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​​​​A Brief Glance at NIH Environmental History​​​​

​​While the NIH has a rich and extensive history in medical research and breakthroughs, it has also maintained a strong commitment to environmental health and sustainability throughout the past several decades. As we end the year, let’s look back on some events and programs whose history spans further than many may realize.

Earth Day

The first Earth Day was observed in 1970. Since then, the holiday has inspired numerous instances of improvements in sustainability at NIH, from encouraging increased recycling programs in 1990 to motivating the Gardening Program in 2009. Since 1991, the NIH has been recognizing Earth Day, but what used to be a small gathering hosted by NIEHS has now become a sprawling celebration in collaboration with Take Your Child to Work Day, featuring vendors, exhibitors and dozens of environmental lessons to inspire the next generation of scientists and citizens.^1​

Environmental Health

The Division of Environmental Health Sciences was elevated to institute status and became NIEHS in 1969.² Even three decades prior, the NIH was studying the links between the environment and human health. In 1935, the NIH published a preliminary report (pictured) using the results of their National Health Survey. This report investigated the health effects certain living areas were having on its residents, particularly in urban communities. By 1948, the Public Health Service had begun studying the effects of air pollution.³ As the NIH continued to grow and mature, institutes like NICHD and NIMHD would come into fruition, continuing to helm these important efforts and research how to make environmental health an equitable possibility for all. These efforts towards equitable environmental health, categorized as environmental justice, have been a recent environmental focus for the NIH, which can be explored in our September article​.

Gardening

While your freshest memory of community gardening at the NIH may be the Building 35 Post Bac Gardening Group mentioned in July, the practice dates back to World War II. During that time, over 20 million “Victory Gardens” were planted in the US to help with food shortages, one of which was maintained by the NIH and located by Building 31B.⁴ Much later, the NIH would garden again, this time not out of necessity and with more emphasis on the health and environmental benefits of the practice. In 2009, NICHD ran a “Garden Club” with the help of NIH R&W.⁵ A decade later, Club RML at Rocky Mountain Labs in Montana would open its community garden, doubling its size in 2021.⁶ If you are interested in participating in this generation’s community gardens, contact Anirban Banerjee for the Bethesda campus or Taylor Robinson for RML.

Recycling Programs

Recycling has played a major role in NIH waste management. Back in 1978, when Pepsi cans were still primarily made of steel, the NIH Sanitation Services ran a soda can recycling program by placing receptacles near vending machines.⁷ As the years went on, recycling expanded to paper, but mainly remained as a volunteer effort and billed individually.⁸ Organized efforts would first be spearheaded by NIEHS, then the NIH Division of Environmental Protection.⁹ The biggest difficulties were staffing issues, technological limitations and non-centralized efforts. Since 1990, these issues have been addressed and reduced, as the Division of Environmental Protection worked diligently to divert waste from landfills and incinerators, instead establishing numerous recycling programs for different materials.¹⁰ In 2000, while these programs were still picking up steam, the recycling average at NIH was around 30%.¹¹ All sorts of waste systems and recycling programs are being managed by DEP WRRB​ currently and as of CY 2021, the average was over 70%.^12​

There are so many other environmental areas in which NIH has been involved in the past and present, including Bike to Work Day, carpooling, chemical recycling, e-waste, energy conservation, mercury elimination and the famous Mad Hatter Program, radioactive waste, sustainable buildings and much more. Gabrielle Barr, an archivist with the NIH Office of History, has compiled an expanded sampling of articles that can be viewed here​.​

​Spotlight                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

Down Memory Lane with Kenny Floyd - Energy Efficiency ​​William “Kenny” Floyd is the current Director of the Division of Environmental Protection (DEP). Since the 1980s, he has been working at the NIH in environmentally-focused engineering and chemistry positions, striving to make the organization more sustainable. We aim to capture his many years of wisdom and share them with you, starting with this article’s topic of energy efficiency. ​ LEA​RN MORE​​​​

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​	​Have A Happy Green Holiday! ​ ​​December marks the end of the year and the beginning of quality time, holidays and annual leave. During these times of extended absence from the office or laboratory, it is important to practice energy efficiency. Read this article for a few ideas! ​​LEARN MORE​​​​

NEMS Training                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         
Did you know? The ​NIH is required to purchase Energy Star-certified products when they are available, according to Federal ​Acquisition Regulation 23.206​. The only exceptions​ are for products that are not reasonable available or products that are not cost-effective over the lifetime of the product. To learn more about recycling​​​​​​​, please visit the NEMS Training webpage to view a short (20 minute) NIH environmental awareness training video.