President Bush is requesting that Congress cut funds for environmental research by graduate students in the Environmental Protection Agency's Science to Achieve Results (STAR) Fellowship program for the fiscal year 2003.

His decision hit home at Penn State, Reuben Rose-Redwood (graduate-geography) said.

The STAR program has $9.7 million worth of funds that are distributed to graduate students involved with environmental research in universities around the country, including Penn State.

In the Bush Administration's budget for 2003, Bush is asking Congress to take funds from STAR and transfer them to the National Science Foundation (NSF), leaving the program with nothing.

The STAR program supported Rose-Redwood's research at Penn State on the environmental history of New York City. He hopes the study will provide some historical context for contemporary geo-political events in the region.

Since Rose-Redwood's fellowship will end in August when he graduates, he will not personally be affected by Bush's decision.

His concern, however, is that in the years to come, future generations of environmental scientists will not be given the same opportunity that was offered to him for his graduate studies.

"The STAR Fellowship is little more than a tenth of a percent of EPA's total budget," Rose-Redwood said. "Yet it is crucial for training the next generation of scientists to deal with the complex environmental issues that face our nation and the world."

Sasha Davis (graduate-geography) applied for the STAR Fellowship and did not receive funds, perhaps due to Bush's request to eliminate the program, he said. The program is not giving out grants to new applicants, because people with existing grants still need to be funded.

Davis said he does not blame the Republican Party. "I blame the Bush Administration and their priorities, and obviously the environment and the studies of it are not one of them," he said.

Rose-Redwood also blames the Bush Administration.

"By eliminating the STAR Fellowship program, a clear message is being sent to the academic community that environmental research, and the training of future environmental scientists, is not a priority for the Bush Administration," Rose-Redwood said.

"While national security issues are a central focus of the administration, national security depends not only on the military, but also on protecting public health, preventing pollution and creating an infrastructure for effectively dealing with environmental issues," he added.

Although Bush has requested to cut funds from STAR, it still has to go through the Congressional process.

"Congress has the last word, although they have to submit a budget that the president will sign," Rose-Redwood said. "There will likely be resistance in Congress."

For more information on the STAR Fellowship program, visit the EPA's National Center for Environmental Research homepage at http://es.epa. gov/ncer/ncqwelc.html.