Department of Health and Human Services
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry

Program Description

Mission

The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) seeks to prevent human exposure to hazardous substances in the environment. Its public health functions include: assessments of sites; the analysis and reporting of collected assessments data; education and training concerning hazardous substances; epidemiological surveillance studies; and the mitigation of releases of hazardous substances into the environment. ATSDR focuses its brownfields activities on:

Partnering — Establishing and maintaining relationships with other federal, state, local and community stakeholders interested in brownfields redevelopment.
Providing Support — Working with partners to provide technical assistance and advice on brownfields activities.
Promoting Public Health — Providing national leadership to state and local health agencies working on brownfields.

Brownfields Connections

Provides training on environmental health impacts on minority communities — targeted to academic institutions and various brownfield community stakeholders.
Offers assessment of environmental sampling data — targeted to all brownfield community stakeholders.

Resources

The extent of ATSDR’s involvement at an individual site will depend on the health issues and the ability of ATSDR’s state and local health department partners to adequately address those issues and ATSDR’s resource capabilities.

Technical Assistance

Review and Assess Environmental Sampling Data

ATSDR can review and assess environmental sampling data and other site-related information.

Health-Related Information Sharing

ATSDR can provide health-related information on specific hazardous substances; coordinate a response to a real or perceived elevated incidence of disease near a site; and help individual workers or community members find experienced, private medical attention for significant hazardous substance exposure.

SNAPSHOT
Seattle/King County, Washington

The City of Seattle/King County, Washington, is focusing its brownfields cleanup program on creating greenspace. In particular, the program is concentrating on the cleanup and redevelopment in the three King County manufacturing and industrial centers, including the Duwamish industrial corridor. The corridor encompasses more than 8,500 acres and contains more than 200 contaminated properties. With the assistance of the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Control (ATSDR), the Boulevard Park Community Council performed environmental assessments at a former dry cleaning/gas station site. The goal is to convert the site to a neighborhood park. ATSDR provided additional assistance by disseminating information and responding to community concerns regarding issues related to the cleanup and redevelopment of brownfields.

Additional Information

Steven L. Jones, ATSDR Liaison Office to EPA Headquarters
Division of Regional Operations
1200 Pennsylvania Ave, NW
Ariel Rios Building – MC#5204G
Washington, DC 20460
703-603-8729
sxj6@cdc.gov

Tarah S. Somers, ATSDR Liaison Office to EPA Headquarters
Division of Regional Operations
1201 Pennsylvania Ave,NW
Ariel Rios Building – MC#5204G
Washington, DC 20460
703-603-8766
somers.tarah@epa.gov

Tina Forrester, Division Director ATSDR’s Division of Regional Operations
ATSDR/DRO
1600 Clifton Road, NE
Mailstop E-29
Atlanta, GA 30333
404-498-0106
txf5@cdc.gov

Main Website: http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov

Region 3 | Mid-Atlantic Cleanup | Mid-Atlantic Brownfields & Land Revitalization

Department of Health and Human Services Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry