra m i s t o p r o v id e r e g i o n a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l p la n n e r s 

an d m an ag er s w ith m eth o d s t o d e te rm in e f e a s i b l e a l t e r n a t i v e 

s o l u t i o n s t o s p e c i f i c e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s an d to p r o v id e 

t e c h n iq u e s f o r s e l e c t i n g l e a s t - c o s t s o l u t i o n s . Th e 

r e s e a r c h f o c u s e s on d e v e lo p m e n t o f im p ro ved m u lt im e d ia 

p la n n in g t e c h n i q u e s , im p ro v ed m eth ods f o r c o l l e c t i o n and 

a n a l y s i s o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y an d e co n o m ic in fo r m a t io n , 

e v a l u a t i o n o f a l t e r n a t i v e i n s t i t u t i o n a l a rra n g e m e n ts and 

d e v e lo p m e n t o f c o m p re h e n s iv e s y s te m s a n a l y s i s and 

e v a l u a t i o n m e th o d o lo g ie s .

Th e pro gr am o u t p u t w i l l be u s e r - o r i e n t e d an d in c lu d e 

in fo r m a t io n n eed ed an d d e c i s io n m e th o d o lo g y r e q u ir e d t o 

s e l e c t an d im p le m en t e f f e c t i v e e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y 

c o n t r o l pro gra m s on a co m m uni ty an d r e g i o n a l l e v e l .

F o ll o w in g i s a d e s c r i p t i o n o f t h e t h r e e su b p ro g ra m s and 

m ai n o u tp u ts t h a t c o m p ris e th e P u b li c S e c t o r A c t i v i t i e s 

P ro gra m .

W ast e Man ag em en t

Su bpro gr am De s c r i p t i o n

Th e d o m e s tic , c o m m e r c ia l, r e c r e a t i o n a l an d o t h e r 

n o n in d u s t r ia l a c t i v i t i e s o f t h e N a ti o n * s co m m u n it ie s a r e 

m ajo r s o u r c e s o f p o l l u t i o n an d d e g r a d a t io n o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

q u a l i t y . T h e se many an d d i v e r s e co m m u n it ie s v a r y fr om 

i s o l a t e d r u r a l s e t t l e m e n t s an d r e c r e a t i o n a l a r e a s t o 

s p r a w li n g su b u rb a n d e v e lo p m e n ts an d l a r g e , c o n c e n t r a te d 

u rb an a r e a s . Co m m un ity a c t i v i t i e s , n o r m a ll y un der 

man ag em en t o f S t a t e and l o c a l g o v e rn m e n ts p ro d u ce 

p o l l u t a n t s t h a t a r e d is c h a r g e d i n t o th e N a t i o n 's s u r fa c e 

an d g ro u n d w a te r fr om se w e re d w a s t e w a t e r s , r u n o f f o f r a in 

an d m e lt e d snow w ith p o l l u t a n t s from th e l a n d ’ s s u r f a c e and 

p e r c o l a t i o n o f p o l l u t a n t s fr om s u b s u r f a c e d i s p o s a l s i t e s
130

su c h a s home s e p t i c s y s te m s and p u b lic o r p r i v a t e 

l a n d f i l l s . A ls o in c lu d e d a r e e m is s io n s to a i r fr o m many 

s o u r c e s .

T h ro u g h a d i v e r s e a n d Com pl ex s e t o f la w s , EPA h as a 

num ber o f way s t o a p p r o a c h p u b li c s e c t o r p ro b le m s . The 

m o st c o n s p ic u o u s an d d i r e c t f e d e r a l m echanis m i s th e 

m a s s iv e C o n s tr u c tio n G r a n ts Pro gra m c o u p le d w it h th e 

N a tio n a l P o l l u t i o n D is c h a r g e E lim in a tio n S y st em a u th o r iz e d 

by P .L . 9 2 -5 0 0 . Th e u l t i m a t e s o l u ti o n t o t h e s e p ro b le m s, 

h o w e v e r, may w e ll be th r o u g n m or e d e c e n t r a l i z e d p ro g ra m s, 

e x e m p l if ie d by S e c ti o n 20 8 o f P .L . 9 2 -5 0 0 , t h a t g iv e 

r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r p la n n in g an d im p le m e n ti n g e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

c o n t r o l s o r m an ag em en t sy s te m s t o S t a t e a n d lo c a l 

a u t h o r i t i e s w it h EPA p r o v id in g g u i d e l i n e s an d a s s i s t a n c e .

The w a ste M an ag em en t S u b p ro g ra m i s d e s ig n e d t o s u p p o rt 

e f f o r t s by EPA an d S t a t e and lo c a l g o v e rn m e n ts t o d e v e lo p 

an d d e m o n s tr a te s p e c i f i c p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l te c h n o l o g ie s o r 

m an agem ent s y s te m s . I t a l s o p ro v id e s t e c h n i c a l t o o l s t o 

a s s e s s l o c a l p ro b le m s a n d s e l e c t a p p r o p r i a t e m an ag em en t 

o p t i o n s . B as ed on c u r r e n t n e e d s , t h i s su b p ro g ra m i s 

o r g a n iz e d i n t o f i v e d i s t i n c t r e s e a r c h a r e a s :

• W a ste w a te r T re a tm e n t T e c h n o lo g y

• S o il T re a tm e n t S y ste m s

• R u n o ff P o l l u t i o n C o n tr o l

• Com mun ity W a ste w a te r S y st em s M an ag em en t

• S o lid and H a z a rd o u s W ast e M an ag em en t

W a ste w a te r T re a tm e n t T e c h n o lo g y

T h is e f f o r t i s fo c u s e d p r i m a r i ly on te c h n o lo g y f o r 

p u b lic ly - o w n e d t r e a tm e n t w o rk s. I t s u p p o r ts th e n e e d s o f 

C o n s tr u c ti o n G ra n ts P ro g ra m s th r o u g h (1) im p ro v in g 

p e rfo rm a n c e an d r e l i a b i l i t y an d re d u c in g c o s t s a n d e n e rg y 

dem ands o f a v a i l a b l e te c h n o lo g y (2) p r o v id in g s o l u t i o n s f o r 

c u r r e n t te c h n o l o g i c a l in a d e q u a c ie s su c h a s s lu d g e h a n d li n g 

an d d i s p o s a l and (3) d e v e lo p in g te c h n o l o g ie s f o r re m oval 

r e q u ir e m e n ts e x c e e d in g s e c o n d a r y t r e a tm e n t su c h a s n u t r i e n t 

re m o v a l, a l l n e c e s s a r y t o a c h ie v e th e 1983 g o a l s o f P .L . 

9 2 -5 0 0 .

T h is r e s e a r c h a l s o d e a l s w it h te c h n o l o g ie s t o t r e a t an d 

d is p o s e o f " s m a ll flo w " d o m e s ti c w a ste s y s te m s su c h as

87
131

th o s e fr om i n d i v i d u a l ho m es n o t c o n n e c te d t o se w e rs o r fr ont 

s m a ll r e c r e a t i o n a l a r e a s .

S o i l T re a tm e n t S y ste m s

In som e p l a c e s , a n a t t r a c t i v e a l t e r n a t i v e t o m e c h n ic a l d e v ic e s u se d in w a s te w a te r tr e a tm e n t i s la n d a p o l i c a t i o n o f e f f l u e n t s w it h r e s u l t i n g re m o v al o f p o l l u t a n t s by s o i l . M o re o v e r, la n d d i s p o s a l i s a p ro m is in g m eth o d f o r d is p o s in g o f a n d u t i l i z i n g s lu d g e s fr o m w a s te w a te r tr e a t m e n t s y s te m s . T h is e f f o r t fo c u s e s on (1) d e v e lo p m e n t and e v a lu a tio n o f t h e c o s t , p e rfo rm a n c e and p r a c t i c a b i l i t y o f la n d a p p l i c a t i o n s y s te m s , e s p e c i a l l y th o s e in v o lv in g b e n e f i c i a l u s e s su c h a s c ro p i r r i g a t i o n , (2) a s s e s s m e n t o f p u b lic h e a l t h , s o c io -e c o n o m ic an d o th e r e n v ir o n m e n ta l f a c t o r s r e l a t e d t o d e s ig n a n d o p e r a t i o n o f la n d a p p l i c a t i o n sy ste m s an d (3) e x a m in a tio n o f p o t e n t i a l o f o t h e r " n a t u r a l " s y s te m s , su c h a s m a rsh e s o r a q u a c u ltu r e u n i t s f o r re m o v al 

o f p o l l u t a n t s fr om w a s te w a te r .

Slu dge dis posal 1s a serious problem fo r many corm unltle s. He re slud ge 1s bein g disp os ed In a

re clai m ed s t r ip mine.

CREDIT: EPA/DOCUMERICA - Fran k A le xs an dru wlc r

88
132

R u n o ff P o l l u t i o n C o n t r o l

A lt h o u g h c u r r e n t w a te r p o ll u t i o n a b ate m en t e f f o r t s a r e 

d i r e c t e d p r i m a r i ly to w a rd p o in t s o u rc e s o f u rb an p o l l u t i o n , 

i n c r e a s i n g a t t e n t i o n m us t be g iv e n t o la n d r u n o f f o f 

r a i n f a l l an d m e lt e d sn o w . Su ch a t t e n t i o n ca n be g iv e n 

e i t h e r d i r e c t l y o r w ith co m oin ed o r sto rm s e w e r s and 

m o d i f i c a t i o n s o f th e l a a d ' s s u r fa c e t o i n f l u e n c e t h i s 

r u n o f f . B ro a d , c u r r e n t i n d i c e s i n d i c a t e t h a t a lm o s t onet h i r d o f th e s tre a m se gm en ts o f th e N a ti o n a re 

s i g n i f i c a n t l y p o llu t e d by co m bin ed . se w age o v e r f lo w s and 

u rb a n r u n o f f .

T h is e f f o r t i s d i r e c t e d to w a rd s d e v e lo p m e n t and 

e v a l u a t i o n o f c o s t - e f f e c t i v e a p p ro a c h e s f o r c o n t r o l o f 

a b a te m e n t o f p o ll u t i o n r e s u l t i n g fr om r u n o ff o f r a i n f a l l 

an d m e lt e d sno w an d a c t i v i t i e s t h a t i n f l u e n c e t h i s r u n o ff 

by m o d if y in g th e l a n d 's s u r f a c e . In c lu d e d a r e : (1 ) t o o l s 

f o r a s s e s s i n g r u n o f f p ro b le m s in s p e c i f i c a r e a s and 

s e l e c t i n g a p p r o p r ia t e m an ag em en t o p t io n s ; (2) d evelo p m en t 

an d e v a l u a t i o n o f m an ag em en t s y ste m s ra n g in g fr o m s o u rc e 

c o n t r o l th ro u g h fl o w a t t e n u a t i o n w it h s y s te m s m an ag em en t by 

means o f s t o r a g e o r r o u t i n g t o tre a tm e n t o f sew ered 

d i s c h a r g e s and (3) d e v e lo p m e n t o f s o l u t i o n s t o s p e c i f i c 

p ro b le m s su ch a s sew er i n f i l t r a t i o n .

Co m m un ity W a ste w ate r S y ste m s Ma nageme nt

T h is e f f o r t i n c lu d e s r e s e a r c h a c t i v i t i e s t o co m bi ne 

w a s te w a te r tre a tm e n t t e c h n o lo g y , s o i l tr e a tm e n t s y s te m s and 

r u n o f f p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l i n t o i n t e g r a t e d , c o s t - e f f e c t i v e , 

co m m unit y w a s te w a te r m an ag em en t s y s te m s . I t a l s o a s s u r e s 

t h a t a c t i v i t i e s r e l a t e d t o ea ch o f t h e s e e f f o r t s a re 

e f f e c t i v e l y c o o r d in a te d .

S o l i d an d H aza rd ous W as te Man ag em en t

C o m m u n it ie s a c r o s s th e N a ti o n a r e f a c e d w it h 

i n c r e a s i n g l y c o s t l y and i n t r a n s i g e n t p ro b le m s b e c a u s e o f 

th e en orm ou s vo lu m e and d i v e r s i t y o f w a s te s t h a t a r e e i t h e r 

d i r e c t l y e m itt e d t o th e a i r , d i r e c t l y d is c h a r g e d i n t o 

s e w e r s o r w as he d aw ay b y la n d r u n o f f . Mo st o f t h e s e w a s te s 

f i n d t h e i r way i n t o th e co m m unit y s o l i d w a s te m an ag em en t or 

d i s p o s a l s y s te m s . R e s e a rc h e f f o r t s on t h i s p ro b le m a re 

d i r e c t e d t o t h r e e a r e a s : (1 ) d e ve lo p m e n t an d e v a l u a t i o n o f 

me ans t o h a n d le an d d i s p o s e o f m u n ic ip a l s o l i d w a s te , 

e s p e c i a l l y a s t h i s i n f l u e n c e s a i r an d w a te r q u a l i t y , (2) 

e v a l u a t i o n o f th e o v e r a l l im p a c t s o f an d th e d e v e lo p m e n t o f 

c r i t e r i a f o r la n d d is p o s a l o f w a s te s an d (3) d e v e lo p m e n t o f

89
133

co m m unit y o r a r e a - w id e w a s te m an ag em en t s y s te m s w it h 

o r im a r v em p h asis on r e s o u r c e r e c o v e r y .

FY 19 7 6 Pl a n

D u rin g FY 19 7 6 , m a jo r em p h asis i n t h e w a s t e w a t e r a re a 

w i l l f o c u s on t e c h n o l o g i c a l p ro b le m s a s s o c i a t e d w it h th e 

C o n s t r u c t io n G ra n ts P ro g ra m . F o re m o st among t h e s e i s 

p r o c e s s i n g an d d i s p o s a l o f s lu d g e s fr om w a s te w a te r 

t r e a t m e n t s y s te m s . S p e c i f i c p r o j e c t s w i l l d e a l w it h 

e v a l u a t i o n o f s lu d g e c o m p o s tin g , co m bin ed r e f u s e an d s lu d g e 

c o m p o s tin g and l a n d f i l l an d co m bin ed r e f u s e an d s lu d g e 

p y r o l y s i s an d w et o x i d a t i o n . S p e c i a l a t t e n t i o n w i l l be 

g i v e n t o p o s s i b l e b e n e f i c i a l u s e s o f p r o d u c ts fr om t h e s e 

s l u d g e p r o c e s s in g s y s t e m s .

S p e c i f i c p r o j e c t s w i l l a l s o d e a l w ith u p g r a d in g th e 

p e r fo r m a n c e o f e x i s t i n g tr e a t m e n t w ork s t o re d u c e c o s t s o f 

new c o n s t r u c t i o n . An e x a m p le o f t h i s i s t h e d e v e lo p m e n t o f 

t e c h n o lo g y e n a b lin g many e x i s t i n g tr e a tm e n t la g o o n s t o m ee t 

s e c o n d a r y tr e a tm e n t r e q u ir e m e n t s , a l l e v i a t i n g t h e nee d f o r 

i n s t a l l a t i o n o f e n t i r e l y new tr e a tm e n t s y s t e m s . S p e c i f i c 

e m p h a s is w i l l a l s o be g i v e n t o e v a lu a t i o n o f a l t e r n a t i v e 

w a s te w a te r d i s i n f e c t i o n t e c h n o lo g ie s t o a v o id a d v e r s e 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l s i d e e f f e c t s o f c h l o r i n e .

Responsible waste management w ill help conserv e nat ura l resources as wel l as reduce adverse environmental

Impacts associate d with waste disp os al and reso urce extr action.

CREWT: EPA/DOCUMERICA - B ill Shrout

90
S e c o n d a ry e f f o r t w i l l be d i r e c t e d to w a rd d e v e lo p m e n t 

and c o s t r e d u c t io n o f n it r o g e n re m o v a l m eth o d s, c o s t

r e d u c t io n and p erfo rm a n ce im pro ve m en t th ro u g h in s t r u m e n t a t io n an d a u to m a ti o n o f tr e a tm e n t s y ste m s an d

e v a lu a t i o n o f " s m a ll 

n on se w ere d a r e a s .

f lo w s " tr e a tm e n t s y ste m s f o r

S o i l T re a tm e n t e f f o r t s in FY 19 76 w i l l c o n tin u e t o 

fo c u s on e v a l u t i o n o f s y s te m s f o r i r r i g a t i o n , i n f i l t r a t i o n 

an d d e v e lo p m e n t o f p ro m is in g o v e r la n d f lo w t e c h n o lo g y f o r 

e f f l u e n t t r e a t m e n t .

R u n o ff P o l l u t i o n C o n t r o l a r e a e f f o r t s w i l l c o n c e n t r a t e 

on c o n s o l i d a t i o n o f r e s u l t s fr om s p e c i f i c o n g o in g an d 

c o m p le te d co m bin ed sew er o v e r f lo w c o n t r o l p r o j e c t s i n t o 

i n t e g r a t e d man ag em en t s y s t e m s , im pro vem en t o f m et hods f o r 

a s s e s s i n g t h e l o c a l an d r e g i o n a l im p act o f u rb an and 

su b u rb a n s to rm w a te r d i s c h a r g e s an d n ee d f o r t h e i r c o n t r o l 

an d e v a l u a t i o n o f sed im en t c o n t r o l fr om u rb an an d su b u rb an 

d e v e lo p m e n ts .

T h is r e s e a r c h w i l l be l i m i t e d t o ben ch and p i l o t - s c a l e 

d e v e lo p m e n t an d e v a lu a t io n o f e x i s t i n g f u l l - s c a l e s y s t e m s .

M ajo r t h r u s t s o f S o li d an d H aza rd ou s W ast es e f f o r t s in 

FY 19 76 c o n tin u e on e v a l u a t i o n o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c ts o f 

s a n i t a r y l a n d f i l l s . T h is w i l l in c lu d e p o s s i b l e m ig r a t io n 

th r o u g h s o i l s o f h a z a rd o u s o r o t h e r p o l l u t i n g w a s t e s , 

d e v e lo p m e n t o f t e c h n o lo g ie s f o r tr e a tm e n t an d d i s p o s a l o f 

s o e c i f i c h a za rd o u s w a s t e s su ch a s p e s t i c i d e s , th e 

p r e p a r a t io n o f co m p re h e n siv e e f f e c t s docu m en ts d e s ig n e d to 

s u p p o r t a p o s s i b l e r e g u l a t o r y pro gr am f o r h a za rd o u s w a s te s 

d i s p o s a l an d e v a lu a t io n o f p ro m is in g r e s o u r c e r e c o v e r y 

o p t i o n s .

F i v e - Y e a r P la n 

W a s te w a te r Ma na gement

D u rin g th e FY 19 77 - FY 198 0 p e r io d , c o n tin u e d em p h asis 

w i l l b e g iv e n t o d e v e lo p m e n t an d e v a lu a t i o n o f c o s t - 

e f f e c t i v e m etn ods f o r s lu d g e p r o c e s s in g , u t i l i z a t i o n and 

d i s p o s a l ; s o i l tr e a tm e n t s y s te m s ; a l t e r n a t i v e d i s i n f e c t i o n 

t e c h n iq u e s ; u p g ra d in g o f e x i s t i n g tr e a tm e n t s y s te m s ; and 

c o n s o l i d a t i o n o f r e s u l t s fr o m a v a i l a b l e co m bin ed sew er 

o v e r f lo w c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y .
Pro ble m s t h a t w i l l r e c e i v e in c r e a s e d a t t e n t i o n d u r in g 

t h i s p e r io d in c lu d e :

• M etho ds t o im p ro v e p e rfo rm a n c e an d r e l i a b i l i t y and 

re d u c e c o s t s o f e x i s t i n g t r e a t m e n t s y ste m s w it h 

in s t r u m e n t a t io n , a u to m a ti o n an d im p ro ved o p e r a t io n 

an d m a in te n a n c e p r o c e d u r e s

• I n t e g r a t e d d r y - an d w e t-w e a th e r m an ag em en t s y ste m s 

f o r u rb an w a s t e w a t e r s .

• T re a tm e n t t e c h n o l o g i e s f o r re m o va l re q u ir e m e n ts in 

e x c e s s o f s e c o n d a r y tr e a tm e n t a s n ee d ed t o a c h ie v e 

th e g o a l s o f P .L . 9 2-5 0 0 .

• T re a tm e n t t e c h n o l o g i e s f o r s p e c i f i c d is c h a r g e

c o n d it io n s s u c h a s o cea n o u t f a l l s t h a t may d i f f e r in 

r e q u ir e m e n ts fr o m c u r r e n t s e c o n d a r y tr e a tm e n t

l e v e l s .

• D ev el opm en t o f n o n s t r u c t u r a l a p p r o a c h e s t o urb an and 

su bu rb an r u n o f f c o n t r o l , i n c l u d i n g m eth ods f o r flo w 

a t t e n u a t io n t h a t ca n be i n t e g r a t e d i n t o a r e a -w id e 

w a s te w a te r m an ag em en t an d la n d u s e p ro g ra m s.

E ff ective and safe methods to dispose of hazardous wastes are being 

developed. '•

CREDIT: EPA/DOCUMERICA - Gene Daniels
136

S o l i d an d H aza rd ou s W ast es

E f f o r t s in e v a l u a t i n g an d d e v e lo p in g a l t e r n a t i v e s f o r 

h a z a r d o u s w a s te s d i s p o s a l an d in e v a lu a t in g e n v ir n m e n ta l 

im p a c ts o f l a n d f i l l s w i l l c o n t i n u e .

I n c r e a s e d e f f o r t w i l l f o c u s on d e v e lo p in g c o m p re h e n s iv e 

a r e a o r co m m u n it y-w id e w a s te man ag em en t s y s te m s . .T h is W ill 

in c lu d e r e c o v e r y o f m a t e r i a l s an d e n e rg y fr om w a s t e s and 

i n t e g r a t i o n o f i n d i v i d u a l p r i v a t e an d p u b l i c w a s te 

c o l l e c t i o n , p r o c e s s in g and d i s p o s a l s y s te m s .

W ate r S u p p ly

S ubp ro gra m D e s c r ip t io n

The d i s c o v e r y o f many o r g a n i c m a t e r i a ls in much o f th e 

N a t i o n 's d r in k in g w a t e r , w it h t h e i r a s s o c i a t e d h e a lt h 

i m p l i c a t i o n s , le a d t o e n a c tm e n t o f P .L . 9 2 -5 2 3 , T he S a fe 

D r in k in g W ate r A c t . Th e W a te r S u p p ly Subpro gr am s u p p o r ts 

im p le m e n ta tio n o f t h i s A c t b y EPA an d th e S t a t e s .

A c t i v i t i e s o f t h i s su b p ro g ra m in c lu d e R&D o f d e p e n d a b le 

an d s a f e s u p p l i e s o f d r in k in g w a te r . A t t e n t io n i s a l s o 

g iv e n t o h e a lt h e f f e c t s o f c o n ta m in a n ts in d r in k in g w a t e r . 

T h is i n c l u d e s d evelo p m en t o f a n a l y t i c a l m et hod s t o a s s e s s 

q u a l i t y o f d r in k in g w a te r an d w a te r tr e a tm e n t p r o c e s s e s to 

re m ove an d re d u c e u n d e s ir a b le co n ta m in a n ts c u r r e n t m et hod s 

f a i l t o re m o ve.

M a jo r g o a ls o f t h i s r e s e a r c h in c lu d e d e v e lo p m e n t o f 

v a l i d c r i t e r i a f o r d r in k in g w a t e r q u a l i t y s t a n d a r d s . A ls o 

in c lu d e d i s d e ve lo p m e n t o f s c i e n t i f i c k n o w le d ge t o 

e s t a b l i s h s ta n d a r d s f o r o r g a n i c , i n o r g a n i c and 

m i c r o b i o l o g i c a l c o n ta m in a n ts o f d r in k in g w a t e r and 

e v a l u a t i o n , im p ro vem en t, and d evelo p m en t o f c o n t r o l 

t e c h n o lo g y t o e c o n o m ic a lly a t t a i n s ta n d a r d s f o r d r in k in g 

w a t e r . T h is in v o lv e s b o th a d a p t a t io n o f l a r g e - s c a l e 

t e c h n o lo g y t o s m a ll w a te r s y s te m s and d e v e lo p m e n t o f new o r 

s p e c i a l t e c h n o l o g i e s .

The p r o d u c ts o f t h e s e a c t i v i t i e s w i l l i n c lu d e :

• Im pro ve d m et hod s t o i d e n t i f y an d m ea su re 

c o n ta m in a n ts in d r in k in g w a te r and i d e n t i f y s o u r c e s 

o f c o n ta m in a n ts .

93
137

• Im pr ov ed m et hods t o i d e n t i f y an d m easu re h e a lt h 

e f f e c t s o f c o n ta m in a ts in d r in k in g w a t e r .

• New o r im p to v ed m eth ods o f t r e a t i n g ra w w a te r to 

p r e p a r e i t f o r d r in k in g i n v o l v i n g im p ro v in g th e 

e f f i c i e n c y o f w a t e r tr e a tm e n t an d c o n ta m in a n t 

re m o v a l.

• Im pr ov ed w ay s t o p r o v id e d e p e n d a b le s u p p l i e s o f s a f e 

d r in k in g w a te r ( in c lu d e s w a te r p u r i f i c a t i o n and 

d i s t r i o u t i o n im p ro v em e n ts an d m et hods t o a s s e s s 

h e a l t h - r e l a t e d H a za rd s o f d r in k in g w a t e r ) .

• Im pr ov ed w ay s t o p r o t e c t g r o u n d w a te r s o u r c e s o f 

p u b lic w a te r s u p p l i e s fr om c o n ta m in a t io n .

FY J 9 76 P la n

Th e f o l lo w i n g w i l l r e c e i v e em p h asis in FY 19 76:

W ate r T re a tm e n t an d S y s te m s Ma nageme nt

E f f o r t s w i l l in c l u d e e v a l u a t i n g an d d e m o n s tr a tin g 

p i l o t - s c a l e t e c h n o lo g i e s t o i n a c t i v a t e ge rm s and t o re m ov e 

p o t e n t i a l l y t o x i c o r a e s t h e t i c a l l y d i s p l e a s i n g 

c o n ta m in a n ts , a c h ie v in g c o m p li a n c e w it h p r e s e n t an d f u t u r e

d r i n k i n g w a te r q u a l i t y s t a n d a r d s , 

o p e r a t i o n w i l l be d e v e lo p e d f o r new 

s u D p ly f a c i l i t i e s . T e c h n o lo g ie s 

c o n ta m in a n ts an d a l t e r n a t i v e s t o e x i s t i n g 

m eth ods w i l l r e c e i v e s p e c i a l a t t e n t i o n .

Im pro ve d m et hod s o f 

an d e x i s t i n g w a te r 

t o re m ove o r g a n ic 

c h l o r i n a t i o n

W ate r S u p p ly H e a lt h E f f e c t s

E v a lu a t io n o f p o t e n t i a l h e a lt h h a z a r d s o f o r g a n ic s and 

t h e v a l i d i t y o f p o s s i b l e g e n e r a l i n d i c a t o r s f o r o r g a n ic s 

s u ch a s c a ro o n c h l o r i f o r m e x t r a c t i o n and a l t e r n a t i v e s t o 

t h a t m et hod , w i l l g e t p rim a ry e m p h a sis . T h e re w i l l a l s o be 

e f f o r t s to e v a l u a t e th e n a t u r e , c o n c e n t r a t io n .a nd e f f e c t s 

o f in o r g a n ic an d m i c r o b i o l o g i c a l c o n ta m in a n ts o f d r in k in g 

w a t e r . C o o r d in a t in g O RD's exp anded a c t i v i t i e s in t h i s a re a 

w it h o t h e r f e d e r a l a g e n c i e s su ch a s th e N a tio n a l C an ce r 

I n s t i t u t e w i l l be im p o r t a n t , t o o .

94
M ea su re m en t and I d e n t i f i c a t i o n T e c h n iq u e s

S e n s i t i v e m ea su re m en t m eth ods f o r lo w c o n c e n t r a t i o n 

l e v e l s o f many t o x i c an d c a r c i n o g e n i c s u b s t a n c e s m ust be 

d e v e lo p e d . T h is r e q u i r e s s p e c i a l c o n c e n t r a t i o n and 

s e p a r a t i o n t e c h n iq u e s . P r e s e n t m et hod s f o r o r g a n i c s o n ly 

d e t e c t s m a ll am ou nt s o f t o t a l o r g a n ic c o n t e n t . E f f o r t s t o 

d e v e lo p m eth o d s f o r o r g a n ic s w i l l in c r e a s e . P r o c e d u r e s f o r 

i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o f s o u r c e s o f w a te r s u p p ly c o n ta m in a n ts w i l l 

be d e v e lo p e d .

D evelo p m en t o f v i r u s d e t e c t i o n m et hod s an d r a p id 

in s t r u m e n t a t io n m et hod s f o r d e t e c t i o n o f i n o r g a n i c 

s u b s t a n c e s w i l l r e c e i v e more a t t e n t i o n . To c a r r y th ro u q h 

an d co m ple m en t c u r r e n t p ro gra m o b j e c t i v e s i n FY 19 7 6 , 

s t u d i e s w i l l c o n tin u e o r be i n i t i a t e d t o d e te r m in e h e a l t h 

e f f e c t s o f o r g a n i c s , t i n , m an gan ese , ca dm iu m , a r s e n i c , 

s e le n iu m , b a riu m , m ol yb de nu m , a n ti m o n y, n i t r a t e s an d 

a s b e s t o s .

The assurance o f a sa fe and dep endable su pp ly o f d rin kin g water 1s th e 

drlw ln g fo rc e o f ORO's water supply rese ar ch .

CREDIT: EPA/OOCUMERICA - Boyd No rton
G ro u n d w a te r M an ag em en t

F o cu s h e r e w i l l b e on l i m i t e d e f f o r t s t o e v a lu a te th e 

e x t e n t o f im p a c t on g ro u n d w a te r o f : (a ) ab an d o n ed 

i n j e c t i o n o r e x t r a c t i o n w e lls ; (b) i n t e n s i v e a p p l i c a t i o n o f 

p e s t i c i d e s an d f e r t i l i z e r s ; and (c) s u r f a c e d i s p o s a l o f 

c o n ta m in a n ts in w a te r r e c h a r g e a r e a s . R e s e a rc h w i l l a ls o 

b e c o n d u c te d t o d e te r m in e m eth o d s o f p r o t e c t i n g s u b s u r f a c e 

d r i n k in g w a te r s o u r c e s , t o e v a lu a te f o r m a tio n p r e s s u r e 

i n c r e a s e s .c a u s e d b y u n d e rg ro u n d i n j e c t i o n , t o d e v e lo p a 

m odel t h a t c a n p r e d i c t and e s t im a te th e im p a c t o f su c h 

i n c r e a s e s and t o d e te r m in e t h e e f f e c t s o f p r e s s u r e 

i n c r e a s e s on w a s te m i g r a t io n .

B ecau se o f h ig h c o s t , g ro u n d w a te r r e s e a r c h w i l l 

g e n e r a l l y b e l i m i t e d to : (1) e v a l u a t i o n o f c u r r e n t an d 

p r o j e c t e d g ro u n d w a te r p ro b le m s; (2 , m a in te n a n c e o f 

t e c h n i c a l e x p e r t i s e t o a d v is e th e EPA on p o li c y and 

r e g u l a t o r y m a t t e r s ; a n d (3) r e s e a r c h on t h e s e l e c t e d 

p r i o r i t y p ro b le m s d e s c r i b e d a b o v e .

F iv e - Y e a r P la n

I n c r e a s e d e f f o r t s i n m e asu re m en t a n d i d e n t i f i c a t i o n 

p ro g ra m s w i l l f o c u s on d e v e lo p m e n t o f p r a c t i c a l te c h n iq u e s 

t o i d e n t i f y m e a su re a n d d e te r m in e s o u r c e s o f c o n ta m in a n ts 

( p a r t i c u l a r l y o r g a n i c s u b s ta n c e s an d v i r a l a g e n ts ) i n 

d r i n k in g w a te r . T e c h n iq u e s w i l l be d i s i g n e d f o r u s e by 

S t a t e and l o c a l p u b l i c h e a l t h o f f i c i a l s r e s p o n s i b l e f o r 

s a f e g u a r d in g p u b l i c d r i n k in g w a te r s u p p l i e s .

D e f e n s ib le h e a l t h e f f e c t s d a ta f o r o r g a n i c , in o r g a n i c , 

a n d m i c r o b i o lo g i c a l c o n ta m in a n ts o f d r i n k in g w a te r w i l l b e 

d e v e lo p e d th r o u g h s h o r t - an d lo n g - te r m t o x i c o l o g i c a l 

s t u d i e s and c o m p a r a tiv e e p id e m io lo g ic a l s t u d i e s . F u tu r e 

e f f o r t s w i l l be e v a lu a te d an d r e d i r e c t e d a s n e c e s s a r y when 

th e e v a l u a t i o n by t h e N a tio n a l Ac adem y o f S c ie n c e s o f 

h e a l t h e f f e c t s o f c o n ta m in a te d d r i n k in g w a te r , a s r e q u i r e d 

b y P .L . 9 2 -5 2 3 , i s c o m p le te d .

S tu d i e s w i l l b e c o n tin u e d o r i n i t i a t e d on re m o v al and 

i n a c t i v a t i o n o f ca m iu m , l e a d , a s b e s t o s , n i t r a t e , ra d iu m , 

o r g a n ic co m pounds, b a c t e r i a an d v i r u s e s . In c o n tin u in g th e 

FY 1976 p ro g ra m , EPA in t e n d s to d e te r m in e how to p r e v e n t 

w a te r q u a l i t y d e t e r i o r a t i o n w h ile d i s t r i b u t i n g d r in k in g 

w a te r . T e c h n o lo g y a p p l i c a b l e to sm a ll w a te r s u p p ly s y s te m s 

w i l l be e m p h a s iz e d .
140

T h e re w i l l be a s u b s t a n t i a l RCD e f f o r t t o c o n t r o l 

o r g a n ic c o n ta m in a n ts i n d r in k in g w a t e r . H a lo g e n a te d 

o r g a n i c s fo rm a tio n m ec hanis m s in nor m al d i s i n f e c t i o n 

p r a c t i c e s w i l l be d e te rm in e d an d c o n t r o l m et hods d e v e lo p e d . 

