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Introduction
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) invites
research grant applications in four areas of special interest to
its mission:
• Human health risk assessment
• Indoor air quality in large office buildings
• Air pollutants (paniculate matter, tropospheric ozone,
and toxics)
• Regional hydrologic vulnerability to global climate change
This invitation provides relevant background information,
summarizes EPA interests in the four topic areas, and de-
scribes the application and review process.
Background
EPA has increased funding for its investigator-initiated re-
search grants in fiscal year 1995. EPA therefore is issuing two
additional Requests for Applications (RFAs), of which this is
one. The other is a joint solicitation with the National Science
Foundation (NSF) that identifies three areas of interest to both
agencies—water and watersheds; valuation and environmen-
tal policy; and technology for a sustainable environment
(pollution prevention).
Information on the NSF/EPA solicitation can be obtained by
contacting Dr. Penny Firth at NSF, (703) 306-1480, or Dr.
Melinda McClanahan at EPA, (202) 260-7474.
EPA Mission and R&D Strategy
The mission of EPA—and its unique role—are the joint
protection of environmental quality and human health through
effective regulations and other policy decisions. Achievement
of this mission requires the application of sound science to the
assessment of environmental problems and evaluation of so-
lutions. Moreover, a significant challenge is to support long-
term research that anticipates future environmental problems
and strives to fill significant gaps in knowledge relevant to
meeting regulatory goals. This Request for Applications and
the joint EPA/NSF solicitation are important steps toward
ensuring that EPA is positioned to provide national leadership
as the country enters a new generation of environmental
protection.
EPA recently reorganized its research programs to focus on
major areas of uncertainty associated with assessment and
reduction of risks to human health and ecosystems. Through
its laboratories and through grants to universities and other
not-for-profit institutions, EPA will conduct and support re-
search in the subject matter areas where regulatory officials
face the most significant gaps in knowledge about environ-
mental risks. Because risk is a function of both hazard and
exposure, EPA will promote research in both domains—
according highest priority to those areas where risk assessors
are most in need of new concepts, data, and methods. At the
same time, EPA will foster the development and evaluation of
new risk reduction technologies across a spectrum, from
pollution prevention through end-of-pipe controls, to reme-
diation and monitoring.
Research Topics of Interest
1. Human Health Risk Assessment
As described in the recent NRC report entitled "Science and
Judgement in Risk Assessment," EPA uses health risk assess-
ments to establish exposure limits and set priorities for regula-
tory activities. However, EPA. is hampered by gaps in meth-
ods, models, and data needed to support risk assessments. In
many cases default assumptions are used to extrapolate from
animals to humans, from high to low doses, from acute to
chronic exposures, and from lowest effect levels to no-effect
levels.
One of EPA's Office of Research and Development's major
research goals is to reduce reliance on such assumptions. For
example, EPA needs biologically and physiologically based
predictive models that will provide new concepts, data, and
methods that can replace default assumptions.
Research is needed on the following areas:
• Methods for estimating dose from cumulative human
exposure (e.g., via air, water, soil, and food) to significant
and persistent environmental contaminants. This research
is intended to support evaluation of cumulative exposure
and dose apportionment and to demonstrate the applica-
tion of the methods developed to estimate human health
risks. i
• Principles governing age-dependent responses to envi-
ronmental contaminates and to improve capabilities for
animal-to-human extrapolation of health risks. Neurotox-
icity is a priority response to be evaluated, but other end
points will be considered.
• Quantitative toxicokinetic and toxicodynamic interac-
tions among chemicals in environmental mixtures of
members of chemical classes that are significant environ-
mental contaminants (e.g., PAHs, halogenated solvents,
metals, chlorinated dioxins and furans, PCBs, and pesti-
cides).
• Toxicological interactions such as additivity, synergism,
and antagonism in such mixtures. To improve the ability
to estimate risks from, environmental exposures, a prior-
ity is research that is focused on realistic exposures to
environmental contaminants.
• Methods for quantifying noncancer risks, such as repro-
ductive or developmental disorders. Of special interest
are methods that are based on validated correlations
between biochemical or physiological markers and clini-
cal end points, i
• Inter-individual and intra-individual variability in factors
that affect susceptibility to toxicity from environmental
contaminants. Further, research is needed to elucidate
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relationships between such variability and'disease out-
come. ...
