160 



STRENCTHEMNC. TMt l«*I> INKKA-^TWIICniRK 65 



Insticuics. by organiiinj; a new U.S. Environmental Monitoring Agency and 

 a National Center for Environmental itifornution, and by enhancing R&D 

 capabilities in several key federal agencies. 



ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY 



New National Laboratories 



■ The Environmental Protection Agency's existing laboratory structure, now 

 comprised of si laboratories, should be consolidated to create a National 

 Ecological Systems Laboratory, a National Environmental Monitoring Sys- 

 tems Laboratory, a National Environmental Engineering Laboratory, and 

 a National Health Effects Research Laboratory. 



The efforts of EPA's Office of Research and Development (ORD) 

 are critical to achieving the nation's environmental protection objectives. 

 Since its inception, EPA has struggled with the optimal organization of the 

 research units within the ORD and the agency as a whole. Several years ago 

 William D. Ruckelshaus, EPA's first administrator, described the challenges 

 the agency faced when it was first organized in 1970: 



Our efforts to establish the scientific base presupposed by the environraental 

 laws were hindered by the difficulties of managing the six different scientific 

 establishments that EPA had inherited. Our scientific resources were housed 

 in s^ separate laboratories scattered across the country. From the first, it was 

 extremely difficult to convey to EPA's scientific cadre the urgency of our need 

 for authoritative findings to suppon the regulauons we were obligated to turn 

 out to the beat of those umetables in the legislation. '*> 



If a Department of the Environment is established, the conBict be- 

 tween the need for information to support regulatory needs and the neces- 

 sity to supf)on long-term basic and applied research will remain. It will be 

 critically important to achieve the proper balance between the two. Our 

 recommendations below were developed with this concern in mind. 



In recognition of the need to improve the scientific basis of its reg- 

 ulatory decisions, EPA has recently taken a number of steps to enhance the 

 quality of its R&D programs. In responding to a recent rcpon by an expert 

 advisory panel, EPA is working to develop a more coherent science agenda, 

 expand the use of science advisors within the agency, attract and retain out- 

 standing scientists and engineers, and improve its interactions with other 

 agencies and with academic and indiwtrial research organizations.-" These 

 are important initiatives, and wc applaud and suppon them. However, we 

 believe that organizational innovations arc also needed to advance EPA's 

 R&D cfFons. In addition, funding for ORD remains a chronic problem. 



