oEPA
United States
Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Pollution
Prevention and Toxics
Washington, DC 20460
February 2000
EPA 745-B-00-002
EPCRA Section 313
Industry Guidance
PETROLEUM TERMINALS AND BULK
STORAGE FACILITIES
Section 313 of the
Emergency Planning and
Community Right-to-Know Act
Toxic Chemical Release Inventory
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
OVERVIEW iv
Acknowledgment iv
Chapter 1 - Introduction 1-1
1.0 PURPOSE 1-1
1.1 Background onEPCRA 1-2
Chapter 2 - Reporting Requirements 2-1
2.0 PURPOSE 2-1
2.1 Must You Report? 2-1
2.2 Definition of "Facility" 2-3
2.3 SIC Code Determination 2-4
2.4 Number of Employees 2-7
2.5 Manufacturing, Processing, and Otherwise Use of EPCRA Section 313
Chemicals 2-10
Chapter 3 - EPCRA Section 313 Threshold Determinations 3-1
3.0 PURPOSE 3-1
3.1 Step 1 - Determining which EPCRA Section 313 chemicals are manufactured
(including imported), processed, or otherwise used 3-1
3.2 Step 2. Determining the quantity of each EPCRA Section 313 chemical
manufactured (including imported), processed, or otherwise used 3-7
3.2.1 Concentration Ranges for Threshold Determination 3-19
3.2.2 Evaluation of Exemptions 3-22
3.2.2.3 Article Exemption 3-24
3.2.3 Additional Guidance on Threshold Calculations for Certain
Activities 3-28
3.2.3.1 On-site Reuse Activities 3-28
3.2.3.2 Remediation Activities 3-28
3.3 Step 3. Determine which EPCRA Section 313 chemicals exceed a threshoM28
Chapter 4 - Estimating Releases and Other Waste Management Quantities 4-1
4.0 PURPOSE 4-1
4.1 General Steps for Determining Releases and Other Waste Management
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Activities 4-3
4.1.1 Step 1: Identify Potential Sources of Chemical Release and Other Waste Management
Activities 4-3
4.1.2 Step 2: Prepare a Process Flow Diagram
4.1.3 Step 3: Identify On-Site Releases, Off-Site Transfers and On-Site Waste
Management Activity Types 4-6
4.1.4 Step 4: Determine the Most Appropriate Method(s) to Develop the Estimates
for Releases and Other Waste Management Activity Quantities and Calculate
the Estimates 4-16
4.1.4.1 Monitoring Data or Direct Measurement (code M) 4-18
4.1.4.2 Mass Balance (code C) 4-19
4.1.4.3 Emissions Factors (code E) 4-20
4.1.4.4 Engineering Calculations (code O) 4-21
4.1.4.5 Estimating Releases and Other Waste Management Quantities 4-22
4.1.5 Other Form R Elements 4-24
4.1.5.1 Maximum Amount On-Site (Part n, Section4.1 ofFormR 4-25
4.1.5.2 Production Ratio or Activity Index (Part H, Section 8.9 of Form R) 4-25
4.1.5.3 Source Reduction (Part H, Sections 8.10 and 8.11 ofFormR) 4-26
4.2.3 Discharges to Receiving Streams or Water Bodies, Section 5.3 of Form R; and
Discharges to Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTWs), Section 6.1 of
Form R 4-42
4.2.4 Disposal to Land On-site, Section 5.5 of Form R 4-47
4.2.5 Transfer Off-site, Section 6.2 of Form R 4-49
4.2.6 On-site Waste Management Methods, Sections 7A, 7B, and 7C of
Form R 4-49
4.2.7 Source Reduction and Recycling Activities, Section 8 4-51
4.2.8 Source Reduction Activities, Section 8.10 4-52
Appendix A TRI Guidance Resources A-1
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OVERVIEW
On May 1, 1997, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) promulgated a final rule
(62 FR 23834) adding several new industrial sectors to the list of facilities subject to the Emergency
Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act (EPCRA) Section 313 reporting requirements. Facilities
affected by this rule are subject to the annual reporting requirements beginning with activities conducted
during the 1998 calendar year, with their first reports due by July 1, 1999.
