Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR)

ATSDR is directed by congressional mandate to perform specific functions concerning the effect of hazardous substances on public health in the environment, including public health assessments of waste sites, health consultations concerning specific hazardous substances, health surveillance and registries, response to emergency releases of hazardous substances, applied research in support of public health assessments, information development and dissemination, and education and training concerning hazardous substances. The Division of Health Assessment and Consultation (DHAC) conducts public health assessments of all sites proposed for or listed on the National Priorities List and in response to petitions (requests) for public health assessments received from the public. A public health assessment is an integrated evaluation of environmental contamination data, community health concerns, and health outcome data. The purposes of the public health assessment are to identify hazards posed by hazardous waste sites and affected communities for which public health actions are necessary. The DHAC staff and ATSDR- supported health assessors in the states prepare public health assessments of hazardous waste sites throughout the nation.