TY - BOOK AU - National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine A2 - David A. Savitz A2 - Anne N. Styka A2 - David A. Butler TI - Assessment of the Department of Veterans Affairs Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit Registry SN - DO - 10.17226/23677 PY - 2017 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/23677/assessment-of-the-department-of-veterans-affairs-airborne-hazards-and-open-burn-pit-registry PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Health and Medicine KW - Environment and Environmental Studies AB - Military operations produce a great deal of trash in an environment where standard waste management practices may be subordinated to more pressing concerns. As a result, ground forces have long relied on incineration in open-air pits as a means of getting rid of refuse. Concerns over possible adverse effects of exposure to smoke from trash burning in the theater were first expressed in the wake of the 1990–1991 Gulf War and stimulated a series of studies that indicated that exposures to smoke from oil-well fires and from other combustion sources, including waste burning, were stressors for troops. In January 2013, Congress directed the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to establish and maintain a registry for service members who may have been exposed to toxic airborne chemicals and fumes generated by open burn pits. Assessment of the Department of Veterans Affairs Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit Registry analyzes the initial months of data collected by the registry and offers recommendations on ways to improve the instrument and best use the information it collects. This report assesses the effectiveness of the VA's information gathering efforts and provides recommendations for addressing the future medical needs of the affected groups, and provides recommendations on collecting, maintaining, and monitoring information collected by the VA's Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit Registry. ER - TY - BOOK AU - Institute of Medicine TI - Potential Radiation Exposure in Military Operations: Protecting the Soldier Before, During, and After SN - DO - 10.17226/9454 PY - 1999 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/9454/potential-radiation-exposure-in-military-operations-protecting-the-soldier-before PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies KW - Health and Medicine AB - In 1996, NATO issued guidance for the exposure of military personnel to radiation doses different from occupational dose levels, but not high enough to cause acute health effects-and in doing so set policy in a new arena. Scientific and technological developments now permit small groups or individuals to use, or threaten to use, destructive devices (nuclear, biological, chemical, and cyber-based weaponry, among others) targeted anywhere in the world. Political developments, such as the loss of political balance once afforded by competing superpowers, have increased the focus on regional and subregional disputes. What doctrine should guide decisionmaking regarding the potential exposure of troops to radiation in this changed theater of military operations? In 1995, the Office of the U.S. Army Surgeon General asked the Medical Follow-up Agency of the Institute of Medicine to provide advice. This report is the final product of the Committee on Battlefield Radiation Exposure Criteria convened for that purpose. In its 1997 interim report, Evaluation of Radiation Exposure Guidance for Military Operations, the committee addressed the technical aspects of the NATO directive. In this final report, the committee reiterates that discussion and places it in an ethical context. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Industrial Research Laboratories of the United States, Including Consulting Research Laboratories DO - 10.17226/18663 PY - 1946 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/18663/industrial-research-laboratories-of-the-united-states-including-consulting-research-laboratories PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - KW - Environment and Environmental Studies ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council A2 - Thomas E. McKone A2 - Beverly M. Huey A2 - Edward Downing A2 - Laura M. Duffy TI - Strategies to Protect the Health of Deployed U.S. Forces: Detecting, Characterizing, and Documenting Exposures SN - DO - 10.17226/9767 PY - 2000 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/9767/strategies-to-protect-the-health-of-deployed-us-forces-detecting PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Health and Medicine KW - Environment and Environmental Studies KW - Conflict and Security Issues AB - Since Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm, Gulf War veterans have expressed concerns about health effects that could be associated with their deployment and service during the war. Although similar concerns were raised after other military operations, the Gulf War deployment focused national attention on the potential, but uncertain, relationship between the presence of chemical and biological (CB) agents and other harmful agents in theater and health symptoms reported by military personnel. Strategies to Protect the Health of Deployed U.S. Forces which is one of the four two-year studies, examines the detection and tracking of exposures of deployed personnel to multiple harmful agents. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine A2 - Franklin Carrero-Martínez A2 - Negin Sobhani A2 - Emi Kameyama A2 - Paula Whitacre TI - 2021 Nobel Prize Summit: Our Planet, Our Future: Proceedings of a Summit SN - DO - 10.17226/26310 PY - 2021 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/26310/2021-nobel-prize-summit-our-planet-our-future-proceedings-of PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies AB - Our future depends on our collective ability to become effective stewards of the global commons - the climate, ice, land, ocean, fresh water, forests, soils and rich diversity of life. Hosted by the Nobel Foundation and organized by the US National Academy of Sciences in partnership with the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and the Stockholm Resilience Centre/Beijer Institute, the first Nobel Prize Summit brought together Nobel Prize laureates, scientists, policy makers, business leaders, and youth leaders to explore the question: What can be achieved in this decade to put the world on a path to a more sustainable, more prosperous future for all of humanity? From April 26-28, 2021, this virtual event combined keynotes and lively discussion with live performance and theatre. Framed around the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals, speakers explored solutions to some of humanity's greatest challenges: climate change and biodiversity loss, increasing inequality, and technological innovation in support of societal goals. This publication summarizes the presentations and discussions of the Summit. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Pathways to Urban Sustainability: Research and Development on Urban Systems: Summary of a Workshop SN - DO - 10.17226/12969 PY - 2010 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/12969/pathways-to-urban-sustainability-research-and-development-on-urban-systems PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies AB - More than half of the world's people now live in cities. In the United States, the figure is 80 percent. It is worthwhile to consider how this trend of increased urbanization, if inevitable, could be made more sustainable. One fundamental shortcoming of urban research and programs is that they sometimes fail to recognize urban areas as systems. Current institutions and actors are not accustomed to exploring human-environment interactions, particularly at an urban-scale. The fact is that these issues involve complex interactions, many of which are not yet fully understood. Thus a key challenge for the 21st century is this: How can we develop sustainable urban systems that provide healthy, safe and affordable environments for the growing number of Americans living in cities and their surrounding metropolitan areas? To address this question, the National Research Council organized a workshop exploring the landscape of urban sustainability research programs in the United States. The workshop, summarized in this volume, was designed to allow participants to share information about the activities and planning efforts of federal agencies, along with related initiatives by universities, the private sector, nongovernmental groups, state and local agencies, and international organizations. Participants were encouraged to explore how urban sustainability can move beyond analyses devoted to single disciplines and sectors to systems-level thinking and effective interagency cooperation. To do this, participants examined areas of potential coordination among different R&D programs, with special consideration given to how the efforts of federal agencies can best complement and leverage the efforts of other key stakeholders. Pathways to Urban Sustainability offers a broad contextual summary of workshop presentations and discussions for distribution to federal agencies, regional organizations, academic institutions, think tanks and other groups engaged in urban research. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - End Points for Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste in Russia and the United States SN - DO - 10.17226/10667 PY - 2003 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/10667/end-points-for-spent-nuclear-fuel-and-high-level-radioactive-waste-in-russia-and-the-united-states PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies AB - End Points for spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste in Russian and the United States provides an analysis of the management of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste in Russia and the United States, describing inventories, comparing approaches, and assessing the end-point options for storage and disposal of materials and wastes. The authoring committee finds that despite differences in philosophy about nuclear fuel cycles, Russia and the United States need similar kinds of facilities and face similar challenges, although in Russia many of the problems are worse and funding is less available. This book contains recommendations for immediate and near-term actions, for example, protecting and stabilizing materials that are security and safety hazards, actions for the longer term, such as developing more interim storage capacity and studying effects of deep injection, and areas for collaboration. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council A2 - Thomas Dietz A2 - Paul C. Stern TI - New Tools for Environmental Protection: Education, Information, and Voluntary Measures SN - DO - 10.17226/10401 PY - 2002 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/10401/new-tools-for-environmental-protection-education-information-and-voluntary-measures PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies AB - Many people believe that environmental regulation has passed a point of diminishing returns: the quick fixes have been achieved and the main sources of pollution are shifting from large "point sources" to more diffuse sources that are more difficult and expensive to regulate. The political climate has also changed in the United States since the 1970s in ways that provide impetus to seek alternatives to regulation. This book examines the potential of some of these "new tools" that emphasize education, information, and voluntary measures. Contributors summarize what we know about the effectiveness of these tools, both individually and in combination with regulatory and economic policy instruments. They also extract practical lessons from this knowledge and consider what is needed to make these tools more effective.The book will be of interest to environmental policy practitioners and to researchers and students concerned with applying social and behavioral sciences knowledge to improve environmental quality. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Evaluation of Guidelines for Exposures to Technologically Enhanced Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials SN - DO - 10.17226/6360 PY - 1999 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/6360/evaluation-of-guidelines-for-exposures-to-technologically-enhanced-naturally-occurring-radioactive-materials PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies AB - Naturally occurring radionuclides are found throughout the earth's crust, and they form part of the natural background of radiation to which all humans are exposed. Many human activities-such as mining and milling of ores, extraction of petroleum products, use of groundwater for domestic purposes, and living in houses-alter the natural background of radiation either by moving naturally occurring radionuclides from inaccessible locations to locations where humans are present or by concentrating the radionuclides in the exposure environment. Such alterations of the natural environment can increase, sometimes substantially, radiation exposures of the public. Exposures of the public to naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM) that result from human activities that alter the natural environment can be subjected to regulatory control, at least to some degree. The regulation of public exposures to such technologically enhanced naturally occurring radioactive materials (TENORM) by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other regulatory and advisory organizations is the subject of this study by the National Research Council's Committee on the Evaluation of EPA Guidelines for Exposures to Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Managing Wastewater in Coastal Urban Areas SN - DO - 10.17226/2049 PY - 1993 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/2049/managing-wastewater-in-coastal-urban-areas PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies AB - Close to one-half of all Americans live in coastal counties. The resulting flood of wastewater, stormwater, and pollutants discharged into coastal waters is a major concern. This book offers a well-delineated approach to integrated coastal management beginning with wastewater and stormwater control. The committee presents an overview of current management practices and problems. The core of the volume is a detailed model for integrated coastal management, offering basic principles and methods, a direction for moving from general concerns to day-to-day activities, specific steps from goal setting through monitoring performance, and a base of scientific and technical information. Success stories from the Chesapeake and Santa Monica bays are included. The volume discusses potential barriers to integrated coastal management and how they may be overcome and suggests steps for introducing this concept into current programs and legislation. This practical volume will be important to anyone concerned about management of coastal waters: policymakers, resource and municipal managers, environmental professionals, concerned community groups, and researchers, as well as faculty and students in environmental studies. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Regional Cooperation for Water Quality Improvement in Southwestern Pennsylvania SN - DO - 10.17226/11196 PY - 2005 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11196/regional-cooperation-for-water-quality-improvement-in-southwestern-pennsylvania PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies AB - The city of Pittsburgh and surrounding area of southwestern Pennsylvania face complex water quality problems, due in large part to aging wastewater infrastructures that cannot handle sewer overflows and stormwater runoff, especially during wet weather. Other problems such as acid mine drainage are a legacy of the region's past coal mining, heavy industry, and manufacturing economy. Currently, water planning and management in southwestern Pennsylvania is highly fragmented; federal and state governments, 11 counties, hundreds of municipalities, and other entities all play roles, but with little coordination or cooperation. The report finds that a comprehensive, watershed-based approach is needed to effectively meet water quality standards throughout the region in the most cost-effective manner. The report outlines both technical and institutional alternatives to consider in the development and implementation of such an approach. ER - TY - BOOK TI - Guidelines for Chemical Warfare Agents in Military Field Drinking Water DO - 10.17226/9527 PY - 1995 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/9527/guidelines-for-chemical-warfare-agents-in-military-field-drinking-water PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - The Effects on the Atmosphere of a Major Nuclear Exchange SN - DO - 10.17226/540 PY - 1985 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/540/the-effects-on-the-atmosphere-of-a-major-nuclear-exchange PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies AB - Most of the earth's population would survive the immediate horrors of a nuclear holocaust, but what long-term climatological changes would affect their ability to secure food and shelter? This sobering book considers the effects of fine dust from ground-level detonations, of smoke from widespread fires, and of chemicals released into the atmosphere. The authors use mathematical models of atmospheric processes and data from natural situations—e.g., volcanic eruptions and arctic haze—to draw their conclusions. This is the most detailed and comprehensive probe of the scientific evidence published to date. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Indoor Pollutants SN - DO - 10.17226/1711 PY - 1981 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/1711/indoor-pollutants PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - A Review of Decontamination and Decommissioning Technology Development Programs at the Department of Energy SN - DO - 10.17226/6290 PY - 1998 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/6290/a-review-of-decontamination-and-decommissioning-technology-development-programs-at-the-department-of-energy PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Lighting the Way: Knowledge Assessment in Prince Edward Island SN - DO - 10.17226/6413 PY - 1999 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/6413/lighting-the-way-knowledge-assessment-in-prince-edward-island PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council A2 - Roger W. Russell A2 - Pamela Ebert Flattau A2 - Andrew M. Pope TI - Behavioral Measures of Neurotoxicity SN - DO - 10.17226/1352 PY - 1990 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/1352/behavioral-measures-of-neurotoxicity PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies AB - Exposure to toxic chemicals—in the workplace and at home—is increasing every day. Human behavior can be affected by such exposure and can give important clues that a person or population is in danger. If we can understand the mechanisms of these changes, we can develop better ways of testing for toxic chemical exposure and, most important, better prevention programs. This volume explores the emerging field of neurobehavioral toxicology and the potential of behavior studies as a noninvasive and economical means for risk assessment and monitoring. Pioneers in this field explore its promise for detecting environmental toxins, protecting us from exposure, and treating those who are exposed. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - The Airliner Cabin Environment: Air Quality and Safety SN - DO - 10.17226/913 PY - 1986 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/913/the-airliner-cabin-environment-air-quality-and-safety PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies AB - Each year Americans take more than 300 million plane trips staffed by a total of some 70,000 flight attendants. The health and safety of these individuals are the focus of this volume from the Committee on Airliner Cabin Air Quality. The book examines such topics as cabin air quality, the health effects of reduced pressure and cosmic radiation, emergency procedures, regulations established by U.S. and foreign agencies, records on airline maintenance and operation procedures, and medical statistics on air travel. Numerous recommendations are presented, including a ban on smoking on all domestic commercial flights to lessen discomfort to passengers and crew, to eliminate the possibility of fire caused by cigarettes, and to bring the cabin air quality into line with established standards for other closed environments. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Film Badge Dosimetry in Atmospheric Nuclear Tests SN - DO - 10.17226/1404 PY - 1989 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/1404/film-badge-dosimetry-in-atmospheric-nuclear-tests PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies AB - During the 18-year program of atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons (1945-1962), some of the 225,000 participants were exposed to radiation. Many of these participants have been experiencing sicknesses that may be test-related. Currently, test participants who had served in military units have pending over 6,000 claims for compensation at the Department of Veterans Affairs. This study presents improved methods for calculating the radiation doses to which these individuals were exposed, and are intended to be useful in the adjudication of their claims. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Selected Airborne Chemicals: Volume 3 SN - DO - 10.17226/10672 PY - 2003 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/10672/acute-exposure-guideline-levels-for-selected-airborne-chemicals-volume-3 PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies AB - This report reviews documents on acute exposure guideline levels (AEGLs) for nerve agents GA (tabun), GB (sarin), GD (soman), GD, and VX, sulfur mustard, diborane, and methyl isocyanate. The documents were developed by the National Advisory Committee on Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Chemicals (NAC). The subcommittee concludes that the AEGLs developed in those documents are scientifically valid conclusions based on data reviewed by NAC and are consistent with the NRC reports on developing acute exposure guideline levels. ER -