This document supersedes the document entitled Section 313 Emergency Planning and
Community Right-to-Know Act, Guidance for Petroleum Bulk Facilities, dated January 1999. It is
intended to assist establishments and facilities designated by Standard Industrial Classification (SIC)
code 5171 (petroleum bulk stations and terminals) in making compliance determinations under the
EPCRA Section 313 reporting requirements and preparing Form R(s) or the Form A certification
statement(s) as required. The EPCRA Section 313 program is commonly referred to as the Toxic
Chemical Release Inventory (TRI) program.
The primary changes made in this document over the preceding version include:
• Incorporating language that was not carried over from the 1997 version; and
• Revisions to certain constituent concentrations in various fuels.
Each of these changes are noted in the ERRATA Sheet posted on EPA's Web site at:
This document is designed to be a supplement to the Toxic Chemical Release Inventory
Reporting Forms and Instructions (TRI Forms and Instructions), issued annually. It is organized to
provide a step-by-step guide to compliance with EPCRA Section 313, starting with how you determine
if your facility must report through completion of the Form R or Form A. While certain information
provided in this document may be used as a reference, specific information available to facilities, such
as amounts of chemicals in mixtures and other trade name products used at the facility, may be more
accurate and more appropriate for use in developing threshold determinations and estimating releases
and other waste management amounts. Under EPCRA Section 313, facilities are instructed to use the
best "readily available data" or when such data are not available, "reasonable estimates", in fulfilling
their reporting requirements. This document is organized in the following manner.
Chapter 1 serves as an introduction to TRI reporting and provides a brief background on the
Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act and information on where to obtain additional
compliance assistance.
Chapter 2 begins with how to determine if your facility must report. This determination is based
on your answers to a series of four questions:
1. Is your facility's primary SIC code on the EPCRA Section 313 list?
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2. Does your facility employ ten or more full time equivalent employees?
3. Does your facility manufacture, process, or otherwise use any EPCRA Section 313
chemicals?
4. Does your facility exceed any of the activity thresholds for an EPCRA Section 313
chemical?
If the answer to ANY ONE of the four questions above is "No" you are not required to submit
an EPCRA Section 313 report. If you answer "Yes" to ALL four questions, the next step is
determining which form(s), Form R or Form A, your facility should file. Chapter 2 provides detailed
information on the requirements for each kind of submission.
Chapter 2 concludes with a discussion on how you address trade secrets in your reporting and
the kinds of records you should be keeping to support your reporting.
Chapter 3 discusses how you calculate the activity thresholds (manufacture, process, and
otherwise use) for the EPCRA Section 313 chemicals. Information is provided on how you determine
which EPCRA Section 313 chemicals your facility manufactures, processes, or otherwise uses and how
you calculate the quantities of each. Detailed information is also provided on the various exemptions.
Chapter 3 concludes with a discussion of how to determine which EPCRA Section 313
chemicals exceed a reporting threshold, including focused discussions on issues specific to petroleum
bulk storage facilities.
Chapter 4 discusses how you calculate the release and other waste management amounts for
those EPCRA Section 313 chemicals for which you must prepare a report. This chapter provides a
step-by-step approach designed to minimize the risk of overlooking an activity involving an EPCRA
Section 313 chemical and any potential sources or types of releases and other waste management
activities that your facility may conduct. This procedure consists of the following steps:
• Identification of potential sources of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals released and
otherwise managed as wastes;
• Preparation of a detailed process flow diagram;
• Identification of the potential types of releases and other waste management activities
from each source; and
• Determination of the most appropriate methods for estimating the quantities of listed
EPCRA Section 313 chemical releases and other waste management activities.
The main part of Chapter 4 is organized around activities common to petroleum bulk storage
facilities where EPCRA Section 313 chemicals are manufactured, processed, or otherwise used. A list
of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals likely to be managed by petroleum bulk storage facilities; process
descriptions; guidance on thresholds determinations; release and other waste management estimation
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techniques; and problems these types of facilities are likely to face in complying with EPCRA Section
313 are also presented in this chapter.
This document includes examples of chemical management activities that petroleum bulk
storage facilities may conduct, illustrating how these activities should be considered for EPCRA Section
313 reporting purposes. This chapter also notes areas where potential errors in reporting might be
encountered generally by petroleum bulk storage facilities, which are based on information from written
comments received from industry representatives as well as from comments made by participants in
EPA-sponsored EPCRA workshops.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
EPA would like to recognize the valuable contributions made by the staff at the Petroleum
Transportation and Storage Association (PTSA), whose industry insight and understanding of EPCRA
Section 313 requirements have greatly assisted in increasing the utility of this document. Special thanks
go to Mark Morgan, Executive Director of PTSA.
