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nan 45 years, tm researcriers nave provided ine
lientific foundation that supports everything EPA
meet its mission to protect human health and
t. In 2015 alone, EPA researchers published 556
reviewed scientific journals, worked on projects
derstanding wildfire smoke emissions to helping
nking water systems, and applied their expertise
jes in times of environmental emeraencies. While

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'The emissions from

wildfire smoke have
tremendous public
health implications."

EPA's Dr. Wayne Cascio
in National Geographic





»•

V '1



Wildfires Research

The World Health Organization estimates
that each year more than seven million
people worldwide die as a result of air
pollution exposure. While many studies
have examined the effects of air pollution
caused by emissions from motor
vehicles, coal- or oil-burning power
plants, and industrial sources — there
is limited knowledge of the short and
long-term health impacts of smoke
emissions from wildfires and controlled
burns. Wildfires in the US are increasing
in frequency and intensity partly due to
climate change and land management
practices. EPA is using its expertise in
air quality research to fill the scientific
gaps to understand how smoke affects
air quality and climate change, and to
develop tools to prevent and reduce
health impacts from smoke emissions.

Among a number of research activities,
EPA scientists launched tethered balloons
(called aerostats) with lightweight air
sensors to learn more about pollutants
emitted from wildfires. Rather than

placing larger monitors at the perimeter
and ground level of a wildfire, sensor-
equipped balloons can be sent into the
rising smoke plume to measure pollutants
directly. These, and other integrated
sensors and lightweight samplers being
developed, can provide more robust
smoke emissions data. EPA researchers
have also simulated how a warning
advisory might impact the health and
economic repercussions related to
wildfires. In other studies of wildfire
effects on local populations, EPA
scientists found that the smoke traveled
long distances and increased hospitaliza-
tions due to asthma and heart ailments.
They also found that if people follow
advisories, they can protect their health
and significantly reduce the economic
health cost of wildfires that result from
hospital visits, productivity losses, and
mortality. Research results can be used
by doctors, nurses, public health officials,
and others to help prevent health prob-
lems related to breathing wildfire smoke.

An aerostat outfitted with air sensors in North Carolina.

5

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Advancing Exposure Science to
Rapidly Evaluate Chemicals

EPA is responsible for ensuring the safety of thousands of
chemicals used by the public and scientists alike. Traditional
chemical testing is expensive and time consuming, so only a
small fraction of these chemicals have been fully evaluated for
potential human health effects. To assess the potential for a
chemical to cause adverse effects, it is important to understand
exposure, which is how - and in what amounts - chemicals
get into our bodies. EPA researchers are addressing this need
and are leading the forefront of exposure science by developing
innovative ways to rapidly estimate exposures to thousands of
chemicals. These innovations and advances in exposure science,
when coupled with EPA's high-throughput toxicity data, can be
used to quickly evaluate and prioritize thousands of chemicals
for their potential to cause health risks. As a suite of exposure
science tools and data used for chemical evaluations, the
following four examples showcase how EPAs advances have
transformed exposure science in a very short time.

1

II

ExpoCast provides high-throughput exposure estimates for
thousands of chemicals and looks at multiple routes of exposure.
ExpoCast has been used to develop exposure estimates for over
1,900 chemicals.

Stochastic Human Exposure and Dose Simulation
High-Throughput model (SHEDS-HT) estimates population-
level exposures. It quickly accounts for multiple routes, scenarios,
and pathways of exposure to understand the total exposure a
population could have to a chemical.

Chemical Product Categories Database (CPCat) contains
information on how 43,000 chemicals are used in consumer
products. Understanding how these chemicals are used, and in
what products, helps researchers determine potential routes of
exposure.

Non-Targeted Analyses measurement methods offer unique
means to screen for chemicals in a variety of environmental and
biological media, providing quantitative exposure information.

Through its Science to
Achieve Results (STAR)
program, EPA has also
actively engaged the academic
research community in the
effort to advance exposure
science. In 2015, EPA funded
five universities to conduct
innovative research to advance
methods for characterizing
real-world human exposures
to chemicals associated with
consumer products in indoor
environments.