C h lo r in e d i s i n f e c t i o n a l t e r n a t i v e s w i l l be th o r o u g h ly 

s t u d ie d in th e n e a r - t e r m . C a n d id a te a l t e r n a t i v e 

d i s i n f e c t a n t s a r e o zo n e an d u l t r a v i o l e t l i g h t .

I n c r e a s e d e f f o r t a r e p la n n e d on re m o val and d i s p o s a l o f 

o r g a n i c s . A ls o in FY 19 7 7 -F Y 19 80, s t u d i e s w i l l c o n tin u e 

t o p r o v id e w a s te d i s p o s a l s i t e - s e l e c t i o n c r i t e r i a and 

g r o u n d w a te r b a s in m an ag em en t.

E n v ir o n m e n ta l Ma nageme nt

Sub pro gr am D e s c rip ti o n

E P A 's l e g i s l a t i v e m a n d a te s g e n e r a l l y d e l e g a t e a u t h o r i t y 

t o S t a t e o r d e s ig n a t e d r e g i o n a l an d l o c a l a g e n c i e s t o 

im p le m en t r e q u ir e m e n ts o f f e d e r a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y 

p ro g ra m s. In c lu d e d i n t h e s e re q u ir e m e n ts a re d e ve lo p m e n t 

o f S t a t e - w id e c o n tin u o u s p la n n in g p r o c e s s e s (FWPCA, S e c t io n 

2 0 8 ), w a t e r q u a l i t y f a c i l i t i e s p la n s (FWPCA, S e c t i o n 2 0 1 ), 

s o l i d w a s te d i s p o s a l p la n s (SWDA, S e c t io n 2 0 7 ), s t a t e a i r 

q u a l i t y im p le m e n ta ti o n p la n s (CAA, S e c t io n 11 0) an d p la n s 

t o r a i r q u a l i t y m a in te n a n c e . To im p le m ent t h e s e p ro g ra m s, 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l a g e n c ie s a t r e g i o n a l and l o c a l l e v e l s a r e 

r e q u ir e d t o a n a ly z e r e g i o n a l d evelo p m en t o b j e c t i v e s , 

p o p u la t io n , eco n o m ic g r o w th p r o j e c t i o n s , la n d u se and 

t r a n s p o r t a t i o n p a t t e r n s f o r d i r e c t an d i n d i r e c t e f f e c t s on 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y .

S t r a t e g i e s t o a c h i e v e s p e c i f i e d e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

o b j e c t i v e s a r e v a r ie d an d co m p le x . S t a t e , l o c a l and 

r e g i o n a l i n s t i t u t i o n s o f t e n la c k c a p a b i l i t y to a n a ly z e and 

e v a l u a t e a l t e r n a t i v e s t r a t e g i e s an d d e v e lo p c o o r d in a te d 

p r o c e d u r e s fr om a ch o sen s t r a t e g y . F or t h a t r e a s o n , EPA 

w i l l d e v e lo p s e t s o f a l t e r n a t i v e s o l u t i o n s t h a t a re 

a p p l i c a b l e t o v a r io u s co m m unit y e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s and 

e f f i c i e n t w it h in th e c o n s t r a i n t s o f a c o m m u n it y 's eco n om ic 

r e s o u r c e s and p o l i t i c a l r e a l i t i e s . M et ho ds t o s e l e c t and 

a n a ly z e e n v ir o n m e n ta l m an ag em en t o p t io n s u n d e r l o c a l 

c o n d i t i o n s w i l l a l s o be d e v e lo p e d .

The g o a l o f th e E n v ir o n m e n ta l Man ag em ent Subpro gra m i s 

t o g i v e r e g i o n a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l p la n n e r s an d m an ag er s 

m eth ods t o d e te rm in e f e a s i b l e a l t e r n a t i v e s o l u t i o n s t o 

s p e c i f i c e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s an d p r o v id e t e c h n iq u e s t o

97
141

s e l e c t l e a s t - c o s t s o l u t i o n s . Th e r e s e a r c h fo c u s e s on 

d e ve lo p m e n t o f im p ro ved m u lt im e d ia p la n n in g t e c h n iq u e s , 

im p ro ved m eth o d s f o r c o l l e c t i o n an d a n a l y s i s o f 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y an d e co n o m ic i n fo r m a t io n , e v a lu a t i o n 

o f a l t e r n a t i v e i n s t i t u t i o n a l a rra n g e m e n ts an d d evelo p m en t 

o f c o m p re h e n s iv e s y ste m s a n a l y s i s an d e v a l u a t i o n m eth o d s. 

Im p o rta n t e f f o r t s i n v o l v e :

• I n v e s t i g a t i o n o f l i n k a g e s among v a r io u s r e s i d u a l s 

( s o l i d s , l i q u i d s an d g a s e s ) g e n e r a t e d by an d 

d is c h a r g e d by co m m un ity a c t i v i t i e s .

• D e sig n o f i n t e g r a t e d e n v ir o n m e n ta l man ag em en t

s y s te m s , i n c l u d i n g a n a l y t i c a l p la n n in g t e c h n iq u e s 

an d a n a l y s i s o f a l t e r n a t i v e im p le m e n ta tio n 

t e c h n iq u e s . A d m in is t r a t iv e an d i n s t i t u t i o n a l

c o n s i d e r a t i o n s w i l l a l s o r e c e i v e a t t e n t i o n .

• E v a lu a t io n o f im p a c ts (b o th p o s i t i v e an d n e g a t iv e ) 

on a l l m edia ( a i r , w a te r an d la n d ) o f s in g le - m e d ia 

p o ll u t i o n c o n t r o l s t r a t e g i e s .

• D eve lo pm en t o f t e c h n i c a l g u id a n c e f o r a p p ly in g 

a v a i l a b l e in f o r m a t io n , i n c lu d i n g m eth ods t o a s s e s s 

p ro b le m s an d s e l e c t i o n o f a v a i l a b l e man ag em en t 

o p t io n s , t o g i v e l o c a l p la n n e r s an d p o li c y - m a k e r s 

a c c e s s t o a v a i l a b l e in fo r m a t io n .

Th e su bp ro gra m o u t p u t w i l l be u s e r - o r i e n t e d an d w i l l 

in c l u d e in fo r m a t io n n ee ded an d d e c i s i o n m eth o d o lo g y 

r e q u ir e d to s e l e c t and im p le m en t e f f e c t i v e e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

q u a l i t y c o n t r o l p ro gra m s on a co m m un ity an d r e g i o n a l l e v e l .

FY 19 76 P la n

C o m p re h en siv e P la n n in g G u id e lin e s

O u tp u ts s o u g h t in t h i s a r e a i n c l u d e : (a) s c i e n t i f i c , 

t e c h n i c a l an d eco n o m ic in fo r m a t io n on e n v ir o n m e n ta l and 

s o c io -e c o n o m ic l i n k s b e tw e e n EPA an d o t h e r f e d e r a l p la n n in g 

re q u ir e m e n ts f o r u s e b y EPA o f f i c e s t o a s s i s t the m in 

d e v e lo p in g c o o r d in a te d p la n n in g g u i d e l i n e s an d (b) 

c o m p re h e n s iv e , r e g i o n a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l m an ag em en t ha nd bo ok 

f o r u s e b y n o n f e d e r a l p la n n in g a g e n c ie s c o n t a i n in g a d v ic e 

on a v a i l a b l e t y p e s o f eco n om ic an d e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

f o r e c a s t i n g p r o c e d u r e s , t y p e s o f d a ta n e c e s s a r y t o 

e f f e c t i v e l y u s e su ch p r o c e d u r e s , th e o r d e r in w hic h 

d i f f e r e n t e n v ir o n m e n ta l an d eco n om ic p ro b le m s s h o u ld be 

a n a ly z e d , w ay s t o p r e s e n t v a r io u s a l t e r n a t i v e s t o th e 

p u b l i c , d e c is io n -m a k in g p r o c e d u r e s an d m et hods t o make a l l

98

7 9 -3 9 7 0 - 77 - 11
142

e n v ir o n m e n ta l p la n s c o n s i s t e n t w it h o t h e r f e d e r a l p la n n in g 

r e g u ir e m e n t s .

Im p le m e n ta tio n M et ho ds

O u tp u ts d e s i r e d h e re i n c lu d e t o o l s t o im p le m en t 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l man ag em en t s t r a t e g i e s d e v e lo p e d in th e a b o v e - 

m en ti o n ed p la n n in g p r o c e s s e s . S t a t e o r l o c a l go v ern m e n ts 

ca n ch o o se fr om th e f o l lo w i n g b a s i c c o n c e p ts o f 

im p le m e n ta tio n : (a) t r a d i t i o n a l r e g u l a t o r y p r o c e d u r e s ,

i . e . , la w s , o r d in a n c e s , p e r m it s , z o n in g ; (b) eco n o m ic 

i n c e n t i v e c o n c e p t s , i . e . , f i n e s , e m is s io n an d e f f l u e n t 

c h a r g e s , d i f f e r e n t i a l p r o p e r ty t a x r a t e s , s u b s i d i e s ; (c) 

in fo r m a t io n an d v o lu n t e e r is m c o n c e p t s , i . e . , l a b e l i n g 

p ro g ra m s, in c r e a s e d in fo r m a t io n d is s e m in a tio n th r o u g h ma ss 

m ed ia ; an d (d) g o v e rn m e n t- in d u c e d t e c h n o l o g i c a l c h a n g e s , 

i . e . , c o n t a i n e r c o n t r o l s , s u b s i d i z e d r e c y c l i n g p ro g ra m s, 

s u b s i d i z e d m as s t r a n s p o r t a t i o n s y s te m s .

................. ..

CREDIT: EPA/DOCUMERICA - Bob Sm ith

99
143

Each o f t h e s e im p le m e n ta tio n p ro c e d u re s h as a d i f f e r e n t 

l e v e l o f f e a s i b i l i t y , p u b l i c a c c e p t a b i l i t y an d c o s t - 

e f f e c t i v e n e s s b a se d on th e t y p e o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l pro ble m 

in v o lv e d an d t h e l o c a l e o f th e co m m unity w he re 

im p le m e n ta tio n i s a tt e m p t e d . B e cau se o f th e l a r g e numb er 

o f p ro b le m s a t n a t i o n a l . S t a t e an d l o c a l l e v e l s , t h i s 

r e s e a r c h i s c r i t i c a l . H ig h p r i o r i t y t o p i c s in t h i s a r e a 

in c l u d e im p le m e n ta ti o n o f la n d use c o n t r o l s f o r n o n p o in t 

s o u r c e w a te r p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l an d m o b il e s o u r c e a i r 

p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l . I t a l s o in c lu d e s o v e rco m in g s o c i o ­

e co n o m ic o b s t a c l e s t o d e v e lo p m e n t o f s o i l t r e a t m e n t s y ste m s 

f o r co m m uni ty l i q u i d an d s o l i d w a s t e s .

E v a lu a t io n M et ho ds

G o a ls f o r t h i s r e s e a r c h a r e im p ro ved e f f i c i e n c y in 

g a t h e r i n g e n v ir o n m e n ta l and eco n o m ic in fo r m a t io n and b e t t e r 

m et hdds t o u se t h i s in f o r m a t io n t o d e f i n e c u r r e n t p ro b le m s 

an d m easu re p r o g r e s s in a c h i e v i n g g o a l s . T h is r e s e a r c h 

w i l l p ro d u c e s ta n d a r d p r o c e d u r e s f o r f e d e r a l . S t a t e and 

l o c a l e n v io r n m e n ta l m a n a gers t o use t o g e t th e m ost u s e f u l 

in fo r m a t io n on r e l e v a n t e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s.

F i v e - Y e a r P la n

The r e s e a r c h in FY 19 77 an d beyon d w i l l c o n tin u e 

e f f o r t s t o d e v e lo p u s e r - o r i e n t e d man ag em en t t o o l s t h a t 

e x p l i c i t l y d e f in e in t e r m e d ia l i n k a g e s , econ o m ic an d e n e rg y 

e f f e c t s an d in c r e a s e d p la n n in g an d im p le m e n ta tio n 

e f f i c i e n c y f o r i n t e g r a t e d s t r u c t u r a l an d n o n s t r u c t u r a l 

s o l u t i o n s t o i d e n t i f i e d e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s. Ke y FY 

19 77 p r o d u c ts w i l l i n c l u d e th e R e g io n a l E n v ir o n m e n ta l 

Man ag em en t (REM) H an db oo k, d o cu m e n ta ti o n o f d e m o n s tr a tio n s 

o f 208-AQMA c o o r d in a t e d p la n n in g an d th e p o p u la t io n 

f o r e c a s t i n g g u id e .

O th e r w or k w i l l be don e on d e ve lo p m e n t an d e x t e n s io n o f 

c u r r e n t s in g le - m e d ia s y s t e m s e v a lu a t i o n an d p e rfo rm a n c e 

m o d e li n g te c h n iq u e s t o o t h e r m ed ia p ro b le m s. I n t e g r a t e d 

m eth ods to d e s c r ib e and e v a l u a t e t o t a l co m m un ity c o s t s and 

b e n e f i t s o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro gra m s w i l l a l s o b e d e v e lo p e d . 

Tn e r e s e a r c h w i l l f o llo w d e v e lo p m e n t an d im p le m e n ta tio n o f 

o p e r a t i o n a l p l a n s ' c l o s e l y in 19 76 -7 8 t o d e te r m in e th e 

e f f e c t i v e n e s s o f > n e w ly - d e v e lo p e d p r o c e d u r e s . A d d it io n a l 

r e s e a r c h w i l l be c o n d u c te d on i d e n t i f i e d p ro b le m a r e a s . 

And an u p d a te d v e r s i o n o f t h e REM Ha nd bo ok w i l l b e p ro d u ced 

in FY 1980 in ti m e f o r i t s u s e i n a s e c o n d ro u n d o f 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l p la n n in g .

100
144

R e s e a rc h in th e lo n g e r - t e r m w i l l c o n c e n tr a te on 

r e d u c in g c o s ts o f e f f e c t i v e im p le m e n ta tio n and e n fo rc e m e n t 

a c t i v i t i e s w it h e m p h a s is on f i n a n c i a l c o n s t r a in t s . A ls o , 

as c o n t r o ls be co me m ore s t r i n g e n t in th e e a r ly 1 9 8 0 's (B AT , 

t r a n s p o r t a t io n c o n t r o ls , e t c . ) s e v e r a l e c o n o m ic s -b a s e d 

c h a lle n g e s a re a n t ic ip a t e d , e . g . , v ia S e c tio n 3 0 2 , P .L . 9 2 - 

5 0 0 . M e th o d s t o a s s u re r e s o l u t i o n o f th e s e c h a ll e n g e s w i l l 

be d e v e lo p e d d u r in g th e l a t e 1 9 7 0 's .

101
145

MONITORING AND TECH NICAL SUPPORT PROGRAM

The M o n it o r in g an d T e c h n i c a l S u p p o rt Pro gr am in c lu d e s 

r e s e a r c h , d e ve lo p m e n t and d e m o n s tra tio n a c t i v i t i e s and 

d i r e c t a s s i s t a n c e an d s u p p o r t to a l l o f EP A. The 

co m p o n en ts o f t h i s P ro gr am i n c lu d e :

• M ea su re m en t T e c h n iq u e s an d Equi pm en t D evelo pm en t

• Q u a l i t y A s s u r a n c e .

• T e c h n ic a l S u p p o r t.

T e c h n iq u e s an d e q u ip m e n t d e v e lo p m e n t in v o lv e s 

d e v e lo p m e n t, e v a l u a t i o n , an d d e m o n s tr a tio n o f f i e l d and 

l a b o r a t o r y m ea su re m en t an d m o n it o r in g m eth o d s and 

in s t r u m e n t a t io n . E f f o r t s a r e d i r e c t e d to w a rd a c h ie v in g 

c a p a b i l i t y t o i d e n t i f y an d m ea su re a l l p o l l u t a n t s o f 

c o n c e r n in th e m os t c o s t - e f f e c t i v e m an ner .

T e c h n iq u e s an d e q u ip m e n t d evelo p m en t o v e r t h e lo n g -te r m 

w i l l c o n tin u e t o a d d r e s s m et hod s an d t e c h n iq u e s f o r a i r , 

w a te r an d m u lt im e d ia m o n ito r in g s y ste m s i n c l u d i n g ad van ced 

re m o te e n v ir o n m e n ta l m o n ito r in g s y s te m s .

Q u a l i t y a s s u r a n c e s e r v e s a l l e n v ir o n m e n ta l m o n it o r in g 

a c t i v i t i e s o f EPA. T h is a c t i v i t y f o c u s e s on s t a n d a r d i z i n g 

m eas ure m en t m eth od s, p r o v id in g s ta n d a rd r e f e r e n c e m a t e r i a ls 

an d s a m p le s , d e v e lo p in g q u a l i t y c o n t r o l g u i d e l i n e s and 

m a n u a ls , o n s i t e e v a l u a t i o n o f a n a l y t i c a l l a b o r a t o r i e s , 

i n t e r - l a b o r a t o r y p e r fo r m a n c e t e s t s , m on th ly c r o s s c h e c k 

s a m p le s s t u d i e s , s t u d i e s on

a c c r e d i t a t i o n , s t u d i e s on

in s t r u m e n t s an d d a ta h a n d lin g , an d 

r e g i o n a l q u a l i t y c o n t r o l a c t i v i t i e s .

m et hods 

a u to m a ti o n

f o r 

o f

l a b o r a t o r y

l a b o r a t o r y

p a r t i c i p a t i o n in

The q u a l i t y a s s u r a n c e e f f o r t w i l l exp an d i n t h e f u t u r e 

t o a s s u r e t h a t new r e q u ir e m e n ts f o r w a t e r s u p p ly 

l a b o r a t o r i e s a r e m et, t o p ro v id e e q u i v a le n c y t e s t i n g 

m eth ods f o r S t a t e p e r m it p ro gra m s an d t o i n c r e a s e c u r r e n t 

e f f o r t s to u p grad e q u a l i t y c o n t r o l in E P A 's m o n it o r in g 

p r o g r a m s .

T e c h n ic a l S u p p o rt i s th e s c i e n t i f i c an d t e c h n i c a l 

a s s i s t a n c e t h e r e s e a r c h pro gr am g i v e s t o o t h e r co m ponen ts 

o f EPA by u s in g t h e e x p e r t i s e o f ORD p e r s o n n e l and 

a v a i l a b l e ORD f a c i l i t i e s . T h is Subp ro gra m in c lu d e s 

r e s D o n s i b i l i t y t o d e l i v e r r e s u l t s o f ORD’ s e f f o r t s t o i t s

102
146

u s e r s by t e c h n i c a l in f o r m a tio n d is s e m i n a t i o n . Th e 

t e c h n i c a l s u o o o r t a r e a h a d n o t been s e p a r a t e l y i d e n t i f i e d 

fr o m th e r e s e a r c h p ro g ra m in p r e v io u s y e a r s . The d e c is io n 

t o ma ke t h a t i d e n t i f i c a t i o n r e f l e c t s d e te r m i n a ti o n t h a t R6D 

p ro g ra m s w i l l be m or e r e s p o n s iv e t o im m e d ia te o p e r a t i o n a l 

n e e d s o f o t h e r c o m p o n e n ts o f EPA.

T e c h n ic a l S u p o o rt a l s o in c lu d e s m i n o r i ty i n s t i t u t i o n s

r e s e a r c h s u p p o r t (M IR S). 

g r a n t s to m in o r ity 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l r e s e a r c h

An e f f o r t t o d i r e c t r e s e a r c h 

i n s t i t u t i o n s in t h e a r e a o f

i s c o n d u c te d by EPA. M in o rit y

i n s t i t u t i o n s t h a t h a v e o r can d e v e lo p c a p a b i l i t y to c o n d u c t 

e f f e c t i v e e n v ir o n m e n ta l r e s e a r c h a r e a c t i v e l y s o u g h t, 

a s s i s t e d in p r e p a r a t i o n o f g r a n t a p p l i c a t i o n s an d 

e n c o u ra g e d t o su b m it th em .

F i n a l l y , t e c n n i c a l s u p p o r t a l s o i n c l u d e s th e S c ie n c e 

A d v is o ry B oard (SAB) . Th e SAB wa s e s t a b l i s h e d t o p ro v id e a 

s t r o n g , d i r e c t l i n k b e tw e e n EPA 's A d m in i s t r a to r and th e 

s c i e n t i f i c com m unit y. Th e SA B's f u n c t i o n i s t o p ro v id e 

in d e p e n d e n t t e c h n i c a l r e v ie w s , to g iv e a d v ic e on EPA 's 

m a jo r s c i e n t i f i c p ro g ra m s and to p e rfo rm s p e c i a l t a s k an d 

p ro g ra m re v ie w a s s ig n m e n ts f o r EPA. T h is B o ard a l s o g iv e s 

a d v ic e on b ro a d s c i e n t i f i c an d p o lic y m a t t e r s , new em erg in g 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s and a s s e s s m e n ts f o r s p e c i f i c 

r e s e a r c h e f f o r t s t o s o l v e t h e s e p ro b le m s.

F o ll o w in g a r e d e t a i l e d d e s c r i p t i o n s o f th e v a r io u s 

co m p o n en ts o f t h i s P ro gra m and an i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o f m ajo r 

o u t p u t s .

M easu re m ent T e c h n iq u e s an d E q u ip m en t D ev elo p m en t

S u b p ro g ram De s c r i p t i o n

In a d m in is te r i n g t h e f e d e r a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l p r o t e c t i o n 

la w s , EPA i s t o t a l l y d e p e n d e n t on r e l i a o l e , q u a n t i t a t i v e 

in f o r m a tio n on e x t e n t , c o n c e n t r a ti o n a n d t r e n d s o f 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l p o l l u t i o n . T h is i n f o r m a t i o n , o b ta in e d 

th r o u g h e n v ir o n m e n ta l m o n ito r in g , i s n e c e s s a r y t o :

• D e te rm in e i f t h e p re s e n c e o f p o l l u t a n t s in th e 

■ e n v ir o n m e n t i s l i k e l y to c a u s e i n t o l e r a b l e e f f e c t s

a t e x i s t i n g l e v e l s .

• Q u a n ti f y r i s k s o f p o l l u t a n t e x p o s u r e - e f f e c t 

r e l a t i o n s h i p s f o r im p o r ta n t r e c e p t o r s .

103
147

• U n d e rs ta n d l i n k a g e s betw een s i g n i f i c a n t s o u r c e s o f

d is c h a r g e an d am b ie n t l e v e l s o f p o l l u t a n t s .

• D ete rm in e t h e nee d f o r an d d e v e lo p an d im ple m en t

m easu re s t o c o n t r o l p o in t o r n o n p o in t p o l l u t a n t

d is c h a r g e s t o re d u c e r e c e p t o r e x p o s u r e t o t o l e r a b l e 

l e v e l s .

• D ete rm in e i f p o l l u t a n t d is c h a r g e i s in c o m p li a n c e 

w it h c o n t r o l r e q u ir e m e n t s .

• A s s e s s t h e e f f e c t i v e n e s s o f p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l 

p ro gram s.

The o b j e c t i v e o f th e M ea su re m en t T e ch n iq u e s and 

Equ ip m en t D evelo p m en t Subpro gra m i s t o p ro d u c e equ ip m en t 

an d m et hod s t h a t a r e a c c u r a t e , s im p le , s t a n d a r d iz e d , c o s t - 

e f f e c t i v e an d i n f u l f i l l m e n t o f r e q u ir e m e n ts f o r 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l m o n it o r in g by f e d e r a l . S t a t e an d l o c a l 

go v ern m e n ts an d b y t h e p r i v a t e s e c t o r .

T h ese m eth ods m ust n o t o n ly be a p p l i c a b l e a t lo w e s t 

e n v i r o n m e n t a l l y - s i g n i f i c a n t a m b ie n t c o n c e n t r a t i o n s , b u t 

m us t a l s o be a p p l i c a b l e a t h ig h e r c o n c e n t r a t i o n s t h a t o c c u r 

a t p o ll u t a n t s o u r c e s .

M o n it o r in g m et hods f o r th e H e a lt h an d E c o l o g i c a l 

E f f e c t s Pro gr am r e q u i r e h ig h p e r fo r m a n c e r e l i a b i l i t y a t 

v e r y lo w c o n c e n t r a t i o n l e v e l s n e c e s s a r y t o r e l a t e a d v e r s e 

e f f e c t s w it h lo w d o s e s o f p o l l u t a n t in a i r , w a te r an d p la n t 

an d an im al t i s s u e s . M et hod s to m easu re im p a c ts o f h e a t , 

r a d i a t i o n an d n o i s e on e c o n o m ic a lly o r e c o l o g i c a l l y 

im p o rta n t r e c e p t o r s a r e a l s o r e q u ir e d . H ig h e s t p r i o r i t i e s 

f o r su ch m et hods d e v e lo p m e n t a r e g iv e n t o p o l l u t a n t s t h a t 

a r e t o x i c , c a r c i n o g e n i c or o t h e r w is e h a z a r d o u s .

O p e r a t io n a l m o n ito r in g m e th o d o lo g y d e v e lo p m e n t g i v e s 

h ig h e s t p r i o r i t y t o p e rfo rm a n c e r e l i a b i l i t y f o r p o ll u t a n t s 

t h a t a r e r e g u l a t e d . T h ese m e th o d o lo g ie s a r e in te n d e d f o r 

r o u t in e u se in a m b ie n t e n v ir o n m e n ta l m o n it o r in g an d f o r 

s e l f - m o n i t o r i n g b y p o in t s o u r c e d i s c h a r g e r s an d by th o s e 

r e s p o n s ib le f o r c o m p li a n c e m o n it o r in g .

Th e m o n it o r in g RSD i n c l u d e s d e s ig n an d o p t im iz a t io n o f 

m o n it o r in g s y ste m s an d n e tw o r k s , d e v e lo p m e n t o f a ir b o r n e 

an d re m ote s e n s in g t e c h n iq u e s , d e v e lo p m e n t o f au to m ate d 

l a b o r a t o r i e s an d d a t a h a n d li n g s y ste m s an d d e v e lo p m e n t o f 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l m o n ito r in g in s t r u m e n t a t io n . F u r t h e r , s t a t e - 

o f - t h e - a r t r e v i e w s , p r o t o ty p e in s t r u m e n t a tio n d evelo p m en t 

an d p io n e e r in g r e s e a r c h s t u d i e s r e l a t e d t o d e ve lo p m e n t o f

104
148

new o r s i g n i f i c a n t l y im p ro ved a n a l y t i c a l m et hods o r 

in s t r u m e n t a t io n , a r e s u p p o r t e d . Th e a p p ro a ch u s u a l l y ta k e n 

in d e v e lo p m e n t’ o f b o th a i r an d w a te r m o n it o r in g m et hods i s 

t o a d a p t o r m o d if y kn ow n m ea su re m en t t e c h n o lo g y to m ee t 

f i e l d r e q u ir e m e n ts .

FY 1976 P l a n

Some r e p r e s e n t a t i v e e x a m p le s o f r e s e a r c h p r i o r i t i e s and 

o u t p u t s f o r FY 19 76 f o l l o w :

E P A 's R e g io n a l O f f i c e s an d th e O f f i c e o f W ate r and 

H a za rd o u s M a t e r ia ls (OWHM) an d th e S t a t e s c u r r e n t l y have 

r e q u ir e m e n ts f o r im p ro ved m et hods in a r e a s c r i t i c a l t o 

NPDES e n fo rce m e n t r e l a t e d t o w a te r p o l l u t i o n . In re s p o n s e 

t o t h e s e n e e d s , d e v e lo p m e n t o f m et hods t o m easu re th e 

c o n c e n t r a t i o n s o f v o l a t i l e o r g a n ic s an d p e tr o le u m 

h y d r o c a r b o n s , o i l , g r e a s e an d s e d im e n ts , i s s c h e d u le d f o r 

c o m p le tio n in FY 19 7 6 . F u r th e r , t h e r e i s a c o n tin u o u s 

e f f o r t t o c o r r e c t d e f i c i e n c i e s in c a n d id a te and r e f e r e n c e 

m eth ods f o r m o n it o r in g i n d u s t r i a l w a s te w a te r d i s c h a r g e s , 

s l u d g e s , o c e a n - d is o o s e d w a s t e s , m ari n e w a t e r s , gro un d 

w a t e r s an d n o n p o in t s o u r c e s .

A m i c r o b io l o g i c a l and b i o l o g i c a l m et hods m anual w i l l be 

c o m p le te d in FY 19 7 6 . S o w i l l a new m an ua l f o r a n a l y s i s o f 

p e s t i c i d e s in w a te r an d w a s t e w a t e r . T h e se m anu al s a r e 

n e e d e d t.o a s s u r e t h a t d a t a fr om d i f f e r e n t m o n it o r in g and 

e n fo r c e m e n t l a b o r a t o r i e s ca n be co m par ed .

The FY 1976 P la n a l s o in c lu d e s d e v e lo p m e n t o f m et ho ds 

t o c o n c e n t r a t e , s e p a r a t e an d i d e n t i f y d r in k in g - w a t e r 

c o n ta m in a n ts , i . e . , o r g a n i c s , v i r u s e s an d e le m e n ta l 

i n o r g a n i c s ; m e a su rin g c o n c e n t r a t i o n s o f a s b e s t o s f i b e r s in 

w a te r ( to p r o v id e t h e A gen cy w it h an o f f i c i a l in te r im 

m e th o d ); q u a n t i f y i n g a l g a e l e v e l s r e l a t e d t o se w age 

o u t f a l l s ; s im u lt a n e o u s a n a l y s i s o f s e v e r a l t o x i c e le m e n ts 

i n w a t e r ; b ro a d e r i d e n t i f i c a t i o n an d s c r e e n in g o f o r g a n ic 

co m po un ds in w a t e r ; i n c o r p r a t i n g ca rb a m a te an d o rg a n o ­

p h o s p h a te p e s t i c i d e s i n t o a mo re i n c l u s i v e m u l t i - r e s i d u e 

p r o c e d u r e ; a n a ly z in g m u lt i- c o m p o n e n t c h e m ic a ls su ch a s 

p o ly c h l o r i n a t e d b ip h q n y ls (PCB) and to x a p h e n e ; .m ea su rin g 

c o n c e n t r a t i o n s o f i n d i c a t o r o r g a n is m s , p h e n o ls , and 

c y a n i d e s ; an d mas s 's p e c t r o m e t ic i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o f o r g a n ic 

co m po un ds w ho se s p e c t r a a r e n o t in t h e f i l e s .

The FY 19 76 P la n a l s o in c lu d e s d e v e lo p m e n ta l wo rk on 

re m o te s e n s in g t e c h n o lo g y . S p e c t r a l s i g n a t u r e s o f w a te r 

q u a l i t y p a ra m e te rs an d a tm o s p h e ric e f f e c t s on th e s e 

s i g n a t u r e s w i l l be d e te rm in e d w it h a 3 0 -c h a n n e l

105
149

s p e c t r o m e t e r . An in t e r im i n t e r p r e t a t i o n an d a n a l y s i s 

m an ua l and k e y s t o p o l l u t i o n s o u r c e s w i l l b e p u b lis h e d .

A ls o in FY 19 7 6 , a m an ua l o f g ro u n d w a te r m o n it o r in g 

g u i d e l i n e s i s s c h e d u le d f o r 'c o m p l e t i o n .

A ir p o l l u t a n t s s c h e d u le d , f o r a t t e n t i o n in FY 19 76 

in c lu d e p a r t i c u l a t e s , t o x i c t r a c e m e t a ls , o r g a n ic s from 

c h e m ic a l an d p e t r o c h e m ic a l p l a n t s , PC B’ s , c a r c in o g e n s , 

m u ta gen s, s u l f a t e s an d p h e n o ls . S p e c i f i c a t i o n s f o r 

p erfo rm a n ce o f m ea su re m en t, sy ste m s f o r NOx, CO, t o t a l 

r e d u c i b l e s u l f u r o a r t i c u l a t e (TRS) an d f l u o r i d e s in G ro up 

I I I s t a t i o n a r y e m is s io n s o u r c e s w i l l be p u b li s h e d in FY 

19 7 6 . T h e se s p e c i f i c a t i o n s a r e n eed ed by S t a t e s an d 

in d u s t r y t o d e te r m in e c o m p li a n c e w ith ne w s t a t i o n a r y s o u r c e 

p e rfo rm a n ce s t a n d a r d s .

Th e FY 19 76 P la n a l s o i n c lu d e s d e v e lo p m e n t o f m et hods 

t o : m o n it o r a i r b o r n e a s b e s t o s ; r e l a t e pl um e o p a c i t y t o 

m as s c o n c e n t r a t i o n an d i d e n t i f y an d m easu re c o n c e n t r a t io n 

o f n o n - r e g u la t e d n it r o g e n co mpo un ds fr om l i g h t d u ty 

v e h i c l e s . F u r t h e r , th e p la n i n c l u d e s d e ve lo p m e n t o f an 

in s tr u m e n t t o m easu re s u l f u r i c a c id in a m b ie n t a i r and 

c r i t e r i a f o r s e l e c t i n g " e q u i v a l e n t " m eth ods f o r am b ie n t a i r 

an d s t a t i o n a r y s o u r c e m easu rem en ts .

Helicopters be used effectively m atmospheric studies for tracing pollutant paths and taking

pollution samples.

CREDIT: EPA/D0C1MRICA - Gene D»»1els

79-397 0 - 77 - 12

106
150

F i v e - Y e a r P la n

T he m o n it o r in g R&D i s c h a r a c t e r i z e d a s l e v e l - o f - e f f o r t . 

A c c o r d i n g ly , much o f t h e pro gr am lo o k s t h e sam e f o r 

i n d i v i d u a l y e a r s i n t h e f i v e - y e a r p la n . C o r r e c t in g 

d e f i c i e n c i e s in c a n d id a t e an d r e f e r e n c e m o n it o r in g m et hod s 

an d d e v e lo p in g new m et hods a s n ee d s a r i s e w i l l c o n tin u e t o 

g e t a t t e n t i o n w it h f o c u s 'a lw a y s on c u r r e n t h i g h - p r i o r i t y 

p o l l u t a n t s .

