Westat has applied our strong statistical, environmental, and data collection skills to design, conduct, and analyze environmental studies for more than 25 years. We have applied national field resources to the collection of environmental samples in homes, schools, and industrial facilities and coordinated analyses at specialized laboratories, following EPA's and our own quality assurance specifications.
National Children's Study (NCS)
Westat has been awarded the contract to serve as the coordinating center for the National Children's Study (NCS) — the largest study ever undertaken within the United States to assess the effects of the environment on child and adult health. The full nationwide study would follow more than 100,000 children from prior to conception through adulthood, seeking information to prevent and treat such health problems as autism, birth defects, diabetes, heart disease, and obesity. Westat will collect data, compile and analyze statistics, and ensure that the study proceeds according to design.
Environmental measures proposed for inclusion in the study include toxicants in air, water, and household dust and body burden data to be collected from urine, saliva, and blood. Toxicants to be studied include pesticides, metals, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), phytoestrogens, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and more.
Six Vanguard Centers have been selected to pilot and complete the first phases of the study. The centers, which include a variety of universities, hospitals, health departments, and other organizations, will work within their communities to recruit participants, collect and process data, and pilot new research methods for incorporation into the full study.
NCS is led by a consortium of Federal agency partners: the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (including the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences at the National Institutes of Health, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Exposure Assessment and Environmental Epidemiology
Our work in the area of exposure assessment and environmental epidemiology has included studies of exposure to pesticides, particulate matter, PCBs, heavy metals, and volatile organic compounds in a variety of populations, including children, the elderly, and the immunocompromised. Westat conducted the National Human Exposure Assessment Regional Survey in Maryland, a multimedia, multicontaminant field study of long-term exposure that included the collection of blood and urine samples for environmental exposure. The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey now includes measurements of environmental exposure to dozens of contaminants through sampling of blood, urine, hair, and other body tissues and fluids. Other Westat environmental epidemiology studies include studies of the health effects relating to the following exposures:
- Air pollution among the elderly in Maryland and California and school children in California and Texas;
- Pesticides among children throughout the United States;
- Microbial pathogens among bathers in recreational water;
- Mercury in the seafood consumed by subsistence fishermen and women of childbearing age;
- Indoor allergens in the homes and daycare centers of children throughout the United States; and
- Asbestos in homes, schools, and commercial buildings throughout the United States.
Water Quality has been the focus of several projects for the EPA. Westat has performed the following:
- Evaluated the best technology available for minimizing the adverse environmental impact of cooling water intake structures;
- Analyzed water quality impairment from concentrated animal feeding operations; and
- Designed, conducted, and analyzed the results of industry surveys to determine whether current effluent guidelines were appropriate for current manufacturing technologies used in the iron and steel, meat products, and aquaculture industries.
Westat's work in the area of lead hazards has included two national surveys of lead-based paint hazards in housing, an assessment of exposure to lead in child-care centers and homes, and the analysis of data on lead levels in soil. Our staff has performed the following:
- Produced technical guidance documents on lead contamination of various media (soil, water, and dust);
- Developed risk communication materials for the general public;
- Designed a series of examinations to certify lead inspections;
- Evaluated training programs designed to train janitors and others to work safely around lead paint; and
- Designed a protocol for measuring the blood lead levels of children living in remediated housing.
Health and Environment Chapter of the EPA's State of the Environment Report
Westat assisted EPA in preparing the health and environment chapter of the EPA's State of the Environment Report. Written in a style appropriate for the general public, yet in conformance with the standards of the health and environmental research communities, the report addresses the following:
- Health status of the U.S. population;
- Human exposure to environmental pollutants;
- Diseases related to environmental pollution; and
- Data gaps and emerging issues.
Hazardous Waste Survey
For the EPA's Office of Solid Waste, Westat designed and implemented the Hazardous Waste Survey. This national industry survey provided important information about the characteristics of waste generation, treatment, storage, and disposal facilities and the quantities of hazardous waste produced.