Air Quality and Community Health Research Subcommittee (ACRS)
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About ACRS
The White House’s Office of Science, Technology, and Policy established a subcommittee on Air Quality and Community Health Research (ACRS) in October 2022. ACRS is a subcommittee of the Committee on the Environment, Natural Resources, and Sustainability. ACRS is an evolution and expansion of the Air Quality Research Subcommittee which operated under the same organization from the late 1990s until 2018.
The purpose of ACRS is to coordinate and enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of U.S. air quality research in support of addressing air quality and community-level health impacts and exposure disparities.
ACRS coordinates across federal agencies to:
- enhance the usability, interoperability, and accessibility of air quality data and tools for individual, community, state, local, and Tribal decision makers to better assess and address air pollution exposures and health risks.
- consider the effects over a lifetime of exposure to complex air pollution mixtures and non-chemical stressors, and further characterization of the health impacts such as cardiovascular, respiratory, cancer, and other health conditions in communities.
- serve as a forum to facilitate research planning, coordination, and communication among federal agencies engaged in air quality and health effects research.
- provide information to strengthen the interface between researchers and those organizations who formulate and/or recommend air quality policy, including federal, state, Tribal, industry, and nongovernmental entities.
Who We Are
As an interagency group, our members represent the multiple federal agencies.
Co-Chair Representatives
- Environmental Protection Agency (Co-Chair)
- Department of Commerce - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) (Co-Chair)
- Department of Health and Human Services - National Institutes of Health (NIH) (Co-Chair)
- Department of Transportation (DOT) (Co-Chair)
Member Agencies
- Department of Agriculture (including U.S. Forest Service)
- Department of Commerce - National Institute of Standards and Technology
- Department of Energy
- Department of Health and Human Services - Center for Disease Control and Prevention
- Department of the Interior - U.S. Geological Survey
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- National Science Foundation
ACRS’s members are atmospheric scientists, biologists, social scientists, and more, representing a range of expertise to provide a comprehensive background of subject matter.
What We Do
ACRS members meet regularly to learn about and discuss relevant research activities within the participating agencies with a focus on understanding the work, identifying connections, and finding opportunities for coordination and leverage. Past efforts have focused on cross-agency communication, providing input to the Environmental Justice Science, Data, and Research Plan, highlighting the most effective ways to carry out research with community groups, and improving understanding of the most appropriate ways to characterize air pollution exposure to support a range of health studies and decision support tools.
Learn More About the Science
Tools
More Information About Air Quality
- Air Pollution, NIEHS
- Air Pollution and Your Health
- NOAA Factsheet on Air Quality Science
- Transportation Air Quality Selected Facts and Figures
- Health in Transportation
About Research Programs
- Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement (CMAQ) Program
- DOE's National Virtual Climate Laboratory
- EPA’s Air Research
- NASA's Atmospheric Composition Focus Area
- NASA's Health and Air Quality Program
- NOAA’s Air Resources Laboratory
- NSF Funding Opportunities on Atmospheric Chemistry
- NSF National Center for Atmospheric Research
Related Documents
- Environmental Justice Science, Data, and Research Plan, National Science and Technology Council
Contact ACRS
If you have questions about ACRS, please email us.