H ow ev er , t h e r e a r e some r e l a t i v e l y lo n g - r a n g e p r o j e c t s 

an d a d d i t i o n a l l e v e l - o f - e f f o r t a c t i v i t i e s p la n n e d f o r 

im p le m e n ta tio n in FY 19 77 o r b eyo n d . F u r t h e r , c e r t a i n 

e x i s t i n g Dr og ra m s w i l l g e t mo re em p h asis in FY 19 77 and 

b e y o n d . Some exam p le s o f t h e s e a r e a s a r e d e s c r ib e d b e lo w .

• W at er M o n it o r in g M et hod s E q u iv a le n c y Pr oq ra m : 

P r e s e n t r e g u l a t i o n s a llo w o n ly d i s c h a r g e r s t o a p p ly 

f o r a p p r o v a l o f a l t e r n a t e m et hod s f o r m e asu rin g 

p o l l u t a n t s in i n d u s t r i a l an d m u n ic ip a l e f f l u e n t s . 

M a n u fa c tu r e r s o f m o n it o r in g in s t r u m e n t s h a ve no 

d i r e c t r e c o u r s e f o r d e m o n s tra tin g th e e q u iv a le n c y o f 

t h e i r p r o d u c ts t o th e p ro m u lg ate d t e s t p r o c e d u r e s . 

Th e m os t r e a s o n a b le s o l u t i o n t o t h i s p ro b le m i s to 

s e t up a p ro gr am s i m i l a r to th e a m b ie n t a i r 

e q u iv a le n c y p ro gram . T h is r e q u i r e s p ro m u lg a tio n o f 

new r e g u l a t i o n s o r am en dm en ts t o e x i s t i n g o n e s .

A g e n cy -w id e L a b o r a t o r y A u to m ati o n S y ste m s: 

L a b o r a to r y a u to m a tio n c o n s i s t s o f a p p ly in g s m a ll 

co m p u te rs (m in i- co m p u te rs ) t o s o p h i s t i c a t e d 

la b o r a t o r y in s t r u m e n t s to c o n t r o l t h e i r o p e r a t io n , 

p r o c e s s t h e i r d a t a an d g e n e r a t e r e p o r t s f o r 

la b o r a t o r y s c i e n t i s t s . W ith t h i s t e c h n o lo g y , i t i s 

p o s s i b l e t o i n c r e a s e th e q u a l i t y an d q u a n t i t y o f 

la b o r a t o r y d a ta an d p r o v id e s u b s t a n t i a l l y in c r e a s e d 

c a p a b i l i t i e s w it h no i n c r e a s e i n p e r s o n n e l. T h is 

ad van ced t e c h n o lo g y i s o f p a r t i c u l a r im p o rta n c e t o 

m o n it o r in g l a b o r a t o r i e s t h a t mus t a c c u r a t e l y a n a ly z e 

l a r g e nu mbe rs o f sa m p le s t o s u p p o r t e n fo rce m e n t 

a c t i o n s .

• A dva nce d M o n it o r in g S y ste m s: The t a s k o f m e asu rin g 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l p o l l u t a n t s i s c u r r e n t l y la b o r - 

i n t e n s i v e . D evelo pm en t an d u s e o f l e s s la b o r -

i n t e n s i v e t e c h n iq u e s su ch a s a d v a n c ed re m ote

m o n it o rin g in s t r u m e n t a t io n , m ou nt ed on a ir b o r n e and 

g ro u n d -b a se d m o b il e p la t fo r m s w it h au to m ate d d a ta 

a c q u i s i t i o n s y s t e m s , i s an o b v io u s a l t e r n a t i v e . 

T h e se t e c h n iq u e s h a ve p o t e n t i a l f o r c o s t - e f f e c t i v e

107
151

m o n it o r in g o f t r e n d s t h a t a r e n eed ed f o r d evelo p m en t 

an d e v a l u a t i o n o f a d e q u a te c o n t r o l s t r a t e g i e s .

ORD p la n s t o c o n t in u e t o c a p i t a l i z e on m o n it o r in g 

c a p a b i l i t i e s d e v e lo p e d by o t h e r o r g a n i z a t i o n s . Th e 

t r a n s f e r i n t o an d a p p l i c a t i o n by EPA o f a d v a n c e d t e c h n o lo g y 

d e v e lo p e d o u t s i d e t h e A gen cy h a s bee n a c c o m p li s h e d by p i l o t 

p r o j e c t s on r e a l p ro b le m s . . Th e R e g io n s an d o t h e r EPA 

O f f i c e s c o n tin u e t o n eed t o t a l m o n it o r in g s y ste m s b e c a u s e 

t h e s e s y ste m s o f t e n r e p r e s e n t a way o f c o m p le t in g p r e s s in g 

t a s k s in a f a s t e r , more c o s t - e f f e c t i v e m ann er .

C e r t a in m o n it o r in g n ee d s ca n o n ly be a d d r e s s e d w it h 

a e r i a l m o n it o r in g s y s t e m s . Some s p e c i f i c o b j e c t i v e s and 

b e n e f i t s t o be d e r i v e d fr om th e d e v e lo p m e n t o f ad van ced 

m o n it o r in g s y s te m s a r e a s f o l lo w s :

La nd M o n it o r in g

• D ete rm in e s t a t u s o f s u r f a c e m in es an d e x t e n t o f 

r e c o n t o u r in g an d r e v e g e t a t i o n .

• A s s e s s s e c o n d a r y e f f e c t s do wnw in d from po wer 

g e n e r a t in g p l a n t s on su ch r e c e p t o r s a s v e g e t a t i o n 

and urb an c o m m u n it ie s .

• A s s e s s e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c ts o f la n d d i s p o s a l o f 

m u n ic ip a l an d i n d u s t r i a l w a s t e s .

• A s s e s s s u r f a c e and g ro u n d w a te r q u a l i t y b a se d on la n d 

u se m appin g.

W at er M o n it o r in g

• M ea su re th e r m a l an d s p e c t r a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s o f 

e f f l u e n t s fr o m pow er an d i n d u s t r i a l p la n t s an d map 

th e rm a l g r a d i e n t s in r e c e i v i n g w a t e r s .

• A s s e s s e n v ir o n m e n ta l t r e n d s a t o c e a n w a s te d i s p o s a l 

s i t e s an d map t r a n s p o r t o f p o l l u t a n t s .

• M ea su re o r g a n i c an d i n o r g a n i c w a t e r p o l l u t a n t s f o r 

i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c t fr om sew age 

an d i n d u s t r i a l p l a n t e f f l u e n t s .

• O b ta in m easu re m en ts o f d i f f e r e n t o i l t y p e s and 

h a za rd o u s m a t e r i a l s p i l l s t o a s s e s s e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

im p act an d p r o v id e s u r v e i l l a n c e d u r in g an d a f t e r 

c le a n - u p o p e r a t i o n s .

108
152

• O b ta in m e asu re m en t o f t u r b i d i t y an d s e d im e n ta tio n b y 

a g r i c u l t u r a l r u n n o f f .

• M o n it o r tr e n d s i n m a rin e e n v ir o n m e n ts a s s o c i a t e d 

w ith o u te r c o n t i n e n t a l s h e l f o i l an d g a s d r i l l i n o 

an d p r o c e s s in g .

Q u a l i t y A ssu ra n c e 

S u b p ro g ra m D e s c r i p tio n

E n v ir o n m e n ta l d a ta p ro d u c e d by f e d e r a l . S t a t e and l o c a l 

m o n ito r in g a c t i v i t i e s m u st be a c c u r a t e , in te r c o m p a r a b le an d 

l e g a l l y d e f e n s i b l e . T h is i s th e g o a l o f O RD's Q u a lity 

A s s u ra n c e (QA) S u b p ro g ra m . A lt h o u q h ORD d o e s n o t have 

r e s p o n s b i l i t y f o r a c t u a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l m o n ito r in g , i t i s 

r e s p o n s i b l e f o r d e v e lo p in g an d im p le m e n ti n g a c o m p re h e n siv e 

a g e n c y w id e q u a l i t y a s s u r a n c e p ro g ra m .

M ajo r a c t i v i t i e s in c l u d e :

• S t a t i s t i c a l v a l i d a t i o n and s t a n d a r d i z a t i o n o f t o t a l 

m easu re m en t sy s te m s (d e v e lo p m e n t o f s i t e s e l e c t i o n 

an d v a l i d a t i o n c r i t e r i a , fl o w m e a s u re m e n ts , sa m p le 

c o l l e c t i o n and p r e s e r v a t i o n , a n a ly s e s an d d a ta 

o u t p u t ) .

• D evelo pm ent and d i s t r i b u t i o n o f s t a n d a r d r e f e r e n c e 

m a t e r i a l s .

• P r e p a r a ti o n and d i s t r i b u t i o n o f q u a l i t y c o n tr o l 

g u i d e l i n e s an d p r o c e d u r e s .

• E v a lu a tio n o f m o n ito r in g a c t i v i t i e s ( e v a l u a ti o n o f 

f a c i l i t i e s , e q u ip m e n t, o p e r a t o r s , p r o c e d u r e s an d 

p e rfo rm a n c e ) .

• D evelo pm ent o f a u to m a te d l a b o r a t o r y m an ag em en t

sy s te m s ( a p p l i c a t i o n o f m in ic o m p u te rs t o la b o r a to r y 

i n s tr u m e n ts , d a t a s c r e e n in g , c o m p u te riz e d

s t a t i s t i c a l q u a l i t y c o n tr o l) .

• T e c h n ic a l a s s i s t a n c e ( a s s i s t a n c e in c a r r y i n q o u t 

c a l i b r a t i o n s , s p l i t s a m p le s , e t c . ) .

• D evelo pm ent an d p a r t i c i p a t i o n i n r e g i o n a l q u a l i t y 

c o n tr o l w o rk sh o p s, c o n f e r e n c e s an d s e m in a r s .

109
153

O ve r o n e -h u n d red m ea su re m en t m et hods h a v e bee n 

p ro m u lg a te d t o m o n it o r c o m p li a n c e an d e n f o r c e e n v ir o n m e n ta l s t a n d a r d s an d r e g u l a t i o n s . M ea su re m en t m eth ods f o r 

c r i t e r i a p o l l u t a n t s a s s o c i a t e d w it h a m b ie n t a i r q u a l i t y s t a n d a r d s h a ve been s t a n d a r d i z e d . M ea su re m en t m et hod s f o r 

New S o u rc e P e rfo rm a n c e S ta n d a rd s (NSPS) f o r R e g u la to r y C a t e g o r y I h a v e been t e s t e d u n d er a c t u a l o p e r a t in g c o n d i t i o n s . A l s o , e f f o r t s a r e p r o g r e s s in g t o s t a n d a r d iz e m ea su re m en t m et hods f o r o t h e r r e g u la t e d e m is s io n s o u r c e s an d t o e s t a b l i s h p e r fo r m a n c e s p e c i f i c a t i o n s f o r i n - s t a c k 

m o n ito r s .

W ate r q u a l i t y m ea su re m en t m et hods a r e m o s tly s ta n d a r d 

a n a l y s i s m et hods t a k e n fr om s c i e n t i f i c l i t e r a t u r e o r d e v e lo p e d in EPA l a b o r a t o r i e s . P r o c e d u re s f o r c a l i b r a t i o n an d q u a l i t y a s s u r a n c e a r e a v a i l a b l e fr om th e sam e s o u r c e s . T h e s e m et hod s wor k w e l l f o r s p e c i f i c s u b s t a n c e s in 

d i s t i l l e d w a t e r . A t t h i s p o in t , h o w e v e r , o n ly a b o u t 20 

m eth o d s h a ve bee n v a l i d a t e d f o r co m p le x i n d u s t r i a l and 

m u n ic ip a l e f f l u e n t s .

The m ea su re m en t m eth ods v a l i d a t i o n w ork w i l l c o n tin u e 

u n t i l a l l m et hods p ro m u lg a te d by EPA a r e v a l i d a t e d . T h is may r e q u ir e d e l e t i n g fr om e x i s t i n g r e g u l a t i o n s th o s e 

m eas ure m en t m et hods t h a t c a n n o t be v a l i d a t e d an d p r o v id in g 

v a l i d a t e d a l t e r n a t e m e th o d s.

R e fe r e n c e m a t e r i a l s a r e a v a i l a b l e f o r 71 m et hod s 

p ro m u lg a te d s i n c e 19 7 3 . And a v o lu n t a r y q u a l i t y c o n t r o l a c t i v i t y i s o n g o in g i n t h a t a p a r t i c i p a t i n g la b o r a t o r y r e q u e s t s a sa m p le w ith a known c o n c e n t r a t io n o f p o ll u t a n t t o c a l i b r a t e o r t e s t i t s p r o c e d u r e s . A t t h e p r e s e n t tim e , 

h o w e v e r, ORD i s n o t im p le m e n ti n g a co m p re h e n s iv e a c t i v i t y o f r e g u l a r a u d i t s o f go vern m en t e n v ir o n m e n ta l m o n it o r in g 

l a b s .

FY 19 76 P la n

Some r e p r e s e n t a t i v e e x a m p le s o f t h e t y p e s o f e f f o r t and 

o u t p u t p la n n e d f o r FY 19 76 a r e :

• S i n g l e l a b o r a t o r y v a l i d a t i o n o f m ea su re m en t m et hods 

f o r v i n y l c h l o r i d e , s u l f a t e an d a r s e n i c in am b ie n t 

a i r .

• S t a n d a r d i z a t i o n o f th e c a l i b r a t i o n p ro c e d u re f o r 

w a te r an d w a s t e s d is c h a r g e fl o w -m e a s u re m e n ts .

110
154

• S t a n d a r d iz a t io n o f b io a s s a y p r o c e d u r e s f o r th e 

N a tio n a l P o l l u t a n t D is c h a r g e E lm in a tio n Syst em 

(NPDES) .

• S t a n d a r d iz a t io n o f s a m p le s i t i n g c r i t e r i a f o r 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l m e a su rem en ts .

• G u id e lin e s f o r w a te r an d w a s te s sa m p li n g an d sa m ple 

p r e s e r v a t i o n .

• A sse ssm e n t an d e v a l u a t i o n o f th e f e a s i b i l i t y o f 

o p e r a t in g a l a b o r a t o r y e v a lu a t io n p ro gra m .

• Q u a l i t y a s s u r a n c e g u i d e l i n e s f o r s t a t i o n a r y and 

m o b il e s o u rc e p o l l u t a n t e m is s io n m easu rem en ts .

Five-Year Plan

T he c h a r a c t e r o f th e Q u a l i t y A ss u ra n c e Subpro gra m ca n 

a l s o be d e s c r ib e d as l e v e l - o f e f f o r t . A c c o r d i n g ly , th e 

p la n n e d o u tp u ts f o r i n d i v i d u a l y e a r s o f t h e f i v e - y e a r p la n 

a r e e x p e c te d to be much t h e sa m e.

L o n g -t e rm g o a ls o f t h e Q u a lit y A s s u ra n c e Subpro gra m 

a r e : (a) t o p r o v id e a l l r e f e r e n c e m eth o d s, s i t e - s e l e c t i o n

an d v a l i d a t i o n c r i t e r i a , g u a l i t y c o n t r o l p r o c e d u r e s and 

s t a n d a r d r e f e r e n c e m a t e r i a l s nee ded t o e n f o r c e e x i s t i n g o r 

p la n n e d EPA s ta n d a r d s an d r e g u l a t i o n s an d t o g a t h e r d a ta on 

n o n r e g u la t e d p o ll u t a n t s o f c o n e r n t o EPA ; (b) t o d e v e lo p 

an d im p le m en t a n a t i o n a l p la n f o r la b o r a t o r y e v a l u a t i o n ; 

(c) t o co n d u ct r e g u la r a u d i t s o f p e rfo rm a n ce an d g u a l i t y 

c o n t r o l p r a c t i c i e s in EPA m o n it o r in g a c t i v i t i e s ; an d (d) to 

p r o v id e a s s i s t a n c e t o a l l l a b o r a t o r i e s t h a t nee d t o u p gra d e 

t h e i r m o n it o r in g c a p a b i l i t i e s .

In FY 19 77 an d b e y o n d , th e QA a c t i v i t i e s w i l l be 

e xp a n d e d to s a t i s f y m a n d a te s o f th e S a fe D r in k in g W at er 

A c t . The S t a t e s w i l l as su m e p rim a ry r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r 

im p le m e n ti n g pro gr am s t o a s s u r e s a f e t y o f p u b l i c d r in k in g 

w a t e r , b u t EPA mus t c e r t i f y th e S t a t e ’ s c a p a b i l i t y t o c a r r y 

o u t th e pro gr am an d m ust p r o v id e t e c h n i c a l g u id a n c e , 

p ro gra m o v e r v ie w an d q u a l i t y a s s u r a n c e s u p p o r t . The 

s u c c e s s o f w a te r s u p p ly p ro gra m s w i l l dep en d on r e l i a b l e 

m o n ito r in g s y ste m s an d a n a t i o n a l QA s e r v i c e f o r S t a t e s . 

Of p ara m o u n t an d im m e d ia te co n ce rn i s d e v e lo p m e n t o f 

s t a n d a r d iz e d m ea su re m en t s y s te m s t h a t ca n be u se d f o r 

r o u t i n e d e te r m in a tio n s o f t r a c e s o f t o x i c m a t e r i a l s in 

p o t a b le w a t e r s . No l e s s im p o r ta n t i s d e v e lo p m e n t and 

m a in te n a n c e o f q u a l i t y c o n t r o l e f f o r t s to a s s u r e t h a t a l l

11 1
155

d a ta g e n e r a t e d a r e s t a t i s t i c a l l y v a l i d an d l e g a l l y 

d e f e n s i b l e .

E f f o r t s a l s o w i l l c o n tin u e t o im p ro v e th e q u a l i t y o f 

a i r m o n it o r in g d a ta by d e v e lo p in g c r i t e r i a f o r p ro p e r 

v a l i d a t i o n o f s i t e - s e l e c t i o n f o r c o n tin u o u s a i r m o n it o r in g 

s t a t i o n s . Onc e e s t a b l i s h e d , an e f f o r t w i l l be made t o 

r e g u l a r l y a u d i t d a ta fr om th e s e s t a t i o n s . A d d it io n a l w or k 

w i l l in v o lv e e v a l u a t i n g d a t a 'i n t e r p r e t i v e te c h n iq u e s an d 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l i n d i c e s .

An im p o r ta n t a s p e c t o f c u r r e n t q u a l i t y a s s u r a n c e 

a c t i v i t y i s c o n tin u o u s e v a l u a t i o n o f p erfo rm a n ce o f 

f e d e r a l , S t a t e an d l o c a l m o n it o r in g s u p p o r t l a b o r a t o r i e s . 

T h is a c t i v i t y w i l l be exp an d ed an d w i l l i n c lu d e p r o v is io n 

o f a s s i s t a n c e an d q u id a n c e t o t h o s e l a b o r a t o r i e s fo u n d 

d e f i c i e n t .

T e c h n ic a l S u p p o rt

T e c h n ic a l S u p p o r t / T e c h n ic a l A s s i s t a n c e

In a s e n s e , t h e e n t i r e ORD pro gr am may b e c o n s id e r e d a s 

t e c h n i c a l s u p p o r t t o EPA. ORD’ s f u n c t i o n i s t o p r o v id e EPA 

w it h th e s c i e n t i f i c b a s i s f o r e n v ir o n m e n ta l r e g u l a t i o n s , 

means o f m o n ito r in g e n v ir o n m e n ta l p o l l u t i o n l e v e l s an d 

d e m o n s tra b le p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y . Much o f t h i s 

e f f o r t i s lo n g - t e r m an d fo c u s e d on re s p o n s e t o EP A’ s 

a n t i c i p a t e d n e e d s . I t i s ORD p o l i c y t o a s s i s t EPA in i t s 

im m ed ia te t e c h n i c a l n e e d s w h en ever p o s s i b l e by u s in g th e 

s c i e n t i f i c e x p e r t i s e o f i t s r e s e a r c h p e r s o n n e l. C o s t s 

a s s o c i a t e d w it h t h i s e f f o r t in th e p a s t h a v e bee n in c lu d e d 

in th e b a se R6D p ro gram , i . e . , w it h in t h e r e s e a r c h pro gr am 

p la n n e d an d im p le m en te d b y ORD p e r s o n n e l an d n o t sho wn as 

d i s c r e t e , i d e n t i f i a b l e t a s k s .

A d d i t i o n a l l y , ORD h a s d e v e lo p e d c a p a b i l i t i e s fr om i t s 

R5D a c t i v i t i e s t h a t a r e now l a r g e l y r o u t i n e " s e r v i c e s " f o r 

t h e r e s t o f EPA. ORD c o n t in u e s t o p r o v id e t h e s e s e r v i c e s 

t h a t a r e d i f f i c u l t o r im p o s s ib le t o d u p l i c a t e in R e g io n a l 

o r Pro gr am O f f i c e s b e c a u s e o f t h e i r c o s t s , ma npow er 

re q u ir e m e n ts o r t h e i r EPA -w id e n a t u r e . An ex am ple o f t h i s 

i s OR D's a i r c r a f t c a p a b i l i t y f o r a e r i a l s u r v e i l l a n c e .

A l e s s w e l l known exam p le i s th e ORD E n v ir o n m e n ta l 

P h o to g r a p h ic I n t e r p r e t a t i o n C e n te r (EPIC) w it h i t s 

c a p a b i l i t y t o a s s e s s p o l l u t i o n p ro b le m s fr o m s o u r c e s su ch 

a s s t a c k p lu m e s, o i l s p i l l s an d o t h e r p o in t an d n o n p o in t

112
156

s o u r c e s from a e r i a l p h o to q r a p h s . ORD a l s o h a s a d va n ce^ , 

s o p h i s t i c a t e ; ! , s c i e n t i f i c r e s e a r c h eq u ip m en t a v a i l a b l e su ch 

a s e le c t r o n m ic r o s c o p e s t h a t a r e use d t o s u p p o r t a g e n cy 

o p e r a t i n g re q u ir e m e n ts .

T e c h n ic a l s u p p o r t i s d i s t i n g u i s h a b l e fr om t e c h n i c a l 

a s s i s t a n c e . T e c h n ic a l a s s i s t a n c e i s a b r i e f e f f o r t in 

r e s p o n s e to u n s c h e d u le d r e q u e s t s f o r a s s i s t a n c e . 'I t 

i n c l u d e s su ch t h in g s a s e x p e r t te s tim o n y in l e a a l a c t i o n s 

an d s h o r t - t e r m c o n s u lt a n t s e r v i c e s . As w ith t e c h n i c a l 

a s s i s t a n c e , t e c h n i c a l s u p p o r t i s g e n e r a l l y a r e s p o n s e t o an 

u n s c h e d u le d r e q u e s t and i s n o r m a ll y c h a r a c t e r i z e d by 

p r o j e c t s t h a t a r e s h o r t - t e r m co m pa re d to th e b a s e r e s e a r c h 

o ro q ra m . T e c h n ic a l s u p p o r t i s o f t e n c h a r a c t e r i z e d by a 

so m ew ha t lo n g e r re s p o n s e ti m e . As w it h t e c h n i c a l 

a s s i s t a n c e , i t g e n e r a l l y r e q u i r e s no o r i g i n a l r e s e a r c h , bu t 

b r i n g s e x i s t i n q k n o w le d ge t o b e a r on a s c i e n t i f i c e x p e r t i s e 

f o r som e im m edia te e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m . A m ajo r 

d i s t i n c t i o n a r i s e s , h o w e v e r, in i n s t a n c e s w her e e x i s t i n g 

in fo r m a t io n i s n ot a d e q u a te and s h o r t - t e r m e n g in e e r in g 

s t u d i e s m us t be c o m p le te d t o s u p p ly m is s in g in fo r m a t io n .

FY 19 76 P la n

A s i g n i f i c a n t f r a c t i o n o f th e R,D 6D pro gr am in th e p a s t 

was d e v o te d to w ha t i s now d e fin e d a s t e c h n i c a l s u p p o r t. 

I t i s im p o s s ib le t o s a y p r e c i s e l y how much. T he d e c is io n 

t h i s y e a r t o b e g in t o i d e n t i f y t e c h n i c a l s u p p o r t wo rk 

i t s e l f r e f l e c t s a d e te r m in a tio n - t h a t ORD w i l l be more 

r e s p o n s i v e t o im m ed ia te n e e d s o f EPA.

U n lik e o t h e r p a r t s o f th e ORD p ro gra m , r e s o u r c e l e v e l s 

an d a cco m p li sh m e n t o b j e c t i v e s ca n n o t be p r e c i s e l y p r o je c t e d 

f o r t e c h n i c a l s u p p o r t. T he e x p e c t a t io n i s t h a t a f t e r th e 

f i r s t y e a r o f m an ag in g t h e t e c h n i c a l s u p p o r t a c t i v i t i e s , 

r e s o u r c e s r e q u ir e d o r a c t u a l l y u sed w i l l be b e t t e r known 

an d t h i s in fo r m a tio n w i l l f a c i l i t a t e p la n n in g . OR D's 

o v e r a l l g o a l f o r now an d f o r th e f i v e - y e a r p la n n in g p e r io d 

i s t o b e a s r e s p o n s iv e a s p o s s i b l e w ith in th e c o n s t r a i n t o f 

a v a i l a b l e r e s o u r c e l e v e l s t o EPA n e e d s f o r t e c h n i c a l 

s u p p o r t .

R e q u e s ts f o r t e c h n i c a l s u p p o r t in FY 19 76 a r e e x p e c te d 

t o i n c l u d e o v e rh e a d m o n ito r in g s u p p o r t f o r r e s e a r c h 

p r o j e c t s an d r e g i o n a l s u r v e i l l a n c e a c t i v i t i e s . Some 

r e q u e s t s w i l l p ro b a b ly be f o r a e r i a l i n f r a r e d p h o t o - s u r v e y s 

o f i n d u s t r i a l and p o w e r p la n t d is c h a r g e s and la n d q u a l i t y 

e v a l u a t i o n s u r v e y s . In a d d i t i o n , a s i g n i f i c a n t f r a c t i o n o f 

th e r e q u e s t s w i l l p r o b a b ly be f o r l a b o r a t o r y s u p p o r t and 

a n a l y s e s o f m o n it o r in g n o n r e g u la t e d an d t o x i c p o l l u t a n t s .

113
157

F iv e - Y e a r P la n

T e c h n ic a l s u p p o r t t o EPA i s c l e a r l y a s e r v i c e a c t i v i t y . 

P la n n in g f o r th e t y p e an d q u a n t i t y o f s e r v i c e i s b a se d on 

h i s t o r i c a l d a t a . The l e v e l o f s u p p o r t t h a t EPA r e q u i r e s i s 

e x p e c te d t o i n c r e a s e . B ut th e n a tu r e o f t h e s u p p o rt e f f o r t 

i s n o t l i k e l y t o c h a n g e .

T e c h n ic a l I n fo r m a tio n

T e c h n ic a l In fo r m a tio n w as r e c e n t l y e s t a b l i s h e d a s an 

a r e a t o p r o v id e c e n t r a l i z e d p la n n in g an d c o n t r o l o v e r a 

v a r i e t y o f a c t i v i t i e s t h a t w er e p r e v i o u s l y d i s t r i b u t e d 

a c r o s s th e b a s e ORD p ro gra m . T h is i s b e in g do ne t o a s s u r e 

t h a t ORD o u t p u t s a r e p r o v id e d in a fo rm m ost a p p r o p r ia t e t o 

EPA and e x t e r n a l u s e r s an d t h a t t h o s e o u tp u t w i l l g r e a t l y 

h e lp th e N a t i o n 's p o l l u t i o n a b a te m en t e f f o r t .

The p la n n in g a p p ro a c h v ie w s t e c h n i c a l in fo r m a t io n a s a 

t o t a l s y ste m an d o p t im iz e s in fo r m a t io n d e l i v e r y fr om 

r e s e a r c h e r s (who a l s o nee d t e c h n i c a l in fo r m a t io n t o do 

r e s e a r c h ) t o t h e u lt i m a t e u s e r . The m a jo r a c t i v i t i e s 

a s s ig n e d to t h i s e f f o r t in c lu d e : t e c h n o lo g y t r a n s f e r ,

t e c h n i c a l an d s c i e n t i f i c p u b l i c a t i o n s , l i b r a r y c o n t r o l , 

a u to m a tic d a ta p r o c e s s i n g (ADP) c o o r d i n a t i o n , Fr ee do m o f 

I n fo r m a tio n A c t c o m p li a n c e , e n v ir o n m e n ta l f o r e c a s t m o d e li n g 

an d r e s p o n s e t o i n q u i r i e s f o r t e c h n i c a l in fo r m a t io n fr om 

i n s i d e an d o u t s i d e .

FY 19 76 P la n

P r i n c i p a l o b j e c t i v e s o f th e FY 19 76 t e c h n i c a l 

in fo r m a t io n a c t i v i t i e s a r e t o in c r e a s e th e o v e r a l l u t i l i t y 

an d c o s t - e f f e c t i v e n e s s o f o n g o in g t e c h n i c a l in fo r m a t io n 

e f f o r t s an d t o d e v e lo p a c o m p re h e n s iv e t e c h n i c a l 

in fo r m a t io n s t r a t e g y t h a t i s r e s p o n s iv e t o n eed s o f b o th 

EPA and o t h e r u s e r s o f ORD o u t p u t s . M ajo r a cco m p li sh m en ts 

w i l l in c lu d e :

• Im pr ove d d o c u m e n ta tio n s o f an d a c c e s s a b i l i t y t o 

t e c h n i c a l in fo r m a t io n fr om o n g o in g r e s e a r c h 

p r o j e c t s .

• A s i g n i f i c a n t l y i n c r e a s e d nu mber o f t e c h n i c a l an d 

s c i e n t i f i c r e p o r t s an d p u b l i c a t i o n s s p e c i f i c a l l y 

t a i l o r e d f o r u s e r a p p l i c a t i o n .

114
158

• C o m p le ti o n o f a f i v e - y e a r a u to m a tic d a ta p r o c e s s in g 

(ADP) p la n t o i n c r e a s e r e s e a r c h p r o d u c t i v i t y and 

c o s t - e f f e c t i v e n e s s i n u t i l i z a t i o n o f ADP r e s o u r c e s .

• C h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n o f th e n e a r - an d lo n g -te r m 

t e c h n i c a l in fo r m a t io n re q u ir e m e n ts o f b o th EPA and 

o t h e r u s e r s an d d e v e lo p m e n t o f p la n s t o m eet su ch 

r e q u ir e m e n t s .

• E s ta b li s h m e n t o f a c e n t r a l i z e d c a p a b i l i t y t o re sp o n d 

t o EPA an d o t h e r r e q u e s t s f o r t e c h n i c a l in fo r m a t io n .

• D ev el opm en t o f S t r a t e g i c E n v ir o n m e n ta l A sse ssm en t 

Syst em (SEAS) a s an o p e r a t i o n a l t o o l f o r 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l f o r e c a s t i n g an d p o l i c y a n a l y s i s . SEAS 

w i l l be f u r t h e r d e v e lo p e d t o s u p p o r t im p act 

a ss e s sm e n t o f e n e r g y , e n v ir o n m e n ta l an d r e c o v e r y 

t r a d e - o f f s an d a l t e r n a t i v e s .

• Th e t e c h n o lo g y t r a n s f e r e f f o r t w i l l c o n d u c t sem in a rs 

on la n d t r e a t m e n t , ad va n ced w a s te tr e a tm e n t, 

i n d u s t r i a l p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l , m o n it o r in g o f 

i n d u s t r i a l w a s t e w a t e r , w a te r tr e a tm e n t p r o c e s s e s and 

a n a l y t i c a l w e ig h t s an d m e a su re s. A n o th e r key 

sem in a r w i l l be on th e m u lt im e d ia p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l 

f o r s m a ll b u s i n e s s e s . in a d d i t i o n , a v a r i e t y o f 

s p e c i a l i z e d r e p o r t s , d e s ig n m anu al s an d n e w s le t t e r s 

w i l l be d e v e lo p e d an d w id e ly d i s t r i b u t e d . S p e c i a l 

em p h asi s w i l l b e g iv e n to d e v e lo p m e n t o f o u tp u ts 

d e s ig n e d t o a s s i s t S t a t e an d l o c a l g o v e rn m e n ta l 

p o li c y - m a k e r s i n i n v e s t i g a t i n g a v a i l a b l e o p tio n s t o 

s o lv e m u n ic ip a l w a s te w a te r tr e a tm e n t p ro b le m s .

F i v e - Y e a r P la n

A f u l l y i n t e g r a t e d s t r a t e g y an d f i v e y e a r p la n f o r th e 

t e c h n i c a l in fo r m a t io n a c t i v i t y i s s c h e d u le d f o r c o m p le tio n 

in FY 19 7 6 . W h il e s t i l l in c o m p le t e , i t i s e v i d e n t t h a t a 

s i g n i f i c a n t e x p a n s io n in t h i s a r e a w i l l be r e q u ir e d t o 

e f f e c t i v e l y t r a n s f e r RSD o u t p u t s t h a t a r e d e v e lo p e d o v e r 

t h e n e x t f i v e y e a r s i n re s p o n s e t o e x i s t i n g l e g i s l a t i v e 

m a n d a te s. For e x a m p le , th e w or k w i l l exp an d i t s t e c h n i c a l 

in fo r m a t io n t r a n s f e r a c t i v i t i e s to m u n ic ip a l an d i n d u s t r i a l 

p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y m o n it o r in g and n o n p o in t s o u rc e 

m an ag em en t a s t h e F e d e r a l W at er P o l l u t i o n C o n tr o l A ct 

(FWPCA) B e s t A v a i l a b l e T e c h n o lo g y (BAT) d e a d li n e o f 1983 

a p p r o a c h e s .

115
159

Im p le m e n ta tio n o f BAT r e q u ir e m e n ts mus t b e g in 18 t o 24 

m on th s b e f o r e th e d e a d li n e , so t r a n s f e r o f BAT t e c h n o lo g y 

m us t be c o m p le te d b e f o r e 19 8 0 . Work on a i r p o l l u t i o n 

c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y , s o l i d w a s te an d t o x i c s u b s t a n c e 

r e s e a r c h and e n e rg y an d w a t e r s u p p ly w i l l be s i g n i f i c a n t l y 

i n c r e a s e d . Th e p ea k in t e c h n i c a l in fo r m a t io n a c t i v i t i e s 

s h o u ld o c c u r in FY 197 9 an d FY 19 80.

