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.

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

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 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 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: jcw6@cdc.gov.

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: rmf2@cdc.gov.

PLEASE REFER TO ANNOUNCEMENT NUMBER 807 WHEN REQUESTING INFORMATION AND SUBMITTING AN APPLICATION.