The University of Iowa Center for Health Effects of Environmental Contamination (CHEEC) supports and conducts research to identify, measure and prevent adverse health outcomes related to exposure to environmental toxins. CHEEC was established through the 1987 Iowa Groundwater Protection Act and has focused its efforts to date mainly on water contaminants.

A primary activity of CHEEC involves environmental database design and development and systems support for environmental health research being conducted at the University. The CHEEC Data Management Center is involved in a variety of epidemiologic studies of rural and urban populations in Iowa.

Since the fall of 1988, the CHEEC Seed Grant Program has funded more than seventy pilot studies in a wide range of environmental research areas, including biodegradation of toxic substances and bioremediation of contaminated environments, laboratory measurement, sampling methods, design and on-site monitoring, database development, health survey design and statistical analyses of environmental exposures and chronic health outcomes. The program also funds environmental health programs of interest to Iowans.

Ongoing educational programs take advantage of cooperative relationships CHEEC has established with Iowa state agencies and other University research centers to sponsor seminars and conferences on a variety of environmental health issues.