Christopher Nuzzaco/Thinkstock

Drinking Water: Small Systems,
Big Solutions

Across the country, 97 percent of the 153,138
public drinking water systems are considered
small systems, meaning they serve fewer than
10,000 people. While many of these small systems
consistently provide safe and reliable drinking
water to the people they serve, they face enormous
challenges in their ability to maintain, replace,
and improve their technologies because they have
fewer resources than larger systems. The research
conducted by EPA scientists and engineers is
helping state and local personnel, as well as small
systems personnel, deliver high quality drinking
water to their customers by providing information,
tools, and technical assistance. In 2015, EPA hosted
monthly webinars to share current small systems
research and communicate directly with state
personnel and other drinking water and wastewater
small systems professionals. The webinar series,
Challenges and Treatment Solutions for Small
Drinking Water and Wastewater Systems, has
provided information and training to hundreds of
state and local agency personnel across the country.
In 2015, the webinar series attracted more than
7,800 participants from all 50 states and U.S. Tribal
Nations and Territories, as well as international
participants, and provided 3,300 continuing
education credits. In addition to the webinars,
the free, public annual U.S. EPA Drinking Water
Workshop offers in-depth training and informa-
tion for handling small drinking water systems
problems and compliance challenges. Additionally,
through the Science to Achieve Results program,
EPA has funded two National Research Drinking
Water Centers to study technologies that will
reduce, control, and eliminate groups of chemical
or microbial contaminants in small water systems.

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Village Green

EPA is exploring new ways to measure local air pollution while
also helping communities understand the air around them.
Through the Village Green project, EPA is building next
generation air monitoring systems that also function as public
park benches in cities across the country. The Village Green
benches were designed and developed by EPA scientists, operate
on solar and wind power, and are made of recycled materials.
The benches use sophisticated air quality measurement equip-
ment to provide real-time data on two common air pollutants

(fine particle pollution and ozone) and weather conditions such
as wind speed, temperature, and humidity. The data is streamed
live on the web with minute-by-minute updates that can be
accessed at www.epa.gov/air-research/village-green-project.
The communities, including local students, are using this data
to improve public understanding of air quality and to increase
community awareness of local air quality conditions. In 2015,
benches were installed in Philadelphia, PA, Washington, DC,
Kansas City, KS, Hartford, CT, and Oklahoma City, OK.

"Citizen science is a
great example of
combining the creativity,
expertise, and power
of researchers and the
public to understand
environmental health
and find solutions."

Citizen Science

There is a growing interest from the public to learn more about what's going on in their
community: What's in the air I breathe? What does it mean for my health and the health of
my family? How can I learn more about these things and even be involved in the process?
Is there a way for me to measure, learn, and share information about my local air quality?
EPA is helping people answer these questions.

Citizen scientists assemble air monitors in the lronbound community in Newark, NJ.

Training Citizen Scientists

Researchers at EPA have developed the
virtual Air Sensors Toolbox for Citizen
Scientists to help people learn more about
local air quality where they live, work,
and play. Researchers partnered with
the lronbound community in Newark,
NJ, which faces multiple air pollution
problems, to design and develop a
compact Community Science Air
Monitor that houses sensors for particu-
late matter and nitrogen dioxide.

This experience fueled the development
of a training workshop for 30 community
science groups and led to the develop-
ment of Citizen Science Toolbox. One of
the toolbox resources is the Air Sensors
Guidebook, which explores low-cost and
portable air sensor technologies, provides
general guidelines on what to look for in
obtaining a sensor, and examines import-
ant data quality features. To help people
understand the current state-of-the-
science, the toolbox also includes the
Sensor Evaluation Report, which
summarizes performance trials of low-
cost air quality sensors that measure

Researcher Sam Garvey demonstrates an air
monitor to citizen scientists in the lronbound
community.

ozone and nitrogen dioxide. Easy-to-
understand operating procedures for
select low-cost sensors also have been
developed.

In addition to the toolbox, EPA has
provided air sensors training to citizen
scientists and others interested in
community air quality monitoring. In
2015, EPA hosted a training workshop
for 800 participants to share tools used
to conduct citizen science projects and
provide information on successful air
monitoring projects. EPA also devel-
oped online training videos so that more
people have access to information on
emerging technologies and community
air monitoring. All of these training
materials are available online at
www.epa.gov/air-research/air-
sensor-toolbox-citizen-scientists.

Tom Burke, ORD Deputy
Assistant Administrator
and EPA Science Advisor

Students sit on the Village Green bench
located outside of the Durham County
Library in North Carolina.

1

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Toolbox for Responders following
Radiological Events

When disaster strikes, a quick response is crucial. Decisions that
are made during the first hours and days immediately following
a radiological incident can have a profound impact on the cost
and amount of effort needed for cleanup activities. Decision
makers need a variety of trusted options when responding to a
radiological incident like a dirty bomb or a nuclear accident.

