All News Releases By Date

NTC TRI LIST

Release Date: 07/12/95
Contact Information:

NTC TRI LIST

FOR RELEASE: TUESDAY, JUNE 27, 1995

EPA has issued final rules to remove sulfuric acid (non-aerosol forms) and acetone, and delete ammonium sulfate as a separate chemical as listed on the Toxic Release Inventory (TRI). TRI is an annual measure of toxic chemical releases, transfers, and waste generated by manufacturing facilities in communities throughout the United States, created under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986 (EPCRA) and expanded under the Pollution Prevention Act of 1990.

A petition to delist ammonium sulfate from the TRI was received by EPA in 1989. By 1990, EPA determined that releases of ammonium sulfate were more appropriately reported under the listing of ammonia, the toxic portion of ammonium sulfate. In the final rule, the ammonia listing in the TRI has been clarified to cover all forms of ammonia, including ammonia in water. Ammonia, which is toxic to fish, is commonly found in fertilizer and cleaning products.

Industry must now report aqueous (with water) ammonia releases as 10 percent of the aqueous total ammonia, while anhydrous (without water) forms are reportable as 100 percent.

Sulfuric acid is on the EPCRA Section 302 Extremely Hazardous Substances list, and the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act Section 103 list of hazardous substances. However, EPA concluded that non-aerosol forms of sulfuric acid could be deleted from EPCRA Section 313 because they cannot reasonably be anticipated to cause adverse effects to human health or the environment under normal exposure. Sulfuric acid is one of most widely used chemicals in the world.

The removal of acetone from the TRI follows a separate EPA action in which acetone was removed from the list of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) under the Clean Air Act. VOCs are known to react in the troposphere to generate ozone and other pollutants. EPA agreed with the petitioner that acetone's contribution to the formation of tropospheric ozone is negligible and that acetone does not meet the EPCRA 313 criteria for listing under the TRI.

These deletions and modifications apply to the 1994 reporting year. Reports from industry due on or before July 1, 1995, need not include reports on these three substances.

For more information on TRI reporting requirements, call EPA's technical hotline at 1-800-535-0202.

R-121