• Human and animal reproductive processes vulnerable to
environmental contamination. This research is needed to
identify keystone or sentinel species whose reproduction
can be monitored to signal potential risk to other species,
including humans.
• Major uncertainties in risk assessment for microbial patho-
gens in surface and drinking waters. For example, critical
gaps in knowledge exist with respect to occurrence and
levels of microbial waterbome pathogens, infectious dose,
survival in the environment, and susceptibility to treat-
ment processes. ;
• Other research areas as defined by proposers that contrib-
ute to the overall goals of this research topic.
Approximately $3.0 million will-Be available from fiscal year
1995 funds. A typical project will be supported for a period of
up to 3 years at $150,000 per year.
2. Indoor Air Quality in Large Office
Buildings
The 1986 Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act
(SARA) Title IV directs EPA to conduct and support research
on indoor air quality. An important aspect of this research is
improving the scientific understanding of, and reducing the
uncertainties surrounding, the relationships among indoor air
quality, human exposures, and large building design and
operation.
Of interest are cross-sectional arid/or longitudinal studies of
large office buildings in relatively large geographical regions
across the U.S. that characterize the relationships among the
following: '
• the physical, mechanical and environmental factors that
influence indoor air quality;
• relevant human exposures to aerosols, microorganisms,
volatile organic compounds, and other parameters such
as air exchange rate and pesticides;
* the pathways through which these exposures occur;
• occupant perceptions of indoor air quality and occupant
productivity;
• the extent to which human activity patterns, building
system operating practices or design, and indoor or out-
door air quality affect these exposures; and
• other research areas as defined by proposers that contrib-
ute to the Overall goals of this research topic.
To provide high quality data necessary for intra- and inter-
building comparisons, minimum data requirements and ana-
lytical protocols must be the same or- equivalent to those
recommended in the following two documents: "A Standard-
ized EPA Protocol for Characterizing Indoor Air Quality in
Large Office Buildings," (6/1/94) and "The United States
Environmental Protection Agency's Large Building Studies
Quality Assurance Overview Document*" (11/1/94). Copies
of these two documents can be obtained by contacting Ross
Highsmith at (919) 541-3121, or pahl.dale@epamail.epa.gov.
Approximately $1.5 million will be available from fiscal year
1995 funds. A typical project will be supported for a period of
up to 3 years at $150,000 per year.
3. Air Pollutants (Paniculate Matter,
Tropospheric Ozone, and Toxics)
Certain widespread (criteria) air pollutants, such as ozone and
paniculate matter (PM), continue to pose serious public health
risks for susceptible members of the U.S. population or risks
to sensitive ecosystems. The Clean Air Act requires that EPA
establish and periodically review and revise, as appropriate,
criteria and National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS)
for such pollutants. The Act also requires State Implementa-
tion Plans (SIPs) to be prepared, which describe control
strategies that states and local authorities will employ to bring
nonattainment areas into compliance with the NAAQS.
The EPA is seeking investigator-initiated grant proposals
aimed at generating new knowledge to
• improve the scientific basis for future reassessment of the
PM NAAQS;
• reduce uncertainties in SIP modeling projections for tro-
pospheric ozone and measurement of the effectiveness of
SIPs in meeting the ozone NAAQS;
• increase the understanding of transport and deposition of
volatile and semivolatile toxic pollutants, and the ulti-
mate exposure of humans and ecosystems to them; and
• other research areas as defined by proposers that contrib-
ute to the overall goals of this research topic.
Of particular interest in relation to the first area are projects
that will provide information useful in resolving controversies
regarding epidemiologic analyses that suggest associations
between increased mortality and morbidity, and paniculate
matter concentrations markedly below the current paniculate
matter NAAQS, including
• improving quantitative estimates of paniculate matter
exposure;
• employing epidemiologic analyses that more directly es-
• timate potential effects; and
• evaluating potential confounding variables (e.g., weather).
Possible approaches may involve, but are not restricted to,
alternative biostatistical models, coupling existing or refined
epidemiologic analyses to improved exposure data, case-
control of cross-sectional studies of mortality, indices of
morbidity, and/or bidmarkers of effects. The relative roles of
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fine versus coarse particles and of chemical composition are
of particular interest.
