Center works on much more than groundwater

The work of the Center for Environmental Analysis at Southeast Missouri State University goes far beyond groundwater testing. It ranges from improving pediatric asthma care to developing a means of detecting methamphetamine exposure to finding old graves with radar. CEA research projects include lead exposure, discharges from swine farm operations and earthworm species identification, among many others.

The center's award-winning pediatric asthma program educates Southeast Missouri families about asthma triggers and ways to improve indoor air quality and behavior in the home. The center estimates the program has reduced health-care costs for insured families by about half a million dollars since its inception in 2005.

The free and confidential program is coordinated with health-care providers, hospitals, health departments and schools and last year won a national award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Center director Dr. John Kraemer also won the 2007 HP Technology for Teaching Award for the health-care and education part of the program.

The CEA is also developing a methamphetamine sensor to be used by health-care providers. A skin swab and the sensor will help them determine if symptoms are the result of exposure to methamphetamine in the home. This will be especially helpful in treating children, Kraemer said.

The CEA also does surface water tests for the city of Cape Girardeau and in Perry and Stoddard counties. The CEA has helped the Perry County Historical Society try to locate graves using ground-penetrating radar.

The CEA provides free hazardous materials training and trains emergency responders and others under Homeland Security guidelines.

Mold is another CEA concern. It conducts mold studies with the Cape Girardeau County Health Department and is the city of Cape Girardeau's contact for mold problems.

The center is self-supporting, earning about $100,000 annually in contracts. It was founded in 2000. Kraemer works with a team of 15 to 20 students, including some graduate students. "It's an opportunity to get in and participate in real-world activities," Kraemer said. "They jump on it."

-- Sam Blackwell