The "Right to Know": EPA Reinstates Full TRI Reporting Requirements

This April Environmental Protection Agency administrator Lisa P. Jackson signed a final rule to reinstate more rigorous reporting requirements for facilities, both industrial and federal, that release toxic substances posing a threat to human and environmental health. All U.S. citizens, by the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act, have the right to know about toxic chemicals released into their communities. Or as Ms. Jackson stated, “People have a right to information that might affect their health and the health of their children -- and EPA has a responsibility to provide it.” She hopes that the newly reinstated rule will be a “crucial tool for safeguarding human health and the environment in our communities”. The Toxics Release Inventory, or TRI, is a publicly available EPA database containing information reported annually by industries and federal facilities regarding toxic chemicals released and waste management procedures.

In December of 2006 the TRI Burden Reduction Final Rule changed requirements to allow non-persistent, bio-accumulative, toxic chemicals of up to 5,000 pounds. It also allowed for the first time PBT chemicals under certain circumstances. However, this rule resulted in a lawsuit by 12 states to restore the TRI form to its rules prior to 2006. This outcry was due to a widespread concern that it did not meet the required information under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act. On March 11 of this year President Obama signed the 2009 Omnibus Appropriates Act, mandating that TRI reporting requirements must be reestablished as per prior the TRI Burden Reduction Rule of 2006.

The new rule will apply to all TRI reports due on July 1, 2009. It requires that all reports on dangerous PBT chemicals must be listed on a more detailed form of the report, Form R. The shorter, less thorough Form A can only be used for other chemicals if the yearly reporting amount is 500 pounds or less and less than 1 million pounds were created or used during that same year.

I believe TRI reports are an important step to improving public knowledge of potentially hazardous chemicals, therefore improving public and environmental health. There has also been evidence to show that it has encouraged industries to reduce its use of hazardous chemicals. However, it is questionable as to how beneficial TRI reports actually are after they are made public. As new chemicals are discovered to be harmful and added to the TRI list, the progress to deter them has seemed less impressive in recent years. The Toxic Release Inventory as administered by the EPA is an example of an “indirect regulation”. This means that although the government requires the revelation of certain information, it depends wholly on citizens to use that information to force businesses and industry to operate safely.

What it comes down to is public concern and willingness to take action against industry. The average citizen has never heard of a TRI report, let alone know how to access it and what to do with the information. Therefore, before this legislation can be effective I believe there needs to be grassroots movements across the country to inform citizens. Google Earth has recently added a feature to graphically show where Toxic Release Inventory facilities are in a certain area. This feature could be an important tool for citizens, giving them a more tangible idea of where these hazardous lay in relation to their homes, schools, and places of work. The EPA’s website also has a page to look up TRI information state-by-state. As environmental awareness spreads through communities across the country hopefully TRI reports can be utilized to their full potential, helping the environment and improving the quality of life for all.