116
ENERGY/ENVIRONMENT PROGRAM

O v e rv ie w

S e v e r a l a p p r o a c h e s h a v e b e e n p r o p o s e d a s p a r t o f a p la n 

t o m e e t t h e N a t i o n ’ s c r i t i c a l e n e r g y n e e d s . T h e se 

a p o r o a c h e s i n c l u d e :

• I n c r e a s e d u s e o f c o a l b y b u r n in g i t d i r e c t l y a n d u s e 

o f c o a l - d e r i v e d s y n t h e t i c f u e l s '.

• U se o f a l t e r n a t e s o u r c e s o f e n e r g y s u c h a s w a s t e , 

s o l a r , g e o th e r m a l a n d n u c l e a r .

• M or e e f f i c i e n t e n e r g y e x t r a c t i o n an d u s e p r o c e s s e s .

E ac h s c e n a r i o c a n s i g n i f i c a n t l y a f f e c t e n v ir o n m e n t a l 

g u a l i t y .

P a r t o f EPA ’ s o v e r a l l m is s i o n i s t o p r o t e c t t h e p u b l i c 

h e a l t h a n d w e l f a r e fro m a d v e r s e e f f e c t s o f p o l l u t a n t s 

d i s c h a r g e d by o r a s s o c i a t e d w ith e n e r g y s y s t e m s . Such 

p r o t e c t i o n r e g u i r e s a m u lt i m e d i a a p p r o a c h s o t h a t c o n t r o l 

o f o n e fo rm o f p o l l u t i o n d o e s n o t r e s u l t i n a n u n a c c e p t a b l e 

i m p a c t on a n o t h e r m e d ia .

B e c a u s e o f p o t e n t i a l l y a d v e r s e h e a l t h a n d e c o l o g i c a l 

e f f e c t s o f t r a d i t i o n a l a n d ne w t e c h n o l o g i e s f o r f u e l 

e x t r a c t i o n , p r o c e s s i n g a n d c o n v e r s i o n , EPA h a s a m a jo r 

r e s p o n s i b i l i t y t o p r o t e c t e n v ir o n m e n t a l g u a l i t y a n d hu man 

h e a l t h . A ls o , s i n c e m an y t e c h n o l o g y d e v e lo p m e n t a n d 

c o n s e g u e n t e n v ir o n m e n t a l p r o b le m s a r e l o n g - t e r m i n n a t u r e 

( e . g . , man y t e c h n o l o g i e s w i l l n o t b e a v a i l a b l e a n d i n 

c o m m e r c ia l u s e b e f o r e e a r l y 1 9 8 5 ), EPA m u st no w d e v e lo p t h e 

h e a l t h a n d t e c h n i c a l d a t a b a s e n e c e s s a r y t o s u p p o r t f u t u r e 

New S o u r c e P e r f o r m a n c e S t a n d a r d s a n d A m b ie n t A ir Q u a l i t y 

S t a n d a r d s . T h is n e e d b e c o m e s q u i t e a p p a r e n t whe n l e a d 

t im e s f o r d e v e l o p i n g a h e a l t h d a t a b a s e a n d a p p ly i n g 

c o n t r o l t e c h n o l o g y a r e c o n s i d e r e d .

S e v e r a l l o n g - t e r m p r o b le m s a r e e x p e c te d f o r r e g u l a t o r y 

a n d e n f o r c e m e n t c o m p o n e n ts o f EPA. F i r s t , t h e i n c r e a s e d 

r e l i a n c e on s u b s t i t u t e f u e l s fro m c o a l a n d o i l s h a l e ( t h a t 

r e q u i r e c l e a n i n g , g a s i f i c a t i o n a n d o t h e r t e c h n i q u e s ) c a n 

g e n e r a t e ne w p o l l u t a n t s w h o se e f f e c t s a r e n o t kn ow n an d 

m u s t b e d e f i n e d . A n o th e r p ro b le m i s t h e p o t e n t i a l l y 

c u m u l a t i v e , c h r o n i c , h e a l t h a n d e c o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s o f new 

a n d e m e rg in g e n e r g y s o u r c e s ( n u c l e a r , g e o t h e r m a l , s o l a r , 

e t c . ) . F o r e x a m p le , t h e n u c l e a r f u e l c y c l e c r e a t e s
161

p ro b le m s a s s o c i a t e d w it h p lu to n iu m d i s p e r s i o n in th e 

b io s p h e r e and s t o r a g e f o r an i n d e f i n i t e p e r io d o f h ig h - 

l e v e l r a d i o a c t i v e w a s t e s ..

T h e re a r e a l s o e n e r g y "and e n v ir o n m e n t - r e la t e d p ro ble m s 

t h a t a r e more n e a r - t e r m an d m us t be s u c c e s s f u l l y a d d re s s e d 

b y EPA. Th e u n a v a i l a b i l i t y o f en ou qh d o m e s tic o i l and 

i n c r e a s e d dep en d en ce up on f o r e i g n o i l s u p p ly h as e n co u ra g ed 

l a r g e - s c a l e c o n v e r s io n o f o i l - f i r e d b o i l e r s i n t o c o a l - f i r e d 

b o i l e r s t h a t burn h ig h s u l f u r c o a l . T h is f u e l s u b s t i t u t i o n 

w i l l l i k e l y p ro d u c e a d d i t i o n a l p a r t i c u l a t e s u l f u r co mpo un ds 

an d o t h e r co m b u s ti o n r e s id u e s w ith e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

c o n s e q u e n c e s . A l s o , i n c r e a s e d u se o f c o a l an d o i l s h a le w i l l a c c e l e r a t e m in in g f o r t h e s e f u e l s i n s e m i - a r id W est ern 

a r e a s , r a i s i n g s e r i o u s q u e s t io n s a b o u t p ro b le m s o f m in ed - 

la n d s r e s t o r a t i o n an d a f f e c t s on gro un d an d s u r f a c e w a te r .

A c o o r d in a te d f e d e r a l pro gr am h a s b een u n d e rta k e n to 

m ee t t h e a b o v e g o a l w ith th e ORD c a r r y i n g r e s p o n s i b i l i t y 

f o r m an ag in g an d i n t e g r a t i n g e f f o r t s o f e ig h t e e n f e d e r a l 

a g e n c i e s .

F or e x a m p le , in th e a r e a s o f h e a lt h an d e c o l o g i c a l 

e f f e p t s an d t r a n s p o r t an d m o n ito r in g , EPA c o o r d in a te s 

a c t i v i t i e s o f a d o zen f e d e r a l a g e n c i e s t h a t a r e d o in g 

r e s e a r c h and d e v e lo p m e n t i n r e l a t e d a r e a s . EPA su p p le m e n ts 

t h e i r pro gra m s w ith i n t e r a g e n c y fu n d in g t o p r o v id e th e 

p r o p e r b a la n c e in t h e o v e r a l l f e d e r a l e n e r g y and 

e n v ir o n m e n t r e s e a r c h an d d e v e lo p m e n t. ORD u s e s i t s 

l a b o r a t o r i e s f o r d i v e r s i f i e d p ro gra m s t h a t in c lu d e 

e v e r y t h i n g fr o m p o l l u t a n t m o n it o r in g an d h e a lt h and 

e c o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s r e s e a r c h to p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y 

d e v e lo p m e n t. T h ese e f f o r t s a r e g e n e r a l l y co m p li m e n ta ry to 

w or k in o t h e r f e d e r a l a g e n c i e s .

Th e d e f i n i t i o n o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s and 

r e q u ir e m e n ts f o r c o n t r o l o f lo n g e r - t e r m p ro b le m s a r e 

p a r t i c u l a r l y im p o r ta n t b e c a u s e EPA d o e s n o t h ave r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r e n e r g y t e c h n o lo g y d e v e lo p m e n t even 

th o u g h EPA m us t w ork w it h a g e n c ie s t h a t do (i n m os t i n s t a n c e s ERDA ). F a c t o r s t o c o n s id e r in s o l v i n g lo n g -te r m 

p ro b le m s in c lu d e :

• E n v ir o n m e n ta l a s s e s s m e n ts o f new e n e r g y e x t r a c t i o n , 

p r o c e s s in g an d u se t e c h n iq u e s ( e . q . , c o a l

g a s i f i c a t i o n , c o a l l i q u e f a c t i o n ) t o i d e n t i f y new 

p o l l u t a n t s and d e te rm in e t h e i r p o t e n t i a l h e a l t h , 

e c o l o g i c a l an d o t h e r s o c io - e c o n o m ic e f f e c t s .

118
• D e ve lo p an a d e q u a te s c i e n t i f i c b a s i s f o r ,new 

en v ir o n m e n ta l s t a n d a r d s an d r e g u l a t i o n s .

• P r o v id e g u id a n c e on c o n t r o l te c h n o lo g y r e q u ir e m e n ts 

t o f e d e r a l and in d u s t r y g ro u p s in v o lv e d in 

d e v e lo p in g an d a p p ly in g new t e c h n o l o g i e s .

• A s s i s t in d e v e lo p m e n t o f c o n t r o l te q h n o lo g d .e s , 

e s p e c i a l l y w her e ORD h as s p e c i a l e x p e r t i s e .

Th e Ener qy R6D P ro gr am i s o r g a n iz e d i n t o t h r e e 

s u b p ro g ra m s: (1) H e a lt h an d E c o lo g i c a l E f f e c t s ; (2)

E x t r a c t i o n an d P r o c e s s in g T e c h n o lo g y ; an d (3) C o n s e r v a tio n , 

U t i l i z a t i o n and T e c h n o lo g y A sse ssm en t. T h e se su bpro gra m s 

an d t h e i r m ajo r o u tp u ts a r e d e s c r ib e d b e lo w .

H e a lt h an d E c o l o g i c a l E f f e c t s / E n e r g y

Subp ro gra m D e s c r ip t io n

The e n e r g y - r e la t e d p r o c e s s e s an d e f f e c t s R&D su bpro gra m 

i s d e s ig n e d to i d e n t i f y a l l a d v e r s e e n v ir o n m e n ta l a s p e c t s 

( e s s e n t i a l f o r c r i t e r i a d evelo p m en t an d c o n t r o l te c h n o lo g y 

r e q u ir e m e n ts ) a s s o c i a t e d w ith e n e rg y e x t r a c t i o n , c o n v e r s io n 

an d u s e . M aj or g o a ls i n c l u d e : (1) a d e q u a te p r o t e c t i o n o f 

human h e a lt h an d th e hum an e c o s y s te m and (2) a s s u r a n c e o f 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l p r o t e c t i o n w ith ex p anded u s e o f d o m e sti c 

e n e r a y s u p p l i e s .

F o r th e s h o r t - t e r m , p ri m a ry e f f o r t s r e f l e c t EPA 

r e g u l a t o r y r e q u ir e m e n ts . A so un d t e c h n i c a l b a s e must be 

p r o v id e d t o s u p p o r t e s t a b lis h m e n t o f s ta n d a r d s and 

r e g u l a t i o n s and t o a s s u r e a s tr o n g A gen cy d e fe n s e in e v e n t 

o f l i t i g a t i o n .

In t h e in t e r m e d ia t e te rm , r e s e a r c h i s d i r e c t e d to 

p ro b le m i d e n t i f i c a t i o n and a s s e s s m e n t. E a r ly kn o w le d ge o f 

a d v e r s e e n e rq y s y ste m h e a lt h an d e c o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s a r e 

r e q u ir e d p r i o r t o s y s te m im p le m e n ta tio n t o a v o id t h e ne ed 

f o r c o s t l y r e . t r o f i t c o n t r o l s . T h is wo rk l e a d s t o s e t t i n q 

p r i o r i t i e s f o r l a t e r w or k an d w ner e p o s s i b l e , t o a v o id a n c e 

o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l i n s u l t s .

Th e lo n g -te r m r e s e a r c h i s l a r q e l y b a s e d on a s t r a t e g y 

t o p r e v e n t e n v ir o n m e n ta l dam age r a t h e r th a n t o o n ly 

r e g u l a t e i t . For t h a t r e a s o n , r e s e a r c h i s u n d e rta k e n t o 

b e t t e r u n d e rs ta n d e n v ir o n m e n ta l p r o c e s s e s an d e f f e c t s .
163

A vo id a n ce o f a l l y e t - u n r e c o g n iz e d h a z a r d s i s th e m ajo r 

u l t i m a t e o b j e c t i v e .

Th e e n e r g y - r e l a t e d p r o c e s s e s an d e f f e c t s r e s e a r c h i s d iv id e d i n t o f o u r c l o s e l y - r e l a t e d a r e a s : p o l l u t a n t c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n , m ea su re m en t an d m o n ito r in g ; e n v ir o n m e n ta l t r a n s p o r t p r o c e s s e s ; h e a lt h e f f e c t s and e c o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s . 

P o l l u t a n t C h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n , M ea su re m en t an d M o n it o rin g

Th e m o n ito r in g e f f o r t i s d e s ig n e d t o p r o v id e d a ta on b o th a m b ie n t and e n e r g y -im p a c te d a i r an d w a te r q u a l i t y . The p rim a ry o b j e c t i v e i s t o e s t a b l i s h b a s e l i n e a i r an d w a te r q u a l i t y d a t a in th e W este rn r e g i o n s f o r t h e p u rp o se o f s u p p o r t in g EPA s t a n d a r d s . E m phas is w i l l be on SO x, NOx, r e a c t i v e h y d r o c a r b o n s , t o x i c s u b s t a n c e s an d v i s i b i l i t y . A re a s t o be m o n it o re d in c lu d e : The F our C o rn e rs a r e a ; N o rth e rn G re a t P l a i n s ; an d o i l s h a le a r e a s in C o lo r a d o , 

Wyomina an d U ta h . In th e a r e a o f re m o te m o n ito r in g , p r o j e c t s a r e d e s ig n e d t o d e m o n s tra te th e e f f e c t i v e n e s s o f o v e rh e a d re m ote s e n s in g an d p h o t o g r a p h ic t e c h n iq u e s t o m o n ito r in g e n e r g y - r e l a t e d a c t i v i t i e s an d e f f e c t s . E m p h asis i s on c o a l m in in g an d o i l s h a le d e v e lo p m e n t t o o b t a in d a ta on la n d - u s e s u r f a c e d i s r u p t i o n , s u r f a c e w a t e r , v e g e t a t i o n an d v i s i b i l i t y .

G ro u n d w ate r m o n it o r in g p r o j e c t s a r e d e s ig n e d t o d e v e lo p re q u ir e m e n ts f o r g ro u n d w a te r q u a l i t y m o n it o r in g in a r e a s o f c o a l s t r i p - m i n i n g and o i l s h a le e x t r a c t i o n an d p r o c e s s in g . The o b j e c t i v e i s t o i d e n t i f y th e p o l l u t a n t ’ s p r e s e n c e , i d e n t i f y f a c t o r s c o n t r i b u t i n g t o c o n ta m in a tio n an d 

d e m o n s tra te a m o n it o r in g s t r a t e g y .

S o l i d w a s t e s m o n it o r in g p r o j e c t s a r e d e s ig n e d t o a n a ly z e a s h , s lu d g e , s l a g an d e f f l u e n t w a te r fr om e n e r g y - r e l a t e d a c t i v i t i e s f o r t o x i c t r a c e e le m e n t s . Em phasi s i s on l o w - l e v e l c o n c e n t r a t i o n s o f t o x i c w a s te s an d t h e i r p a th s i n t o th e e n v ir o n m e n t. S o u r c e s in c l u d e o i l an d o i l s h a l e p r o c e s s in g and c o a l m in in g an d c o n v e r s io n o p e r a t i o n s . T a sk s a r e a l s o u n d e rta k e n t o d e v e lo p s a m p li n g p r o c e d u r e s , m o n it o r in g in s t r u m e n t a t io n an d c o n tin u o u s s e n s o r s f o r e n e r g y - r e l a t e d w a te r p o l l u t a n t s i n c lu d i n g t o x i c e le m e n t s , 

p h e n o ls , c y a n i d e s , n i t r a t e s an d p h o s p h a te s .

N e a r-t e rm o b j e c t i v e s i n c l u d e :

• D evelo p m en t o f a f i v e - y e a r a i r , w a te r an d la n d q u a l i t y b a s e l i n e in th e W este rn U .S . W it h in tw o y e a r s , o r e lim in a r y e n v ir o n m e n ta l d a ta w i l l be a v a i l a b l e on s p e c i f i c s i t e s i n th e W est . T h is w i l l

120
164

a ll o w f e d e r a l an d S t a t e o f f i c i a l s t o c o n s id e r 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l c o n s e q u e n c e s i n t o p o li c y d e c i s i o n s 

c o n c e rn in g e n e rg y d e v e lo p m e n ts ( e . g . , p ro p o s e d 

X a p a ro w it z P la te a u pow er p l a n t s in U ta h , o i l s h a l e 

a r e a s o f C o lo ra d o and Wyoming an d s t r i p m in in g an d 

po w er p l a n t d e v e lo p m e n t i n M onta na, N o rt h D a k o ta , 

an d A riz o n a , .

• D ev elo p m e n t o f a m b ie n t a i r an d re m o te m easu re m en t 

m e th o d s and in s tr u m e n ts f o r a e r o s o l s a s s o c i a t e d w it h 

v a r i o u s f o s s i l f u e l c o m b u sti o n p r o c e s s e s ( e . g . , 

s u l f u r o x id e s , n it r o g e n o x id e s an d s u l f u r i c a c id 

m is t) .

• D e v e lo p o f w a te r m e a su re m e n t m eth o d s f o r f o s s i l 

f u e l - r e l a t e d o r g a n ic w a s te s t h a t a re p o t e n t i a l l y 

c a r c i n o g e n ic ( e . g . , o i l s h a l e w a s t e ,.

• D ev elo p m e n t o f m e th o d s to m o n it o r p o l l u t a n t s in 

s h a llo w an d d e e p - l y in g a q u i f e r s in th e v i c i n i t y o f 

c o a l m in in g , o i l s h a l e an d g e o th e rm a l d e v e lo p m e n ts .

• D ev elo p m en t o f an a i r b o r n e l a s e r sy s te m f o r r a p i d

b ro a d s c a l e a c c u r a t e 

s lo p e c o n to u r s . T h is 

d e te r m in in g p o t e n t i a l

d e te r m in a tio n o f s t r i p - m i n e 

p a ra m e te r i s c r i t i c a l f o r 

f o r la n d r e c la m a tio n an d h a s

s i g n i f i c a n c e f o r p o t e n t i a l s t r i p - m i n i n g r e g u l a t i o n .

L o n g e r-te rm O b je c tiv e s i n c l u d e :

• D ev elo p m en t o f an i n t e g r a t e d a i r an d w a te r q u a l i t y 

d a t a b a s e k ey ed t o o n g o in g an d p la n n e d e n e rg y 

d e v e lo p m e n ts a t s p e c i f i c s i t e s . T h is i s t o be 

com D li m ente d by a s y n o p t i c , o v e rh e a d s u r v e y o f la n d 

u s e a t th o s e s i t e s .

E n v ir o n m e n ta l T ra n s p o r t P r o c e s s e s

T h is r e s e a r c h i s d e s ig n e d t o d e te r m in e th e t r a n s p o r t , 

t r a n s f o r m a t i o n s and e n v ir o n m e n ta l f a t e o f e n e r g y - r e l a t e d 

p o l l u t a n t s in f r e s h w a t e r , a tm o s p h e r ic t e r r e s t r i a l , m a rin e 

an d e s t u a r i n e e c o s y s te m s .

T he a tm o s p h e ric p o r t i o n i s d e s ig n e d t o d e te r m in e 

t r a n s p o r t an d f a t e o f p o l l u t a n t s g e n e r a te d fr om v a r io u s 

e n e rg y a c t i v i t i e s . T e c h n o lo g ie s t o be c o n s id e r e d in c lu d e 

o i l s h a l e , c o a l c o m b u s ti o n , c o a l e x t r a c t i o n an d c o a l 

g a s i f i c a t i o n and l i q u e f a c t i o n . Th e m a jo r e m p h a s is i s on 

d e te r m i n a ti o n o f c h e m ic a l a n d p h y s i c a l p r o c e s s e s a s s o c i a t e d

121
165

w ith : (1) c o n v e r s io n o f s u l f u r an d n it r o g e n o x id e s t o 

s u l f a t e s an d n i t r a t e s , (2) p h o to c h e m ic a l o x id a n t t r a n s p o r t 

a n d , (3) e f f e c t s on v i s i b i l i t y r e d u c t i o n , h a ze and 

r a d i a t i o n b a la n c e o f a ir b o r n e a e r o s o l s g e n e r a t e d by e n e r g y - 

r e l a t e d a c t i v i t i e s .

Th e f r e s h w a t e r p o r t io n f o c u s e s on s u r f a c e an d g ro u n d - 

w a t e r s . I t i s d e s ig n e d t o t r a c e t h e e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ath w ays 

an d u lt im a t e f a t e o f o r g a n ic an d in o r g a n ic p o l l u t a n t s , 

co m p le x e f f l u e n t s , d i s s o lv e d an d su sp e n d e d s o l i d s and 

th e rm a l d is c h a r g e s g e n e r a te d by c o a l an d o i l s h a le 

d e v e lo p m e n t an d c o a l g a s i f i c a t i o n an d l i q u e f a c t i o n . Th e 

m a rin e p o r t io n o f t h i s r e s e a r c h i s s i m i l a r l y s t r u c t u r e d , 

b u t c o n c e n t r a t e s on p o l l u t a n t s fr om su ch t e c h n o lo g i e s a s 

o f f s h o r e pow er g e n e r a t i o n , p e tr o le u m e x p l o r a t io n an d 

e x t r a c t i o n an d c o n s t r u c t i o n o f d e e p w a te r p o r t s .

N e a r-t e rm o b j e c t i v e s in c lu d e :

• I n i t i a t e s t u d y o f e n e r g y - r e l a t e d a i r p o l l u t a n t 

t r a n s p o r t an d t r a n s f o r m a t io n i n t h e M id -w e s te rn U .S . 

o v e r a r a d iu s o f s e v e r a l hundre d m i l e s . The r e s u l t s 

o f su ch s t u d i e s w i l l be c o r r e l a t e d w it h o n g o in g 

h e a lt h e f f e c t s s t u d i e s .

• Su m m ar ize c u r r e n t s c i e n t i f i c k n o w le d g e an d d e v e lo p 

e m p ir ic a l m eth ods t o p r e d i c t s t a t i o n a r y s o u r c e pl um e 

d is p e r s io n in s im p le an d co m p le x t e r r a i n w it h 

em p h asis on t r a n s f o r m a t i o n , t r a n s p o r t an d re m o v a l o f 

s u l f a t e s an d n i t r a t e s .

• D e v e lo p a s i t e - s t u d y c a p a b i l i t y t o m easu re p o l l u t a n t 

re m o va l fr o m th e a tm o sp h ere b y d r y d e p o s it io n an d 

w a s h -o u t an d r a i n - o u t in t h e v i c i n i t y o f v a r io u s 

s o u r c e s i n c l u d i n g t a l l po w er p l a n t s t a c k s and 

s m e lt e r s .

• D e te rm in e f r e s h , s u r f a c e an d g r o u n d w a te r t r a n s p o r t 

m ec han is m s an d p ath w a ys o f o r g a n i c an d in o r q a n ic 

p o l l u t a n t s , m e ta ls an d d i s s o lv e d s o l i d s a lo n g w it h 

su sp en d ed s o l i d s fr om in c r e a s e d c o a l p r o d u c tio n .

L o n g e r-te rm o b j e c t i v e s in c lu d e :

• D e te rm in e t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

p a r a m e te r s su ch as c o n d i t i o n s o f e x p o s u r e , d u r a t io n 

o f p o l l u t a n t s , w a te r v a p o r , t e m p e r a tu r e , w in d an d 

s u n l i g h t t o m a t e r i a l s l o s s e s .

79- 397 O- 77 - 13

122
166

• D ete rm in e a tm o s p h e r ic e f f e c t s , in c lu d in q v i s i b i l i t y 

r e d u c t io n an d h a z e an d r a d i a t i o n b a l a n c e , c a u s e d by 

a ir b o r n e a e r o s o l s p ro d u ced by e n e r g y - r e l a t e d 

a c t i v i t i e s and d e v e lo p m et hod s o f r e l a t i n g 

a tm o s p h e ric v i s i b i l i t y r e d u c t io n t o c h e m ic a l and 

p h y s i c a l p r o p e r t i e s o f f i n e p a r t i c u l a t e s .

• D ete rm in e mass b a la n c e o f p o l l u t a n t s in th e a i r 

e n v e lo p e o f f u e l c o n v e r s io n s y ste m s su ch as c o a l 

l i q u e f a c t i o n and g a s i f i c a t i o n .

• D ete rm in e b i o l o g i c a l , p h y s i c a l an d c h e m ic a l p ath w ays 

an d t r a n s f e r m ach anis m s o f e n e r q y - d e r iv e d p o l l u t a n t s 

in s o i l s , econ o m ic c r o p s and a n im a ls .

H e a lt h E f f e c t s

The h e a lt h e f f e c t s r e s e a r c h i s d e s ig n e d t o a s c e r t a i n 

an d e v a l u a t e h e a lt h i m p l i c a t i o n s o f e n e r g y -p r o d u c in g 

a c t i v i t i e s . T h is in c lu d e s a s p e c t s o f e n e rg y c o n s e r v a t io n 

an d p r o c e s s e s i n v o l v i n g f i n a l e x t r a c t i o n , c o n v e r s io n , and 

c o m b u s tio n . T n e re i s a n eed t o ex pa nd p r e s e n t k n o w le d g e o f 

e f f e c t s o f p o ll u t a n t s p ro d u c e d by f o s s i l and w a s t e - f u e l 

c o m b u s ti o n an d m o b il e s o u r c e e m is s io n s . S t u d i e s in v o lv i n g 

s e l e c t e d f u e l s , f u e l a d d i t i v e s , a d va n ced e n g in e d e s ig n and 

e m is s io n c o n t r o l s y ste m s a r e n e c e s s a r y t o t h i s e f f o r t . ORD 

w i l l i n c lu d e e p i d e m i o l o g i c a l, c l i n i c a l an d t o x i c o l o g i c a l 

s t u d i e s e m p h a siz in g lo n g - t e r m , l o w - l e v e l p o ll u t a n t 

e x p o s u r e s t o d e te rm in e p o t e n t i a l t e r a t o g e n i c , m u ta g e n ic and 

c a r c i n o g e n i c e f f e c t s . T h is r e s e a r c h o u tp u t i s e s s e n t i a l to 

th e r e g u l a t o r y r o l e o f EP A. I t p r o v id e s a b a s i s f o r 

d e c id in g on a p p r o p r ia t e c o n t r o l l e v e l s .

N e a r -te rm o b j e c t i v e s i n c l u d e :

• I n i t i a t e s t u d i e s t o d e te rm in e th e h e a lt h e f f e c t s o f

w a te r b o rn e p o l l u t a n t s 

e n e rg y p r o c e s s e s an d 

p o l l u t a n t s su ch a s

from p r e s e n t an d e m erg in g 

p r o d u c tio n . T h is in c lu d e s 

h e a v y m e ta ls an d o r g a n ic 

c h e m ic a ls an d e m p h a s iz e s t o x i c o l o g i c a l , b i o l o g i c a l , 

g e n e t i c an d o t h e r b io m e d ic a l a s p e c t s o f s u b c h r o n ic 

an d c h r o n ic e x p o s u r e s .

• H e a lt h e f f e c t s in fo r m a t io n w i l l b e d e v e lo p e d on 

m u lt i- r o u t e e x p o s u r e from m e t a l l i c p o l l u t a n t s 

a s s o c i a t e d w it h f o s s i l f u e l e x t r a c t i o n , co m b u sti o n 

an d c o n s e r v a t io n , c o n s id e r in g f u e l d e ve lo p m e n t 

a l t e r n a t i v e s .

123
167

• He avy m e ta ls ( n i c k e l , m e rc u ry , ca dm iu m , le a d , m an g an e se , v a n a d iu m , a r s e n i c and o t h e r s ) w i l l be s t u d ie d t o a s c e r t a i n t h e e f f e c t on h e a l t h fo llo w in g e x p o s u re . T h e se m e ta ls w i l l be s t u d ie d b o th s i n g l y 

and i n t e r a c t i v e l y .

L o n g e r-te rm O b je c ti v e s in c lu d e :

• c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n o f ■ huma n e x p o s u re t o p o l l u t a n t s e m itte d in a m b ie n t a i r a s a r e s u l t o f c o a l 

c o n v e rs io n a n d u t i l i z a t i o n .

• E m phas is on th e im p a c t t h a t f u t u r e e n e rg y p o li c y w i l l h a v e on a m b ie n t l e v e l s o f e x i s t i n g c r i t e r i a p o l l u t a n t s , a e r o s o l s an d f i n e p a r t i c u l a t e s . Of s p e c i a l i n t e r e s t a r e c e r t a i n a e r o s o l c o m p o n en ts su ch a s s t r o n g a c i d s , s u l f a t e s an d n i t r a t e s t h a t may c a u se a d v e r s e h e a l t h e f f e c t s . su c h an e m p h a sis w i l l a s s u r e a v a i l a b i l i t y o f h e a l t h e f f e c t s in f o r m a tio n n e c e s s a r y f o r EPA t o a s s e s s h e a l t h an d e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p l i c a t i o n s o f f u t u r e e n e rg y p o l i c y d e c i s i o n s in a 

tim e ly f a s h io n .

E c o lo g i c a l E f f e c t s

E c o lo g ic a l e f f e c t s r e s e a r c h s t u d i e s a r e o r i e n t e d t o s p e c i f i c p o l l u t a n t s a n d b r o a d e r e n e rg y te c h n o lo g y . T h ese s t u d i e s a r e d e s ig n e d • t o d e te rm in e th e t o t a l e c o sy ste m e f f e c t s o f e n e rg y d e v e lo p m e n t a c t i v i t i e s . The r e s e a r c h o b j e c t i v e s a r e d e s ig n e d t o d e te rm in e e f f e c t s o f o r g a n ic p o l l u t a n t s , in o r g a n ic p o l l u t a n t s , th e r m a l d is c h a r g e s , co m p le x e f f l u e n t s , d i s s o l v e d s o l i d s an d su s p e n d e d s o l i d s on f r e s h w a t e r , m a rin e w a te r s and t e r r e s t r i a l e c o s y s te m s . N e a r-te rm e n e rg y te c h n o l o g i e s r e l a t e d to o i l s h a l e p r o d u c t io n , c o a l e x t r a c t i o n , g a s i f i c a t i o n an d l i q u e f a c t i o n 

w i l l r e c e i v e i n i t i a l e m p h a s is .

A cu te an d c h r o n ic t o x i c o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s on f r e s h w a t e r o rg a n is m s w i l l be d e te r m in e d . Th e m a rin e e c o s y s te m s t u d i e s w i l l se e k t o e s t a b l i s h b a c k g ro u n d l e v e l s o f r e l e v a n t c o n ta m in a n ts in m a rin e o rg a n is m s an d h a b i t a t s . F u r th e r m a rin e s t u d i e s w i l l i n c l u d e th e e f f e c t s o f p e tr o le u m e x t r a c t i o n an d c o n v e r s io n o p e r a t i o n s , c o n s t r u c t i o n o f d e e p ­ w a te r p o r t s and e m is s io n s fr om o f f s h o r e n u c le a r f a c i l i t i e s , 

on t h e m a rin e e c o s y s te m .

The t e r r e s t r i a l e f f e c t s s t u d i e s w i l l d e te r m in e th e a c u te and c h r o n ic d o s e - r e s p o n s e r e l a t i o n s h i p s fr om s t r e s s o f p o l l u t a n t s fr om c o a l , and o i l s h a l e e x t r a c t i o n , c o n v e r s io n an d u t i l i z a t i o n p r o c e s s e s . O th e r p r o j e c t s w i l l

124
168

d e te r m in e m e ta b o lic an d b io c h e m ic a l u p ta k e m ec han is m s o f 

SO x, NOx, p a r t i c u l a t e s an d t r a c e m e ta ls by t e s t o r g a n is m s , 

b o th f r e s h w a te r and m a rin e . E f f e c t s o f c h r o n ic an d l e t h a l 

l e v e l s w i l l a l s o b e a s c e r t a i n e d .

N e a r -te rm o b j e c t i v e s i n c l u d e :

• I n i t i a t e s t u d ie s t o d e te r m in e th e a c u t e an d c h r o n ic 

t o x i c i t y o f h e a v y m e t a ls , co m ple x e f f l u e n t s , 

d i s s o lv e d s o l i d s , s u sp e n d e d s o l i d s an d i n o r g a n i c and 

o r g a n i c s t r e s s , on f r e s h w a t e r o rg a n is m s .

• B a s e l i n e e v a lu a t io n o f a q u a t i c e c o s y s te m s a s s o c i a t e d 

w ith W est ern c o a l d e v e lo p m e n t an d o i l s h a le 

d e v e lo p m e n t.

• An i n t e g r a t e d , t o t a l m ed ia s tu d y o f o v e r a l l 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c ts o f s t r ip - m in in g an d po wer 

p la n t develo p m en t i n C o l s t r i p ’, M on ta na .

• I n i t i a t e s t u d ie s t o d e te r m in e th e a c u t e an d c h r o n ic 

t o x i c i t y o f p e tro le u m p ro d u c ts an d b i o c i d e s to 

m a ri n e and e s t u a r i n e o r g a n is m s .

L o n g e r-te rm s t u d ie s i n c l u d e :

• E v a lu a t io n o f f i r s t p h a se r e s e a r c h r e s u l t s on 

a c t i v i t i e s in p e tr o le u m h y d r o c a r b o n , t r a c e m e t a ls , 

th e rm a l e f f e c t s an d- po wer p la n t e f f l u e n t s , w it h 

r e g a r d t o p h y s i c a l , c h e m ic a l an d b i o l o g i c a l d a ta f o r 

m od el dev el O D m en t.

E n e rg y E x t r a c t io n an d P r o c e s s in g T e c h n o lo g y

S u bp ro gra m De s c r i p t i o n

O v e r a l l o b j e c t i v e s o f t h i s su bp ro gra m a r e t o p e r m it a 

r a p id i n c r e a s e in e x t r a c t i o n and p r o c e s s in g o f d o m e s tic 

e n e r g y r e s o u r c e s an d t o e n a b le t h e s e e n e rg y s o u r c e s t o be 

u se d e f f e c t i v e l y in an e n v ir o n m e n t a lly c o m p a tib le m an ner . 

