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June 11, 2002
2000 TRI Data Now Available
The latest data for chemical releases show signs of a continuing decline in overall discharges, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The Agency recently issued its annual report of the Toxic Chemical Release Inventory (TRI) for 2000, revealing a nationwide decrease of approximately 700 million pounds (lb) -- from 7.8 billion lb in 1999 to 7.1 billion.

The metal mining industry, as in previous years, comprised the most substantial source of releases (47 percent), followed by the manufacturing industry (32 percent) and electric utilities (16 percent). Breaking down releases according to media, 4 percent went into water, 27 percent into air, and 69 percent into land.

The federal Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) Section 313 (as well as Section 6607 of the Pollution Prevention Act) mandates that EPA develop and maintain a publicly accessible database of toxic chemicals. Facilities must report releases to the environment of any of the more than 650 designated toxic chemicals. Reports include off-site transfers of wastes for treatment or disposal at separate facilities, pollution prevention activities, and chemical recycling efforts. The TRI deadline is July 1 each year and covers activities for the previous year. In total, this year’s data are based on approximately 91,500 forms submitted by 23,500 facilities.

This year’s report contained newly included data on persistent bioaccumulative toxic chemicals, such as dioxin, mercury, and PCBs.

"The Toxics Release Inventory is a powerful tool to help citizens assess local environmental conditions and to help them make decisions about protecting their environment," EPA Administrator Christie Whitman said. "I am pleased we are beginning to provide additional data on persistent bioaccumulative toxic chemicals since they can remain in the environment for extended periods and buld up in humans and the environment."

INFO: EPA’s 2000 TRI data is available on the TRI website.