United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
EPA/600/F-99/Q05
September 2000
http://www.epa.gov/ORD/NRMRL
Office of Research and Development (MD-235)
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Mission
As part of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Office of
Research and Development, the National Risk Management Research
Laboratory (NRMRL) conducts research into ways to prevent and reduce
pollution risks that threaten human health and the environment. The labo-
ratory investigates methods to prevent and control pollution to air, land,
and water, and to restore ecosystems. The goals of this research are to:
(1) develop and promote technologies that protect and improve
the environment;
(2) develop scientific and engineering information to support
regulatory and policy decisions; and
(3) provide technical support and information transfer to
ensure implementation of environmental regulations and
strategies at the national and community levels.
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In addition, NRMRL collaborates with both public and private sec-
tor partners to foster technologies that reduce the cost of compliance and
to anticipate emerging problems.
Research
NRMRL has research facilities at its headquarters in Cincinnati, Ohio,
and at its locations in. Research Triangle Park, North Carolina; Ada, Okla-
homa; and Edison, New Jersey. NRMRL's Technology Coordination Staff,
based in Washington, B.C., manages the Environmental Technology Veri-
fication Program. MIMRL's staff incta^
engineers devoted to solving a wide range of environmental problems.
Information follows about NRMRL's eight key research areas that sup-
port EPA's mission.
Drinking Water Protection
The U.S. has one of the safest public drinking water supplies in the
world. However, current and future challenges like the emergence of
new waterborne diseases, varying source water quality, and increased con-
tamination of ground water must be met with well-focused research
activities. NRMRL's researchers develop, investigate and improve ways
to: (1) remove contaminants such as disease-causing microorganisms and
arsenic from source water, and (2) control such risks as high sediment
content and disinfection by-products in treatment and distribution sys-
tems. By responding to calls for technical assistance at sites of water-
borne disease outbreaks, NRMRL researchers help mitigate the outbreaks
while gaining insight into the need for new or modified treatment tech-
nologies. Innovative small system technologies such as ultrafiltration (UF)
membranes and on-site disinfectant, generation are being evaluated for
their capability to remove or inactivate pathogens such as Cryptospo-
ridium.
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Air Pollution Control
To reduce risks posed by air pollution to human health and the envi-
ronment, NRMRL researchers develop, refine, and demonstrate cost-ef-
fective air pollution prevention and control technologies for manufacturing
and processing industries, power plants, incinerators, indoor environments,
and sources of greenhouse gases. NRMRL is focusing its air pollution
control research on reducing the quantity and toxicity of emitted air pol-
lutants. For example, by investigating the formation mechanisms of fine
particulate matter, NRMRL researchers may be able to modify combus-
tion processes to reduce particulate matter toxicity. NRMRL's research
on mercury emissions is providing decisionmakers with improved data
on cost and performance of control technologies and prevention options.
Pollution Prevention
Research at NRMRL helps to develop and demonstrate pollution pre-
vention and recycling approaches as well as resources recovery and reuse
technologies. Over the last several years, NRMRL research has been ex-
panded to include "green chemistry" projects where investigators are ex-
ploring the substitution of cost-effective, ecologically-friendly processes
for traditional chemical processes. NRMRL engineers continue to design
and refine software that enables manufacturers to make process changes
that can improve environmental performance. One such software tool
works in concert with commercial process simulators to enable design of
processes and solvent mixtures with the least adverse environmental im-
pact. Membrane and adsorption processes are also being studied by
NRMRL researchers to improve recovery of reusable chemicals and met-
als from manufacturing and mining waste streams.
Sustainability
From pollution prevention research, sustainability and sustainable
development have evolved in NRMRL as new research topics in their
own right. Sustainability is the planning and use of resources in commu-
nities so that they will be available at equal or greater levels for future
generations. Sustainable development is the approach that a community
chooses to implement in an effort to remain sustainable. NRMRL research-
ers are studying and developing tools that facilitate sustainability; be-
yond this, they are reviewing the results of application of the tools and
practices at the community level through community-based environmen-
tal protection (CBEP) programs. Pollution prevention solutions mate-
rial and energy efficient technologies viewed from a life cycle perspective
(i.e., resource use and environmental impacts of the entire life-span of a
product) will be essential to meeting sustainable development goals.