Th e r e s e a r c h 4s

 d iv id e d i n t o tw o a r e a s : e n e rg y r e s o u r c e 

e x t r a c t i o n and f u e l p r o c e s s i n g .

125
R e s o u r c e E x t r a c t io n

R e s o u rc e E x t r a c t io n R&D w i l l a s s e s s p o t e n t i a l 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro ble m s an d c o n t r o l m et hod s f o r u n d erg ro u n d 

an d s u r f a c e c o a l m in in g , o i l s h a le e x t r a c t i o n and 

e x p l o r a t i o n f o r an d r e c o v e r y o f d o m e s tic in la n d and 

o f f s h o r e o i l an d g a s . A l l t h e s e e x t r a c t i o n p r o c e s s e s have 

th e p o t e n t i a l t o s e v e r e l y da ma ge w a te r an d la n d q u a l i t y . 

For t h a t r e a s o n , th e c h i e f g o a l o f t h i s r e s e a r c h i s t o 

p r o v id e en ou gh d a ta an d a n a l y s i s t o e n s u r e t h a t co m m e rcia l 

e x t r a c t i o n o p e r a t io n s c a n b e co n d u cte d w it h a d e q u a te la n d 

r e c la m a t io n an d m in im al da m ag e t o w a te r q u a l i t y an d s u p p ly .

W id e-s c ale s t r ip m in in g o f W es te rn co a l may r e s u lt In s ig n ific a n t

en vir o n m enta l Im pacts .

CREDIT: EPA/DOCUMERICA - B i l l G i l l e t t e
170

O ff s h o r e o i l an d g a s e f f o r t s w i l l fo c u s on p r o j e c t i n g 

p o l l u t a n t d is c h a r g e s and a s s e s s i n g c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g i e s t o 

e n s u r e p r o t e c t i o n and r e s t o r a t i o n o f o ce a n s h o r e l i n e s . 

P ro b le m s o f W este rn s u r f a c e c o a l an d o i l s h a le m in in g w i l l 

r e c e i v e p a r t i c u l a r a t t e n t i o n b e c a u s e o f t h e i r p ro fo u n d 

im p a c t on a r i d la n d s an d th e en orm ou s p o t e n t i a l o f e n e r g y 

r e s e r v e s in th e W es t. The r e s e a r c h w i l l ex am in e p ro b le m s 

o f r e v e g e t a t i n g a r i d mi ned la n d i n th e W es t. I t w i l l a l s o 

exam in e t h e im o a ct on g ro u n d w a te r fr om d i s r u p t i o n o f 

n a t u r a l d r a in a g e c o n to u r s an d a q u i f e r s in c o a l se a m s. And 

e f f o r t s w i l l a l s o fo c u s on u n d e rg ro u n d c o a l m in in g p ro b le m s 

su ch a s a c i d mine d r a in a g e an d m et hods t o c l o s e aban doned 

m in e s.

F u e l P r o c e s s in g

P h y s i c a l an d C h em ic a l C o a l C le a n in g

(a)

P h y s i c a l an d c h e m ic a l c o a l c le a n i n g in v o l v e s m eth ods t o 

p h y s i c a l l y o r c h e m ic a lly re m ove s u l f u r fr om c o a l h a v in g a 

m o d e ra te s u l f u r c o n te n t (1 -2 p e r c e n t ) .

c o a l to o e b u rn e d in c o n fo r m it y w it h c le a n 

Th e o b j e c t i v e s o f t h i s r e s e a r c h a r e :

c o m m e r c ia lly a v a i l a b l e c o a l c l e a n i n g p r o c e s s e s f o r o r g a n ic 

an d i n o r g a n i c s u l f u r an d a sh i n medium s u l f u r c o a l w h i l e , 

(b) t r e a t i n g c o a l c le a n in g w a s t e s t o r e c la im o r d is p o s e o f 

th em in an e n v ir o n m e n t a lly a c c e p t a b l e m an ner .

T h is a l lo w s th e 

a i r s t a n d a r d s , 

t o d e v e lo p

C o a l - c l e a n in g r e s e a r c h w i l l a s s e s s s e v e r a l t e c h n o l o g i e s 

i n c l u d i n g s e v e r a l p r o p r i e t a r y c h e m ic a l c o a l- p r o c e s s e s 

c l e a n i n g p i l o t p l a n t s , a t w o - s t a g e f r o t h - f l o t a t i o n p h y s i c a l 

c l e a n i n g p r o c e s s and a d v a n ced l o w - p o l l u t i n g , d e w a t e r in g and 

d r y in g t e c h n o l o g i e s . C o a l - c l e a n i n g p r o j e c t s now u n d er way 

a s p a r t o f E P A 's E n erg y /E n v ir o n m e n t Pro gr am a r e d e s ig n e d 

t o : (a) a s s e s s th e e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a ct o f t h e s e 

t e c h n o l o g i e s , an d (b) pro m ote c o a l c le a n in g a s a p p r o p r i a t e , 

b e c a u s e t h e s e p r o c e s s e s a r e p o t e n t i a l l y more e f f i c i e n t f o r 

p o l l u t a n t re m o va l th a n s t a n d a r d c o a l- w a s h in g p r o c e s s e s . 

Th e D ep art m en t o f th e I n t e r i o r an d ERDA a r e p e r fo r m in g 

r e l a t e d r e s e a r c h in t h i s a r e a .

F l u i d i z e d Bed C om bu st io n

O p ti m a l f l u i d i z e d bed co m b u s ti o n (FBC) p r o c e s s e s c o u ld 

u s e c o a l , c o a l- d e r i v e d p r o d u c ts an d r e s i d u a l o i l mo re 

e f f i c i e n t l y th a n o t h e r t e c h n o l o g i e s and w it h l i t t l e 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l ha rm . As p a r t o f th e N a tio n a l F l u i d i z e d Bed 

C o m b u st io n P ro gra m , c o o r d in a te d by ERDA, EPA w i l l c o n d u c t 

RSD to d e te rm in e p o t e n t i a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s fr om 

a l t e r n a t i v e d e s ig n s and u s e o f f l u i d i z e d be d c o m b u s to rs .

127
171

E PA 's p a r t i c i p a t i o n i n t h i s i n t e r a g e n c y p ro gra m w i l l 

c o n s i s t o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l a s s e s s m e n t o f f u t u r e FBC sy ste m s 

b y t e s t i n g p i l o t - s c a l e f a c i l i t i e s and by c o n tin u in g 

r e s e a r c h u s in g E P A 's FBC " m i n i - p i l o t " p l a n t .

F l u i d i z e d bed co m b u s tio n r e s e a r c h p la n s f o r t h e n e x t 

fe w y e a r s in c lu d e :

• S tu d y o f th e f e a s i b i l i t y o f a d o p tin g t h e CPU -400 a s 

E P A 's e n v ir o n m e n ta l t e s t f a c i l i t y t o e v a lu a t e 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l an d p e rfo rm a n ce p ro b le m s an d c o n t r o l 

m eth ods.

• I n i t i a t i n g w or k on u s e o f lo w - s u lf u r W e ste rn c o a l 

f o r i n d u s t r i a l b o i l e r s .

• B e g in n in g s o r b e n t r e g e n e r a t io n s t u d i e s t o m in im iz e 

s o l i d w a s te u s in g t h e FBC f a c i l i t y a t ERDA 'S A rg onne 

N a tio n a l L a b o r a t o r y an d a t th e E P A 's m i n i - p i l o t 

p l a n t .

• C o n d u c ti n g l a b o r a t o r y an d b e n c h - s c a le s t u d i e s o f 

o p e r a t in g c o n d i t i o n s on an e x i s t i n g 50MW u t i l i t y 

b o i l e r o f a C h e m ic a lly A c t iv e F l u i d i z e d Bed (CAFB) 

p r o c e s s f o r c o n v e r t i n g e x t r e m e ly " d i r t y " r e s i d u a l 

o i l s i n t o c le a n g a s e o u s f u e l t o m in im iz e p o ll u t a n t 

fo r m a tio n .

P r o j e c t s under w ay in c lu d e : (a) a s s e s s i n g th e

e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a ct o f f l u i d i z e d be d co m b u sti o n p r o c e s s e s 

f o r b u rn in g c o a l ; (b) d e v e lo p in g e n v ir o n m e n ta l c o n t r o l s f o r 

c o a l- b u r n in g f l u i d i z e d bed co m b u sti o n p r o c e s s e s ; an d (c) 

d e v e lo p in g c h e m ic a lly a c t i v e o i l - b u r n i n g f l u i d i z e d be d 

t e c h n o lo g y .

S y n t h e t i c F u e ls

E P A 's r e s e a r c h on s y n t h e t i c f u e l s (h ig h an d lo w BTU 

g a s i f i e d c o a l an d l i g u e f i e d c o a l) h as tw o a s p e c t s :

• To d e te rm in e p o t e n t i a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c ts o f 

s y n t h e t i c f u e l p r o c e s s in g o p e r a t i o n s .

• To d e v e lo p c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y t o m in im iz e p o t e n t i a l 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l dam ag e.

E n v ir o n m e n ta l c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y RSD m us t be co n d u cte d 

c o n c u r r e n t ly w ith e n v ir o n m e n ta l a s s e s s m e n ts b e c a u s e some 

s y n t h e t i c f u e l p r o c e s s e s - - l o w BTU g a s i f i c a t i o n in

128
p a r t i c u l a r - - a r e a lm o s t re a d y f o r co m m e rc ia l d e m o n s tr a tio n . 

Deve lo pm en t o f an a p p r o p r ia t e c o n t r o l te c h n o lo g y m us t be 

a c c e l e r a t e d t o p e r m it e a r l y c o m m e r c ia liz a t io n an d t o a v o id 

th e d is e c o n o m ie s o f f o r c e d r e t r o f i t t i n g o f p o l l u t i o n 

c o n t r o l s .

Fo r t h a t r e a s o n , e n v ir o n m e n ta l a s s e s s m e n ts w i l l fo c u s 

on c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n o f f e e d s t o c k m a t e r i a l s a t th*= sam e ti m e 

t h a t s t u d i e s a r e co n d u c te d on th e im p a ct o f s h a l e - o i l 

r e c o v e r y , c o a l l i q u e f a c t i o n an d h ig h an d lo w BTU c o a l 

g a s i f i c a t i o n . T e c h n o lo g y t o c o n t r o l a i r , w a te r an d s o l i d 

w a s te p o l l u t i o n fr om c o n v e r s io n p r o c e s s e s w i l l p ro ce e d 

c o n c u r r e n t ly w ith f u e l p r o c e s s in g t e c h n o lo g y R5D b e in g 

c o n d u c te d by o t h e r a g e n c i e s . To f a c i l i t a t e i t s t e s t i n q 

p r o c e d u r e s , EPA p la n s t o b e g in wor k on a s m a ll an d f l e x i b l e 

c o a l g a s i f i e r t o d e v e lo p an d e v a l u a t e c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y . 

F i n a l l y , o n g o in g w ork w i l l be c o n ti n u e d on h ig h te m p e ra tu re 

c le a n - u p o f lo w BTU g a s i f i e d e f f l u e n t s .

N u c le a r W as te

Th e o b j e c t i v e o f n u c le a r w a s te c o n t r o l r e s e a r c h i s t o 

e v a l u a t e th e m a g n it u d e o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l h a z a r d s from 

p r o c e s s in g an d d i s p o s a l o f n u c le a r w a s te s a t v a r io u s s t a g e s 

in t h e n u c le a r f u e l c y c l e . Im p a cts o f m in in g an d m i l l i n g 

w a s t e s w i l l be th e m ai n f o c a l p o in t w ith EPA d e v o t in g m os t 

o f i t s e f f o r t s in t h i s a r e a t o ex p a n d in g e n v ir o n m e n ta l and 

t e c h n o l o g i c a l a s s e s s m e n t.

FY 19 76 P la n

• P u b lis h r e p o r t on t h e a s s e s s m e n t o f h ig h te m p e ra tu re 

an d p r e s s u r e p a r t i c u l a t e c o n t r o l m eth o d s. Su ch 

t e c h n ig u e s a r e n e c e s s a r y f o r p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l from 

s e c o n d - g e n e r a t io n e n e r g y sy ste m s su ch a s FBC and 

c o a l g a s i f i c a t i o n p r o c e s s e s .

• An u p d a te d r e p o r t on s u l f u r r e d u c t io n p o t e n t i a l o f 

U .S . c o a ls w i l l be p u b lis h e d . R e c e n t s t u d i e s 

i n d i c a t e t h a t p h y s i c a l c o a l c l e a n i n g and 

c o m b in a tio n s o f p h y s i c a l c o a l c le a n i n g an d f l u e ga s 

d e s u l f u r i z a t i o n , may be th e mo st c o s t - e f f e c t i v e 

s t r a t e g i e s t o m eet e m is s io n r e g u l a t i o n s . . D at a 

c o n ta in e d in th e u p d a te d r e p o r t w i l l a l lo w s e l e c t i o n 

o f th e mos t e c o n o m ic a l m et ho ds t o m ee t a i r p o l l u t i o n 

r e g u l a t i o n s .

• I n i t i a t e c o n s t r u c t i o n o f th e M ey er s P r o c e s s t e s t 

f a c i l i t y f o r c o a l c l e a n i n g ( d e s u l f u r i z a t i o n ) . T h is 

p r o c e s s , i f s u c c e s s f u l l y s c a le d - u p , w ou ld r e l e a s e up
to 40% o f A p p a la c h ia n B a s in c o a l f o r d i r e c t 

co m b u s ti o n in new s t a t i o n a r y s o u r c e s w ith o u t th e 

n ee d f o r ’fl u e -g as d e s u l f u r i z a t i o n . The p r o c e s s 

w ou ld be e s p e c i a l l y a p p r o p r ia t e f o r s m a ll u t i l i t y 

an d i n d u s t r i a l an d c o m m e rc ia l b o i l e r s . D a ta fr om 

t e s t f a c i l i t y o p e r a t i o n w ou ld p r o v id e t h e b a s i s f o r 

s c a le - u p t o d e m o n s tr a tio n s i t e .

The ec olog ical effects of the rmal discharg es from nu clear power plan ts

are being Inve st ig at ed In the Energy/Environment Program.

CREDIT: EPA/DOCUMERICA - Gene Da niels
174

• A d e s ig n m an ua l f o r p h y s i c a l c o a l c le a n in g 

t e c n n o lo g y w i l l be c o m p le te d . The m an ua l w i l l make 

a v a i l a b l e t o p la n t o p e r a t o r s an d r e g u l a t o r y a g e n c ie s 

th e b e s t o f e x i s t i n g t e c h n o lo g y in p h y s i c a l c o a l 

c le a n in g o p e r a t i o n s .

• C o m p le ti o n o f a s im p le f i e l d m et ho d t o a n a ly z e 

o v e rb u rd e n p o l l u t i o n p o t e n t i a l p r i o r t o m in in g .

• C o m p le ti o n o f th e e v a l u a t i o n o f lo n g -te r m

e f f e c t i v e n e s s o f r e c la m a tio n p r a c t i c e s .

Five-Year Plan

O u tp u ts o f t h e e x t r a c t i o n R6D w i l l d e f i n e e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

p ro b le m s a s s o c i a t e d w it h s u r f a c e an d u n d erg ro u n d c o a l 

m in in g in th e E a s t e r n an d W est ern U n it e d S t a t e s . P ro ble m s 

a s s o c i a t e d w ith a c t i v e an d ab an do ned m in es su ch a s m in e 

d r a in a g e , g r o u n d w a te r p o l l u t i o n an d r e c la m a t io n w i l l be 

c o n s id e r e d . A l s o , m eth o d s, t e c h n ig u e s an d p r o c e s s e s f o r 

c o n t r o l w i l l be d e v e lo p e d . In fo r m a tio n s i m i l a r to t h a t 

d e v e lo p e d f o r c o a l w i l l a l s o be d e v e lo p e d f o r o i l s h a l e an d 

t a r - s a n d s .

Th e p r e v e n t io n an d c o n t r o l o f o i l s p i l l s w i l l r e c e i v e 

in c r e a s e d e m p h a s is in l a t e r y e a r s . So w i l l th e 

d e te r m in a tio n o f e n v ir o n m en ta l- im p a c ts a s s o c i a t e d w it h 

o f f s h o r e q as an d o i l e x p l o r a t io n an d d e v e lo p m e n t, l i g u e f i e d 

n a t u r a l g a s (LNG) an d l i q u i d p e tr o le u m g a s (L PG ).

To pro m ote g r e a t e r u s e o f c o a l , many p r o c e s s e s a r e 

under d e v e lo p m e n t t o o b t a in a c l e a n f u e l fr om c o a l . 

A n t i c i p a t i n g t h e s e d e v e lo p m e n ts , m a jo r em ph as es in th e 

e a r l y p a r t o f th e EPA R6D pro gr am w i l l be on o b t a i n i n g 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l d a ta t o d e f i n e p o t e n t i a l p ro b le m s a s s o c i a t e d 

w it h many s y n t h e t i c f u e l t e c h n o l o g i e s b e in g c o n s id e r e d f o r 

d evelo p m en t ( e . g . h ig h an d lo w BTU g a s i f i c a t i o n , c o a l 

l i q u e f a c t i o n ) . O th e r t e c h n o l o g i e s t h a t a r e b e in g d e v e lo p e d 

an d may a llo w c o a l an d o i l t o b e use d w it h minimum 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l d e g r a d a t io n , in c lu d e f l u i d i z e d be d co m b u sti o n 

(FBC) , a d v a n ced o 'i l p r o c e s s in g ; c h e m i c a lly a c t i v e f l u i d i z e d 

be d co m b u sti o n ' (CFB) an d p h y s i c a l an d c h e m ic a l c o a l 

c l e a n i n g .

As th e d a ta d e f i n i n g e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c ts an d c o n t r o l 

c a p a b i l i t y a r e o b t a in e d , e m p h a sis o f th e pro ble m s h o u ld 

cn an ge fro m e n v ir o n m e n ta l a s s e s s m e n t t o c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y 

d e v e lo p m e n t. F o r t h a t r e a s o n , in c r e a s e d fu n d in g i s a llo w e d 

f o r c o n t r o l - t e c h n o l o g y d evelo p m en t f o r s y n t h e t i c f u e l s .

13 1
175

f l u i d i z e d bed c o m b u s tio n , an d p h y s i c a l an d c h e m ic a l c o a l 

c l e a n i n g .

S in c e EPA d o es n o t h a ve s o l e r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r 

d e v e lo p in g th e t e c h n o l o g i e s t h a t ca n a l lo w g r e a t e r u se o f 

c o a l , th e EPA c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y pro gr am w i l l c o n tin u e t o be c o o r d in a te d w it h o t h e r a g e n c ie s su ch a s ERDA an d DOI an d 

r e s o u r c e s w i l l be s e t a s i d e f o r i n t e r a g e n c y a g re e m e n ts .

A d d i t i o n a l m ile s t o n e s t o be a c h ie v e d i n th e FY 19 77 - 

FY 1980 p e r io d i n c l u d e :

• C o m p le ti o n o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l t e s t i n g o f o p e r a t in g 

E a s te r n an d M id -w e s te r n c o a l c l e a n i n g p la n t s t o 

s u p p o r t s e t t i n g o f s ta n d a r d s f o r new p l a n t s .

• I d e n t i f i c a t i o n ( la b s c a le ) o f n o v e l t e c h n o lo g i e s t o

re m ov e s u l f u r , n it r o g e n an d h a z a r d o u s t r a c e

m a t e r i a l s fr o m c o a l an d c o a l c l e a n i n g w a s t e s .

• T e s t in g and d e m o n s tr a tin g d e e p p h y s i c a l c o a l

c le a n in g o f u t i l i t y c o a l an d b u r n in g i t a ft e r w a r d s 

in a way t h a t m ee t S t a t e an d new s o u r c e p e rfo rm a n ce 

s t a n d a r d s .

• O p e r a tio n o f th e j o i n t EPA /U .S . B u re au o f M in es 

p h y s i c a l c o a l c l e a n i n g t e s t f a c i l i t y .

• C o m p le ti o n o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l t e s t i n g o f th e ERDA 30 

MW a tm o s p h e r ic FBC f a c i l i t y and p r e p a r a t io n o f a 

m an ua l o f p r a c t i c e i n s u p p o r t o f s e t t i n g NSP S.

• O p e r a tio n o f an Exx on m in ip la n t in s u p p o r t o f th e 

ERDA p r e s s u r i z e d FBC p ro gr am an d EPA e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

a s s e s s m e n t p ro gra m .

• C o m p le tio n o f th e d e v e lo p m e n t o f p o l l u t a n t s o r b e n t 

r e g e n e r a t i o n and a l t e r n a t e s o r b e n t s f o r FBC s y s te m s .

• C o m p le tio n o f th e d e v e lo p m e n t o f h ig h te m p e ra tu re 

an d h ig h p r e s s u r e g r a n u l a r - b e d - f i l t e r f i n e 

p a r t i c u l a t e c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y f o r s u p p o r t o f NSPS 

f o r p r e s s u r i z e d FBC an d g a s i f i c a t i o n p r o c e s s e s .

• D e m o n s tr a tio n o f e n e r g y an d e n v ir o n m e n ta l b e n e f i t s 

o f t h e CAFB p r o c e s s f o r r e s i d u a l o i l 

g a s i f i c a t i o n / c l e a n u p a t a u t i l i t y b o i l e r .

132
176

• C o m p le ti o n o f b e n c h - s c a le d e v e lo p m e n t o f o i l 

d e s u l f u r i z a t i o n , d e n i t r i f i c a t i o n an d d e m e t a l li z a t i o n 

t e c h n o l o g i e s .

• C o m p le ti o n o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l t e s t i n g an d d evelo p m en t 

o f m anu al s f o r c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y p r a c t i c e in 

s u p p o rt o f s t a n d a r d s f o r c o a l g a s i f i c a t i o n , c o a l 

l i g u e f a c t i o n , r e s i d u a l o i l c le a n u p an d o i l s h a le 

p r o c e s s i n g .

• C o m o le ti o n o f t h e EPA/ERDA p i l o t d e m o n s tr a tio n o f a 

h ig h - t e m p e r a tu r e s u l f u r re m o val s y ste m f o r c o a l 

g a s i f i c a t i o n .

• D eve lo pm en t o f m an u als f o r c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y 

p r a c t i c e t o s u p p o r t e f f l u e n t g u i d e l i n e s f o r a c id 

m in e d r a in a g e , s e d im e n t r u n o ff an d o t h e r d is c h a r g e s 

from E a s te r n c o a l m in in g an d h a n d lin g .

• C o m p le ti o n o f a s s e s s m e n t o f p o l l u t i o n p o t e n t i a l o f 

c o a l and o i l s h a l e m in in g in th e W e ste rn U .S . and 

c o a l m in in g i n A l a s k a .

• C o m p le ti o n o f a s s e s s m e n t o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s 

in ura niu m m in in g an d b e n e f i c i a t i o n , n u c le a r f u e l 

t r a n s p o r t a t i o n an d n u c le a r w a s te d i s p o s a l and 

r e p r o c e s s in g o p e r a t i o n s .

• C o m p le ti o n o f a d e m o n s tra tio n o f t e c h n o lo g y and 

d evelo p m en t o f m a n u als f o r c le a n - u p o f o i l s p i l l s on 

la n d an d w a t e r .

• P r e p a r a t io n o f m a n u a ls o f p r a c t i c e f o r p r o t e c t io n 

an d r e s t o r a t i o n o f o c e a n , e s t u a r i n e r i v e r an d c o o lc lim a t e s h o r e l i n e s b e c a u s e o f o i l c o n ta m in a t io n .

• C o m p le ti o n o f m a n u als o f c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y p r a c t i c e 

t o s u p p o r t e f f l u e n t g u i d e l i n e s f o r o f f s h o r e o i l and 

g a s p r o d u c tio n f a c i l i t i e s .

E n e r g y C o n s e r v a tio n , U t i l i z a t i o n an d T e c h n o lo g y A sse ssm e n ts

Sub pro gra m D e s c rip ti o n

T h is pro gr am i n c l u d e s t h e f o l lo w i n g :

• U t i l i t y an d I n d u s t r i a l Po wer T e c h n o lo g y

133
177

• En er gy C o n s e r v a tio n

• I n t e g r a t e d A ss e s sm e n t

Em ph as is i s fo c u s e d on i d e n t i f i c a t i o n , 

c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n , a s s e s s m e n t an d d e v e lo p m e n t o f c o n t r o l 

t e c h n o lo g y f o r p o l l u t a n t s a s s o c i a t e d w i t h u t i l i t y and 

i n d u s t r i a l co m b u s ti o n s o u r c e s . A t t e n t i o n w i l l be g iv e n t o 

g e n e r a t in g in fo r m a t io n t h a t ca n be u se d t o h e lp s e t 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l s t a n d a r d s an d g u i d e l i n e s an d d e v e lo p c o s t - 

e f f e c t i v e c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y t o a c h ie v e su ch s t a n d a r d s .

Th e seco n d a s p e c t , e n e r g y c o n s e r v a t io n , c a l l s f o r an 

a s s e s s m e n t o f p o t e n t i a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l e f f e c t s o f ad van ced 

pow er s y ste m s an d i n d u s t r i a l p r o c e s s c h a n g e s t o a c h ie v e 

e n e r q y c o n s e r v a t i o n . Th e t h i r d a s p e c t , in t e g r a t e d 

a s s e s s m e n t, w i l l e v a l u a t e co m p re h e n s iv e e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

p r o t e c t i o n s t a n d a r d s f o r e n e r g y p r o d u c tio n a c t i v i t i e s w h il e 

a t t e m p t in g t o b a la n c e e n v ir o n m e n ta l an d e co n o m ic c o s t s . 

D t i l i t y an d I n d u s t r i a l Po w er

F lu e Ga s D e s u l f u r i z a t i o n

C le a n in g o f f l u e g a s e s fr om c o a l - f i r e d u t i l i t y and 

i n d u s t r i a l b o i l e r s h a s h ig h e s t p r i o r i t y in f e d e r a l 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y R&D pro gr am f o r 

s e v e r a l r e a s o n s . F i r s t , f l u e g a s d e s u l f u r i z a t i o n (FGD) 

p r o c e s s e s in p a r t i c u l a r a r e im p o r ta n t i n te rm s o f n a t io n a l 

e n e r g y s e l f - s u f f i c i e n c y . Th e o n ly wa y t o s i g n i f i c a n t l y 

i n c r e a s e n e a r -te r m c o a l u se w it h o u t s e v e r e e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

d i s r u p t i o n i s t o h a ve a i r p o ll u t i o n c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y 

a v a i l a b l e t o m ee t C le a n A ir A ct r e q u ir e m e n t s . B e c a u se c o a l 

c o n v e r s io n ( g a s i f i c a t i o n an d l i q u e f a c t i o n ) p r o c e s s e s see m 

p ro m is in q b u t w i l l n o t be r e a d y f o r co m m e rcia l a p p l i c a t i o n 

f o r q u i t e som e t im e , s u c c e s s f u l f l u e g a s d e s u l f u r i z a t i o n 

R&D w i l l p r o v id e th e o n l y v i a b l e c o a l- c o m b u s t io n c o n t r o l 

t e c h n iq u e a v a i l a b l e in t h e 1 9 7 0 's . T h is w i l l h a v e g r e a t e s t 

s i g n i f i c a n c e in r e g i o n s t h a t now r e l y l e s s on o i l an d g a s 

an d more on c o a l , e s p e c i a l l y h ig h s u l f u r c o a l f o r 

g e n e r a t i n g e l e c t r i c a l p o w e r.

S e co n d , FGD s y s t e m s , many in co m m e rc ia l o p e r a t io n o r on 

o r d e r , a r e in f i n a l s t a g e s o f d e v e lo p m e n t. RSD e f f o r t s 

w i l l fo c u s on re m a in in g p ro b le m s su ch a s u p g r a d in g 

o p e r a t i n g p e rfo rm a n c e an d r e l i a b i l i t y , m in im iz in g c o s t s , 

w a s te p ro d u c t d i s p o s a l p ro b le m s an d t r e a t m e n t an d byp r o d u c t r e c o v e r y . T h is sh o u ld a l lo w FGD t e c h n o lo g y t o be 

more q e n e r a l ly u se d in so me r e g io n s . F u n d in g f o r t h i s wor k 

wa s ex p anded in FY 19 75 t o in c lu d e c a p i t a l f o r tw o ad van ced

134
178

s t a c k - g a s c l e a n i n g d e m o n s t r a t io n s . F un din g l e v e l s w i l l 

d e c r e a s e in FY 1976 an d s u b s e q u e n t y e a r s s i n c e no f u r t h e r 

f u l l - s c a l e u t i l i t y d e m o n s tr a tio n s a r e s c h e d u le d .

In a d d i t i o n to R5D on a d v a n c e d s c r u b b e r s y ste m s an d 

w a s te d i s p o s a l t e c h n iq u e s , f l u e g a s c le a n in g (FGC) e f f o r t s 

w i l l c o n t r i b u t e t o c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n o f f i n e p a r t i c u l a t e s , 

h a z a rd o u s p o l l u t a n t s su ch a s t r a c e m a t e r i a ls fr om c o a L 

co m b u sti o n an d m e t a l l i c a c i d s u l f a t e s .

NOx C o n t r o l T e ch n o lo g y

T h is R6D w i l l i d e n t i f y , a s s e s s an d pro m ot e d e v e lo p m e n t 

o f c o s t - e f f e c t i v e , c o m m e r c ia ll y v i a b l e m et ho ds f o r c o n t r o l 

o f o x id e s o f n it r o g e n (NOx) fr o m b o th e x i s t i n g an d new 

s t a t i o n a r y co m b u sti o n s o u r c e s . NOx e m is s io n s h a ve bee n 

l a r g e ip am ou nt an d c o u ld h a v e w id e s p r e a d , a d v e r s e h e a l t h 

an d e c o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s . EPA’ s Maximum S t a t i o n a r y S o u r c e 

T e c h n o lo g y (MSST) s t r a t e g y p l a c e s in c r e a s e d em p h asis on 

c o n t r o l l i n g e m is s io n s fr om s t a t i o n a r y s o u r c e s . B e c a u se o f 

th e l a c k o f s u c h c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y , t h i s R6D i s d e s ig n e d 

t o i n c r e a s e t h e d e g r e e an d e f f e c t i v e n e s s o f NOx c o n t r o l 

fr om s t a t i o n a r y s o u r c e s .

EP A’ s o v e r a l l pro gr am f o r c o n t r o l o f s t a t i o n a r y s o u r c e 

NOx e m is s io n s r e l i e s p r i m a r i l y on d e ve lo p m e n t an d 

d e m o n s tr a tio n o f Com bust io n M o d i f i c a t i o n s (CM) p r o c e s s e s 

f o r u t i l i t y , i n d u s t r i a l , c o m m e rcia l an d r e s i d e n t i a l 

b o i l e r s . T h e se p r o c e s s e s m in im iz e fo r m a tio n o f n i t r o g e n in 

t h e co m b u s ti o n z o n e . Su ch c o n t r o l m easu re s s h o u ld n o t 

re d u c e e f f i c i e n c y o f co m b u sti o n h e a t r e c o v e r y n or i n c r e a s e 

e m is s io n s o f o t h e r p o l l u t a n t s .

An a l t e r n a t i v e a p o ro a ch t h a t i s b e in g e x p lo r e d i s " f l u e 

g a s c l e a n i n g ” in v o lv in g f l u e g a s tr e a t m e n t .

P a r t i c u l a t e C o n tr o l

F i n e - p a r t i c u l a t e c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y t o m ee t p r e s e n t an d 

f u t u r e e m is s io n r e d u c t io n r e q u ir e m e n ts i s b e in g d e v e lo p e d 

by EPA . Th e em ph asi s o f th e f i n e p a r t i c u l a t e c o n t r o l R&D 

i s on c o n t r o l l i n g e m is s io n s fr om d i r e c t co m b u sti o n o f lo w - 

s u l f u r o r c le a n e d c o a l s . A lt h o u g h p a r t i c u l a t e c o n t r o l 

t e c h n o lo g y h as bee n use d on co m b u sti o n g a s e s from h ig h - 

s u l f u r c o n t e n t c o a l s , l o w - s u lf u r c o n te n t c o a l u s e p r e s e n t s 

a d i f f e r e n t p ro b le m .

In e l e c t r o s t a t i c p r e c i p i t a t o r s - - t h e m os t common c o n t r o l 

m et ho d u se d in u t i l i t y b o i l e r s - - l o w e r s u l f u r c o n te n t f l u e 

g a s ca n d e g ra d e e l e c t r i c a l p r o p e r t i e s o f th e p r e c i p i t a t o r

135
179

an d c o n s e q u e n t ly , i t s p e r fo r m a n c e . I n j e c t i o n o f s u l f u r 

t r i o x i d e t o im p ro ve e l e c t r i c a l p r o p e r t i e s a g g r a v a t e s th e 

s e c o n d a r y s u l f a t e e m is s io n p ro b le m .

T he f i n e p a r t i c u l a t e c o n t r o l R6D i n c l u d e s e f f o r t s t o : 

(1 ) im p ro ve p r e c i p i t a t o r p e r fo r m a n c e on lo w s u l f u r c o a ls 

an d (2) d e v e lo p o t h e r d e v i c e s f o r c o n v e n t io n a l an d a d v a n ced 

c o a l u s e .

P o t e n t i a l h e a l t h e f f e c t s o f m e t a l l i c a c id s u l f a t e s , 

t r a c e m a t e r i a l s an d o t h e r f i n e p a r t i c u l a t e s , may l i m i t c o a l 

u s e in th e f u t u r e u n le s s c o n t r o l p r o c e s s e s a r e u n d e rs to o d 

an d t e c h n o lo g y d e v e lo p e d t o m eet e m is s io n s s t a n d a r d s . 

C o o p e r a t iv e e f f o r t s w it h EPA, ERDA an d TV A, a re under w ay t o 

f u l l y c h a r a c t e r i z e p a r t i c u l a t e e m is s io n s fr om c o n v e n t io n a l 

an d a d v a n c e d c o a l co m b u sti o n s y s te m s .