Of interest in the second area is fundamental research in the
atmospheric, chemistry, modeling, emissions, and ambient
measurement of tropospheric ozone contributing to strength-
ened control strategy development and improved assessment
of SIP effectiveness, including the following:
• kinetic and mechanistic studies of gas-phase reactions
involving aromatic volatile organic compounds (VOCs),
biogenic VOCs, long-chain alkenes and alkanes that par-
ticipate in ambient photochemistry, and studies on the
link between ozone and heterogeneous or aqueous-phase
reactions;
• studies to explore boundary layer turbulence and mixing
and their interaction with atmospheric chemistry and
studies of quantitative techniques for assessing the errors
or uncertainties inherent in concentration estimates from
ozone air quality modeling systems;
• studies of large-scale fluxes of biogenic emissions of
VOCs and NOx for different landscapes;
• studies that may lead to new techniques for ambient
measurement, on short time scales, of chemically signify
cant trace gases participating in the photochemistry of
ozone; and
• both in-situ and remotely sensed studies of innovative
methods, for using ambient concentration and meteoro-
logical measurements in assessing the potential ozone
response to local changes in precursor emissions/concen-
trations.
Of interest in the third area are projects that address com-
pounds, including aerosols, semivolatile pollutants, and/or
trace metals that travel through the air pathway, especially
those that are persistent, mobile, or bioaccumulative. Also of
interest are projects that investigate major uncertainties in
• transport and atmospheric phase equilibria;
• composition versus particle size;
• deposition to surfaces;
• food chain uptake from atmospheric deposition; and/or
• dermal exposure from atmospheric deposition.
Projects are encouraged that result in new or improved data-
bases, algorithms, models, or modules for preexisting models
that can be used by the scientific community in the analysis of
transport and fate of air toxics; the quantification of air and
air-deposition pathways; and the assessment of risks for air
toxics.
Approximately $2.5 million will be available Jroni fiscal ygar;
1995 funds. A typical project will be supported for a period of
up to 3 years at $150,000 per year. • > ?> ; , • ;
4. Regional Hydrologic Vulnerability to
Global Climate Change
Vulnerability research is a major responsibility of EPA's,
Global Climate Change Research Program. Understanding,,
regional vulnerability to climate change is critically depen-
dent on understanding how projected widespread climate
change affects the hydrologic watershed at scales where water;
resources and related ecologic, economic, and sociopolitical
impacts are manifested. To make informed decisions concern-
ing the risks of global change, the public and policymakers
need a better understanding of the hydrologic vulnerabilities
of regional systems. This, in turn, requires improved method-
ologies that identify and quantify physical and economic
regional vulnerabilities to competing hydrologic demands
under current climate patterns and under projected climate-
change scenarios. , .•-• -,.".>.'">•.••_'-•••"»':''•'
Attempts to quantify these types of vulnerabilities have been
hampered by the absence of techniques for performing re-:
gional analyses using projected climate change. These re-
gional analyses should include both direct hydrologic re^
sponse (e.g.i soil moisture, streamflpw, stream temperature)
and secondary impacts on regional ecology and economics.™
Major sources of uncertainty in conducting regional hydros
logic analyses are the sensitivities: of regional hydrologic
systems to changing climate* and future demands !for waters
Accordingly, as part of EPA's interest in watershed research,
this solicitation invites proposals that address;climate change
aspects of watershed hydrology in the following areas: ,
• Translation of climatic information into water availabil-
ity (e.g., soil moisture and streamflow) and other ecologic
variables as required by water resource and, natural re-.
source modelers. j .:- • / -;.• --:.-.;•.--. ..-•' ;- : .;..;,:
• Linkage of water availability with water and:.natural
resource response prediction. .. • •• • :. '.:•-•:, •'
• Linkage with economic activities in various sectors (e.g.,
agriculture and forestry) competing for the water re-
sources, and associated feedbacks.
• Other research areas as defined by proposers that contrib-
ute to the overall goals of this research topic. .
