Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) Update on Regulations and Programmatic Support

1. Toxics Release Inventory (TRI)Update on Regulations and Programmatic Support Rebecca Moser TRI Regulatory Development Branch 2008 TRI National Training Conference February 12, 2008

2. Briefing Outline • TRI Focus Areas • Regulations & Related Activities • Assistance to Reporting Community • Data Quality & Analysis • Supporting TRI Data Users

3. TRI Focus Areas Use of Toxic Chemical Information Information Dissemination, Outreach, & Communications Data Quality & Analysis & Product Development Data Collection & Exchange & Assistance to Reporting Community Regulations & Related Activities

4. Regulations & Related Activities: Final Rule Expanding Form A Eligibility • TRI final rule expanding eligibility for TRI’s Form A Certification Statement (71 FR 76932, Dec. 22, 2006) • Non-PBTs: • Total waste management must not exceed 5,000 lbs. (releases, recycling, energy recovery, & treatment for destruction) • Total releases and other disposal must not exceed 2,000 lbs. • PBTs (except dioxin & dioxin-like compounds): • Zero total annual releases of the PBT chemical • Other waste management must not exceed 500 lbs. • The rule became effective for reporting year (RY) 2006 (reports due July 1, 2007).

5. Regulations & Related Activities: Final Rule Expanding Form A Eligibility • TRI’s final rule expanding Form A eligibility has been challenged in court. • Twelve states filed a complaint in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on Nov. 28, 2007. • The complaint asks the court to vacate the rule and to order EPA to reinstitute the rules in effect prior to Jan. 22, 2007. • EPA has filed its answer to the complaint. • The court will next set a briefing schedule.

6. Regulations & Related Activities: Toxic Equivalency Final Rule • May 10, 2007 – TRI Toxic Equivalency (TEQ) final rule expands reporting requirements for dioxin and dioxin-like compounds (72 FR 26544). • TRI facilities will be required to report quantities of individual dioxin and dioxin-like compoundsseparately for each waste stream, beginning with RY 2008 (reports due July 1, 2009). • EPA will then calculate and provide TEQ data to the public. • EPA is now preparing its information systems to receive and process the detailed data.

7. Regulations & Related Activities: Chemical Petitions • Acetonitrile • Petition received from Innovene (previously BP Chemicals) to delist acetonitrile. • Upcoming Notice of Data Availability (NODA) will make the hazard assessment and peer review charge available for public comment. • After completion of the peer review, EPA will decide whether or not to grant the petition. • Ethylene Glycol Monobutyl Ether (EGBE) • Petition received from American Chemistry Council (Ethylene Glycol Ethers Panel) to remove EGBE from the glycol ethers category. • EPA has initiated work on the petition review.

8. Regulations & Related Activities: North American Industry Classification System • EPA expects to publish a proposed rule soon to implement OMB’s 2007 NAICS codes. • The proposed rule will also make several corrections to the list of covered NAICS codes published in the previous TRI rule that implemented the 2002 NAICS codes (71 FR 32464). • As proposed, regulated facilities will be required to identify their principal business activities using 2007 NAICS codes beginning with RY 2008 (reports due July 1, 2009). • Crosswalk tables between 2007 and 2002 NAICS codes are available at http://www.census.gov/epcd/www/naics.html.

9. Assistance to Reporting Community • TRI Training Modules & Workshops • Online training modules will be available on the TRI Web site in March. • In-person and Web-based training workshops will be conducted in March through June. • The Information Center (hotline) will be now be open from 9 am to 5 pm, Monday through Friday during the months of May, June, and July (rather than 10 am to 3 pm, Monday through Thursday). (800) 424-9346; Washington, D.C., area, (703) 412-9810, or TDD (800) 553-7672 • Technical Support is still available through the Central Data Exchange (CDX) Hotline. epacdx@csc.com or (888) 890-1995

10. Assistance to Reporting Community • TRI’s Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Service – available through the TRI Home and Contact Us pages, http://www.epa.gov/tri Example: Frequent Questions Find an Answer Ask a Question My Stuff Help TopicsSearch AnswersSearch Tips 126 Answers FoundPage:  of 9Summary 1Do I need to report to TRI? 2What is the Toxics Release Inventory? 3What TRI guidance documents are available to the public? 4What if I discover that I should have been reporting to TRI in previous years? 5How do I report to TRI? . . . . . . . .

11. Data Quality & Analysis • The TRI Program implements a number of activities to ensure the high quality of TRI data: • TRI guidance documents and hotline support • TRI training modules and workshops • Reporting Forms and Instructions • TRI-ME and TRI-MEweb data quality checks and alerts • Electronic Facility Data Profiles (FDPs) • Technical audits of selected submissions and follow-up with facilities as appropriate. • In the coming months, TRI will broaden the data quality analyses it conducts throughout the year to ensure that any potential data quality or compliance issues are identified and resolved quickly.

12. Data Quality & Analysis Industry Sector Analyses • Purpose: • To characterize the types of data we expect to receive from a sector • To enhance our ability to detect potential data quality issues • Consideration factors: • High total releases of all chemicals or PBT chemicals • High toxicity-weighted total releases • Interest from other offices or international partners • Complexity of the sector, availability of data, others • Analyses underway: • Electric generating facilities and petroleum refineries • Potential future analyses: • Cement, asphalt paving, steel works and blast furnaces, steel and iron foundries, and others.

13. Data Quality & Analysis Cross-Referencing TRI and other EPA data • TRI and OECA have been comparing TRI data received on Hazardous Air Pollutant (HAP) releases with air permit data contained in OECA’s Air Facility System (AFS). • As a result, EPA has identified some Clean Air Act violations and assessed penalties in some cases. • TRI is now initiating cross-referencing efforts with EPA’s water and solid waste programs. • TRI and OECA are developing an automated cross-referencing tool to facilitate compliance assurance efforts.

14. Supporting TRI Data Users • Many customers, both within and outside the Agency, use TRI data to conduct analyses. • The TRI Program is now developing a process to track and disseminate the results of the analyses more effectively. • Over time, we hope that all TRI data users will be able to exchange ideas and analytical results more easily. • TRI is also involved in international discussions on Pollutant Release and Transfer Registers (PRTR) • North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) • Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)

15. Supporting TRI Data Users • Our data and information needs continue to evolve . . . • We’re interested in learning how we can best serve your needs as TRI data users. • We invite you to participate in the National Dialogue on Access to Environmental Information. • We look forward to receiving your input.

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