Electric and Magnetic Fields Research and Public Information Dissemination Program annual report for fiscal year 1996

Abstract

The Electric and Magnetic Fields (EMF) Research and Public Information Dissemination (RAPID) Program was authorized by the Energy Policy Act of 1992 as a near-term effort to expand and accelerate the research needed to address the EMF issue. As required by this legislation, the EMF Interagency Committee, the National EMF Advisory Committee (NEMFAC), and the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) are providing valued input and advice for the direction of this program. With this input and advice, the Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) have developed and are implementing five-year program plans. Multi-year health effects research projects and related EMF measurement and exposure assessment projects are underway using funds appropriated in fiscal years 1994, 1995, and 1996 together with voluntary non-Federal contributions. The results of these research projects, along with the results of other EMF research, will be used as input to the hazard evaluation effort, which is the focus of the EMF RAPID Program. A coordinated interagency program is underway to communicate needed information on the EMF issue in a clear manner to the public and other decision makers.