This solicitation seeks proposals that may include a range of-
innovative research approaches, from modeling to data analy-
sis and observational and experimental approaches, singly or
in combination. Proposals are encouraged without regard to
specific location of any proposed hydrologic regional setting r
but should reflect the goal to reduce uncertainties in water-
shed hydrology as influenced by concerns about vulnerabili--
ties to climate change. .. - > ' % •; -'"r.-y.-:,
Approximately $1.0 million will be available from fiscal year
1995 funds. A typical project will be supported for a period of
up to 3 years at-$150,000 peryear. - ;; •":
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The Application
Proposed projects must be research-designed to advance the
state of knowledge in the indicated areas of environmental
science and technology. Applications will not be accepted for
routine monitoring, state-of-the-art or market surveys, litera-
ture reviews, development or commercialization of proven
concepts, or for the preparation of materials and documents,
including process designs or instruction manuals.
Application forms and instructions are available in the EPA
Research Grants Application Kit. Interested investigators
should review the materials in this kit before preparing an
application for assistance. The kits can be obtained at the
following address:
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Research and Development
Office of Exploratory Research (8703)
401 M Street, SW
Washington DC 20460
(202) 260-7474
Each application for assistance must consist of the Applica-
tion for Federal Assistance Forms (Standard Forms — SF 424
and 424 A), separate sheets that provide the budget breakdown
for each year of the project, the resumes for the principal
investigator and co-workers, the abstract of the proposed
project, and a project narrative that includes a quality assur-
ance narrative. All certification forms (e.g., lobbying certifi-
cation) must be signed and included with the application.
The closing date for application submission is April 17,
1995, at 4:00 P.M. EST.
To be considered, the original and eight copies of the fully
developed research grant application, prepared in accordance
with instructions in the Application for Federal Assistance
Forms, must be received by the EPA Office of Exploratory
Research no later than the above closing date. Informal,
incomplete, or unsigned proposals will not be considered.
Completed applications should be sent via regular or express
mail to
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Research and Development
Office of Exploratory Research (8703)
401 M Street, SW
Washington DC 20460
Applications sent via express mail should have the following
telephone number listed on the express mail label: (202) 260-
7445
Special Instructions
The following special instructions apply to all applicants
responding to this Request for Application:
• Applications must be unbound and clipped or stapled.
The SF-424 must be the first page of the application.
Budget information should immediately follow the SF-
424. All certification forms should be placed at the end of
the application.
• Applicants must be identified by printing "OER-95" in
block 10 of the SF-424. This will facilitate proper assign-
ment and review of the application.
• A one-page abstract must be included with the applica-
tion.
• The "project narrative" section of the application must
not exceed 25, consecutively numbered, 81/2x11 inch
pages of standard type (i.e., 12 point), including tables,
graphs, and figures. For purposes of this limitation, the
"project narrative" section of the application consists of
the following six items:
1. Description of Project
2. Objectives
3. Results or Benefits Expected
4. Approach
5. General Project Information
6. Quality Assurance
Any attachments, appendices, and other references for the
narrative section may be included but must remain within the
25-page limitation. Appendices will not be considered an
integral part of the narrative.
Items not included under the 25-page limitation are the SF-
424 and other forms, budgets, resumes, and the abstract.
Resumes must not exceed two consecutively numbered pages
for each investigator and should focus on education, positions
held, and most recent or related publications.
Applications not meeting these requirements will be returned
to the applicant without review.
Quality Assurance
Data sets resulting from EPA-funded environmental research
often are used directly by regulatory officials when establish-
ing standards or when making other policy decisions. Explicit
indicators of data quality are essential for determining whether
a particular data set is appropriate for use in a specific context.
To that end, EPA regulations require that grant-funded projects
address quality assurance.
The application must include a quality assurance narrative
statement, not to exceed two pages, which for each item listed
below, either presents the required information or provides
justification as to why the item does not apply to the proposed
research.
• The intended use of the data and the associated accep-
tance criteria for data quality (i.e., precision, accuracy,
representativeness, completeness, and comparability).
• Project requirements for precision, accuracy, representa-
tiveness, completeness, and comparability, and how these
will be determined.
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• Procedures for selection of samples or sampling sites, and
collection or preparation of samples.
• Procedures for sample handling, identification, preserva-
tion, transportation, and storage.
• Description of measurement methods or test procedures,
with a statement of performance characteristics if meth-
ods are nonstandard.