T herm al C o n t r o l

Po w er p l a n t s d is c h a r g e l a r g e am ou nt s o f h e a t i n t o 

r e c e i v i n g w a t e r . Ev en i f e n e r q y dem and d e c r e a s e s so m ew ha t 

in t h e n e x t fe w y e a r s , c o n s t r u c t i o n o f new c o a l - f i r e d an d 

n u c le a r e l e c t r i c a l po we r p l a n t s w i l l m a g n if y th e p ro ble m o f 

how t o d is p o s e o f w a s te h e a t w ith l i t t l e e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

da m ag e.

'U nd er t h e F e d e r a l W at er P o l l u t i o n A c t o f 1 9 7 2 , EPA i s 

r e q u ir e d t o r e g u l a t e th e rm a l e f f l u e n t s . E P A 's r e s e a r c h f o r 

FY 19 75 an d FY 19 76 i s a r e s p o n s e t o i t s own s t a t u t o r y 

r e q u ir e m e n t s . O b je c t i v e s o f t h e th e rm a l c o n t r o l a r e a 

i n c l u d e :

• P r o v id in g d e s ig n an d p e r fo r m a n c e d a ta f o r im p ro ved 

c o o l i n g s y s te m s .

• R e d u cin g th e d ep en d en ce on u s e o f r i v e r s an d l a k e s 

a s h e a t s i n k s .

• A s s e s s i n g th e p o t e n t i a l f o r w a s te h e a t r e u s e in 

a g r i c u l t u r e g r e e n h o u s e s , a q u a c u ltu r e an d c y c l i c a l 

s t o r a g e .

FY 19 76 t a s k s t h a t w i l l be un der way i n c l u d e : (a)

a d v a n c e d w a s te h e a t c o n t r o l u s in g c o o l i n g to w e r s ; an d (b) 

a d v a n c e d w a s t e h e a t c o n t r o l th r o u g h w a s te h e a t an d w a te r 

u s e .

136
180

C o n s e r v a tio n

Im pr ov ed e f f i c i e n c y in f u e l u s e i s a p o t e n t i a l l y 

a t t r a c t i v e way t o h e lp a c h ie v e e n e r g y s e l f - s u f f i c i e n c y . 

B u t wo rk i s nee ded t o a s s e s s p o t e n t i a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

im p a c ts o f im pro ved o r a d v a n c e d e n e rg y s y s te m s . R e se a rch 

e f f o r t s w i l l c o n c e n t r a t e in f o u r a r e a s :

• I n d u s t r i a l P r o c e s s e s : E n e r g y - s a v in g i n d u s t r i a l

p r o c e s s c h a n g e s r e s u l t i n g fr om i n c r e a s e d e n e rg y 

c o s t s o r g o v e r n m e n ta l r e g u l a t i o n s o r i n c e n t i v e s may 

p ro d u ce u n a n t i c i p a t e d p o l l u t a n t e m is s io n s .

A cc om pan yi ng e n v ir o n m e n ta l a s s e s s m e n t w ork i s nee ded 

in t h i s a r e a . And e n v ir o n m e n ta l RSD on e n e r g y ­

s a v in g i n d u s t r i a l p r o c e s s e s w i l l exp an d in th e n ex t 

fe w y e a r s .

• A dva nce d Po wer C y c l e s : Work on a d v a n c ed po wer

c y c l e s su ch a s g a s t u r b in e s , m agn eto h yd ro d yn am ic s 

an d f u e l c e l l s m us t be acc om D anie d by 

i d e n t i f i c a t i o n , m ea su re m en t an d a n a l y s i s o f h e a lt h 

an d e c o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s o f p o l l u t a n t s e m it t e d .

• E n er gy fr om W a s t e s :: S e v e r a l m et hod s o f u s in g w a ste

m a t e r ia ls as e n e r g y s o u r c e s h a v e bee n i n v e s t i g a t e d . 

I t i s now t e c h n i c a l l y an d e c o n o m ic a lly f e a s i b l e t o 

u se m u n ic ip a l s o l i d w a s te (MSW) a s a f u e l s u b s t i t u t e 

in c o a l - f i r e d p o w er p l a n t s . As a r e s u l t , t h i s RGD 

h as new p r o j e c t s t h a t in c lu d e : (1 ) c o - f i r i n g MSW 

w it h c o a l in a s m a ll e r (s to k e r ) b o i l e r an d (2) c o ­

f i r i n g MSW w ith r e s i d u a l o i l . I f s u c c e s s f u l , th e s e 

tw o p r o j e c t s w i l l d e m o n s tra te t h a t e n e r g y r e c o v e r y 

from MSW i s f e a s i b l e th r o u g h o u t th e c o u n tr y f o r 

s m a ll e r c i t i e s . P o l l u t a n t c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n s t u d i e s 

a r e a l s o b e in g mad e to e n s u r e t h a t p o t e n t i a l

e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s a r e d e fin e d .

An a l t e r n a t i v e t o d i r e c t co m b u sti o n o f MSW i s 

c o n v e r s io n t o s y n t h e t i c g a s e s , l i q u i d s , an d s o l i d 

f u e l s . P y r o l y s i s o f MSW i s now b e in g d e m o n s tr a te d 

in B a lt im o r e (M onsa nto P r o c e s s ) an d San D ie go 

C o u n ty , C a l i f o r n i a ( G a r r e t t P r o c e s s ) .

• A dva nce d E n er gy S y s te m s : In k e e p in g w ith • i t s

g e n e r a l p h ilo s o p h y o f a n t i c i p a t o r y RSD f o r e n e rg y 

s y ste m s t h a t w i l l b e d e v e lo p e d o v e r th e lo n g - t e r m , 

EPA h as be gu n a s s e s s m e n t s t u d i e s t o p r o v id e b a s e lin e 

in fo r m a tio n a b o u t p o t e n t i a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c ts o f 

g e o th e rm a l an d s o l a r e n e r g y s y s te m s .

137
181

I n t e g r a t e d A s s e s s m e n t

E n v ir o n m e n ta l, e co n o m ic an d s o c i a l c o n se q u e n c e s o f e n e r g y a l t e r n a t i v e s t o g e t h e r m us t be u sed a s a b a s i s f o r EPA p o l i c i e s . P r o j e c t s a r e d e s ig n e d a c r o s s e n t i r e t e c h n o l o g i e s an d f u e l c y c l e s t o m u l t i - f a c e t e d e f f e c t s on n a t u r a l an d h u m a n -m o d if ie d e n v ir o n m e n ts o f e n e rg y d e v e lo p m e n t an d r e l a t e d a c t i v i t i e s . Th e a l t e r n a t i v e s f o r c o n t r o l l i n g e n v ir o n m e n ta l p o l l u t i o n a s s o c i a t e d w ith t h o s e a c t i v i t i e s a r e a l s o e x a m in e d . S t u d ie s w i l l fo c u s on e n v ir o n m e n t a l, e c o n o m ic , s o c i a l an d i n s t i t u t i o n a l im p a c ts o f v a r io u s t e c h n o l o g i e s u n d er a l t e r n a t i v e e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

m an ag em en t a p p r o a c h e s .

FY 19 76 P la n

• C o m p le te th e FGC e v a l u a t i o n p h a se o f L o u i s v i l l e Ga s an d E l e c t r i c t e s t p ro gra m . Th e o b j e c t i v e i s t o u n d e rs ta n d an d a p p ly th e u n iq u e c h e m is t r y o f t h i s s u c c e s s f u l i n s t a l l a t i o n t o o t h e r i n s t a l l a t i o n s .

• C o m p le te th e p i l o t an d p r o t o ty p e d o u b l e - a l k a l i FGD t e s t p ro gra m an d p u b lis h a f i n a l r e p o r t . T h is p r o c e s s h a s p o t e n t i a l c o s t , r e l i a b i l i t y and s lu d g e d i s p o s a l a d v a n ta g e s o v e r li m e an d li m e s to n e 

s c r u b b in g s y s t e m s .

• I n i t i a t e a W ell m an -L o rd r e g e n e r a b le FGD t e s t pro gr am a t c o a l - f i r e d u t i l i t y s i t e s . T h is p r o c e s s h a s be en p ro ven r e l i a b l e an d e f f e c t i v e on o i l - f i r e d u n i t s in Ja pan an d w i l l now be d e m o n s tr a te d on t h i s f u l l - 

s c a l e u n i t .

• I s s u e a f i n a l r e p o r t on s lu d g e c o n v e r s io n ( r e g e n e r a t io n ) p i l o t s t u d i e s . S u c c e s s f u l t e c h n o lo g y d e ve lo p m e n t w o u ld h e lp s o lv e FGD s lu d g e - d i s p o s a l p ro b le m s b y a l lo w i n g c o n v e r s io n an d r e u s e o f s lu d g e 

as an a l t e r n a t i v e t o d i s p o s a l .

• Do cu ment a p p l i c a t i o n o f s t a g e d co m b u sti o n NOx c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y f o r t a n g e n t i a l l y c o a l - f i r e d 

u t i l i t y b o i l e r s .

• I s s u e an a n n u a l r e p o r t on a s s e s s m e n t o f J ap a n e se f l u e g a s tr e a t m e n t t e c h n o lo g y f o r NOx c o n t r o l . Su ch t e c h n o lo g y , c a p a b le o f h ig h e f f i c i e n c y NOx re m o v a l, i s a d v a n c in g r a p i d l y in Jap an an d i s b e in g a p p lie d 

t o s e v e r a l l a r g e i n s t a l l a t i o n s .

138

7 9 -3 9 7 0 - 77 - 14
182

• Co m p le te t h e f i n e p a r t i c u l a t e c h a rg e d r o p l e t

s c r u b b e r d e m o n s tr a tio n . Such t e c h n o lo g y h a s

p o t e n t i a l f o r en han ce d f i n e p a r t i c u l a t e re m o va l fr om 

a v a r i e t y o f co m b u sti o n an d i n d u s t r i a l s o u r c e s .

F i v e - Y e a r P la n

Em phas is in t h e e a r l y p a r t o f th e f i v e - y e a r p la n i s on 

o b t a in in g th e o u tp u ts fr om th e f l u e g a s d e s u l f u r i z a t i o n 

(FGD) w o rk . D ata fr om t e s t p ro gr am s f o r n o n r e g e n e r a b le FGD 

s y ste m s a r e e x p e c te d t o i n d i c a t e im p ro ved r e l i a b i l i t y an d 

lo w e r c o s t s . In a d d i t i o n , t e s t p ro gra m s f o r r e g e n e r a b le 

FGD s y ste m s w i l l p r o v id e d a ta f o r e v a l u a t i o n a s w i l l 

s u p p o r tin g s t u d i e s i n v o l v i n g b y - p r o d u c t m a rk e ti n g and 

w a s te w a te r u t i l i z a t i o n fr om FGD s y s t e m s . T h e se e f f o r t s 

s h o u ld b e n e a r c o m p le tio n in FY 19 7 7 . A l l d a ta g e n e r a te d 

fr om th e FGD R&D i s e x p e c te d t o be g iv e n t o r e g u l a t o r y 

g ro u p s an d u s e r i n d u s t r i e s th ro u g h th e t e c h n o lo g y t r a n s f e r 

p ro gr am .

As th e FGD R&D p ea k s an d t a i l s o f f , em p h asis and 

r e s o u r c e s o f t h e e n e r g y pro gr am w i l l s h i f t t o NOx c o n t r o l , 

f i n e p a r t i c u l a t e c o n t r o l , th e rm a l c o n t r o l and co m b u sti o n 

p o l l u t i o n a s s e s s m e n t.

Th e NOx c o n t r o l pro gr am w i l l i n c lu d e f i e l d t e s t i n g and 

c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n s t u d i e s an d d e v e lo p m e n t o f c o n t r o l 

t e c h n o lo g y f o r g a s t u r b in e s and u t i l i t y , i n d u s t r i a l and 

co m m e rc ia l b o i l e r s . NOx c o n t r o l f o r r e s i d e n t i a l h e a t in g 

s y ste m s w i l l a l s o be c o n s id e r e d . S im u lt a n e o u s re m o va l o f 

SOx /NO x by way o f FGD t e c h n o lo g y w i l l a l s o r e c e i v e 

a t t e n t i o n .

Th e f i n e o a r t i c u l a t e c o n t r o l pro gra m w i l l a l s o 

a c c e l e r a t e a s e f f o r t i s made to d e te rm in e t h e e f f e c t i v e n e s s 

o f a v a i l a b l e c o n t r o l e q u ip m e n t, to im p ro ve e x i s t i n g c o n t r o l 

equ ip m en t c a p a b i l i t y an d t o d e m o n s tr a te th e e f f i c i e n c y o f 

n o v e l d e v i c e s .

Th e e x p e c t a t io n i s t h a t e n v ir o n m e n ta l a s s e s s m e n t o f 

c o n v e n t io n a l co m b u sti o n s y ste m s w i l l a llo w f o r an in fo r m e d , 

o r d e r l y i d e n t i f i c a t i o n an d r a n k in g o f p o l l u t a n t s an d t h e i r 

p o t e n t i a l im p a ct a c c o r d in g t o p o l l u t a n t m ed ia ( e .g . a i r , 

w a t e r , s o l i d w a s t e ) . T h is a p p ro a ch w i l l g u id e EPA an d i t s 

RSD pro gr am in d e te r m in in g a d eq u a cy o r in a d e q u a c y o f 

e x i s t i n g and p la n n e d p ro g ra m s.

Th e e f f o r t f o r th e r m a l p o ll u t i o n c o n t r o l w or k w i l l a l s o 

i n c r e a s e . S t u d ie s t o o p t im iz e d ry c o o l i n g s y s te m s , f o r 

s i t e - s p e c i f i c w et and d ry c o o li n g s y s te m s r e l a t i v e t o fo g

139
183

c o n t r o l an d w a t e r c o n s e r v a t io n an d f o r w a s te h e a t 

u t i l i z a t i o n , w i l l a l s o be in p r o g r e s s .

C o n s e r v a tio n s t u d i e s an d d e m o n s tr a tio n s s h o u ld c o n tin u e 

a t a r e l a t i v e l y c o n s t a n t r a t e . D e m o n s tr a tio n s o f u s e o f 

w a s te s a s f u e l , a s s e s s m e n t o f a d v a n ced c y c l e s , a s s e s s m e n t 

o f a d va n ced e n e r g y s y ste m s an d i n d u s t r i a l c o n s e r v a t io n a r e 

e x p e c te d t o p r o v id e d a ta on p o t e n t i a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c ts 

o f t h o s e t e c h n o l o g i e s t o g u id e R6D pro gr am p la n n in g .

A d d i t i o n a l m ile s t o n e s t o be a c h ie v e d in t h e f i v e - y e a r 

p la n in c lu d e :

• C o m p le te t h e Sh aw ne e/ RT P a d v a n ced li m e an d li m e s to n e 

t e s t s t u d y an d p u b lis h a f i n a l r e p o r t . T h is t e s t 

a c t i v i t y i s ai m ed a t i d e n t i f y i n g im p ro ved p r o c e s s 

a l t e r a t i o n s c a p a b le o f im p ro v in g s u l f u r d io x id e 

re m o v a l, e c o n o m ic s , r e l i a b i l i t y an d s lu d g e 

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s .

• C o m p le te t h e Sh aw ne e s lu d g e d e m o n s tr a tio n e v a lu a t io n 

pro gra m . T h is i n v o lv e s a p i l o t t e s t o f t h r e e 

c o m m e r c ia ll y o f f e r e d s l u d g e - f i x a t i o n p r o c e s s e s and 

f o llo w - u p e n v ir o n m e n ta l e v a l u a t i o n s .

• C o m p le te th e B ahco t e s t s tu d y f o r li m e s c r u b b in g on 

a c o a l - f i r e d i n d u s t r i a l b o i l e r an d p u b lis h a f i n a l 

r e p o r t . T h is w i l l e v a l u a t e a s u l f u r c o n t r o l o p tio n 

f o r s m a lle r co m b u sti o n s o u r c e s .

• C o m p le te a f i n a l r e p o r t on t h e W ell m an -L o rd FGD

d e m o n s tr a tio n . T h is r e p o r t w i l l su m m ar iz e

o p e r a t io n a l p e r fo r m a n c e o f t h e f i r s t a p p l i c a t i o n o f 

t h i s FGD t e c h n o lo g y t o a c o a l - f i r e d po w er p l a n t . 

S u lf u r w i l l b e p ro d u ced a s t h e en d p r o d u c t.

• Is s u e a f i n a l r e p o r t on L o u i s v i l l e G as an d E l e c t r i c

la b an d f i e l d FGD w a s t e - d is p o s a l s t u d i e s . The 

o b j e c t i v e h e r e i s t o : (1) u n d e rs ta n d an d a p p ly th e

u n iq u e c h e m is t r y o f t h i s s u c c e s s f u l u n i t to o th e r 

a p p l i c a t i o n s and (2) im p ro v e s lu d g e - d i s p o s a l 

t e c h n o lo g y .

• P re p a re a n n u a l r e p o r t s su m m a ri zin g t h e E P A -s p o n so re d 

FGD s lu d g e e f f o r t en co m p a ss in g e v a l u a t i o n s t u d i e s 

and p i l o t an d p r o t o t y p e - s c a l e t e s t i n g .

• C o m p le te p r e li m i n a r y s t u d i e s a s s e s s i n g t h e im p a ct o f 

g a s , w a te r an d w a s t e s tr e a m s fr om a v a r i e t y o f 

co m b u sti o n s o u r c e s .

140
P e rf o rm a c o m p re h e n s iv e a p p l i c a t i o n t e s t i n g a c t i v i t y 

aim ed a t i d e n t i f y i n g m ea ns to c o n t r o l NOx th ro u q h 

o p e r a t i o n a l m o d i f i c a t i o n s f o r a w id e v a r i e t y o f 

c o m b u sti o n s o u r c e s .

D evelo p an d a p p ly NOx c o n tr o l te c h n o lo g y em p lo y in g 

m o d i f i c a ti o n s t o u t i l i t y , c o m m erc ia l an d i n d u s t r i a l 

b o i l e r s , r e s i d e n t i a l h e a tin g s y s te m s , s t a t i o n a r y 

e n g in e s and a d v a n c e d c o m b u sti o n p r o c e s s e s .

D ev elo p p ro m is in g f l u e g a s c le a n in g m e th o d s f o r NOx 

c o n t r o l a t th e s m a ll p i l o t l e v e l . Such sy ste m s 

o f f e r p o t e n t i a l f o r en h a n c e d NOx e m is s io n c o n tr o l 

fr om a v a r i e t y o f c o m b u s ti o n s o u r c e s .

E nhance th e e f f e c t i v e n e s s o f c o n v e n tio n a l 

p a r t i c u l a t e c o n t r o l d e v ic e s f o r f i n e p a r t i c u l a t e 

re m o v al in c l u d in g e l e c t r o s t a t i c p r e c i p i t a t o r s , b ag - 

h o u se s and s c r u b b e r s .

S e l e c t , t e s t an d e v a l u a t e one p ro m is in g , n o v e l f i n e 

p a r t i c u l a t e c o n t r o l d e v ic e a t th e p i l o t l e v e l .

D e m o n str a te w e t- a n d - d r y an d d ry c o o lin g to w e r 

te c h n o lo g y c a p a b le o f d i s s i p a t i n g w a s te h e a t fr om 

s t e a m - e l e c t r i c p l a n t s a t th e p r o to ty p e l e v e l w h il e 

m in im iz in g w a te r p o l l u t i o n an d w a te r s u p p ly p ro b le m s 

a s s o c i a t e d w it h w e t c o o lin g to w e rs .

C o n d u ct f e a s i b i l i t y s t u d i e s aim ed a t e v a l u a t i n g u se 

o f w a ste h e a t f o r a g r i c u l t u r a l an d a q u a c u l t u r a l 

p u rp o s e s .

P e rf o rm e c o n o m ic , t e c h n i c a l and e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

e v a lu a tio n s o f r e s o u r c e re c o v e r y sy s te m s an d r e f u s e - 

d e r iv e d f u e l - p r o c e s s i n g an d e n e r g y - r e c o v e r y 

e q u ip m en t an d s y s te m s .

I d e n t i f y an d c h a r a c t e r i z e v a r i o u s w a s te s tr e a m s an d 

p e rfo rm e m is s io n s an d r e s i d u a l s s t u d i e s on 

p o l l u t a n t s a lr e a d y i n w a s te s o r p ro d u c e d i n re s o u r c e 

re c o v e r y an d e n e rg y c o n v e r s io n p r o c e s s e s .

D ev elo p p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l te c h n iq u e s f o r w a s te r e ­

u s e p r o c e s s e s .

C o m p le te d e v e lo p m e n t o f th e " S t. L o u is " sy s te m f o r 

com bin ed f i r i n g o f r e f u s e and c o a l i n a la r g e 

u t i l i t y b o i l e r .
185

• D e v e lo p s y s te m s f o r c o - f i r i n g w a s t e s an d c o a l in i n d u s t r i a l - s i z e d b o i l e r s an d f o r c o - f i r i n g w a s te s 

an d o i l i n l a r g e u t i l i t y b o i l e r s .

• A s s e s s t h e a i r q u a l i t y i n s i d e v a r io u s t y p e s o f b u i ld i n g s i n r e l a t i o n t o e n e r g y c o n s e r v a t io n 

a p p ro a c h e s an d o u td o o r a i r q u a l i t y .

• E v a lu a t e th e p o t e n t i a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c ts o f th e f o llo w in g a d v a n c e d c y c l e s : h ig h - t e m p e r a tu r e open - an d c l o s e d - c y c l e g a s t u r b in e s ; MHD; p o ta ssiu m 

to p p in g c y c l e s and t h e r m io n ic s .

• C on duct e n v ir o n m e n ta l a ss e s s m e n t s t u d i e s and e v a lu a t e e n v ir o n m e n ta l c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y n eed s f o r 

g e o th e r m a l an d s o l a r e n e r g y s y s te m s .

• P erf o rm s t u d i e s t o e v a l u a t e th e c o s t , r i s k and b e n e f i t t r a d e - o f f s o f e n e r g y p r o d u c tio n , 

c o n s e r v a t io n an d p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l a l t e r n a t i v e s .

• C on duct t e c h n o lo g y a s s e s s m e n ts t h a t e v a lu a t e a l t e r n a t i v e e n e r g y t e c h n o lo g i e s and a p p ro a c h e s t o im p le m ent e n e r g y d e ve lo p m e n t an d c o n s e r v a t io n t o p r e v e n t e n v ir o n m e n ta l da mag e an d s e c u r e r e l a t e d 

b e n e f i t s .

142
186

APPENDIX A

E n v ir o n m en ta l RSD in O th er 

F e d e r a l A gen cie s

143
187

The E n v ir o n m e n ta l P r o t e c t i o n A ge nc y (EPA) i s b u t o n e o f many a g e n c ie s w ith e n v ir o n m e n ta l r e s e a r c h and d e v e lo p m e n t (R&D) p ro g ra m s. E n v ir o n m e n ta l R6D i s d e f i n e d by EPA a s R&D t h a t c o n c e rn s i t s e l f w ith some a s p e c t o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l p o l l u t i o n . T h is c o u ld i n c l u d e e m is s io n s , t r a n s p o r t p r o c e s s e s an d f a t e , im p a c ts o r e f f e c t s an d c o n t r o l te c h n o l o g ie s an d m an ag em en t m eth o d s f o r p o l l u t a n t s . S uch r e s e a r c h c o v e r s a i r and w a te r p o l l u t i o n , p e s t i c i d e s , s o l i d w a s te , w a te r s u p p l y , n o i s e , r a d i a t i o n an d t o x i c an d 

h a z a rd o u s s u b s t a n c e s .

Th e N a tio n a l E n v ir o n m e n ta l P o lic y A c t (NEPA) r e q u i r e d 

f e d e r a l a g e n c i e s t o c o n s i d e r e n v ir o n m e n ta l c o n se q u e n c e s o f t h e i r a c t i o n s . Su ch a de m an d le d t o an in c r e a s e in e n v ir o n m e n ta l R&D i n man y a r e a s . W hil e EPA i s c l e a r l y m an d ate d to b e t h e le a d A ge nc y in e n v ir o n m e n ta l R&D, th e m is s io n s o f o t h e r f e d e r a l a g e n c i e s n e c e s s i t a t e e n v ir o n m e n ta l R&D. T h e r e f o r e , EPA h a s t h e r e s p o n s i b i l i t y t o ma ke s u r e t h a t e n v ir o n m e n ta l R&D c a p a b i l i t i e s i n o t h e r a g e n c ie s a r e n o t u n n e c e s s a r i l y d u p l i c a t e d b u t a r e 

re c o q n iz e d a n d u t i l i z e d a s e f f i c i e n t l y a s p o s s i b l e .

The l a r g e s t an d m ost f o r m a liz e d exam ple o f EPA- c o o r d in a te d in t e r a g e n c y R&D i s i n th e e n e rg y p ro gra m w here EPA h a s th e r e s p o n s i b i l i t y o f a d m i n is te r i n g a f i v e - y e a r $1 00 m i ll io n p l u s - p e r - y e a r p ro g ra m w it h 18 o th e r f e d e r a l a g e n c i e s . U nder t h i s p ro g ra m , a b o u t 40 p e r c e n t o f EPA’ s e n e rg y b u d g e t i s g iv e n t o o t h e r f e d e r a l a g e n c ie s u n d e r fo r m a l i n t e r a g e n c y a g re e m e n ts t h a t p ro d u c e r e s e a r c h an d d e v e lo p m e n t in a l l a s p e c t s o f e n e rg y an d e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

i n t e r a c t i o n s .

Th e r e m a in d e r o f t h i s a p p e n d ix t e l l s w h at e a c h f e d e r a l 

a g e n c y w ith a s i z a b l e e n v ir o n m e n ta l R&D p ro g ra m d o e s . I t g iv e s : (1) a b r i e f d e s c r i p t i o n o f t h a t p ro g ra m ; (2) e s tim a te d FY 19 76 b u d g e t; an d (3) e x a m p le s o f r e l a t i o n s h i p s 

w it h EPA/ORD.

Much o f t h e f o llo w in g in f o r m a t io n on p ro gra m d e s c r i p t i o n s and FY 1976 b u d g e ts h a s b e e n e x t r a c t e d fr o m ; " R e p o rt on F e d e r a l R&D P ro gra m FY 1 9 7 6 ," by th e F e d e r a l C o u n c il f o r S c ie n c e an d T e c h n o lo g y . T h is r e p o r t a n a ly z e s e n v ir o n m e n ta l R&D in a b ro a d ra n g e o f f e d e r a l a c t i v i t i e s . I t in c l u d e s e a r t h r e s o u r c e s , m o n ito r in g , m ap pin g an d s u r v e y in g , la n d - u s e p la n n in g an d la n d m anagem ent, o c e a n s and c li m a t e an d a tm o s p h e ric r e s e a r c h . T h is i s i n a d d i t i o n t o th e m or e co mm on ly d e f in e d " e n v ir o n m e n ta l" c a t e g o r i e s o f e c o lo g y , p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l and a b a te m e n t and e n v ir o n m e n ta l h e a l t h . O b v io u s ly , a l l o f t h e s e a r e a s a r e c l o s e l y r e l a t e d

144
188

an d o f t e n o v e r l a p . For t h i s r e a s o n , e n v ir o n m e n ta l RSD w i l l 

be v ie w ed in a b ro a d s e n s e in t h i s s e c t i o n .

Su m m ar iz ed belo w a re t h e o t h e r m a jo r FY 19 76 f e d e r a l 

R6D p ro gra m s r e l a t e d t o e n v ir o n m e n ta l u n d e r s ta n d in g , 

p r o t e c t i o n and h e a l t h . In a d d i t i o n t o th e A g e n c y - s p e c i f i c 

c o o p e r a t i v e r e s e a r c h , EPA/ORD o f t e n p a r t i c i p a t e s i n f o r m a l l y 

in v a r io u s in t e r a g e n c y s c i e n t i f i c an d t e c h n i c a l c o m m it te e s , 

p a n e ls an d t a s k f o r c e s .

D ep art m en t o f Com merce

Th e N a t io n a l O ce a n ic an d A tm o s p h e ric A d m in is t r a t io n 

(NOAA) h a s p la n n e d $87 m i l l i o n in e n v ir o n m e n ta l RSD i n FY 

19 7 6 . T h is i n c l u d e s :

• G re a t L a k e s r e s e a r c h ,

• M ari n e e c o s y s te m s a n a l y s i s an d o cea n du m ping 

p ro b le m s,

• E f f e c t s o f m ar in e e n v ir o n m e n ta l a l t e r n a t i v e s , i . e . , 

d eep w a t e r p o r t s ,

• F i s h e r i e s e c o l o g i c a l i n v e s t i g a t i o n s ,

• E n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a ct a n a l y s i s .

To a s s u r e c o o r d in a t io n o f e f f o r t s , 

NOAA on t h e G r e a t L a k e s B a s in 

C om m is si on on M ar in e S c ie n c e 

I n t e r n a t i o n a l A s s o c i a t i o n f o r G r e a t

ORD p a r t i c i p a t e s w ith 

C om m is si on , I n t e r a g e n c y 

an d E n g in e e r in g an d 

L a k e s R e s e a r c h .

ORD p e r s o n n e l, a lo n g w it h r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s fr om NOAA, 

F is h an d W i l d l i f e S e r v i c e , E n erg y R e s e a r c h and D evelo pm en t 

A d m in is t r a t io n and o t h e r s , m eet r e g u l a r l y in th e 

I n t e r a g e n c y C o o r d in a tin g C o m m it te e on C o n ta m in a n ts in 

A g u a t ic O rg a n is m s and th e A q u a t ic E n vi ro n m ent t o s h a r e 

in fo r m a t io n . ORD a l s o w o rk s w ith NOAA in t h e R e g io n a l A ir 

P o l l u t i o n S tu d y (RAPS) in S t . L o u is .

In FY 19 7 6 , EPA w i l l t r a n s f e r $3 m i l l i o n t o NOAA t o 

s tu d y e f f e c t s o f p e tr o le u m h y d r o c a r b o n s on m ari n e an d 

e s t u a r i n e e c o s y s te m s in th e G u lf o f M ex ic o an d N o rt h e rn 

P u g e t So und. NOAA w i l l a l s o ma ke a tm o s p h e r ic and 

m e t e o r o lo g i c a l m ea su re m en ts an d a n a ly s e s o f pow er p la n t 

g e n e r a t e d p o l l u t a n t s in th e W este rn U n it e d S t a t e s .

145
189

The N a tio n a l Bure au o f S ta n d a rd s (NBS) c o n d u c ts a lm o st 

$3 m i l l i o n in e n v ir o n m e n ta l R&D r e l a t e d t o :

• Im p ro vin g a i r q u a l i t y m ea su re m en t t e c h n iq u e s u s e f u l 

in e n fo rc e m e n t o f a i r q u a l i t y s t a n d a r d s .

• Im p ro vin g t e c h n iq u e s f o r m e a su rin q l o w - l e v e l o r t r a c e p o l l u t a n t s , i n c lu d i n g r a d i o a c t i v e s u b s t a n c e s , 

in w a te r .

• D eve lo pm en t o f s t a n d a r d m et ho ds f o r m e a s u rin g n o is e l e v e l s , i n c l u d i n g t e c h n iq u e s f o r c a l i b r a t i n g 

m o n it o r in g e q u ip m e n t.

In FY 19 7 6 , EPA w i l l t r a n s f e r $1 m i l l i o n t o NBS t o d e v e lo p e n e r g y - r e l a t e d w a te r p o l l u t a n t a n a l y s i s in s t r u m e n t a t io n f o r t h e p u rp o se o f d e t e c t i o n o f h y d r o c a r b o n s fr om p ow er p la n t s an d e f f l u e n t s fr om c o a l g a s i f i c a t i o n an d l i q u e f a c t i o n p la n t s an d o i l s h a le and p e tr o le u m o p e r a t i o n s . NBS w i l l a l s o d e v e lo p s ta n d a rd r e f e r e n c e m a t e r ia ls f o r e n e r g y - r e l a t e d p o l l u t a n t s in th e a tm o s p h e re , f r e s h w a t e r and e s t u a r i n e e c o s y s t e m s .

N a ti o n a l A e r o n a u t ic s an d S p a c e A d m in is t r a t io n (NASA)

NASA has a p p r o x im a te ly $1 32 m i l l i o n f o r e n v ir o n m e n ta l R&D i n FY 19 7 6 . The m a jo r e n v ir o n m e n ta l e f f o r t o f NASA i s th e E a rth R e s o u rc e s T e c h n o lo g y S a t e l l i t e p ro gr am (LANDSAT) . LANDSAT a p p l i e s s p a c e t e c h n o lo g y t o d a t a - g a t h e r i n g a b o u t e a r t h ’ s r e s o u r c e s t o im p ro v e r e s o u r c e m an ag em en t. More 

s p e c i f i c a l l y , th e f o l lo w i n g e f f o r t s a r e u n d e r w ay :

• A p p lic a t io n s A ir b o r n e R e se a rch Pro gr am t h a t in c lu d e s 

a n a l y s i s o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y .

• C l i m a t i c r e s e a r c h t h a t w i l l im p ro ve a tm o s p h e ric m easu re m en ts , r e m o t e - s e n s in g c a p a b i l i t y r e l a t e d t o th e e a r t h 's r a d i a t i o n b a la n c e an d a tm o s p h e ric 

p o ll u t a n t s an d c l i m a t i c m o d e li n g .

• S e v e r a l o n g o in g and p la n n e d ni m bu s f l i g h t p r o j e c t s f o r a l l- w e a t h e r a tm o s p h e r ic s o u n d in q , p o ll u t i o n 

m o n it o r in g an d c l i m a t e an d o cea n r e s e a r c h .

EPA/NA SA r e m o t e - s e n s in g 

NASA on t h e I n t e r n a t i o n a l

L a k e s . EPA w i l l a ls o 

in FY 19 76 f o r o v e rh e a d 

a s s o c i a t e d w ith W es te rn

In a d d it io n t o so me j o i n t 

i n t e r e s t s , EPA/ORD w o rk s w it h 

J o i n t Com m is si on in t h e G re a t 

t r a n s f e r $500 th o u sa n d t o NASA 

m o n it o r in g s u p p o r t t o 50 s i t e s 

e n e r g y r e s o u r c e d e v e lo p m e n t.

