57 



To become the leading environmental research agency, EPA should have a better 

 balance of short and long-range research. In its Summary of the 1995 Budget, EPA 

 lists two purposes of its research and development program: 



1. "to support the Agency's statutory and regulatory responsibilities of protecting 

 human health and the environment, and 



2. to advance the level of knowledge in environmental sciences to better under- 

 stand current and emerging environmental issues to be able to address them." 



I believe that EPA is doing an outstanding job in pursuing the first purpose. 

 Based on my knowledge of similar agencies in other countries, EPA scientists ap- 

 pear to have established themselves among the leading experts in several applied 

 research fields, including environmental analytical chemistry, drinking water qual- 

 ity, risk assessment, air pollution research, and others. 



On the other hand, it is equally apparent that EPA has given much less priority 

 to "advancing knowledge" per se. Congress recognized this in its Fiscal Year 1993 

 and Fiscal Year 1994 Appropriations. The Fiscal Year 1993 Conference Committee 

 report stated that "EPA has failed to sufficiently address the issue of basic research" 

 and required the Agency to submit a report outlining expenditures according to re- 

 search classifications. EPA replied to this directive with the required report in Feb- 

 ruary 1993 3 and an update on expected expenses in Fiscal Year 1994. 4 



While it is encouraging to examine EPA's Report to Congress Fiscal Year 1994: 

 Fundamental and Applied Research at the Environmental Protection Agency be- 

 cause it reveals an apparent appreciation of "fundamental" research, the report falls 

 short of convincing a critical reader that the Agency really has a coordinated basic 

 research plan. Those close to the Agency know that fundamental research is still 

 not a significant effort within EPA and in many areas (e.g., some aspects of human 

 health research) the budget for staff and extramural research has actually been cut 

 over the past year or two. The entire budget for extramural fundamental research 

 is only $113 million and there are only 489 people in the Agency carrying out this 

 function. Funds for exploratory research are only $51 million. Compared with the 

 total budget of the Agency and the total environmental R&D effort of the country 

 (approximately $5 billion) these are paltry sums indeed. 



EPA needs to separate its R&D establishment, at least in part, from its program 

 offices and from politics. One of the most commonly heard criticisms from outside 

 the Agency is that EPA's R&D program is controlled by its program offices. It is 

 my understanding that this is less true today than in the past, but most of EPA's 

 research is still highly directed, and exploratory research accounts for only 14 per- 

 cent of the extramural R&D budget ($51 million). 



The problem with this preponderance of directed research is that it fails to be an- 

 ticipatory. OSTP and OMB have reportedly issued new guidelines on how Federal 

 science agencies should carry out research and one is these is to invest in antici- 

 patory research. 5 EPA Administration needs to implement this recommendation 

 most enthusiastically by expanding undirected exploratory research in the broad do- 

 main of its research mission. Practically, this means that Congress must appro- 

 priate funds for fundamental research within the agency that are not controlled by 

 the program offices of EPA. The amount of funds for this purpose has to be substan- 

 tial and protected from transfers into other operations of the agency. In other words, 

 EPA needs to establish a viable, independent research establishment within the 

 agency closely coordinated with, but largely autonomous from the program offices. 



EPA needs to reward its research scientists and engineers more, not just in sala- 

 ries but in other ways such as more intellectual freedom, more time to pursue fun- 

 damental research, and with other intangible perks such as respect. My colleagues 

 within EPA tell me that they are harassed by loads of paperwork, spend a huge 

 amount of time covering their tails because of the recent actions of the Inspector 

 General, and have little time for real work because they are supervising external 



3 Report to Congress Fiscal Year 1993, EPA/600/R-93/038. 



4 Report to Congress Fiscal Year 1994, Fundamental and Applied Research at the Environ- 

 mental Protection Agency, DRAFTS Feb. 1994. 



6 "Memo Backs Basic Research With Words. Not Cash" Science, Vol. 264, 3 June, 1994, p. 

 1395. 



