The Environmental Toxicology Research Program conducts research and educational activities that seek to identify and resolve problems related to environmental health issues.

The assessment of risk factors and identification of health indicators creates the opportunity to understand the effects of chemical, physical, and social characteristics of communities on human health and environmental quality. It is recognized that while underestimating the impact of chemical exposures may result in contamination and/or adverse health effects, overestimating the potential hazards could result in an undue economic burden on communities.

As costs associated with compliance to regulations increase, regulators, as well as the regulated community, must make the most effective use of funds allocated for reducing deleterious impacts on human health and environmental quality. It is with this understanding that the role of high quality basic and applied research becomes apparent. High quality science will lead to decisions based on a more complete understanding of cause and effect relationships and will be less likely to vary with technological trends. It is the goal of the program to contribute information that will allow economic growth to occur in a climate of quality, cost-effective health services and ecologically meaningful environmental stewardship.