EPA Releases Data on Compliance with Hazwaste, Air Regulations
In a self-described effort to increase transparency and promote the public’s right to know by improving access to available data, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released new information on EPA and state enforcement of hazardous waste and air regulations. In addition, the agency posted data that allows the public, for the first time, to compare toxic releases with compliance data from facilities.
EPA made available new summary reports and data from 2004 through 2008 on EPA and state enforcement program performance with Clean Air Act (CAA) and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) requirements. The reports include online graphs, trend information on enforcement and compliance in each state, and comparative reports. Data such as compliance monitoring activity, violations discovered, enforcement actions taken, and penalties assessed are available.
The agency also updated its Enforcement and Compliance Online (ECHO) Web site to allow users to view current information on facility compliance with water, air, and hazardous waste requirements in relation to pollutant release data from EPA’s Toxics Release Inventory and National Emissions Inventory databases. The agency says this data provides the public with more information on the overall environmental footprint of each facility.
In EPA’s reviews of both federal and state enforcement program performance, it identified several concerns with some programs, including uneven enforcement response, failure to identify high priority violators, and inadequate penalty assessment. The recommendations that EPA made on how to address these concerns are now available through the ECHO Web site.
ECHO allows users to find permit, compliance monitoring, violation, enforcement action, and penalty information over the past three years. The site is designed to provide communities with enforcement and compliance information about regulated facilities. Included in the new information released is a list of commonly asked questions about the CAA and RCRA programs, such as air quality, pollutant releases, state performance, and overall compliance rates.
EPA says the newly released compliance data tells only one part of the story and does not relate directly to overall hazardous waste management or air quality, which have improved in the United States over the past 30 years as the result of local, state, and federal implementation of environmental programs.
More information on RCRA data is available at www.epa.gov/compliance/data/results/performance/rcra/index.html. For more information on CAA data, go to www.epa.gov/compliance/data/results/performance/caa/index.html. And for more information on ECHO, visit www.epa-echo.gov/echo/.