After a nationwide competition involving more than 100 universities,UC Davis has been selected by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to become one of four exploratory environmental research centers, with the potential for $9 million in federal funding. The new Center for Ecological Health Research will coordinate campus studies on factors -- such as toxic substances, drought, salinity, temperature and the introduction of non-native species -- that affect ecosystems. "We'll be studying parts of several ecosystems including the Sacramento River, the Delta, Clear Lake, Central Valley orchards and several Sierra Nevada forests and lakes," says center director Dennis Rolston, a professor of land, air and water resources. The new center will include 35 campus researchers from 12 departments. In addition to research projects, the center will create an emergency response team of campus scientists who will lend their expertise during environmental catastrophes such as last year's train derailment near Dunsmuir, Calif., which resulted in the spill of toxic chemicals into the Sacramento River.