Surfactants are cleaning agents used in soaps, inks and other products to help them apply more easily ...]]>

A team of students from the University of Massachusetts Lowell will receive up to $90,000 from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop nontoxic, biodegradable "surfactants" from fruit peels and algae and potentially bring the invention to market.

Surfactants are cleaning agents used in soaps, inks and other products to help them apply more easily to surfaces. Many surfactants are non-biodegradable or degrade into toxic products. The UMass Lowell students developed a process to convert polysaccharides from fruit peels or algae into safer surfactants

The grant is one of seven awarded nationally under the EPA's People, Prosperity and the Planet (P3) program.

Among examples:

•   Bridgeport Neighborhood Trust in Connecticut was awarded $25,000 for its “Bridgeport East Side Healthy Homes Initiative” to address environmentally related illnesses including allergens that contribute to asthma and lead ...]]>

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) awarded approximately $372,000 in grants to support 13 New England community projects that address environmental and public health issues.

Among examples:

•   Bridgeport Neighborhood Trust in Connecticut was awarded $25,000 for its “Bridgeport East Side Healthy Homes Initiative” to address environmentally related illnesses including allergens that contribute to asthma and lead contamination that poisons young children.

•  In Maine, the Passamaquoddy Tribe at Pleasant Point was awarded $25,000 to build on an existing pilot project for producing home heating oil from algae grown in backyard reactors in order to reduce carbon and sulfur emissions from the combustion of fossil fuels.

•  The Massachusetts Coalition for Occupational Safety and Health was awarded $24,999 for its project to improve asthma management and build capacity to address environmental inequities in struggling schools.

•  The Manchester Health Department in New Hampshire was awarded $24,999 to advance its existing pediatric asthma education and outreach program through official adoption and integration of a holistic healthy homes approach to environmental diseases.

•  Rhode Island's Childhood Lead Action Project was awarded $25,000 to expand its Get the Lead Out Coalition's work on childhood lead poisoning to include childhood asthma and efforts to protect children from mold, pests and unsafe renovation practices.

•  Vermont's Parks Place Community Resource Center was awarded $25,000 for its “Contractor and Landlord Educational Outreach” project to reduce childhood exposure to lead-contaminated dust during renovation and repairs.