New EPA Search Tool Makes Researching Hazardous Chemicals Easy
Posted on Wed, Jul 14, 2010 @ 08:01 AM
Written By Matt Bauer, Marketing Intern
The EPA recently added over 3,500 chemical facilities and 6,000 chemicals of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to their public internet database rightly named, Envirofacts. The TSCA rule was originally mandated in 1976 in order to give the EPA authority over industrial firms to require reporting and record keeping of certain hazardous chemicals. Now, the EPA is focused on helping the general public to better understand this regulation and how it affects their surrounding environment. Envirofacts is aimed to allow users to access information about the Environmental, Health & Safety hazards which may affect the air, water and land, from a single source. This reference tool collects information from state and federal forms that are mandated by the TSCA rule, and compiles them in an easy to use database. Information includes, the facility name, location, granted permits, as well as tools to analyze the data.
The site is further broken down into the following categories for simplified searches: Air Permits/Releases, Water Permits/Releases, Land Use, Waste Management, Toxics (Reports and Hazards,) Radiation, Facilities Information, Compliance History, Mapping, and Brownfield Development. The EPA intends to continue adding more information in the coming months.