146
190

D e p a rtm e n t o f t h e I n t e r i o r (DPI)

T he DOI w i l l sp e n d a b o u t $1 60 m i ll io n in FY 1976 fox ; 

R&D d i r e c t l y and t a n g e n t i a l l y r e l a t e d t o e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

u n d e r s ta n d in g an d im p ro v e m e n t. T h is R&D i n c l u d e s :

• E n v ir o n m e n ta l s t u d i e s in - s u p p o r t o f e n e rg y R&D, 

i . e . - , s i t i n g , o p e r a t i o n and w a ste d i s p o s a l f o r 

n u c le a r po w er p l a n t s ; a b a te m e n t o f p o l l u t i o n fr om 

m e t a l l u r g i c a l p r o c e s s e s and w a s te s ; p e tr o le u m 

d e v e lo p m e n t o f t h e O u te r C o n tin e n ta l S h e lf ; an d 

a p p l i c a t i o n o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l r e s o u r c e s d a ta t o u rb a n 

d e c is io n -m a k in g .

• B a s e lin e h y d r o lo g ic d a ta w i l l a l s o b e c o l l e c t e d t o 

p ro v id e th e b a s i s f o r c o n tin u e d m o n ito r in g o f 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c ts on w a te r r e s o u r c e s s y s te m s an d 

u s e e f f i c i e n c i e s .

• E n v ir o n m e n ta l o b s e r v a t i o n s and m e a su re m e n ts by th e 

G e o lo g ic a l S u rv e y r e l a t e d to q u a l i t y and q u a n t i t y o f 

w a te r s u p p l i e s .

• R e se a rc h in i r r i g a t i o n m anagem ent, w a s te w a te r 

r e c la m a tio n and r e u s e an d d e v e lo p m e n t o f p r e d i c t i v e 

m o d els f o r s a l i n i t y a n d n i t r o g e n .

• C o n d u c ti n g m in in g r e s e a r c h t o m ax im iz e m in in g 

p ro d u c tio n w it h mi nim um p o l l u t i o n and da m ag e t o th e 

e n v ir o n m e n t.

• C o n d u ct r e s e a r c h w ith th e F is h an d W i l d l i f e S e r v ic e 

(FWS) on e f f e c t s an d r e s id u e s o f p e s t i c i d e s in 

a n im a ls .

EPA w i l l t r a n s f e r $3 m i l l i o n t o DOI in FY 19 76 t o s tu d y 

t h e e f f e c t s o f e n e rg y r e s o u r c e d e v e lo p m e n t on w i l d l i f e an d 

w i l d l i f e h a b i t a t s an d t o m o n it o r b o th s u r f a c e an d 

g ro u n d w a te r q u a l i t y n e x t t o W est ern e n e rg y d e v e lo p m e n t 

s i t e s .

To mak e u se o f m or e c o a l w it h minim um e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

d e g r a d a t i o n , EPA th ro u g h i n t e r a g e n c y a g re e m e n ts , i s w o rk in g 

w it h t h e DOI in • s t u d y in g p h y s ic a l an d c h e m ic a l c o a l 

c l e a n i n g . S p e c i f i c s u b j e c t s of i n t e r e s t i n c l u d e : (1) 

im p ro v in g o r d e v e lo p in g te c h n iq u e s f o r m e c h a n ic a l d ew a te r in g o f f i n e - s i z e c o a l , (2) e v a lu a tin g new c o n c e p ts f o r 

c h e m ic a l c o a l c le a n in g , (3 , R&D t o e l i m i n a t e c o a l r e f u s e 

p o n d s an d (4) c o a l w a sh in g d e m o n s tr a tio n s . EPA fu n d in g o f

147
191

c o a l c le a n in g p r o j e c t s th ro u g h in t e r a g e n c y a g re e m e n ts w it h 

th e DOI in FY 19 76 w i l l be a b o u t $930 th o u s a n d .

In a d d i t i o n • t o .t h e s e c o o p e r a t i v e e n e rg y and e n v ir o n m e n ta l s t u d i e s , EPA/ORD h as an i n t e r a g e n c y a gre em en t 

w ith th e G e o l o g i c a l S u r v e y on r e s e a r c h o f m et hods t o e s t i m a t e " n a t u r a l " w a t e r q u a l i t y in s tr e a m s . EPA/ORD a l s o p a r t i c i p a t e s w it h DOI on th e I n t e r n a t i o n a l J o i n t Com m is si on on th e G re a t L a k e s in a s t u d y t o t e s t v a l i d i t y o f in d e x e s f o r w a te r q u a l i t y an d t o s e l e c t a s ta n d a r d a r r a y o f r e p o r t i n g m e th o d s. EPA/ORD a l s o p a r t i c i p a t e s w it h th e FWS 

on v a r io u s s t u d i e s on p e s t i c i d e e f f e c t s .

D ep art m en t o f A g r i c u l t u r e (USDA)

Th e D ep art m en t o f A g r i c u l t u r e w i l l c o n d u c t a b o u t $120 

m i l l i o n o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l R&D in FY 19 7 6 . Th e r e s e a r c h i s d i r e c t e d a t m a in t a in in g s t a b l e an d p r o d u c t iv e a g r i c u l t u r e th r o u g h s o i l , w a t e r an d c r o p m an ag em en t p r a c t i c e s t h a t r e d u c e : s o i l e r o s io n an d w a te r r u n o f f , w in d e r o s io n l o s s e s fr o m a g r i c u l t u r a l la n d s an d s o i l s a l i n i t y . R e se a rch to ma ke e f f i c i e n t u s e o f i r r i g a t i o n w a te r an d im p ro ve s o i l 

d r a in a g e i s a l s o i n c lu d e d .

• jO th er r e s e a r c h i s c o n d u c te d on c o n t r o l o f p o ll u t i o n 

fr o m an im al an d a g r i c u l t u r a l p r o c e s s in g w a s t e s , in c lu d in g p o s s i b l e p e s t i c i d e c o n ta m in a t io n . L a r g e p ro gra m s a r e c o n d u c te d on i n s e c t , p la n t d i s e a s e an d wee d c o n t r o l e m p lo y in g i n t e g r a t e d p e s t man ag em en t p r a c t i c e s and 

c o n v e n t io n a l p e s t i c i d e u s e .

S t i l l o t h e r r e s e a r c h i s d i r e c t e d t o d e ve lo p m e n t o f 

e c o n o m ic a l fa rm in g an d la n d use p r a c t i c e s t h a t p r e v e n t e n v ir o n m e n ta l c o n t a m in ia t io n by f e r t i l i z e r s , p e s t i c i d e s , a g r i c u l t u r a l an d m u n ic ip a l w a s te s an d s e d im e n ts ; e n su re lo n g - te r m a v a i l a b i l i t y o f la n d f o r maximum p r o d u c tio n o f 

fo o d an d f i b e r , w a t e r s u p p li e s

m in ed la n d s ; p r o t e c t s o i l a g a in s t 

f e r t i l i z e r an d e n e r g y s u p p l i e s .

an d r e c r e a t i o n ; r e c la im 

e r o s i o n ; an d c o n s e r v e

In a d d i t i o n , r e s e a r c h by th e Eco nom ic R e s e a r c h S e r v i c e 

(ERS) f o c u s e s on th e im p a c t on fo o d an d f i b e r s u p p l i e s and p r i c e s o f a l t e r n a t i v e e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y s ta n d a r d s o r r e s t r i c t i o n s . The c o s t s o f new t e c h n o lo g y an d man ag em en t p r a c t i c e s r e l a t e d t o a g r i c u l t u r a l p r o d u c tio n a r e a l s o b e in g 

a s s e s s e d . ORD c o o p e r a t e s w ith t h e USDA in t h e f o l l o w i n g a r e a s :

148
192

• S a l i n i t y r e d u c tio n p ro g ra m s i n th e C o lo ra d o R iv e r 

B a s in , R io G ra nde R iv e r B a sin and se d im e n t r e d u q t io n 

p ro g ra m s in th e N o rth w e s t.

• I n v e s t i g a t i o n s o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l c o n se q u e n c e s o f 

a l t e r n a t i v e s i l v i c u l t u r a l p r a c t i c e s , in c l u d in g c o s t - 

e f f e c t i v e n s s o f a l t e r n a t e c o n t r o l p r a c t i c e s (w it h 

U .S . F o r e s t S e r v i c e ) .

• R e s e a rc h in v o lv in g la n d a p p l i c a t i o n o f m u n ic ip a l 

w a s te w a te r and s l u d g e s .

P r i n c i p l e s , s t r a t e g i e s an d t a c t i c s 

p o p u la t io n r e g u l a t i o n an d c o n t r o l in 

e c o s y s te m s .

f o r p e s t 

m a jo r c ro p

• S tu d i e s on p a s t u r e and r a n g e la n d r u n o f f .

R e s e a rc h on ru n o f f fr o m la n d a p p l i c a t i o n o f a n im a l 

w a s te s and d e v e lo p m e n t o f c o n t r o l m e th o d s.

• R e s e a rc h in v o lv in g u s e s an d r e u s e o f a n im a l w a s te s 

o t h e r th a n a s f e r t i l i z e r s .

• R e s e a rc h on e f f e c t s o f a i r p o l l u t a n t s on c r o p s .

• D ev elo p m e n t o f a p r e d i c t i v e m odel f o r r u n n « f f o f 

p e s t i c i d e s and n u t r i e n t s fr om c r o p la n d s .

• D ev elo p m en t o f r e g i o n a l r e p o r t s on c u r r e n t la n d an d 

w a te r u s e an d a g r i c u l t u r a l econom ic i m p l i c a t i o n s f o r 

f u t u r e r e s o u r c e u s e , r e s o u r c e c o m p e titio n and 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y fr o m v a r i o u s l e v e l s o f c o a l 

an d o i l s h a l e d e v e lo p m e n t.

• D e te r m in a tio n of th e im p a c t o f e n e rg y d e v e lo p m e n t in 

th e N o rth e rn G re a t P l a i n s on em p lo y m en t, in c o m e , 

p o p u la t io n and l o c a l g o v e rn m e n t f i n a n c e s an d 

s e r v i c e s .

• E v a lu a tio n o f r e c l a m a t io n c o s t s an d a l t e r n a t i v e 

t e c h n o l o g ie s an d u s e s f o r r e c la im e d la n d on s e l e c t e d 

s i t e s .

• D ev elo p m en t o f a n a l y t i c a l s y s te m s t o e v a lu a te i n t e r ­

r e g i o n a l ec onom ic i m p l i c a t i o n s and t r a d e - o f f s f o r 

a g r i c u l t u r a l an d r u r a l a r e a s p ro d u c e d by c o a l 

d e v e lo p m e n t.

149
193

• D ev el opm en t o f p l a n t s p e c ie s and la g o o n s f o r r e v e g e t a t i o n o f W e s te rn e n e r g y - r e s o u r c e a r e a s .

In FY 19 76 , EPA ’ s E n e rg y /E n v ir o n m e n t Pro gr am w i l l t r a n s f e r 

$ 1 .3 m i l l i o n t o th e USDA.

E n e rg y R e se a r c h an d D e velo p m en t A d m in is t r a t io n (ERDA)

ERDA w i l l in c o r p o r a t e e n v i r o n m e n t a lly - r e la t e d R6D p ro gram s fr om th e fo rm e r A to m ic E n erg y Com m is si on an d th e D ep artm en t o f t h e I n t e r i o r i n t o i t s pro gr am f o r FY 19 76 . In t h e a r e a o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l and s a f e t y r e s e a r c h , ERDA i s r e q u e s t i n g $1 78 m i l l i o n in FY 19 76 . C o n ti n u e d em ph asi s w i l l be g iv e n t o s t u d i e s in t h e b io m e d ic a l and e n v ir o n m e n ta l s c i e n c e s on e f f e c t s o f e n e rg y p r o d u c tio n on l i v i n g s y s te m s t o a s s e s s , c o n t r o l an d e n v a lu a t e th e e f f e c t s o f e x p o s u r e s t o man and h is e n v ir o n m e n t. S p e c i f i c a c t i v i t i e s in c lu d e i n c r e a s e s in su ch p r i o r i t y a r e a s a s :

• B io m e d ic a l an d e n v ir o n m e n ta l e f f e c t s o f t r a n s u r a n ic 

i s o t o p e s .

• B i o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s o f lo w d o s e s o f r a d i a t i o n .

• T herj nal e f f e c t s .

• O ffs h o r e s i t i n g .

• E v a lu a t io n s o f th e im p a ct o f n u c le a r and o th e r e n e r g y -p r o d u c in g s y s t e m s on a r e q i o n a l , n a t i o n a l , o r 

o t h e r g e o g r a p h ic a l s c a l e .

• H e a lt h and e n v ir o n m e n ta l c o n se q u e n c e s o f p o l l u t a n t s fr om n o n -n u c le a r e n e r g y s o u r c e s , e s p e c i a l l y f o s s i l 

f u e l s .

R e s e a r c h an d d e v e lo p m e n t w i l l a l s o b e s t r e n g th e n e d on t r a n s p o r t a t i o n and lo n g - t e r m man ag em en t o f r a d i o a c t i v e m a t e r i a l s an d w a s te s fr om c h e m ic a l an d ERDA o p e r a t i o n s .

Much o f t h e o t h e r R6D o f ERDA now s e p a r a t e l y d e fin e d a s " E n v ir o n m e n ta l an d S a f e t y RSD" i s a l s o e n v ir o n m e n t a lly - r e l a t e d . T h is i s p a r t i c u l a r l y t r u e o f f o s s i l f u e l and e l e c t r i c po wer t r a n s m is s io n RSD t o p r o v id e e n e r g y w it h f u e l s an d p r o c e s s e s t h a t m ee t e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y s t a n d a r d s . Su ch R&D i n c l u d e s im p a ct m eas ure m en t and e v a l u a t i o n , c o l l e c t i o n o f d a t a on e f f l u e n t s fr om f a c i l i t i e s u s in g new c o n v e r s io n p r o c e s s e s an d w ork on new 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l c o n t r o l t e c h n o l o g i e s .

150
194

R e s e a r c h m o tiv a te d by e n v ir o n m e n ta l c o n c e r n s d ra w s 09 

th e p h y s i c a l r e s e a r c h p ro gra m f o r k n o w le d ge o f r a d i a t i o n 

c h e m is t r y an d p h o to c h e m is tr y o f p o l l u t a n t s an d a e r o s o l 

fo r m a t io n an d p o l l u t a n t e f f e c t s on t h e u p p er a tm o sp h e re ; 

t r i t i u m an d o t h e r r a d i o a c t i v e w a s te re m o v a l; an d b e t t e r 

t e c h n iq u e s f o r a n a l y s i s o f p o l l u t a n t s , e s p e c i a l l y t h o s e 

p ro d u c e d in e n e rg y p r o c e s s e s .

EPA i s c u r r e n t l y s u p p o r t in g r e s e a r c h th ro u g h 

in t e r a g e n c y a g re em en ts w ith ERDA in s e r v e r a l a r e a s .

In t h e p h y s i c a l an d c h e m ic a l c o a l c le a n in g a r e a , wo rk 

i s u n d e r wa y to c h a r a c t e r i z e t r a c e e le m e n ts i n c o a l 

c l e a n i n g w a s te s an d t o e v a l u a t e a t l a b o r a t o r y s c a l e new 

p h y s i c a l an d c h e m ic a l p r o c e s s e s t o re m ov e an d r e c o v e r y 

t r a c e e le m e n t s .

I n t h e f l u i d i z e d bed co m b u sti o n (FBC) a r e a , w or k i s 

u n d er way a t be nc h an d l a b o r a t o r y s c a l e t o d e te r m in e ; (1) 

t e c h n iq u e s f o r r e d u c t io n o f n itr o g e n o x id e e m is s io n s , (2) 

s o r b e n t p erfo rm a n ce f o r c o n t r o l o f s u l f u r d io x id e 

e m is s io n s , an d (3) th e f a t e an d c o n t r o l o f t r a c e e le m e n t 

e m i s s i o n s . O th er e f f o r t s i n th e FBC a r e a i n c lu d e m o d eli n q 

o f s u l f u r d io x id e c a p t u r e r a t e s , c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n o f 

p a r t i c u l a t e e m is s io n s , t e c h n iq u e s f o r r e d u c t io n o f n itr o g e n 

o x id e e m is s io n s an d co m b u sti o n s t u d i e s co m p ari n g li m e s to n e 

t o d o lo m it e o v e r a b ro a d ra n g e o f t e m p e r a tu r e s , c o a l s and 

p a r t i c l e s i z e s .

EPA i s a l s o in v o lv e d w ith ERDA in t e c h n o l o g i e s to 

d e v e lo p s y n t h e t i c f u e l fr o m c o a l . S p e c i f i c a l l y , t e s t 

p ro gra m s o f p r o c e s s e s s u p p o r te d by ERDA a re o f i n t e r e s t in 

t h a t p r o c e s s and e f f l u e n t s tr e a m s ca n be i d e n t i f i e d and 

m o n it o r e d and a n a l y t i c a l m et hod s d e v e lo p e d . The 

e f f e c t i v e n e s s o f c o n t r o l t e c h n o lo g y from o p e r a t i n g d a ta 

w i l l a l s o be e v a lu a t e d .

EPA w i l l g e t d a ta th r o u g h ERDA f o r c o s t , r i s k and 

b e n e f i t t r a d e o f f a n a l y s i s o f n u c l e a r , o i l , s h a le , 

g e o th e r m a l an d c o a l u se f o r po w er p r o d u c tio n in th e W es te rn 

U n it e d S t a t e s .

EPA fu n d in g o f t h e s e p r o j e c t s w it h ERDA in FY 19 76 w i l l 

be a b o u t $2 m i l l i o n .

In FY 19 7 6 , EPA w i l l t r a n s f e r $5 m i l l i o n t o ERDA to 

s t u d y th e f a t e an d e f f e c t s o f p e tr o le u m h y d r o c a r b o n s in 

A r c t i c e c o s y s te m s . L ake M ic h ig a n an d c o a s t a l a r e a s o f 

P u e r to R ic o . ERDA w i l l a l s o do t e r r e s t r i a l e c o s y s te m 

im p a c t s t u d i e s f o r t h e F o u r C o rn e rs R e g io n an d p a r t s o f th e

151
195

S o u t h e a s t e r n U .S . Im pro ve d in s t r u m e n t a tio n an d m eth ods to 

m easu re an d a n a ly z e a i r p o l l u t a n t s p ro d u ced b y e n e rg y 

d e v e lo p m e n ts w i l l a l s o be s t u d i e d .

EPA/ORD p a r t i c i p a t e s on v a r io u s a d v i s o r y b o a r d s and 

p a n e ls o f th e Nev ad a O p e r a t io n s O f f i c e . ORD a l s o p r o v id e s 

s u p p o r t t o ERDA th ro u g h an in t e r a g e n c y a g re e m e n t in th e 

R e g io n a l A i r P o l l u t i o n S tu d y (RAPS) i n S t . L o u is .

N u c le a r R e g u la t o r y C om m is si on (NRC)

NRC h a s r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r r e a c t o r s a f e t y r e s e a r c h ($72 

m i l l i o n ) , n o n r e a c to r c o n f ir m a t o r y r e s e a r c h ($8 m i lli o n ) and 

s a f e g u a r d s r e s e a r c h on p h y s i c a l p r o t e c t i o n and m a t e r i a l s 

c o n t r o l an d a c c o u n t a b i l i t y ($ 7 m illio n ) . Of t h e s e , th e 

m ost e n v i r o n m e n t a l l y - r e l a t e d i s th e n o n r e a c t o r c o n fir m a t o r y 

r e s e a r c h pro gr am t h a t i n c l u d e s fo u r m ai n c o n c e r n s : (1)

h e a l t h an d e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c t f o r l i c e n s e d n u c le a r 

f a c i l i t i e s ; (2) f u e l - c y c l e s a f e t y a ss e s s m e n t r e s e a r c h , (3) 

w a s te m an ag em en t, an d (4) t r a n s p o r t a t i o n .

The h e a lt h and e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a ct r e s e a r c h in c lu d e s 

p r o j e c t s r e l a t e d t o :

• D e fin in g th e b i o l o g i c a l and e c o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s o f 

r a d i o a c t i v e , c h e m ic a l an d th e rm a l d i s c h a r g e s .

• D eve lo pm en t o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ath w a y and r e l a t e d 

p r e d i c t i v e m o d e ls .

• Dos e c o n v e r s io n s and m easu re m en ts .

• D eve lo pm en t o f c o s t an d b e n e f i t an d s o c i a l - v a l u e 

a ss e s s m e n t m e th o d o lo g ie s .

F u e l - c y c l e s a f e t y a s s e s s m e n t a tte m p ts t o v e r i f y from 

a c t u a l o p e r a t in g e x p e r ie n c e th e p r e d ic t e d p e rfo rm a n c e o f 

n o n r e a c t o r p la n t p r o c e s s e s an d e f f l u e n t c o n t r o l s y s te m s . 

T h is i s do ne t o p r o v id e m or e p r e c i s e e s t i m a t e s o f p la n t 

p e rfo rm a n c e and e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c ts f o r l i c e n s i n g and 

s t a n d a r d - s e t t i n g a c t i v i t i e s .

W as te man ag em en t r e s e a r c h s u p p o r ts NRC 's r e s p o n s i b i l i t y 

in l i c e n s i n g n u c le a r f a c i l i t i e s to a s s u r e t h a t r a d i o a c t i v e 

w a s t e s re m ain n o n h a z a r d o u s . The r e s e a r c h i s d i r e c t e d a t 

a n a l y s i s o f c o s t s , r i s k s a n d b e n e f i t s o f v a r i o u s w a ste 

m an ag em en t te c h n iq u e s an d d e ve lo p m e n t o f d a ta n e c e s s a r y t o 

e s t a b l i s h l i c e n s i n g r e q u ir e m e n ts f o r w a s te s t o r a g e .

152
190

R e s e a rc h on t r a n s p o r t a t i o n o f r a d i o a c t i v e m a t e r ia ls 

d e v e lo p s m eth o d o lo g y f o r r e v ie w in g p ro p o se d t r a n s p o r t a t i o n 

s y s t e m s , p r e d i c t i n g ‘ p e rfo rm a n c e and v e r i f y i n g r e l a t i o n s h i p s 

b e tw ee n t e s t s an d a c t u a l t r a n s p o r t c o n d i t i o n s . R e se a rch 

s u p p o r t s e s t a b lis h m e n t o f t r a n s p o r t s ta n d a r d s f o r new ty p e s 

o f m a t e r i a l s . S t u d ie s a r e a l s o mad e o f c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n s 

o f r a d i a t i o n e x p o s u r e s an d a c c id e n t p r o b a b i l i t i t e s and 

c on se gue n c e s .

D e p artm en t o f De fe n s e (POD)-

A p rim a ry o b j e c t i v e o f t h e $56 m i l l i o n R&D pro gr am o f 

t h e D ep art m en t o f D e fe n s e in e n v ir o n m e n ta l s c ie n c e s 

(a t m o s p h e r ic , o c e a n o g r a p h ic an d t e r r e s t r i a l ) i s t o p ro v id e 

t h e b a s i c te c h n o lo g y t o e n a b le DOD t o " t a i l o r " 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l in fo r m a t io n t o sy ste m d e s i g n e r s , d e v e lo p e r s 

an d o p e r a t o r s . In a d d i t i o n to a d d r e s s in g o p e r a t o r - 

i d e n t i f i e d r e g u ir e m e n ts f o r b e t t e r e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

in f o r m a t io n , t h e R&D p ro gra m a tte m p ts t o a s s i s t d e s ig n e r s 

in d e v e lo p in g to m o rr o w ’ s wea po n s y ste m s s o t h a t a l l 

im m e d ia te e n v ir o n m e n ta l f a c t o r s an d t o t a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

im p a c t ca n be ac co m m oda te d a t each s t a g e o f s y s te m d e sig n 

an d d e v e lo p m e n t. DOD a l s o c o n d u c ts r e s e a r c h on th e 

a p p l i c a t i o n an d d i s p o s a l o f p e s t i c i d e s .

•Im p o rta n t t o EPA i s t h e C o rp s o f E n g in e e r s R&D pro gr am 

c o n c e r n e d w it h d e te r m in in g e f f e c t s o f e n g in e e r in g p r o j e c t s 

on th e e n v ir o n m e n t. I n v e s t i g a t i o n s a r e co n d u c te d on 

c o a s t a l p r o c e s s e s an d e c o s y s t e m s , f lo o d c o n t r o l , h y d r o lo g y 

o f c o l d r e g io n s , w a te r r e s o u r c e s p la n n in g and m an ag em en t, 

w a s t e w a t e r man ag em en t an d e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y an d im p act 

a s s e s s m e n t.

EPA/ORD has a co m m itm en t to th e S t a t e s .t o c o n d u c t a 

N a t io n a l E u t r o p h ic a t io n S u r v e y in c o o p e r a t io n w it h DOD. 

A ls o , ORD p a r t i c i p a t e s w ith th e U .S . Army C o rp s o f 

E n g in e e r s in th e I n t e r n a t i o n a l J o i n t Com m is si on on th e 

G r e a t L a k e s and on a co m m it te e t o c o o r d i n a t e d r e d g e - 

m a t e r i a l e c o l o g i c a l r e s e a r c h a c t i v i t i e s .

N a t io n a l S c ie n c e F o u n d a ti o n (NSF)

The NSF c o n d u c ts e n v i r o n m e n t a l l y - r e l a t e d R&D p ro gr am s 

r e l a t e d t o c l i m a t e , o c e a n s an d a r c t i c r e s o u r c e s an d b a s ic 

r e s e a r c h r e l a t e d to s o e c i f i c , c u r r e n t p ro b le m s u n d e r th e 

R e s e a r c h A p p li e d t o N a t io n a l Nee ds (RANN) p ro gra m . T hese 

p ro g ram s w i l l t o t a l in e x c e s s o f $120 m i l l i o n i n FY 19 7 6 .

153
197

The A r c t i c O ffs h o r e R e s o u r c e s Pro qr am ($2 m i l l i o n ) i s a m u l t i d i s c i p l i n a r y , i n t e r n a t i o n a l e f f o r t t o d e v e lo p an u n d e r s ta n d in g o f a r c t i c e n v ir o n m e n ta l f a c t o r s im p o r ta n t t o th e s o l u t i o n o f p ro b le m s i d e n t i f i e d w ith o f f s h o r e r e s o u r c e 

d e v e lo p m e n t an d t r a n s p o r t a t i o n .

The I n t e r n a t i o n a l D e ca d e o f Oce an E x p lo r a t io n (IDOE) i s a m a jo r pro gr am t h a t in c lu d e s i n v e s t i g a t i o n s and e x p e r im e n ts to p r o v id e t h e s c i e n t i f i c b a s i s f o r im pro ve d o c e a n o g r a p h ic an d a tm o s p h e r ic f o r e c a s t s . A n o th e r $5 m i l l i o n under th e IDOE w i l l be co n c e rn e d w it h e n v ir o n m e n ta l q u a l i t y , w it h s t u d i e s o f th e m ar in e e n v ir o n m e n t, th e e f f e c t s o f p o l l u t a n t s on t h a t e n v ir o n m e n t an d th e s c i e n t i f i c b a s i s f o r m a rin e p r e s e r v a t io n p o l i c i e s .

O th er NSF n a t i o n a l an d i n t e r n a t i o n a l p ro gra m s t h a t a r e i n p a r t e n v i r o n m e n t a l l y - r e l a t e d i n c lu d e som e b a s i c and a p p l i e d e n v ir o n m e n ta l r e s e a r c h un der t h e S p e c i a l F o re ig n C u r r e n c y Pro gr am an d I n t e r n a t i o n a l C o o p e r a t iv e S c ie n c e A c t i v i t i e s . NSF a l s o s u p p o r t s b a s i c a tm o s p h e r ic an d o t h e r r e s e a r c h o f N a tio n a l C e n te r f o r A tm o s p h e ric R e se a rch 

(N CA R) .

In t h e b i o l o g i c a l s c i e n c e s , t h e r e i s a s p e c i a l f o c u s on p r o p e r t i e s an d i n t e r r e l a t i o n s h i p s o f n a t u r a l e c o s y s te m s . Such s t u d i e s p r o v id e th e b a s i s f o r d e v e lo p m e n t o f p r e d i c t i v e m odels sh o w in g t h e e f f e c t s o f v a r y i n g la n d use an d e n v ir o n m e n ta l c h a n g e s . B a s ic r e s e a r c h r e l a t e d t o e c o s y s te m s in la k e s an d ponds h as been u se d by v a r io u s f e d e r a l a g e n c ie s in a p p lie d p ro gra m s r e l a t e d t o e u t r o p h i c a t i o n an d o t h e r e f f e c t s o f p o l l u t i o n p ro b le m s. S i m i l a r l y , b a s i c r e s e a r c h on t e r r e s t r i a l e c o s y s te m s has b e e n a p p lie d i n r e s e a r c h r e l a t e d t o f o r e s t m an ag em en t, c r o p 

e c o s y s t e m s , e n e rg y d e v e lo p m e n t, e t c .

F undam en ta l e n g in e e r i n g r e s e a r c h r e l a t i n g to th e e n v ir o n m e n t i n c lu d e s t h a t c o n c e r n in g e r o s i o n , g ro u n d w a te r c o n ta m in a t io n , m in in g an d e x c a v a t i n g , w in d e f f e c t s on p o l l u t i o n t r a n s p o r t an d s t r u c t u r e s an d e n g in e e r in g 

c o n s i d e r a t i o n s a s s o c i a t e d w it h n a t u r a l d i s a s t e r s .

B a s ic r e s e a r c h i n th e e n v ir o n m e n ta l s c i e n c e s (a tm o s p h e r ic s c i e n c e s , e a r t h s c i e n c e s and o cea n o g ra p h y ) i n c l u d e s a p p r o x im a te ly $ 5 .7 m i l l i o n f o r p o l l u t i o n p ro b le m s.

In t h e RANN p ro gram , e n v ir o n m e n ta l r e s e a r c h i s o f m ajo r im p o r ta n c e . Th e p ro gram l e v e l f o r FY 19 76 i s a b o u t $27 m i l l i o n . Th e RANN p ro gra m e f f o r t i s c l o s e l y c o o r d in a te d w it h o t h e r f e d e r a l a g e n c i e s t o e n s u r e c o m p li m e n ta r y an d th e 

e a r l y u se o f r e s u l t s .

79 -3 97 0 - 77 - 15

154
198

RANN 's e n v ir o n m e n ta l pro gr am e m p h a siz es e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

e f f e c t s o f e n e rg y ( $ 1 .5 m i l l i o n ) , t r a c e c o n ta m in a n ts ($ 5.8 

m i l l i o n ) , r e g i o n a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l s y ste m s ($ 6 .7 m i l l i o n ) , 

w e a th e r m o d i f i c a t i o n , an d d i s a s t e r s an d n a t u r a l h a za rd s 

($ 1 3 .2 m i l l i o n ) . A w id e v a r i e t y o f r e s e a r c h i s co n d u cte d 

i n t h e s e g e n e r a l a r e a s . A d d it io n a l r e s e a r c h r e l a t e s to 

r e g i o n a l e c o lo g y ; la n d u s e p la n n in g an d man ag em en t; 

r e q i o n a l e n v ir o n m e n ta l m an ag em en t; c o a s t a l e n g in e e r in g and 

c o a s t a l zo ne m an ag em en t an d e n v ir o n m e n ta l m o d e li n g , 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l d a ta an d p o l i c y an d c o s t - b e n e f i t s t u d i e s ; 

s o l i d w a s te man ag em en t an d d is p o s a l w a te r q u a l i t y and 

w a s t e r u se ; w a s te w a te r tr e a tm e n t; th e rm a l p o l l u t i o n ; a i r 

q u a l i t y and a i r p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l ; c o n te n t an d v a r i a b i l i t y 

o f a tm o s p h e ric g a s e s ; t r a n s p o r t , f a t e an d e f f e c t s o f t r a c e 

c o n ta m in a n ts ; an d e f f e c t s o f e n e r g y , i n d u s t r i a l p r o c e s s e s 

and a g r i c u l t u r a l c h e m ic a ls an d w a s t e s .

RA NN 's f o s s i l - e n e r g y pr og ra m o f $3.8 m i l l i o n in c lu d e s 

r e s e a r c h r e l a t e d t o e n v ir o n m e n ta l im p a c ts o f c o a l 

c o n v e r s io n , g a s l i q u e f a c t i o n an d t e r t i a r y o i l r e c o v e r y .

EPA/ORD h as nu m er ou s w o rk in g a g re e m e n ts w it h th e NSF. 

Among t h e s e a r e : e v a l u a t i o n o f c o s t s an d e f f e c t s o f

a l t e r n a t i v e p a t t e r n s o f m e tr o p o lit a n d e v e lo p m e n t; an d s tu d y 

on p r i n c i p l e s , s t r a t e g i e s and t a c t i c s o f p e s t p o p u la tio n 

r e g u l a t i o n an d c o n t r o l i n m a jo r cro p e c o s y s te m s . ORD a l s o 

c o o r d i n a t e s wor k on s u l f a t e s an d o r g a n ic s w it h NSF. 

Dep a rtm e n t o f H e a lt h , E d u c a t io n , an d W e lf a r e (PHEW)

The co n cern o f DHEW i s w it h e f f e c t s o f th e e n v ir o n m en t 

o h man r a t h e r th a n e n v ir o n m e n ta l e f f e c t s p e r s e . R e sea rc h 

i n e n v ir o n m e n ta l h e a l t h i s d i r e c t e d a t i d e n t i f y i n g 

p o t e n t i a l l y h a rm fu l e n v ir o n m e n ta l a g e n t s , a s s e s s m e n t o f 

t h e i r e f f e c t s , u n d e r s ta n d in g o f t h e i r m ec han is m s o f a c t io n s 

an d m eth ods to a m e lio r a t e r e s u l t i n g h a z a r d s . Su ch r e s e a r c h 

g i v e s t h e h e a lt h b a s i s f o r f e d e r a l r e g u l a t o r y a g e n c ie s to 

e v a l u a t e im p act o f a l t e r n a t i v e e n v ir o n m e n ta l c o n t r o l 

o p t i o n s . DHEW r e s e a r c h a l s o g i v e s h e a l t h - o r i e n t e d a g e n c ie s 

an d p e r s o n n e l th e b a s i s f o r e f f o r t s t o m i t i g a t e o r p re v e n t 

d i s e a s e s w it h e n v ir o n m e n ta l o r i g i n s .

