Toxics in Your Community (TRI)
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Region 10: The Pacific Northwest
Serving the people of Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington and 270 Native Tribes

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Toxics in Your Community (TRI)

    Overview of the Toxics Release Inventory Program

    The     Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act of 1986 (EPCRA) promotes planning for chemical emergencies and the public's right to know about toxic and hazardous chemicals in their communities. A core provision of this Act is the establishment of the Toxic Release Inventory (TRI)--a national database identifying facilities, chemicals manufactured and used at those facilities, and the annual accidental and routine releases of these materials. The toxic chemical list for TRI 1995 includes over 600 individually listed chemicals and chemical categories.

    What effect could the release of toxic chemicals in your community have on your health? EPA uses a process of risk screening for evaluating the probability that chemical releases will harm human health or the environment. It also suggests additional steps you may consider if TRI reveals toxic chemical releases in your community. EPA has information on how to find out about the health effects and environmental impacts of many of the toxic chemicals in the TRI. For more information about the toxic effects of some of the TRI chemicals, EPA has developed chemical fact sheets to describe how you might be exposed to these chemicals, how exposure to them might affect you and the environment, what happens to them in the environment, who regulates them, and whom to contact for additional information. Seventeen of the TRI chemicals and chemical categories are the focus of EPA's 33/50 program, a voluntary TRI release reduction initiative.
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    In the spirit of the right-to-know legislation, EPA is committed to making TRI easy to access. Access to TRI describes the various ways to access the data, including searching TRI on-line. Requirements for TRI reporting affect the quality of the data submitted by reporting facilities. What steps has EPA taken to improve TRI data quality? This section also describes factors that may limit the usefulness of TRI data.

    EPA Region 10 works closely with reporting facilities in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington to provide training, outreach and assistance in completing forms. EPA Region 10 also assists individuals, public interest groups, the media and others in acquiring and understanding TRI data.

    When necessary, EPA conducts enforcement action to ensure timely, accurate reporting by manufacturers subject to TRI. Section 325(c) of EPCRA authorizes civil administrative actions for violations for up to $27,500 per day, per violation. The Enforcement Response Policy (ERP) developed for EPCRA Section 313 establishes the framework for taking these administrative actions for violations such as:
  • Failure to report in a timely fashion,
  • Data quality errors,
  • Failure to respond to a Notice of Non-Compliance,
  • Repeated violations,
  • Failure to supply notification,
  • Failure to maintain records.
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    The ERP also describes the procedure by which administrative actions may be settled. One aspect of settlements are Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEPs). SEPs are expenditures towards environmentally beneficial projects during settlement as a factor in reducing the penalty. During 1994, EPA Region 10 initiated the first comprehensive review of Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEPs) undertaken by industries between 1988 and 1993.

    Executive Order #13148 requires federal facilities to comply with planning and reporting provisions of EPCRA and the Pollution Prevention Act (PPA) of 1990. Each federal agency is required to submit TRI reports for all releases and transfers of toxic chemicals for all agency facilities exceeding specific thresholds.

    What's New in TRI (EPA national website) provides information on recently completed actions by the TRI program, such as TRI Phase 3 Expansion, regulatory actions, and petition decisions.
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    EPA Region 10's Public Environmental Resource Center maintains a video lending library and distributes documents pertaining to the Toxics Release Inventory Program for those residing in Alaska, Idaho, Washington and Oregon.

    The EPCRA Hotline provides regulatory, policy, and technical assistance to Federal agencies, local and state governments, the public, the regulated community, and other interested parties in response to questions related to EPCRA. The Hotline provides information on the availability of documents related to EPCRA and copies of selected EPCRA documents on a limited basis. The hotline is open weekdays from 8:30 a.m. - 7:30 p.m. EST. For more information or assistance, call 800-424-9346 (or TDD: 800-553-7672). Numerous documents pertaining to TRI are available through the EPCRA Hotline.

    EPA's Compliance and Enforcement Office provides information on enforcement statistics, penalty policies, policy on supplemental environmental projects, audit (self-disclosure) policy, enforcement cases, compliance assistance programs and documents, and numerous other resources concerning enforcement and compliance.
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    WHAT'S NEW IN TRI AND TSCA?
  • Recent Additions in TRI - EPA National Website
  • EDOCKET - Access to EPA Docket system - The EPA Dockets (EDOCKET) is an electronic public docket and on-line comment system designed to expand access to documents in EPA’s major dockets. Dockets contain Federal Register notices, support documents, and public comments for regulations the Agency publishes and various non-regulatory activities. EDOCKET allows you to search, download and print the documents in a docket, as well as submit comments online.
  • TRI-ME (Toxic Release Inventory-Made Easy) - EPA is pleased to announce Version 2 of the TRI-ME software, a tool to help facilities in determining and completing their Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) section 313 (TRI) obligations.

    HEALTH RISK AND PUBLIC INFORMATION
  • Toxics Release Inventory Program (EPA National Website)
  • Index to TRI Topics (EPA National Website)
  • EPA Issues Availability of Latest Toxics Release Inventory
  • EPCRA Hotline
  • Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program Web Site: provides information about the endocrine system and why certain chemicals can affect it, how the EPA Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program was developed, and the current status of EPA’s implementation activities.
  • TRI Chemical Fact Sheets
  • TRI Explorer
  • TRI Data Inquiries (Envirofacts Database)
  • TRI Web Surfing Instructions

  • TRI Education Program: helps teachers and students use the TRI database
  • Teaching Tool Available - Teach with Databases: Toxics Release Inventory
  • TRI Training
  • High Production Volume (HPV) Chemical Challenge Program: available information on health and environmental data for 2,011 chemicals voluntarily provided by 403 companies in response to an EPA study that found there is little toxicity information publicly available on these HPV chemicals.
  • Commonly Requested Documents

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    Unit: Solid Waste & Toxics Unit
    Christina Colt
    E-Mail: colt.christina@epamail.epa.gov
    (206) 553-4016
    Phone Number: (206) 553-4016
    Last Updated (mm/dd/yy): 04/29/2004


    TRI
    http://yosemite.epa.gov/R10/OWCM.NSF/tri/trihomepage