National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health; Mining Occupational Safety and Health Research Grants; Notice of Availability of Funds for Fiscal Year 1998

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health; Mining

Occupational Safety and Health Research Grants; Notice of Availability

of Funds for Fiscal Year 1998

[Announcement Number 807]

Introduction

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National

Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), announces that

grant applications are being accepted for research projects relating to

occupational safety and health concerns associated with mining.

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CDC is committed to achieving the health promotion and disease

prevention objectives of ``Healthy People 2000,'' a national activity

to reduce morbidity and mortality and improve the quality of life. This

announcement is related to the priority area of Occupational Safety and

Health. (For ordering a copy of ``Healthy People 2000,'' see the

section Where To Obtain Additional Information.)

Authority

This program is authorized under the Public Health Service Act, as

amended, Section 301 (42 U.S.C. 241) and the Federal Mine Safety and

Health Act of 1977, Section 501 (30 U.S.C. 951). The applicable program

regulations are in 42 CFR part 52.

Eligible Applicants

Eligible applicants include domestic and foreign non-profit and

for-profit organizations, universities, colleges, research

institutions, and other public and private organizations, including

State and local governments and small, minority and/or woman-owned

businesses.

Note: Effective January 1, 1996, Public Law 104-65 states that

an organization described in section 501(c)(4) of the Internal

Revenue Code of 1986 which engages in lobbying activities shall not

be eligible to receive Federal funds constituting an award, grant

(cooperative agreement), contract, loan, or any other form.

Smoke-Free Workplace

CDC strongly encourages all grant recipients to provide a smoke-

free workplace and promote the non-use of all tobacco products, and

Public Law 103-227, the Pro-Children Act of 1994, prohibits smoking in

certain facilities that receive Federal funds in which education,

library, day care, health care, and early childhood development

services are provided to children.

Availability of Funds

About $500,000 is expected to be available in fiscal year (FY) 1998

to fund approximately 4 to 8 research project grants. The amount of

funding available may vary and is subject to change. Awards will range

from $50,000 to $200,000 in total costs (direct and indirect) per year.

Awards are expected to begin on or about July 1, 1998. Awards will be

made for a 12-month budget period within a project period not to exceed

3 years. Continuation awards within the project period will be made on

the basis of satisfactory progress and availability of funds.

Background

Under provisions of the FY 1996 Appropriations legislation, the

U.S. Bureau of Mines (USBM) was closed and certain functions were

maintained and reassigned to other agencies. These actions resulted in

the transfer of the health and safety research programs of the Bureau

of Mines to NIOSH in the Department of Health and Human Services. NIOSH

intends to maintain an extramural research program as part of the

research responsibilities transferred from the former USBM.

The Mine Safety and Health Research Program has been fully

coordinated with the National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) plans

and recommendations.

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NORA category Priority research area

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Disease and Injury..................... Allergic and Irritant

Dermatitis

Asthma and Chronic Obstructive

Pulmonary Disease

Fertility and Pregnancy

Abnormalities

Hearing Loss

Infectious Diseases

Low-Back Disorders

Musculoskeletal Disorders of

the Upper Extremities

Traumatic Injuries

Work Environment and Work Force........ Emerging Technologies

Indoor Environment

Mixed Exposures

Organization of Work

Special Populations at Risk

Research Tools and Approaches Cancer Research Methods

Control Technology and Personal

Protective Equipment

Exposure Assessment Methods

Health Services Research

Intervention Effectiveness

Research

Risk Assessment Methods

Social and Economic

Consequences of Workplace

Illness and Injury

Surveillance Research Methods

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Purpose

The purpose of this grant program is to develop knowledge that can

be used to prevent occupational diseases and injuries to miners. NIOSH

will support hypothesis-testing research projects to identify and

quantify occupational health and safety hazards to miners, develop

methods and technologies to measure and control these hazards, and

translate research findings so that they can be applied to solve health

and safety problems in mines.

Programmatic Interest

Emphasis will be given to the priority research areas identified by

NORA listed above. The focus of grants should emphasize research in the

following topical areas which are in priority order:

(1) Hearing Loss Prevention

Conduct laboratory and field research on noise-induced hearing loss

in miners; Conduct field dosimetric and audiometric surveys to assess

the extent and severity of the problem and to identify those mining

segments in greatest need of attention and to objectively track

progress in meeting loss prevention goals; Conduct field and laboratory

research to identify noise generation sources and to identify those

areas most amenable to intervention activities; Develop, test, and

demonstrate new control technologies for noise reduction; Develop

strategies and methods to improve the effectiveness of hearing

protectors for miners; Assess the effect of using hearing protectors on

miner safety; Evaluate technical and economic feasibility of controls;

Develop, evaluate, and recommend implementation strategies to promote

the adoption and use of noise reduction technology.

(2) Mining Injury Prevention

Conduct laboratory, field, and computer modeling research to focus

on human physiological capabilities and limitations and their

interactions with mining jobs, tasks, equipment and the mine work

environment; Research on causes and prevention of low back disorders in

miners; Study effects of human behavior on mining injuries; Design and

conduct epidemiological research studies to identify and classify risk

factors that are causing or may be causing traumatic injuries to

miners; Evaluate and recommend implementation strategies for injury

prevention and control technologies.

(3) Dust and Toxic Substance Control

Research to develop or improve personal and area direct reading

instruments for measuring mining contaminants, including but not

limited to respirable dust, silica, diesel engine emissions, and other

toxic substances and mixtures; Conduct field tests, experiments, and

demonstrations of new technology for monitoring and assessing mine air

quality; Conduct laboratory and field research to develop airborne

hazard reduction control technologies; Carry out field surveys in

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mines to identify work organization strategies that could result in

reduced dust or toxic substance exposure; Evaluate the performance,

economics, and technical feasibility of engineering control strategies,

novel approaches, and the application of new or emerging technologies

for underground and surface mine dust and toxic substance control

systems; Develop and evaluate implementation strategies for using newly

developed monitors and control technology for exposure reduction or

prevention.

(4) Social and Economic Consequences of Mining Illness and Injury

Analyze all effects of mining illness and injury on miners, their

families, communities and States; Assess the effectiveness of health

services provided to miners for prevention and care of occupational

illness and injury; Assess the economic burden of mining illnesses and

injuries and potential economic benefits of their prevention.

(5) Surveillance

Develop and evaluate new surveillance methods for mining-related

illnesses and fatal and nonfatal injuries to improve collection and

analysis of health and safety data; Collect demographic information on

miners to analyze health and safety data; Develop improved methods to

describe trends in incidence of mining-related fatalities, morbidity,

and traumatic injury; Develop and evaluate methods to conduct

surveillance on the use of new and emerging technologies, the use of

engineering controls, and the use of protective equipment in the mining

sector; Analyze the effectiveness of prevention and control

interventions in mining; Conduct mining-relevant risk analyses.

Reporting Requirements

Progress reports are required annually as part of the continuation

application (75 days prior to the start of the next budget period). The

annual progress reports must contain information on accomplishments

during the previous budget period and plans for each remaining year of

the project. Financial status reports (FSR) are required no later than

90 days after the end of the budget period. The final performance and

FSRs are required 90 days after the end of the project period. The

final performance report should include, at a minimum, a statement of

original objectives, a summary of research methodology, a summary of

positive and negative findings, and a list of publications resulting

from the project. Research papers, project reports, or theses are

acceptable items to include in the final report. The final report

should stand alone rather than citing the original application. Three

copies of reprints of publications prepared under the grant should

accompany the report.

Evaluation Criteria

Upon receipt, applications will be reviewed by CDC for completeness

and responsiveness. Applications determined to be incomplete or

unresponsive to this announcement will be returned to the applicant

without further consideration. If the proposed project involves

organizations or persons other than those affiliated with the applicant

organization, letters of support and/or cooperation must be included.

Applications that are complete and responsive to the announcement

will be evaluated for scientific and technical merit by appropriate

peer reviewers in accordance with the review criteria stated below. As

part of the initial merit review, a process may be used by the peer

reviewers in which applications will be determined to be competitive or

non-competitive using the evaluation criteria below to determine their

scientific merit relative to other applications received in response to

this announcement. Applications judged to be competitive will be

discussed and assigned a priority score. Applications determined to be

non-competitive will be withdrawn from further consideration and the

principal investigator/program director and the official signing for

the applicant organization will be promptly notified.

Review criteria for technical merit are as follows:

1. Technical significance and originality of proposed project.

2. Appropriateness and adequacy of the study design and methodology

proposed to carry out the project.

3. Qualifications and research experience of the Principal

Investigator and staff, particularly but not exclusively in the area of

the proposed project.

4. Availability of resources necessary to perform the project.

5. Documentation of cooperation from industry, unions, or other

participants in the project, where applicable.

6. Adequacy of plans to include both sexes and minorities and their

subgroups as appropriate for the scientific goals of the project (Plans

for the recruitment and retention of subjects will also be evaluated.).

7. Appropriateness of budget and period of support.

8. Human Subjects--Procedures adequate for the protection of human

subjects must be documented. Recommendations on the adequacy of

protections include: (1) Protections appear adequate and there are no

comments to make or concerns to raise, (2) protections appear adequate,

but there are comments regarding the protocol, (3) protections appear

inadequate and the Objective Review Group (ORG) has concerns related to

human subjects, or (4) disapproval of the application is recommended

because the research risks are sufficiently serious and protection

against the risks are inadequate as to make the entire application

unacceptable.

Review criteria for programmatic importance are as follows:

1. Relevance to mine safety and health, by contributing to

achievement of research objectives specified in Section 501 of the

Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977.

2. Magnitude of the problem in terms of numbers of miners affected.

3. Severity of the disease or injury in the mining population.

4. Usefulness to applied technical knowledge in the identification,

evaluation, or control of occupational safety and health hazards in

mines on a national or regional basis.

The following will be considered in making funding decisions:

1. Merit of the proposed project as determined by the initial peer

review.

2. Programmatic importance of the project as determined by

secondary review.

3. Availability of funds.

4. Program balance among priority areas of the announcement.

Executive Order 12372 Review

Applications are not subject to the review requirements of

Executive Order 12372, entitled Intergovernmental Review of Federal

Programs.

