From 1988 to 2006, investigators at TIEHH participated in the NIEHS/EPA Superfund Basic Research Program. The focus of our research was the improvement of methods used in wildlife health assessments on chemically contaminated sites. The program sponsored nearly 20 students in their graduate education and led to numerous collaborative projects such as those at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal and the Anaconda Smelter Site. Applications of program research can be seen in the Porphyrin, Phytoremediation and Spectacled Eider pages elsewhere on this research section.
Program Background
The Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA) of 1986 established a university-based program of basic research within the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), an institute of the National Institutes of Health. The Program, created and administered by NIEHS, receives funding from U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) through an interagency agreement using Superfund Trust monies.
Research efforts undertaken by this Program complement existing activities within the U.S. EPA and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. The NIEHS/EPA Superfund Basic Research Program provides funding to 18 programs at 70 universities and institutions around the United States to study the human health effects of hazardous substances in the environment, especially those found at uncontrolled, leaking waste disposal sites.
The Program's primary objectives are to expand the base of scientific knowledge, reduce the amount and toxicity of hazardous substances, and ultimately, prevent adverse human health effects. The SARA legislation mandates that the research funded by this Program should include development of
(a) methods and technologies to detect hazardous substances in the environment;
(b) advanced techniques for the detection, assessment, and evaluation of the effects on human health of hazardous substances;
(c) methods to assess the risks to human health presented by hazardous substances; and
(d) basic biological, chemical, and physical methods to reduce the amount and toxicity of hazardous substances.