Skip common site navigation and headers
United States Environmental Protection Agency
Educational Resources
Begin Hierarchical Links EPA Home > Educational Resources > Researchers and Scientists > Laboratories and Research Centers End Hierarchical Links
EPA's Environmental Kids Club

 

Laboratories and Research Centers

Here are links to the major laboratories and other organizations that conduct research and carry out scientific and technical activities within the EPA programs listed below.


Office of Air and Radiation

National Air and Radiation Environmental Laboratory (NAREL) (Montgomery, Alabama) - comprehensive environmental laboratory for measuring environmental radioactivity and evaluating its risk to the public.

National Vehicle and Fuel Emissions Laboratory (Ann Arbor, Michigan) - responsible for developing national regulatory programs to reduce mobile source related air pollution; evaluating emission control technology; testing vehicles, engines, and fuels; and determining compliance with Federal emissions and fuel economy standards.

Radiation and Indoor Environments National Laboratory (Las Vegas, NV) - provides technical support for numerous radiation protection and control activities, conducts site investigations, radon assessments and evaluations, health assessment modeling, and indoor air studies.


Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance

National Enforcement Investigations Center - Laboratory Branch (Denver, Colorado) - provides facilities, equipment, personnel, and expertise needed for measurement activities, data evaluations, and investigations conducted to support civil and criminal environmental enforcement efforts.



Office of Regional Operations

Regional Science and Technology (RS&T) Laboratories - focuses on the application of science policies and methods in support of regulatory and monitoring programs and special projects. This is done through direct implementation, partnerships with state, local and tribal governments, private industry, the academic community, EPA program offices, and the public.


Office of Research and Development

National Center for Environmental Assessment - serves as the national resource center for the overall process of human health and ecological risk assessments; the integration of hazard, dose-response , and exposure data and models to produce risk characterizations with divisions that include:

  • Washington, DC Office - provides exposure/risk characterization, hazard identification, dose-response, and administrative and budgetary support.

  • Cincinnati, Ohio Office - agent-specific risk assessment and technical assistance.

  • Research Triangle Park, North Carolina Office - primarily develops and publishes air quality criteria documents for major air pollutants, provides health and ecological assessments of air toxics and assessments and scientific assistance on fuels/fuel additives.

National Center for Environmental Research (Washington, DC) - has primary responsibility to issue and manage research grant and fellowship programs, as well as issues of quality assurance, and peer review.

National Exposure Research Lab (NERL) - located in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina provides scientific understanding, information and assessment tools to reduce and quantify the uncertainty in the Agency's exposure and risk assessments for all environmental stressors with divisions that include:

  • Atmospheric Sciences Modeling Division (Research Triangle Park, North Carolina) - performs much of the air pollution meteorology research for the Agency, conducts in-house research, and manages numerous cooperative agreements and contracts.

  • Ecological Exposure Research Division (Cincinnati, Ohio) - conducts laboratory and field studies aimed at providing research products that enable the Agency to conduct predictive and retrospective exposure assessments.

  • Ecosystems Research Division (Athens, Georgia) - conducts research on organic and inorganic chemicals, greenhouse gas biogeochemical cycles, and land use perturbations that create direct and indirect, chemical and non-chemical stressor exposures and potential risks to humans and ecosystems.

  • Environmental Sciences Division (ESD) (Las Vegas, Nevada) - conducts research, development, and transfer programs on environmental exposures to ecological and human receptors. ESD develops methods for characterizing chemical and physical stressors, with special emphasis on ecological exposure.

  • Human Exposure & Atmospheric Sciences Division (HEASD) (Research Triangle Park, NC) - conducts research to characterize pollutant exposures from the pollutant source to the exposed person or receptor. 

  • Microbiological & Chemical Exposure Assessment Research Division (MCEARD) (Cincinnati, Ohio) - conducts research to measure, characterize and predict the exposure of humans to chemical and microbial hazards.

National Health & Environmental Effects Research Lab (NHEERL) - located in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina the agency's focal point for scientific research on the effects of contaminants and environmental stressors on human health and ecosystem integrity. NHEERL divisions include:

  • Environmental Carcinogenesis Division - conducts mechanistically-based research to explain the association between environmental pollution and cancer.

  • Experimental Toxicology Division - responsible for pharmacokinetics research; examines pulmonary, immunological, hepatic, cardiovascular, and renal toxicity resulting from environmental contaminants.

  • Human Studies Division - conducts clinical and epidemiological investigations to better understand human response to pollution.