That's where EPA science can help. In a week-long demonstra-
tion, EPA researchers, in collaboration with the Department of
Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate, took
technologies that looked promising in the lab and tested them
in a larger, urban environment in Columbus, Ohio. The event
showed how the technologies can be applied at a city-wide scale
using readily-available equipment. Some of the technologies

demonstrated included stabilization technologies—like fire
retardant, wetting agents, and chloride salt—to reduce
resuspension and tracking of radiological contaminants.
Researchers even tested a variety of technologies to decontam-
inate vehicles so that responders don't spread contamination
from the hot zone to clean areas.

This demonstration provided the necessary information to build
a "toolbox of options" that responders can rely on while plan-
ning for any kind of radiological contamination incident. The
toolbox provides decision-makers with information on what
works in specific situations and what is needed for response
planning. This information will likely decrease costs, and more
importantly, could save lives in the event of a radiological event.

Researchers spray decontamination foam as part of the demonstration in Columbus, Ohio.

Advancing Sustainable and
Healthy Communities

EPA is exploring how to promote Health
Impact Assessments (HIAs) as a tool for
advancing sustainable, healthy communities.
HIAs investigate how a proposed program,
project, policy, or plan may impact health and
well-being - and inform decision makers of
these potential outcomes - before the decision
is made. Engaging stakeholders, community
members and community decision makers in
the HIA process provides an approach to eval-
uate options and select those that maximize
health benefits, and/or reduce the harmful
impacts of proposed actions such as building
renovations or sewer/stormwater upgrades.
Agency researchers recently completed an HIA
case study in the Proctor Creek neighborhood
of Atlanta, Georgia.

This HIA supported the Proctor Creek com-
munity as it worked to address challenges
related to contamination and storm water
management. The creek itself is currently on
the state's "impaired waters" list because of
unsafe fecal coliform levels and is a subject
of frequent flooding due to poor stormwater
infrastructure. EPA researchers worked with
local residents to conduct an HIA to evaluate
how elements of a proposed green infrastruc-
ture project might improve conditions in
and around Proctor Creek and impact public
health in the community.

Researchers make measurements to assess
the role of urban soils in the local water
cycle and scope the potential use of green
infrastructure to provide ecosystem services.

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Science to Support
Clean Water

About 117 million Americans - one in three people -
get drinking water from small streams that are considered
"Waters of the U.S." and protected by the Clean Water Act under
EPA's landmark 2015 Clean Water Rule. The scientific founda-
tion for this rule came from the report Connectivity of Streams
and Wetlands to Downstream Waters: A Review and Synthesis
of the Scientific Evidence.

In the report, EPA researchers assess the scientific evidence
regarding the effects that streams, non-tidal wetlands, and open
waters have on larger downstream waters such as rivers, lakes,
and estuaries. Researchers conducted an extensive review of
more than 1,200 peer-reviewed, published scientific studies
to learn how small streams and wetlands connect to larger,
downstream water bodies.

Researchers found that the scientific literature clearly demon-
strates that streams, regardless of their size or frequency of flow,
strongly influence the function of larger waters downstream.
Many wetlands and open waters located outside of riparian
areas and floodplains provide functions that could benefit
larger, downstream waters, even when they lack connections
on the surface. Based on both the extensive state-of-the-science

report and the rigorous peer review process it received, this
report makes it clear: what happens in these streams and
wetlands has a significant impact on downstream water bodies,
including our nations largest waterways.

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i

14

Stakeholder Engagement around
Human Health Risk Assessment

EPA researchers develop assessments, reports, and tools that
provide comprehensive information about the human health
and environmental effects that might result from exposures to
contaminants in land, water, and air. This work plays a vital role
by informing EPA decisions to clean up Superfund sites, develop
or revise national pollution standards, and make regulatory
decisions in communities across the country.

EPA is committed to advancing the science of conducting
human health risk assessments, including those conducted
by the Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) program.
To further this commitment, EPA has been addressing
recommendations made by the National Research Council
that will help advance the IRIS program, including
efforts to streamline IRIS documents, enhance
transparency, and engage stakeholders early
in the development of its assessments.

EPA has taken many actions to
accomplish these, one of
which is increasing
the number

of opportunities for the public to interact with and give input
to IRIS human health risk assessments. Through public IRIS
meetings and science workshops in 2015, more than 700
government, industry, academic, and non-governmental
scientists and representatives have participated in public discus
sions on chemical-specific issues and on broader, overarching
scientific topics relevant to human health risk assessment
research. By including a diverse range of scientific and stake-
holder perspectives, EPA ensures its assessments will be useful
for all stakeholders while reflecting the current state-of-the-
science.

The Tox21 robot, developed in a collaboration between EPA, NIH, and FDA, helps conduct high-throughput screenings.

Groundbreaking Approach Used by EPA's
Endocrine Disruption Screening Program

Evidence shows that the endocrine systems of humans and
certain wildlife are adversely affected by exposure to particular
chemical contaminants. These chemicals can disrupt the
hormone systems of the body leading to developmental
malformations, interference with reproduction, increased
cancer risk, and disturbances in the immune and nervous
systems. Historically, chemicals were not tested for their
potential for endocrine disruption at environmental exposure
levels. To address this, EPA established the Endocrine
Disruption Screening Program (EDSP) in 1998 to screen and
test chemicals for possible effects on the endocrine system.

In June 2015, EPA announced the plan to formally incorporate
computational toxicology and high-throughput screening

methods in EDSP, which will accelerate the pace of screening,
decrease costs, and reduce animal testing. These new methods
quickly screen chemicals for their ability to interact with the
endocrine system, specifically the estrogen receptor pathway,
and there is ongoing work to add androgen and thyroid
models to this program. The incorporation of these approaches
for screening represents one of the first applications of
EPA's computational data and models to inform policy.

This transformative move may pave the way for future
applications of these data in a diversity of decision contexts at
EPA, including conducting high-throughput risk assessments.

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Harmful Algal Blooms

EPA is going above and beyond the agency's traditional methods
of monitoring harmful algal blooms in water. EPA has joined
NASA, NOAA, and USGS to use satellite data to monitor algal
blooms and develop an early warning indicator system for toxic
and nuisance blooms. The new multi-agency etfort builds on
previous NASA ocean color satellite sensor technologies created
to study the global oceans microscopic algal communities.
EPA researchers provide the science that links the current and
historical satellite data on cyanobacteria blooms provided by
NASA, NOAA, and USGS to monitor changes in the environ-
ment, assess economic impacts, and protect human health.

The first step in the five-year project is creating a reliable,
standard method for identifying cyanobacteria blooms in U.S.
freshwater lakes and reservoirs using ocean color satellite data.
NOAA and NASA lead the way in using ocean satellite data
for monitoring and forecasting harmful algal blooms. EPA
is integrating these data into decision-making processes and
developing a mobile application called CyAN. The app uses
satellite-derived information to help make initial water quality
assessments and quickly alert managers to potential problems
and emerging threats. Researchers are also conducting a large-
scale investigation of potential causes of harmful algal blooms
in U.S. freshwater systems. The innovative use of satellite data
to monitor and report blooms throughout a region or state will
help with management of bloom events and significantly reduce
risk to the public.

Algal bloom in Lake St Clair.

16

BaksbSat ¦ wmufi

J '

he vantage point
space not only
ntributes to a better
iderstanding of our
•me planet, it helps
iprove lives around
e world."

SA Administrator
arles Bolden

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Report on the Environment

EPA's Report on the Environment (ROE) is an interactive,
web-based resource for tracking how national environmental
and human health conditions are changing over time. These
trends are captured in a set of 85 objective scientific indicators
based on data from a variety of sources including EPA and
other federal agencies, universities, and non-governmental
organizations. The ROE indicators and the supporting contex-
tual scientific content are each reviewed by scientific experts to
ensure that they are based on valid and unbiased measurements.

Condition—and address questions relevant to EPA's mission of
protecting human health and the environment. The indicators
are frequently updated as new information is made available
to provide the latest data, and new indicators are added when
relevant. By better understanding the condition and trends of
the environment and human health in the United States, EPA
can more effectively prioritize areas for action, and foster efforts
that improve trends.

Indicators are organized into five different themes—Air,
Water, Land, Human Exposure and Health, and Ecological

Helping Protect Endangered Species
from Chemical Exposure

EPA researchers are improving the science for evaluating the
risk of chemical exposure to better protect threatened and
endangered species. One part of this research effort includes an
aquatic endangered species case study in the Sacramento River
Basin, CA. Working closely with the California Department of
Pesticide Regulation, the agricultural community, and other
state and federal partners, EPA held a workshop in October,
2015 to provide training and to coordinate the federal and state
processes required to comply with the Endangered Species Act
(ESA). This engagement demonstrated how, in order to add
value and increase the impact, tailored and context-specific
research products can be developed at the national and state
levels. The workshop discussed new scientific approaches for
identifying and evaluating the species of interest and the nature
and extent of chemical use in the river basin. Participants

improved their understanding of the biology and ecology of
endangered species within the study area, the geography influ-
encing chemical fate and transport within the study area, and
the application, use, and economic considerations of pesticides.

Another research effort that aids in protecting endangered
or threatened species is the expansion of the Web-based
Interspecies Correlation Estimation (Web-ICE) tool.

