(ATLANTA) - The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), a federal public health agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is pleased to announce a new notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) for its APPLETREE program.

This new 5-year ATSDR’s Partnership to Promote Local Efforts to Reduce Environmental Exposure (APPLETREE) cooperative agreement program will fund approximately 34 state and local health departments and/or federally recognized American Indian/Alaska Native Tribal governments for a period of performance from April 1st, 2023, to March 31st, 2028.

Applications must be submitted electronically no later than 11:59 p.m. ET, on December 9th, 2022. Information on how to apply is available at www.grants.gov.

Through this cooperative agreement, funded applicants will receive resources and guidance to assess and respond to site-specific issues involving exposure to hazardous substances in the environment.

This includes

• identifying if and how people are exposed to toxic chemicals at specific sites,
• reviewing environmental and health data to identify potential health risks,
• making recommendations to prevent exposures, and
• educating affected communities and local health professionals about site contamination and potential health effects.

In addition to these activities, the funded applicants may use the funds to protect children from environmental hazards by ensuring assessment of new early care and education facilities for young children. The safe placement of early care and education facilities includes a review of

• former uses of proposed sites that may have left harmful chemicals or metals on the property (both building and land),
• possible leakage of harmful substances onto the site from nearby properties or activities,
• any naturally occurring harmful substances on site, and
• access to safe drinking water at the site.

ATSDR protects communities from harmful health effects related to exposure to natural and man-made hazardous substances by responding to environmental health emergencies; investigating emerging environmental health threats; conducting research on the health impacts of hazardous waste sites; and building capabilities of and providing actionable guidance to state and local health partners.

For more information about ATSDR, please visit www.atsdr.cdc.gov or call 1-800-CDC-INFO (232-4636). For more details about the APPLETREE program, visit https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/states/index.html.

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ATSDR, a federal public health agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, evaluates the potential for adverse human health effects of exposure to hazardous substances in the environment.