  • Neurotoxicology Division - studies the effects of chemical and/or physical agents on the nervous system.

  • Reproductive Toxicology Division - evaluates the effects of environmental pollutants on human reproductive potential/competence and development.

  • Atlantic Ecology Division (Narragansett, RI) - studies the effects of contaminants and other stressors on the coastal waters and watersheds of the Atlantic seaboard.

  • Gulf Ecology Division (Gulf Breeze, FL) - assesses the condition of coastal ecosystems (wetlands, bays, estuaries, and coral reefs) in the Gulf of Mexico and analyzes causes of change to ecological status.

  • Mid-Continent Ecology Division (Duluth, MN) - performs research to protect freshwater ecosystems and wildlife and to understand the basic processes and mechanisms involved in aquatic toxicity.

  • Western Ecology Division (Corvallis, OR) - evaluates the effects of chemical contaminants, land use, and global climate change on terrestrial ecosystems and on watershed ecology along the Pacific coast.

  • Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program - a comprehensive, long-term research program designed to assess natural resources and identify causes for damaged environments.

National Risk Management Research Lab (NRMRL) - located in Cincinnati, Ohio advances the scientific understanding and the development and application of technological solutions to prevent, control, or remediate important environmental problems that threaten human health and the environment. NRMRL divisions include:

  • Air Pollution Prevention and Control Division - located in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina this division is responsible for research, development, and evaluation of air pollution control technologies.

  • Land Remediation and Pollution Control Division - conducts research at the basic level as well as bench- and pilot-scale to explore innovative solutions to current and future land pollution problems.

  • Subsurface Protection & Remediation Division- (formerly the Robert S. Kerr Environmental Research Laboratory) in Ada, Oklahoma conducts research and engages in technical assistance and technology transfer on the chemical, physical and biological structure and processes of the subsurface environment, the biogeochemical interactions in that environment and fluxes to other environmental media.

  • Sustainable Technology Division - mission of this division is to advance the scientific understanding, development and application of technologies and methods for prevention, removal and control of environmental risks to human health and ecology.

  • Technology Transfer and Support Division - (formerly the Center for Environmental Research Information) serves as a focal point for technology transfer activities, communication, and coordination of information on ORD's science activities and research programs with Agency Program and Regional Offices, state and local governments, universities and other Federal agencies.

  • Water Supply and Water Resources Division - conducts research to help prepare the primary and secondary regulations for drinking water and to develop technologies and strategies for controlling waterborne contaminants.


Office of Water

Office of Science and Technology (OST) (Washington, DC) - responsible for developing sound, scientifically defensible standards, criteria, advisories, guidelines, limitations and standards guidelines under the Clean Water Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act for protecting the nation's water supplies.


Science Advisory Board

EPA's Science Advisory Board (SAB) was established by Congress to provide independent scientific and engineering advice to the EPA Administrator on the technical basis for EPA regulations. Members of and Consultants to the Board constitute a distinguished body of scientists, engineers, and economists who are recognized, non-governmental experts in their respective fields.


Regional Laboratories

  • Region 1's New England Regional Laboratory

  • Region 2's Division of Environmental Science and Assessment Laboratory Branch is responsible for measuring the levels of chemical, microbiological and biological contaminants in diverse media such as water, air, drinking water, sewage, soil, sediment, hazardous waste, etc.

  • Region 3's Environmental Science Center provides centralized analytical services and quality assurance support.

  • Region 4's Analytical Support Branch (ASB) provides a full range of inorganic and organic analyses, customized techniques and method development, modern instrumentation in a state-of-the-art facility, and on-site and speciality procedures.

  • Region 6's Environmental Services Branch - Houston Laboratory provides environmental analytical services for Regional Programs, and serves as the source of scientific expertise and prowess for U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) National and Regional regulatory and executive decisions.

  • Region 8 Laboratory providing high quality physical, chemical, biological, and microbiological analyses in support of Clean Water Act (CWA), Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), Toxic Subtances Control Act (TSCA), and Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) programs.

  • Region 9 Laboratory is a full service, state-of-the-art facility specializing in chemical analysis, biological analysis and field sampling services.

  • Region 10's Manchester Environmental Laboratory provides high quality physical, chemical, biological and microbiological analyses in support of the following EPA programs: air, surface water, drinking water, Superfund, pesticides and hazardous materials.


 

 
Begin Site Footer

EPA Home | Accessibility | Privacy and Security Notice | FOIA | Contact Us