Web-ICE estimates a chemical s acute toxicity to aquatic and
terrestrial organisms, and a recent expansion of the tool
includes the addition of several threatened or endangered
species of mussels and fairy shrimp. Web-ICE will be used by
EPA program offices and EPA regions in endangered species
risk assessments and biological evaluations.

19

Chinook salmon are just one species for which Web-ICE can estimate a chemical's toxicity.

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m

Water Security Test Bed

Our nations water distribution systems can be vulnerable to
contamination-causing events such as industrial accidents,
natural disasters, or terrorist attacks. EPA works with water
utilities to protect these distribution systems and clean up
systems that do become contaminated. Whether purposeful or
accidental, contamination of these systems can threaten peoples
health and result in large economic impacts. Water utilities
need strategies to protect water systems and to quickly and
effectively clean up water and infrastructure so that service can
be promptly and confidently restored.

To better protect—and if necessary, decontaminate—our
nations water, EPA researchers have partnered with Depart-
ment of Energy's Idaho National Laboratory to build the Water
Security Test Bed: the nations first full-scale, above-ground
drinking water distribution system. The test bed is a replica of a
portion of a municipal drinking water pipe system, with its first
phase of development comprised of 445 feet of above-ground,
cement-lined pipes plus fire hydrants. Since most of the nations
water systems are not brand new, the test bed uses 30-year old
weathered pipes that were exhumed from the ground nearby.
The above-ground test grid allows researchers to easily tailor the
system to address a wide variety of applied science questions.

Over the next several years, EPA and partner researchers will
conduct experiments using various biological, chemical, and
radioactive simulants that replicate highly-toxic materials.
Approaches to contamination detection, infrastructure decon-
tamination, and water treatment developed at lab and pilot scale
will be demonstrated at this full-sized system. Results from this
work will be easily transitioned for use by utilities because the
tests have been conducted in a real distribution system.

The test bed is made up of
445 feet of above-ground pipes.

21

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EnviroAtlas

EPA researchers and external partners have developed Enviro-
Atlas, a collection of online interactive tools and resources that
allow the public to explore the many benefits they receive from
nature (known as ecosystem services) and make informed
decisions that will keep their communities healthy and
resilient, EnviroAtlas provides ecosystem services-based data
sets, sophisticated geographic information systems, and visual-
ization tools to present multilayered maps and other resources.
People can easily view, analyze, and download EnviroAtlas data
and tools to help ensure sound decision making for building
prosperous communities while conserving natural resources.
EnviroAtlas includes the Eco-Health Relationship Browser,
an interactive tool that uses published science to illustrate the

important connections between ecosystems, ecosystem services,
and public health outcomes.

EPA's EnviroAtlas also serves as the ecosystem services "resource
hub" to the EcoINFORMA initiative. As a component to a
Presidential initiative on understanding nature's benefits,
EcoINFORMA is designed to facilitate assessments of the impact
of climate change, pollution, and other stressors on ecosystems,
as well as assessments of management responses to such stressors.

You can use EnviroAtlas by going to www.epa.gov/enviroatlas.

This map,
developed with
EnviroAtlas,
shows the average
application rate
of synthetic
nitrogen within
US watersheds.

Clear Data Layer
Layers Matrix

Ecosystem Services
and Biodiversity

People and
Built Spaces

Supplemental
Maps

Analysis
Tools

Mapping
Tools

EnviroAtlas

Map Legend

Boundaries

States

Clean Air

Cultivated biological nitrogen fixation
(kg N/ha/yr)

2015 BY THE
NUMBERS

556

articles EPA researchers
published in peer-
reviewed j ournals

stakeholders participated	Village Green benches

in EPA Integrated Risk	installed in 2015 to help

Information System public	communities understand

meetings	their local air quality

peer-reviewed and
published scientific
studies went into EPA's
Connectivity Report,
which supported the
Clean Water Rule

indicators in the Report
on the Environment that
help researchers track
trends in environmental
and human health

feet of pipes used in the
full-scale Water Security
Test Bed

citizen scientists trained
through EPA's Air Sensors
workshops and webinars

people, including drinking water and wastewater system
managers, trained through EPA's Small Drinking Water
Systems webinars

6

117

million Americans get
their drinking water
from small streams that
need protection under
the Clean Water Rule

teams of college students
that will develop inno-
vative and sustainable
designs through EPA's
People, Prosperity, and
the Planet program

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*>EPA

United States Environmental Protection Agency

Office of Research and Development
Washington, DC 20460

Stay Connected to EPA Research:

EPA Research Homepage: epa.gov/research
Twitter: @EPAresearch

EPA's It All Starts with Science blog: blog.epa.gov/science
More stories about EPA Research: epa.gov/sciencematters

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