Applying these principles to community-based projects provides local
decisionmakers and stakeholders more powerful tools to assess the im-
pacts of local decisions before they are implemented.
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Contaminated Media Remediation
To help clean up the more than one thousand hazardous waste sites
that are currently on the National Priorities List, as well as leaking under-
ground storage tanks, oil spills and sediments, NRMRL is developing
tools and technologies to understand and remediate contaminants. For
example, NRMRL researchers are developing models to assess fate, trans-
port, and transformation rates of contaminants in soil and ground water.
NRMRL scientists and engineers are also demonstrating methods for con-
tainment and remediation of contaminants from these sites. Biological
methods being investigated include the use of microorganisms and plants
to degrade or take up contaminants in soils and groundwater. Chemical
methods include the use of additives to bind with and reduce the danger
of metals in soil. Chemical methods are being combined with physical
methods to treat and control contaminants in soil, sediments and ground-
water. NRMRL researchers are also evaluating how natural attenuation -
the use of natural processes to break down or capture contaminants - can
be combined with intensive monitoring to provide cost effective site clean-
up that meets regulatory requirements.
Watershed Management and Restoration
Watersheds are large-scale natural drainage areas that generally in-
clude lakes, rivers, wetlands, and other water bodies and the surrounding
landscape. Watershed-scale problems often entail combined impacts to
land, water, and air resources and require a coordinated effort, based on
sound science, by many researchers and involved stakeholders. Recog-
nizing the multifaceted nature of watershed problems, NRMRL scientists
and engineers are using a holistic approach that draws upon many pro-
grams to carry out watershed research and develop watershed best man-
agement practices. Such practices include pollution prevention and control,
on-site sediment remediation technologies, urban storm water manage-
ment approaches, and combined sewer overflow treatment and control
systems. Computer models and decision support systems are being de-
veloped by NRMRL to assist watershed managers and communities with
ecosystem management and restoration projects.
Environmental Technology Verification (ETV)
The Environmental Technology Verification Program or ETV
was initiated to verify the performance and cost of innovative technical
solutions to problems that threaten human health or the environment.
Managed as part of the President's Environmental Technology Initiative,
ETV has substantially accelerated the availability of new environmental
technologies into the domestic and international marketplace. The Pro-
gram supplies technology buyers, innovation developers, consulting en-
gineers, states, and EPA regions with high-quality data on the performance
and cost of new technologies. This will allow more rapid protection of
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the environment with better and less expensive approaches. ETV has ini-
tiated 12 pilot programs that draw on the expertise of partner organiza-
tions to design efficient processes for conducting tests of new technologies
with EPA oversight. Partners are selected from both the public and pri-
vate sectors to perform and report verification activities based on testing
and quality assurance protocols developed with input from all maj or stake-
holder/customer groups.
Technology Transfer and Technical Support
Informing the regulated community, regulatory and permitting offi-
cials, and environmental consultants about the latest advancements in
risk management approaches and decision options is vital to the success
of EPA's programs. NRMRL conveys this information by producing tech-
nology transfer publications, software products, nontechnical brochures,
and convening technical meetings. In addition, NRMRL scientists and
engineers provide expert advice and assistance to environmental manag-
ers at all levels of government. Recent outputs have included manuals on
water and wastewater treatment for small communities and on recycling
and reuse of materials found at Superfund sites; and technical meetings
on geographic information systems, natural attenuation, and combined
and sanitary sewer overflows. NRMRL's technical operations staff pro-
vides pilot plant support to facilitate improvement of water, wastewater,
and hazardous waste treatment technologies.
NRMRL Leadership
Overall leadership and scientific direction in NRMRL are provided
by:
Director, E. Timothy Oppelt
Deputy Director for Management, Calvin O. Lawrence
Associate Director for Health, Hugh W. McKinnon, M.D.
Associate Director for Ecology, Lee A. Mulkey
Additional Information
For additional information about NRMRL and its research programs,
visit the NRMRL website (http://www.epa.gov/ORD/NRMRL) or call
(513) 569-7418. EPA publications can be ordered by phone' by calling
(800) 490-9198 or via Internet (http://www.epa.gov/ncepihom/).
Printed on Recycled Paper
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