• Standard quality assurance/quality control procedures (e.g.,
American Society for Testing Materials, American Pub-
lic Health Association) to be followed. Nonstandard pro-
cedures must be documented.
• Data reduction and reporting procedures, including de-
scription of statistical analyses to be used.
Guidelines and Limitations
• availability and adequacy of facilities and equipment; and
• budget justification—justification for equipment will re-
ceive special attention.
A summary statement of the scientific review of the panel is
provided to each applicant. Funding decisions are the sole
responsibility of EPA. Grants are selected on the basis of
technical merit, relevancy to the research priorities outlined,
program balance, and budget.
Proprietary Information
By submitting an application in response to this solicitation,
the applicant grants EPA permission to share the application
with technical reviewers both within and outside of the Agency.
Applications containing proprietary or other types of confi-
dential information will be immediately returned to the appli-
cant without review. !
All recipients are required to provide a minimum of 1% of the Funding Mechanism
total project cost, which may not be taken from federal
sources. Subcontracts for research to be conducted under the
grant should not exceed 40% of the total direct cost of the
grant for each year in which the subcontract is awarded.
The funding mechanism for all awards issued under this
solicitation will consist of a grant agreement between EPA
and the recipient. j
Eligibility
Academic and not-for-profit institutions located in the U.S.,
and state or local governments are eligible under all existing
authorizations. Profit-making firms are eligible only under
certain laws, and then under restrictive conditions, including
the absence of any profit from the project. Federal agencies
and federal employees are not eligible to participate in this
program. Potential applicants who are uncertain of their eligi-
bility should contact EPA's Grants Operations Branch at
(202) 260-9266.
Review and Selection
All grant applications are initially reviewed by EPA to deter-
mine their legal and administrative acceptability and respon-
siveness to this solicitation. Acceptable applications are then
reviewed by an appropriate technical peer review group. This
review is designed to evaluate and rank each proposal accord-
ing to its scientific merit Each review group is composed
primarily of non-EPA scientists, engineers, social scientists,
and/or economists who are experts in their respective disci-
plines. All reviewers are proficient in the technical areas that
they are reviewing. The reviewers use the following criteria in
their reviews:
• quality of the research plan (including theoretical and/or
experimental design, originality, and creativity);
• qualifications of the principal investigator and staff, in-
cluding knowledge of relevant subject areas;
• potential contribution of the research to advancing scien-
tific knowledge in the environmental area;
In accordance with Public Law 95-224, a grant is used to
accomplish a public purpose of support or stimulation autho-
rized by federal statute rather than acquisition for the direct
benefit of the Agency. In using a grant instrument rather than
a cooperative agreement, EPA anticipates that there will be no
substantial involvement during the course of the grant be-
tween the recipient and the Agency.
Minority Institution Assistance
Pre-application assistance is available upon request for poten-
tial investigators representing institutions identified by the
secretary, Department of Education, as Historically Black
Colleges or Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic Association of
Colleges and Universities (HACUs), or Native American or
Tribal Colleges. For further information on minority assis-
tance, contact Charles Mitchell by telephone at (202) 260-
7448, by faxing a written request to (202) 260-0211, or by
mailing it to the above-listed address for EPA's Office of
Exploratory Research. \
Contacts !
Additional general information on the grants program may be
obtained by contacting j
I
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Exploratory Research (8703)
401 M Street, SW
Washington DC 20460
Phone: (202) 260-7474
Fax:(202)260-0211
Applicants with technical questions may contact the appropri-
ate individual identified below.
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Contacts for Research Topics of Interest
Human Health Risk Assessment
• Kevin Garrahan (202) 260-2588
Indoor Air Quality in Large Office Buildings
• Ross V.Highsmith (919) 541-7828
• Kevin Y. Teichman (202) 260-7669
Air Pollutants (Particulates, Ozone, & Toxics)
• Ha L. Cote (919) 541-3644 (particulates)
•• James S. Vickery (919) 541-2184 (ozone)
• Larry T.Cupitt (919) 541-2454 (toxics)
Regional Hydrologic Vulnerability to Global
Climate Change
• Barbara M. Levinson (202) 260-5983
- Joel D. Scheraga (202) 260-4029
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