Dr. Barbara Zielinska, an atmospheric chemist at the Desert Research Institute, has been appointed to a two-year term on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee. Established by Congress, the committee reports directly to the EPA Administrator and evaluates of the strengths and weaknesses of the technical foundation of EPA's air quality regulations.
Dr. Zielinska has conducted research across the nation and in several foreign countries, focusing on the characterization of organic compounds in ambient air, their chemical transformation in the atmosphere, and determination of their emission sources. She is also the director of DRI's Organic Analytical Laboratory, a state-of-the-art facility in Reno which analyzes air samples for trace amounts of organic air pollutants identified as being adverse to human health.