Public Health System Reporting Requirement

This program is not subject to the Public Health System Reporting

Requirements.

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number

The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance number is 93.262.

Other Requirements

Human Subjects

The applicant must comply with the Department of Health and Human

Services Regulations (45 CFR part 46) regarding the protection of human

subjects. Assurances must be provided to demonstrate that the project

will be

[[Page 42997]]

subject to initial and continuing review by an appropriate

institutional review committee. The applicant will be responsible for

providing assurance in accordance with the appropriate guidelines

provided in the application kit.

Animal Subjects

If the proposed project involves research on animal subjects, the

applicant must comply with the PHS Policy on Humane Care and Use of

Laboratory Animals by Awardee Institutions. An applicant organization

proposing to use vertebrate animals in CDC-supported activities must

file an Animal Welfare Assurance with the Office for Protection from

Research Risks at the National Institutes of Health.

Women and Racial and Ethnic Minorities

It is the policy of the CDC to ensure that women and racial and

ethnic groups will be included in CDC supported research projects

involving human subjects, whenever feasible and appropriate. Racial and

ethnic groups are those defined in OMB Directive No. 15 and include

American Indian, Alaskan Native, Asian, Pacific Islander, Black and

Hispanic. Applicants shall ensure that women and racial and ethnic

minority populations are appropriately represented in applications for

research involving human subjects. Where clear and compelling rationale

exist that inclusion is not feasible, this situation must be explained

as part of the application. In conducting the review of applications

for scientific merit, review groups will evaluate proposed plans for

inclusion of minorities and both sexes as part of the scientific

assessment and assigned score. This policy does not apply to research

studies when the investigator cannot control the race, ethnicity and/or

sex of subjects. Further guidance to this policy is contained in the

Federal Register, Vol. 60, No. 179, Friday, September 15, 1995, pages

47947-47951.

Application Submission and Deadlines

1. Preapplication Letter of Intent

Although not a prerequisite of application, a non-binding letter of

intent-to-apply is requested from potential applicants. The letter

should be submitted to the Grants Management Officer (whose address is

reflected in section 2., ``Applications''). It should be postmarked no

later than September 11, 1997. The letter should identify the

announcement number, name of principal investigator, and specify the

priority area to be addressed by the proposed project. The letter of

intent does not influence review or funding decisions, but it will

enable CDC to plan the review more efficiently, and will ensure that

each applicant receives timely and relevant information prior to

application submission.

2. Applications

Applicants should use Form PHS-398 (OMB Number 0925-0001) and

adhere to the ERRATA Instruction Sheet for Form PHS-398 contained in

the Grant Application Kit. Please submit an original and five copies on

or before November 11, 1997 to: Ron Van Duyne, Grants Management

Officer, ATTN: Joanne Wojcik, Grants Management Branch, Procurement and

Grants Office, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 255

East Paces Ferry Road, NE., Room 300, MS E-13, Atlanta, GA 30305.

3. Deadlines

a. Applications shall be considered as meeting a deadline if they

are either:

(1) Received at the above address on or before the deadline date, or

(2) Sent on or before the deadline date to the above address, and

received in time for the review process. Applicants should request a

legibly dated U.S. Postal Service postmark or obtain a legibly dated

receipt from a commercial carrier or the U.S. Postal Service. Private

metered postmarks shall not be accepted as proof of timely mailings.

b. Applications which do not meet the criteria above are considered

late applications and will be returned to the applicant.

Where to Obtain Additional Information

To receive additional written information call (404) 332-4561. You

will be asked to leave your name, address, and telephone number and

will need to refer to announcement 807. You will receive a complete

program description, information on application procedures, and

application.

If you have questions after reviewing the contents of all the

documents, business management information may be obtained from Joanne

Wojcik, Grants Management Specialist, Grants Management Branch,

Procurement and Grants Office, Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention (CDC), 255 East Paces Ferry Road, NE., MS E-13, Atlanta, GA

30305, telephone (404) 842-6535; fax: (404) 842-6513; Internet:

[email protected].

Programmatic technical assistance may be obtained from Roy M.

Fleming, Sc.D., Associate Director for Grants, National Institute for

Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention (CDC), 1600 Clifton Road, NE., Building 1, Room 3053, MS D-

30, Atlanta, GA 30333, telephone: 404-639-3343; fax: 404-639-4616;

Internet: [email protected].

Please refer to announcement number 807 when requesting information

and submitting an application.

This and other CDC Announcements can be found on the CDC home page

(http://www.cdc.gov) under the Funding section.

CDC will not send application kits by facsimile or express mail.

Potential applicants may obtain a copy of ``Healthy People 2000''

(Full Report, Stock No. 017-001-00474-0) or ``Healthy People 2000''

(Summary Report, Stock No. 017-001-00473-1) through the Superintendent

of Documents, Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402-9325,

telephone (202) 512-1800.

Dated: August 5, 1997.

Diane D. Porter,

Acting Director, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health,

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

[FR Doc. 97-21102 Filed 8-8-97; 8:45 am]

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