Stimulus funds buoy UMass Lowell toxics institute

By Boston Business Journal staff

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The University of Massachusetts Lowell says it will be able to keep its Toxics Use Reduction Institute running through the end of the current fiscal year, thanks to a $1.3 million infusion it received from federal stimulus funds.

The Institute, known as TURI, is part of the UMass Lowell campus, but the state has funded it separately since it started in 1990 through fees paid by businesses that use toxic substances. The agency is part of a state-mandated program that has reduced the use of hazardous materials by local manufacturers by more than 40 percent over the past two decades.

In 2008, 550 businesses paid $3.2 million in fees to the state. However, the 2010 state budget eliminated $1.3 million in funding for TURI, making the institute’s future questionable.

At TURI, researchers and lab staff work on testing and promoting alternatives to toxic chemicals, improve efficiency in energy and water use, provide training and other programs.

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