R e s e a rc h i s ’ c o n d u c te d th ro u g h t h e N a t io n a l C a n cer 

I n s t i t u t e ($ 69.6 m i l l i o n ) , th e N a tio n a l I n s t i t u t e o f 

E n v ir o n m e n ta l H e a lt h S c i e n c e s ($ 3 1 .1 m i l l i o n ) , th e N a tio n a l 

I n s t i t u t e o f O c c u p a tio n a l S a f e t y an d H e a lt h ($ 2 .5 m illio n ) 

an d t h e Fo od and Dr ug A d m in s tr a tio n ($46 m i l l i o n ) .

155
199

R e s e a r c h c o n d u c te d under th e e n v ir o n m e n ta l c a r c i n o g e n e s is p ro gr am o f th e N a tio n a l C a n c e r I n s t i t u t e i s d i r e c t e d a t d i s c o v e r y an d ra n k in g o f th e c o n t r i b u t i o n o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l a g e n t s (m o s tly ch e m ic a l) to th e c a u s e s o f c a n c e r , b io a s s a y s on t h e c h e m ic a ls an d e p id e m io lo g ic a l s t u d i e s . Th e N a tio n a l I s t i t u t e o f E n v ir o n m e n ta l H e a lt h S c i e n c e s (NIEHS) l i n k s fu n d a m en ta l r e s e a r c h , b o th t h a t c o n d u c te d a t NIH and i n u n i v e r s i t i e s , w ith a p p lie d e n v ir o n m e n ta l p ro b le m s r e l a t e d t o a i r p o l l u t i o n , w a te r p o l l u t i o n , i n d u s t r i a l c h e m ic a ls an d p e s t i c i d e s . R e s e a rc h f o c u s e s on b io c h e m ic a l m ec ha ni sm s b y w h ic h e n v ir o n m e n ta l c h e m ic a ls a f f e c t p e o p le an d g a t h e r in g o f d a ta n e c e s s a r y to 

d e te r m in e d o s e -r e s p o n s e r e l a t i o n s h i p s .

The N a tio n a l I n s t i t u t e o f O c c u p a t io n a l S a f e t y and H e a lt h (NIOSH) a c t s a s t h e r e s e a r c h arm o f th e O c c u p a tio n a l S a f e t y an d H e a lt h A d m in is t r a t io n l o c a t e d in t h e Lab or D e p a rtm e n t. I t c o n d u c t s an d s u p p o r ts r e s e a r c h on b i o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s on p e o p le o f i n d u s t r i a l h a z a r d s to p r o v id e th e L ab or D ep artm en t w it h re co m m en d a ti o n s f o r 

s e t t i n g o f s t a n d a r d s .

The Food an d Dr ug A d m in is t r a t io n (FDA) c o n d u c ts r e s e a r c h t o d e v is e and im p ro v e c h e m ic a l an d in s t r u m e n t a l a n a l y t i c a l m eth o d s, b i o l o g i c a l a s s a y m eth o d s, m eth o d o lo gy t o d e t e c t h a za rd o u s o r p o t e n t i a l l y h a rm fu l b i o l o g i c a l p r o d u c t s , m i c r o b i o l o g i c a l t e s t i n g p r o c e d u r e s an d r a p id ­ s c r e e n i n g m et hod s t o d e t e c t an im al d ru g r e s i d u e s i n f o o d s . T o x i c o l o g i c a l r e v ie w s a r e made on f o o d s , c o l o r s an d an im al s e e d a d d i t i v e s , c h e m i c a ls , c o s m e t ic s and d r u g s . S t u d ie s a r e a l s o co n d u cte d on t h e b i o e f f e c t s o f l i g h t an d s o n ic 

r a d i a t i o n .

EPA/ORD p r o v id e s p a r t i a l s u p p o r t t o th e N a tio n a l C e n te r 

f o r T o x i c o l o g i c a l R e s e a r c h (NCTR) f o r r e s e a r c h on t h e lo n g ­ te rm e f f e c t s o f lo w l e v e l s o f c h e m ic a l t o x i c a n t s . ORD ha s d e v e lo p e d w o rk in g a g r e e m e n ts w it h DHEW (NIOSH , NTEHS) t o do h e a l t h e f f e c t s r e s e a r c h , e s p e c i a l l y f o r p o ll u t a n t s a s s o c i a t e d w it h i n c r e a s i n g e n e rg y p r o d u c tio n . In FY 19 76 , EPA w i l l t r a n s f e r $ 5 .5 m i l l i o n t o DHEW t o s t u d y human h e a l t h e f f e c t s o f a i r , w a te r and m u lt ir o u t e e x p o s u re t o p o l l u t a n t s a s s o c i a t e d w i t h e n e r g y d e v e lo p m e n t. DHEW w i l l a l s o d e v e lo p in s t r u m e n t a t io n and d e v i c e s f o r m ea su re m en t o f h a z a r d o u s a g e n ts a s s o c i a t e d w ith e n e rg y u s a g e in o c c u p a t i o n a l e n v ir o n m e n ts . EPA/ORD r e s e a r c h w it h e n v ir o n m e n ta l c a r c in o g e n s i s do ne in c o o p e r a t io n w ith DHEW. A l s o , in c o o p e r a t io n s w ith th e Com m un ic ab le D is e a s e C e n te r (C D C), ORD c o n d u c ts p o p u la t io n s t u d i e s f o r i n v e s t i g a t i n g t h e h e a l t h im p a c ts o f t o x i c m a t e r ia l e m it te d fr o m s m e lt e r s .

156
200

D e p a rtm e n t o f T r a n s p o r ta t io n (DOT)

R e s e a rc h by DOT in e n v ir o n m e n ts 1 p r o t e c t i o n r e l a t e d to 

t r a n s p o r t a t i o n w i l l t o t a l a p p r o x im a te ly $18 m i l l i o n i n FY 

19 76. T h e se p ro g ra m s in c l u d e i n v e s t i g a t i o n an d t e s t i n g o f 

w ay s to re d u c e n o is e an d d e c r e a s e a d v e r s e e f f e c t s o f n o is e 

a s s o c i a t e d w it h a i r c r a f t a n d s u r f a c e t r a n s p o r t a t i o n . N o is e 

p r e d i c t i o n and r e d u c tio n te c h n iq u e s d e v e lo p e d by DOT a r e 

u se d by l o c a l i t i e s an d i n d u s t r y .

O th e r w or k i s r e l a t e d t o d e v e lo p m e n t o f t e c h n i c a l t o o l s 

t o p la n f o r an d im p le m e n t e n v ir o n m e n ta l p r o t e c t i o n 

a s s o c i a t e d w ith t r a n s p o r t a t i o n s y s te m s and f a c i l i t i e s . 

T h is i n c l u d e s hig hw ays and a i r p o r t s o p e r a t i o n s , c o n t r o l l i n g 

s tr e a m s e d im e n ta tio n ( e r o s io n ) an d o i l s p i l l s a n d o th e r 

p o l l u t i o n a t s e a .

An a s s e s s m e n t o f p o s s i b l e c l i m a t i c c h a n g e s p ro d u c e d by 

d i s t u r b i n g th e u p p e r a tm o s p h e re by s t r a t o s p h e r i c a i r t r a v e l 

and o t h e r f l i g h t o p e r a t io n s w i l l be c o n tin u e d .

DOT i s s u p p o r te d by EPAZORD in th e R e g io n a l A ir 

P o l l u t i o n S tu d y in S t . L o u is an d j o i n t l y fu n d s a s tu d y o f 

h e a l t h c o s t s a s s o c i a t e d w ith a u to m o b i l e - r e l a t e d a i r 

p o l l u t i o n . ORD a l s o h a s a n in t e r a g e n c y a g re e m e n t w ith DOT, 

HUD, NS F, and CEQ t o e v a l u a t e c o s t s and e f f e c t s o f 

a l t e r n a t i v e p a t t e r n s o f m e t r o p o l it a n d e v e lo p m e n t.

D e p a rtm e n t o f H ousi ng a n d U rb an D evelo pm ent (HUD)

I n FY 1976, HUD w i l l c o n d u c t a b o u t $1 4 m i l l i o n o f 

r e s e a r c h an d d e v e lo p m e n t r e l a t e d to e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

p r o t e c t i o n .

HUD u t i l i t y s y s te m s r e s e a r c h i s c o n c e rn e d w it h 

e n c o u r a g in g th e d e v e lo p m e n t and u s e o f m or e e f f i c i e n t 

u t i l i t y s y s te m s , in c lu d in g w a s te m an ag em en t s y s te m s , t h a t 

c o n s e r v e n a t u r a l r e s o u r c e s an d p r o t e c t th e e n v ir o n m e n t.

EPA/ORD h a s an in t e r a g e n c y a g re e m e n t w it h HUD, DOT, NSF 

an d CEQ t o e v a lu a te t h e c o s t s an d e f f e c t s o f a l t e r n a t i v e 

p a t t e r n s o f m e tr o p o lita n d e v e lo p m e n t. E x p e c te d fu n d in g in 

FY 19 76 i s a b o u t $1 00 th o u s a n d .

Co u n c i l on E n v ir o n m e n ta l Q u a l i t y (CEQ)

R e s e a rc h u n d e rta k e n by CEQ r e f l e c t s i t s n a tu r e a s an 

a d v is o r y b o d y . Th e C o u n c il s t a f f s u p e r v is e s r e s e a r c h t h a t 

i s p la n n e d and fu n d ed i n c o n ju n c tio n w it h o t h e r f e d e r a l 

a g e n c i e s .

157
201

The C o u n c i l 's f i r s t o b l i g a t i o n i n e n v ir o n m e n ta l 

r e s e a r c h i s t o w e ig h i s s u e s and dr aw a t t e n t i o n t o t h o s e 

w h ic h m os t u r g e n t l y r e g u i r e im p ro ved k n o w le d g e t o make i n t e l l i g e n t d e c i s i o n s . Much o f C E Q 's r e s e a r c h i s o r ie n t e d 

to w a rd i s s u e s p e r c e i v e d a s h a v in g im m e d ia te im p o rta n ce 

w her e CEQ ca n b e s t e x e r c i s e a p o l i c y a d v i s o r y r o l e . A 

se co n d im p o rta n t d u ty i s t o i n s p i r e an d c o o r d in a t e 

e n v ir o n m e n ta l r e s e a r c h i n n e g le c t e d a r e a s .

Th e C o u n c i l 's r e s e a r c h e f f o r t s , b u d g e te d a t l e s s th a n 

$1 m i l l i o n f o r FY 19 7 6 , may be gro u p ed i n t o f o u r p r i n c i p a l 

c a t e g o r i e s - - e n e r g y , la n d u s e , p o l l u t i o n an d t r e n d s .

ORD w ork s w ith CEQ in th e f o llo w i n g a r e a s : e n e rg y R5D; 

s t u d y t o t e s t th e v a l i d i t y o f in d e x e s f o r w a te r q u a l i t y ; 

d e v e lo p m e n t o f an a i r q u a l i t y in d e x ; an d s t u d y t o e v a lu a t e 

c o s t s an d e f f e c t s o f a l t e r n a t i v e p a t t e r n s o f m e tr o p o lit a n 

d e v e lo p m e n t.

T e n n e s s e e Va l l e y A u t h o r i t y (TVA)

EPA/OPD p r o v id e s s u p p o r t to th e T e n n e s s e e V a ll e y 

A u t h o r it y (TVA) p r i m a r i l y f o r RDSD on r e l i a b i l i t y and 

e f f i c i e n c y o f s u l f u r - d i o x i d e c o n t r o l o p e r a t i o n s .

In a d d it io n t o t h e s u b s t a n t i a l f l u e g a s d e s u l f u r i z a t i o n 

t e s t pro gr am a t Sh aw n ee, w or k w it h TVA a l s o i n v o l v e s : (1) a s s e s s m e n t o f w a te r an d w a s te s tr e a m s fr om c o a l - f i r e d po wer 

p l a n t s , (2) a sh d i s p o s a l p ro b le m s, (3) c o a l - p i l e d r a in a g e 

p ro b le m s, (4) c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n o f a i r p o l l u t a n t s f o r t o x i c , c a r c i n o g e n i c an d m u ta g e n ic m a t e r i a l s , (5) th e rm a l p o ll u t i o n 

c o n t r o l by a p p l i c a t i o n an d e v a lu a t i o n o f w et an d d ry 

c o o l i n q to w e r t e c h n o lo g y , an d (6) e co n o m ic m o d eli n g t o a s s e s s an a r e a 's s e n s i t i v i t y t o v a r io u s n a t i o n a l p a ra m e te rs 

an d t o e v a lu a t e t h e im p a ct o f e x p a n d in g e n e r g y - g e n e r a t in g 

s y s te m s on p o p u la t i o n , l a b o r f o r c e , em plo ym en t, e t c .

In FY 19 7 6 , EPA w i l l t r a n s f e r $ 1 .5 m i l l i o n t o th e TVA 

t o s tu d y e f f e c t s o f e n e r g y - r e l a t e d a tm o s p h e r ic p o l l u t a n t s 

on t e r r e s t r i a l e c o s y s t e m s , p r i m a r i l y i n t h e S o u th e a s te r n 

U .S . an d to s t u d y e f f e c t s o f w a te r b o rn e p o l l u t a n t s fro m 

s t e a m - e l e c t r i c pow er g e n e r a t i o n .

158
202

TECHNICA L REPORT DATA

(Please rea d In stru ctions on th e reve rse befo re completing!

i MEPORT NC. 3. REC IPIE NT S ACCE SS IO N NO

4. TIT LE AND SU BTIT LE

Environmental Research Outlook

FY 1976 through 1980

S. REPO RT DAT E

February 1976

6. PERFORM IN G O R G A N IZ A T IO N CODE

7 AUTHORIS I 8. PERFORM IN G O R G A N IZ A T IO N RE PO RT NO.

9 PE RFO RM IN G O R G A N IZ A TIO N NA ME AND AD DR ES S

U.S. Environmental Pro tection Agency

Office of Research and Development

Washington, D.C. 20460

10. PR OG RA M ELEMENT NO.

11. CONTRACT/G R A N T NO.

12. SP ON SO RING AGENCY NA ME AND AD DR ES S

Same

13. TY PE OF RE PO RT A ND PERIO D CO VE RE D

Report to Conqress

14. SP ON SO RING AGEN CY CODE

EPA-ORD

15. SUPPLEM ENTARY NO TE S

16. AB ST RAC T ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This rep ort represents the f ir s t attempt by the Office of Research and 

Development (ORD) to present a 5-Year overview of ORD's research program, 

p rio rit ie s and trends. The rep ort w il l be updated annually. This overview is 

broken in to ORD's five major programs which are: Health and Eco logical Effect ; 

In dustria l Processes; Public Service A c ti v it ie s ; Monitoring and Technical Support; 

and Energy/Environment. ORD's working agreements with oth er Federal Agencies 

are also b rie fl y described. In the near-term ORD has given p rio rit y to 

strengthening the Health and Eco logical Effects Program. Another p rio rit y area is 

the In dustria l Processes Program where pollu tion control technology R&D is needed 

i f the 1985 Water qualit y goals are to be more clo sely met. Emphasis w il l also 

be placed on mon itoring and qualit y assurance R&D which support Agency reg ula tory 

actions.

17. KEY WOR DS A N D DOCUMENT ANALYSIS

•- DESCRIPTOR S b.lD EN TIF IE R S/O PEN ENDED TE RMS c. COS ATi Field /Group

Proje ct Planning; Water Pollu tio n,

Air Pollu tion; Wastes; Pe sticides;

Water Supply; Pub lic Health

Research Planning 

Environmental Research 

Health Effects

Eco logical Effects 

Pollutio n Control Tech. 

Environmental Processes 

Po llu tio n Mon itorinq

13 B

18. D IS TR IB U TIO N STATEM ENT

RELEASE TO PUBLIC

19 SECURIT Y CLASS (T hi s R eport !

Unclassified

21 . NO. OF PAGES

20 SE CURIT Y CLASS (T hi s p ag e/

LlnfJass.tf.ifji

22 PRICE

EPA Form 2220-1 (»-73)

159
APP EN DIX B

A REVIEW O F TH E U.S. ENV IRONMENT AL PRO TEC TIO N 

AGENCY ENV IRONMENT AL RESEARCH OUT LOO K: 

FISCA L YEA RS 1976-80

A Review of the

U.S. Env ironmental Protection Ag ency

Env ironmental Res earch Outlook

IY l976 th ro ug hl98 0

Au gust 1976

United States Congress

Office of Technology Asses sment

(20 5)
206

Executive Summary

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in presenting to Congress for 

the first time a 5-Year Plan for Environmental Research and Development activities, has taken an important step toward expanding the public dialog necessary to identify and establish national environmental goals. Shortcomings in the 

initial EPA R&D Plan serve notice of potential issues which must be resolved if 

EPA is to continue to effectively and authoritatively perform its mission of protecting environmental quality for both present and future generations. Foremost 

among the shortcomings in the R&D Plan is EPA's failure to indicate a commitment to long-range research and, as a corollary, an excessive focus on short-term 

R&D issues related directly to the enforcement and/or achievement of EPA's curlent regulations. Accordingly, the Plan emphasizes the development and 

demonstration of control technologies. In many cases, however, the larger 

problems involve social, economic, and institutional patterns which not only impede technical solutions but which require nontechnical approaches. To develop 

effective overall environmental management strategies will require more 

systematic and sustained socioeconomic research efforts than those specified in 

the Plan. An added R&D emphasis on long-range environmental concerns and a 

more responsive role to its line responsibility as coordinator of Federal environmental R&D would do much to enhance EPA's effectiveness and credibility.

In February 1976, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) presented a 158-page 

document to Congress setting forth its plans 

for research and development over the next 5 

years. The Plan, proposing a comprehensive 

5-year environmental research agenda for 

congressional review, provides a unique op ­

portunity to develop a dialog between Congress and EPA that goes beyond the usual con ­

siderations of plans and programs for the up ­

coming fiscal year. Congressional interest in 

forward research planning by EPA, including 

the request for this OTA analysis, is an indication of the increasing importance to the 

legislative process of Federal endeavors in en ­

vironmental research and development.

The desire on the part of the Congress to 

ask questions and seek better answers, on 

which judgments can be based, has led to 

these inquiries:

• Is the Plan realistic and well-conceived 

and can EPA carry it out?

. Does it present a well-balanced program 

that will permit the Agency to meet 

legislative goals of envir on me ntal 

quality?

• Will it lead to the scientific data necessary 

to support sound national policy?

• Does it provide mechanisms to integrate 

Federal environmental research and 

development programs?
207

Wh en CPfl W«s created in Decem ber 1 970, 

the re were 40 orga nizationally sep ara te and 

diverse laboratories that had to be inte grated 

into a unified research and dev elopment 

prog ram. Considerable prog ress has been 

made in this difficult task of integratin g disparate organization s and div erse skills to meet 

EPA's complex and demanding research and 

regu latory res ponsi bilities. These re sp onsibilities are ma ndated by nine m ajor env iro nmental statutes as well as directives in rep orts 

accompanying congressional approp ria tio ns 

for EPA.

The Principal Finding

The EPA 5-Year Plan does not indicate a 

clearly defined commitment to long-rang e e nvironm ental research. Where the Plan does 

address long-rang e activities, it discusses the 

develop men t of techniques rathe r th an considering which long-rang e issues are im po rtant. Yet, such broad long-range con cerns 

must be at the heart of an effective en viro nmental research planning process. Examples 

of th e questions that should be add ressed are:

. Can control technologies reduce po llu ­

tion fast enough to keep pace with 

economic gro wth?

. Can major shifts in economic activities, 

such as new industries, be made c om patible with e nvironmental qua lity?

. What balance shou ld be struck between 

research on pollutants affecting people 

today and those that could affect future 

gen eration s—through genetic mu tation s 

or gradual changes in the en vir onme nt?

This absence of specific long range issu es to 

guide the research planned by the Office of 

Research and Development (ORD) will be frequently referred to in the chapters t hat follow.

ORD's focus on the sho rt-t erm prev ents it 

from exercising national scientific lea der ship 

in environ mental research. The short-t erm 

emphasis also makes it difficult for ORD to 

conduct useful policy analyses addre ssing 

long-ra nge environmental concerns.

In addition to supportin g EPA's short-term 

regu latory needs, the absence of long -range 

environ mental research com mitments may 

well be caused by factors not und er ORD or 

EPA control. How ORD is constrained by factors such as the follo wing requires explo ration:

. Research serves a support function in 

EPA;

. Environmental concern s appear to be increasingly tem pered and modified by 

concerns over en ergy an d the economy;

. EPA's research resources are dim ini shing; and

. Civil Service Co mmi ssion co nstra ints 

make it difficult to alte r the mix of skills 

of the professional staff to match emerging issues.

General Appraisal of the Plan

With the exception of plans for energy-enviro nmental research, the ORD Plan fails to 

recognize the fu nction of EPA in co ordinating 

Federal environm ental programs. At present, 

there app ears to be n o coh erent integration of 

Federal env ironm ent al research prog rams. 

Because of EPA's line resp onsibility in setting 

and enforcing sta ndard s, ORD is the logical 

leader in determin ing the goals and prio rities 

of en viro nm en tal res earch cond ucted by 

Federal agencies. ORD's scientific resources 

mu st prov ide a stro ng basis for EPA's 

regu latory function. ORD 's research prog ram 

is properly responsive to EPA's regulatory 

needs; however, it ought not be unduly 

limited by sho rt-term regulatory con siderations.

The document pre par ed by EPA lacks the 

essential characte ristics of a plan. It does not 

clearly delineate pro gra m prio rities nor does 

it relate priorities to overall prog ram goals. 

The plan ni ng proc ess is vag ue and no 

guidelines are offered for fu ture updates of the 

Plan. It is difficult to discern a rationale for the 

strategic thrusts sugg ested in the budget. For 

example, the Plan offers no basis for the d om inant expen diture on dev eloping control technology over the 5-year period.

2
208

Executive Summary

Co ntrol and Abatement Te ch no logy 

Research

EPA's efforts in the development of control 

and abatement technologies appear to favor 

dem ons trat ion over exploratory research 

projects. EPA's efforts in this area need to be 

planned with due regard for the Energy 

Research and Development Administration's 

(ERDA) specific mandate to develop en vironmentally sound energy technologies and for 

the efforts of private companies with the 

capability and economic incentive to continue 

control technology development. To the extent that EPA is both regulator and developer, 

it could be put in the position of promoting its 

own technology.

The EPA Research Plan fails to address the 

tasks of identifying and controlling pollution 

from new industrial technologies or from 

changes in raw material usages, new requirements in industrial energy or large-scale use 

of waste, biomass, solar and geothermal 

energy sources. Research into the economic 

and institutional problems of operating complex secondary and tertiary wastewater treatment plants requires more attention than is 

given in the EPA Plan.

Transport, Fate, and Monitoring Research

Much of the work planned in researching 

the transport, fate, and monitoring of pollutants seems fragmented. Research into the 

complex of processes that link emissions from 

a source and their effect on the biosphere has 

not been assigned a high enough priority to 

support the scientific basis of the regulatory 

process. The ORD Plan does not offer a 

program to develop a centrally coordinated 

and technically strong monitoring capability 

to unify the fragmented responsibilities that 

now exist in ORD. Nor does it reveal an adequate screening program to detect toxic 

materials; it is the absence of such a capability

that has contributed to the current "pollutant 

of the month" syndrome.

Although analyses of global processes of 

chemical transport and transformation of 

pollutants may seem to have little apparent 

relevance to the Agency's immediate regulatory needs, EPA should insure that no gaps 

exist in data about atmospheric and oceanic 

processes of transport of pollutants through 

the biosphere. Moreover, it would be useful to 

undertake studies and to develop a taxonomy 

of ecosystems not covered by generalized 

ORD studies. Such long-range studies may 

lead to regulations which reflect regional 

variations in environmental sensitivity.

Health and Ecological Effects Research

Long-term studies into the health effects of 

chronic, low-level exposure to pollutants are 

needed to strengthen the basis for standards. 

Because of the present commitment of EPA to 

respond to near-term exigencies, it has not 

been able to develop a strong long-term health 

research capability. Nonetheless, it is within 

the scope of ORD's research program to 

develop a system for discovering previously 

undetected pollutants in the environment and 

assessing their relative potential for harm.

The ORD 5-Year Plan does not describe 

how health research will be coordinated or 

how results will be shared with other Federal 

agencies.

Because some contractor and university 

research groups depend on EPA for continued 

financial support, there is a danger that EPA's 

declared regulatory policies may affect the objectivity of contractor scientists.

Although EPA is mandated to perform and 

coordinate research on noise, such research is 

not discussed in the Plan. The ORD Plan 

makes only a brief reference to indoor air 

quality and neglects consideration of environmental management techniques for its improvement.
209

Socioeconomic Sesearch

Despite repeated references to soc ioeconomic research in the Plan, neither the 

document itself nor interviews with ORD 

officials indicate that there will be a systematic 

and sustained research effort in this area. 

ORD places the highest priority on techno logica l so lu tion s to en vir onm enta l 

problems, although in many cases the most 

important and difficult problems are institutional—namely, the implementation and enforcement of environmental st. nd. 1 : • ctive strategies of environmental management, 

combining both technological and nontechnical approaches, require greater contributions 

from socioeconomic research than appear in 

the Plan. Attention is lacking in the Research 

Plan to the development and application of 

socioeconomic research methods responsive 

to these needs. The organizational structure 

and commitment of resources suggested in the 

Plan to develop and use socioeconomic 

research methods appear inadequate.
210

Stateme nt of Dr. J ohn M. Neu ho ld, Director, Ecology Cen ter, Uta h State

Unive rsity

This statem ent represents my personal views based on services as a scientist 

and pra ctitioner on the environmental science during my professional career. 

“Choosing Our Environm ent: Can We Anticipate the Futur e?” is a concern of 

any of us who care about our environmental quality not only as changes in it will 

affect our near future but also concern for the effect those changes will have on 

our futur e generations.

During the past decade the Congress has enacted a variety of laws which in 

the ir sum are designed to regulate environm ental quality. These laws resulted in 

the implementation of our environm enta l conscience and have had the effect of 

setting the stage for an ordered regulation of the quality of w ater, air and most 

recently, the land itself. The burden of implementing these laws was, to a large 

extent, placed on the Environmental Protectio n Agency which itself was coalesced 

out of an agglom eration of various agencies with separate authorities. Considering the organization and reorganiza tion problems faced by the new’ agency, EI’A 

has done remarkably well in esta blishing a regulatory mechanism and “catching 

up” with the environmental crises at hand. New problems and new crises seem 

to appear on the scene even more quickly than old ones are resolved, however, 

and thi s fac t has left the agency’s activities in a largely reactiv e frame of 

reference.

Regulatory decision making and adversary activities both require strong factua l su pp or t; of itself a sufficient reaso n for EPA to maintain a viable research 

effort.

Since EPA is the agency with the responsibility for making regulatory environmental decisions (the setting of air qua lity standard s, emission standa rds, water 

quality stan dards, etc.) and pressing violations in the courts, the tyj>e of research 

which lends greates t support is th at which synthesizes factual da ta and interprets the synthesis in terms of effects on human health, ecosystems, organisms, 

and structural objects. In other words, it is the type of research activity which 

can provide answers (however crude) over the time period requ ired for an immediate decision to be made. This time period is most often a relatively short 

one in which the research effort is largely constrained to a scientific and technical assessment and analysis of da ta alre ady available or that which can be 

gene rated over the sh orter tim e frame.

A second type of research which also lends suppo rt to the decision making 

process is th at which has antic ipation as its purpose. This research can be viewed 

from two perspectives: (1) resea rch in are as of anticipated problems with e xisting or yet to be produced polluta nts or classes of pollutan ts (what their sources 

are. what their fates are likely to be and what effect they are likely to have on 

humans, oth er organisms, ecosystems and structur al objects) ; and (2) research 

into are as of alte rnatives (wh at the impact of a decision in view’ of alternatives 

might be on society, institutions, the economic system, health, etc.).

The first perspective is involved with questions occurring over the shorter time 

frame, one to five years, or essentially the institutional planning time frame. It 

is the perspective to which the in-house and extra mural empirical and experimental researc h must be tied.

The second perspective is long term oriented and is concerned with long term 

fut ure altern atives or what might be refe rred to as policy resea rch, the type of 

resea rch upon which long term policy decisions are made. These policy issues 

are expansive in their impact on our society and go far beyond simple environmental consideration but must bring into perspective the economy, the institutions which serve us, and societal attitudes.

A third area of research is th at of advancing fundame ntal understanding. 

It is the activity which banks our knowledge and w’hich ultimately provides the 

basis for sound research application, technological advancement and environmental management, by refining our predictive capacity.

None of these three purposes for doing environmental research is mutually 

exclusive. Research which supports the immediate needs of environmental decision making can often offer insig hts to anticipatory questions or to fundamental 

understanding. The reverse is also true but to a lesser extent.

EPA has done scientific and techn ical analyses and assessments usually in 

the form of STAR reports and on an ad hoc basis. This are a of activity is 

sufficiently important to EPA to warrant a formal orga nizational emphasis.. A 

solid group of scientists and technologists should be organized within EPA with
211

th eir sole ta sk be ing th a t of do ing an al ys es an d as se ss m en ts of pr ob le m s po se d 

to the m by th e de cision mak ers. No t only ca n su ch a grou p pr ov ide answ er s 

ba sed on ex is ting in fo rm ati on ra pi dly, hut it ca n al so id en tify ga ps i n kn ow ledg e 

wh ich could serv e to gu id e rese ar ch plan ni ng . Pro bl em as se ss m en t (w h at fu tu re 

pol lu ta nt s an d en vir on m en ta l prob lems mig ht be de ve lopi ng ) ca n also be ta ck le d 

by such a grou p w ith th e ir fin din gs also se rv in g to dir ect th e in-hou se and e x tr a 

m ur al rese ar ch effo rts .

A grou p lik e th is wou ld re qu ire a br oa d sp ec trum of pr of es sion al ta le n t ra n g ­

ing thro ug h th e ph ys ic al , ch em ical, an d biolog ica l scienc es an d also in cl ud in g 

engine ering, econom ics an d th e socia l sci ences. I t sh ou ld m ai nta in a close liai so n 

w ith th e decis ion m akers pr ov id in g them w ith as se ss m en ts of alt ern ati ves in 

a form an d fo rm at us ab le by th e decis ion m ak er s. I t sh ou ld als o re m ai n clo sely 

lin ke d to th e ongo ing in-h ou se an d ex tr a m ura l re se ar ch pr og ra m fo r re se ar ch 

in fo rm at io n in put an d fo r feed ba ck on re se ar ch ga ps re la tive to pe nd in g 

pro ble ms.

Sc ien tific an d T ec hn ic al Ana ly sis an d Asses sm en t acti vit y ne ed s as th is wou ld 

work w ith im m ed ia te que st io ns but wo uld also se rv e to antici pat e pr ob lems 

w ith in th e five yea r pla nnin g fr am ew or k.

Pla nn in g or anti cip ati ng fo r our lon g te rm fu tu re , five yea rs an d beyo nd , 

wo uld re qu ire a mu ch dif fe re nt kind of an effo rt. Si nc e our co nc erns w ith lon g 

te rm en vi ro nm en ta l fu tu re s invo lve br oa d policy im pl ic at io ns wh ich tr an sc en d 

al l of th e ex ec ut ive depar tm en ts , th e ty pe of wor k re qu ir ed ca nn ot ea sily be 

ve sted in a sing le dep art m ent. It m ig ht be pru dent to su pp or t su ch as ef fo rt 

in an extr a go ve rn m en ta l in sti tu te such as Res ou rces fo r th e Futu re , th e Brook ­

ings In st it u te or Th e In sti tu te of Eco logy. Long te rm pr oj ec tions on th e influ ence 

of po pu latio n ch an ge an d sh if ts , clim at e ch an ge s, de ve lopm en t of new in dust ri es 

on en vi ro nm en ta l qual it y sh ou ld be th e su bj ec ts fo r co ns id er at io n. Ann ua l re port s 

to th e Co ng res s an d th e Exec ut iv e as we ll as sp ec ia l re port s on antici pat ed 

prob lem ar ea s wo uld be th e ve hic le fo r in fo rm at io n flow.

W ith thes e re co m m en da tion s fo r gre ate r or ga ni ze d ef fo rts in th e anti ci pat ory 

are as I do no t wi sh to in fe r th a t fu nda m en ta l an d lon g te rm rese ar ch sh ou ld he 

plac ed in an y se co nd ar y po sitio n. In de ed to be m or e ex pl ic itly pr ed ic tive we 

will be requ ired to su ppor t bo th fu nda m en ta l an d lon g te rm eff orts. Sup po rt of 

fu nd am en ta l re se ar ch p art ic u la rl y on en vi ro nm en ta l an d ecolo gic al sy stem s is 

m an da to ry if we ar e ev er to re ac h a level which will allo w us to pre dic t w ith a 

de gr ee of ce rt ain ty a bo ve th e le ve l o f a guess.

Ma ny of th e ph en om en a ch ara cte ri st ic of en vir onm en ta l sy stem s are “lo ng 

te rm ” ph enom ena ra ng in g ove r te ns o f y ea rs. A d el et er io us eff ect on an ecosyste m, 

fo r ex am ple, ma y no t be fe lt fo r seve ral years a ft e r th e o ns et of a co nta m in an t at 

which tim e it mig ht be to o la te to ta ke co rr ec tive m ea su re . We m us t he in a 

po sitio n to pr ed ic t co ns eq ue nc es o f co nt am in at io n ea rly en ou gh to b e in a po sitio n 

to co rrec t. Long te rm ec os ys tem mon ito ring ca n pr ov id e us w ith an sw er s wh ich 

we m us t now infer. In ad ditio n, th is e ffor t ca n pr ov id e us w ith tr en d in fo rm at io n 

th a t ca n serv e th e anti cip ato ry pu rpos e ve ry well.

o


■