Our quality of life depends vitally on the quality of our environment. Our society has striven to find a balance between technological progress, and the preservation of our ecosphere. We still face considerable challenges of maintaining clean water and air, a genetically diverse set of plant and animal species, and assuring the health and safety of the world about us. UMass Amherst has long had a strong commitment to environmental concerns, and has been the venue of various environmental analysis sites for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, such as the Pesticide Analysis Laboratory, and the Water Resources Laboratory. The National Environmental Technology Institute (NETI) provides state funding to seed collaborations for UMass faculty with industries seeking partnership and expertise to provide their services and manufacture their products using environmentally sound approaches. The Environmental Institute (TEI) on campus serves as an umbrella organization coordinating the various
environmental activities on campus. The Chemistry Department also shares environmentally-based interests and collaborates with a number of other departments and groups, including Chemical Engineering, Polymer Science & Engineering, Civil & Environmental Engineering, the Environmental Sciences Program, and various faculty in the school of Public Health.

Much of the department's focus in the environmental chemistry area is based on our long time strength in analysis. Particular interest focuses on the detection of contaminants in the environment. There is also a growing interest in "green synthesis" and environmentally friendly chemical methodologies, both in the department and throughout the nation.

For participating faculty see Research Matrix.