&EPA
www.epa.gov/research
             science   in  ACTION
             INNOVATIVE RESEARCH  FOR A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE
    SUSTAINABLE AND HEALTHY COMMUNITIES  RESEARCH
    Revolutionizing EPA
    Research
    The U.S. Environmental
    Protection Agency (EPA) is
    blazing a path forward to address
    today's most challenging
    environmental problems while
    proactively anticipating those of
    the future. Today's
    environmental problems are
    increasingly more complex and
    require an innovative research
    approach that provides effective.
    efficient and sustainable
    solutions.

    This approach to EPA research
    requires the diverse capabilities
    of scientists and engineers as
    well as economists, social
    scientists, and policy makers.
    EPA research plans must
    incorporate continuous input
    from external stakeholders such
    as Federal, State, and local
    government agencies, non-
    governmental organizations,
    industry, and communities
    affected by environmental
    problems.

    Research innovations are needed
    to meet the environmental
    challenges of the 21st Century.
    EPA is aligning and integrating
    its research into six priority
    program areas to meet these
    needs. They are:
           Air, Climate, and Energy
           Safe and Sustainable
           Water Resources
           Sustainable and Healthy
           Communities
                            •  Chemical Safety for
                               Sustainability
                            •  Human Health Risk
                               Assessment
                            •  Homeland Security

                         Background
                         One of EPA's top priorities is to
                         support sustainable communities
                         that protect human health and
                         well-being and the ecosystem
                         services or natural benefits upon
                         which they depend, such as clean
                         water and air.

                         Communities are increasingly
                         challenged to find sustainable
                         solutions to urbanization;
                         competition for food, materials,
                         and energy; growing waste
                         streams; changing climate; and
                         socioeconomic inequities, among
                         other pressures.
protect and improve community
health, while they simultaneously
protect and improve nature's
benefits.

EPA's Sustainable and Healthy
Communities research is
responding to this need.
Researchers are entering into an
extensive dialogue with
community leaders, stakeholders,
and non-governmental
organizations across the nation to
better understand the challenges
they face.

Based on what is learned from
these interactions, research will
be conducted that can be used to
better weigh and integrate human
health, socio-economic, and
environmental factors into
decisions about both built and
natural environments.
                         To be sustainable, communities
                         need more efficient and effective
                         strategies and approaches that
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Research and Development
Continued on back

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 EPA will provide decision
 makers with information,
 approaches, and tools to:

•   Effectively assess current
    conditions
•   Evaluate the outcomes of
    alternative policies
•   Identify indicators that can be
    used to track their progress
    toward sustainability goals

 Research Focus Areas
 Sustainable and Healthy
 Communities research is focused
 on three main areas:

 1.  Develop comprehensive
 approaches to help communities
 become more sustainable

 The research will help
 communities develop sustainable
 solutions to environmental
 problems and reduce unintended
 consequences such as air or water
 pollution.

 Research will focus on problems
 that are widespread across
 communities in the U.S. such as
 water quality and land-use issues
 as well as comprehensive
 approaches to help communities
 address multiple barriers to
 sustainability in an integrated
 way.

 The research aims to assist
 decision makers in individual
 communities and communities in
 a region where  cooperation could
 help to solve common problems
 or deal with potentially
 conflicting goals.
2. Develop decision support
tools, models and metrics that
can be used to improve
sustainable community practices

The research will develop
decision support tools, models,
and metrics that can be used to
improve community
sustainability.

Examples include web-based
decision support tools to help
local managers and stakeholders
analyze and visualize the
consequences of alternative
policy decisions. These tools
would extend beyond particular
problems such as traffic
congestion or water use to
include consequences with
respect to other environmental
issues, economic impacts, and
social impacts on different
segments of the community.

These tools will use the latest
advancements in decision
analysis to be sure that they are
as useful  and accurate  as
possible.

Research will also develop
models and data bases  that will
enhance the capabilities of the
decision support tools. The
models will take into account the
interactions between human
health, ecosystem services, and
the costs  and benefits of
alternative choices about how to
solve environmental problems in
ways that are  sustainable over
time.
EPA scientists will help
communities identify and/or
develop indicators that can be
used to measure and evaluate the
environmental integrity of their
community, diagnose problems,
and track the performance of
various approaches.

3. Meet EPA's regulatory
requirements

EPA has high-priority needs for
research and expertise to develop
and support regulations, protect
environmental health and
conduct environmental
monitoring, and other priorities.

Sustainable and Healthy
Communities research will
conduct highly focused, short-
term research to meet specific
regulatory or other operational
needs of EPA in the areas of
waste management, site
remediation, ecosystem
services, community health,
green technology, and
environmental justice.

Timeline
EPA will develop a Research
Action Plan that outlines in more
detail the research to be
conducted. The goal is to fully
implement this integrated,
transdisciplinary approach to
research by October 2011.

Web site:
http://www.epa.gov/research7p
riorities/sustainablecommuniti
es.htm

Contact:
Rick Linthurst, Interim National
Program Director, 919-451-4909,
linthurst.rick@epa.gov

April 2011
        U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
        Office of Research and Development

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