TerraGraphics Environmental Engineering and the University of Idaho have undertaken the International Environmental Health and Restoration Initiative, a joint Research and Development project to adopt and apply environmental cleanup methodologies used in the U.S. to hazardous waste sites in the developing world. This is accomplished through cooperative projects implemented in conjunction with local governments, Universities, and NGOs.

The Initiative provides financial and technical assistance to site assessment and characterization, development of community support groups, and preliminary cleanup design activities. The conceptual cleanup plans are then used to support funding applications for cleanup activities to be implemented at the local level in the participating countries. Currently, the Initiative is working with international NGOs to develop a systematic process for site characterization and an international funding source for cleanup of legacy sites adversely impacting children’s health. These projects utilize health intervention, environmental remediation, and institutional controls techniques developed in the mining districts of northern Idaho by adapting those to local cultural, economic, and socio-economic conditions.

Currently projects are underway in Russia, China, Ethiopia/Kenya, and the Dominican Republic. Two of these sites were listed in the Blacksmith Institute's Top Ten Polluted Sites in the world in 2007. Strategies for improvement include:

• Site Characterization / Assessment
• Health Response Feasibility Studies
• Lead Health Intervention Programs
• Biological Monitoring
• Environmental Sampling
• Environmental Restoration
• Community Relations / Education
• Institutional & Industrial Controls
• Soil Remediation and Interior Decontamination
• Cleanup Design / Oversight

More than 50 sites have been reviewed in 20 countries since 2006. At this time, projects have been undertaken in Senegal, Peru, Russia, China, Ethiopia/Kenya, and the Dominican Republic. Three of these sites were listed in the Blacksmith Institute's yearly Top Ten Polluted Sites in the World. TerraGraphics is also partnering with the Blacksmith Institute to create a database of the world's toxic waste sites in an effort to determine the extent and severity of the problem in the developing world; and with the federal Centers for Disease Control and the Harvard University School of Public health to address the global health effects of mining and smelting in developing world. Long term project goals include the characterization of new legacy sites to propose for cleanup, and development of funding sources for sites in Low Income Countries.

• Blacksmith Institute
• CDC