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Chapter 1 - Introduction
1.0 PURPOSE
The purpose of this guidance document is to assist petroleum bulk storage facilities in SIC code
5171 to comply with the reporting requirements of Section 313 of the Emergency Planning and
Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986 (EPCRA) and of Section 6607 of the Pollution Prevention
Act of 1990 (PPA), commonly referred to as the Toxic Release Inventory (TRI). On May 1, 1997,
EPA promulgated a rule (62 FR 23834) to require petroleum bulk storage facilities, along with other
industry groups, to be included on the list of facilities subject to the EPCRA Section 313 reporting
requirements. The new facilities are subject to annual reporting requirements beginning with activities
occurring in the 1998 calendar year, with the first reports due by July 1, 1999.
This document explains the EPCRA Section 313 and PPA Section 6607 reporting
requirements (collectively referred to as the EPCRA Section 313 reporting requirements) and discusses
specific release and other waste management activities encountered at many facilities in this industry.
Because each facility is unique, the recommendations presented may have to be adjusted to the specific
nature of operations at your facility.
This document supersedes the document entitled Section 313 Emergency Planning and
Community Right-to-Know Act, Guidance for Petroleum Bulk Storage Facilities, dated October
1997.
The document is intended to supplement the Toxic Chemical Release Inventory Reporting
Forms and Instructions (TRI Forms and Instructions) document which is updated and published
annually by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). It is essential that you use the most
current version of the TRI Forms and Instructions to determine whether (and how) you should report.
Changes or modifications to TRI reporting requirements are reflected in the annual TRI Forms and
Instructions and should be reviewed before compiling information for the report.
The objectives of this manual are to:
• Clarify EPCRA Section 313 requirements for industry;
• Increase the accuracy and completeness of the data being reported by petroleum bulk
storage facilities; and
• Reduce the level of effort expended by those facilities that prepare an EPCRA Section
313 report.
While it is not possible to anticipate every potential issue or question that may apply to your
facility, this document attempts to address those issues most prevalent or common to petroleum bulk
storage facilities. Facilities should also rely on EPA's Estimating Releases and Waste Treatment
Efficiencies for the Toxic Chemical Release Inventory Form document to assist in providing
complete and accurate information for EPCRA Section 313 reporting. Additional discussion
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addressing specific issues can be found in EPA's current version of EPCRA Section 313 Questions
and Answers. All of these documents are available on the EPA's TRI website (http://www.epa.gov/tri)
or by contacting the EPCRA Hotline at 1-800-424-9346. In the Washington, DC metropolitan area,
call 703-412-9810. The EPCRA Hotline TDD number is 1-800-553-7672, or in the Washington,
D.C. metropolitan area, call 703-412-3323.
1.1 Background on EPCRA
One of EPCRA's primary goals is to increase the public's knowledge of, and access to,
information on both the presence and release and other waste management activities of EPCRA
Section 313 chemicals in their communities. Under EPCRA Section 313, certain facilities (see SIC
code discussion, Chapter 2.3) exceeding certain thresholds (see Chapter 2.5) are required to submit
reports (commonly referred to as Form Rs or Form A certification statements) annually for over 600
EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical thresholds and the amounts that enter an environmental
medium or are otherwise managed as waste, even if there are no releases and other waste management
quantities associated with these chemicals. Chemicals are considered by EPA for inclusion on the
EPCRA Section 313 list based on their potential for acute health effects, chronic health effects, and
environmental effects. Chemicals may be added or deleted from the list. Therefore, before completing
your annual report, be sure to check the most current list included with the TRI Forms and
Instructions when evaluating the chemicals managed at your facility. Copies of the reporting package
can be requested from the EPCRA Hotline, as indicated above, or from the Internet at
http://www.epa.gov/tri/report.htm.
All facilities meeting the EPCRA Section 313 reporting criteria must submit either a Form R or
Form A. A separate submission is required for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical
category that is manufactured (including imported), processed, or otherwise used above the reporting
threshold. Reports must be submitted to EPA and State or Tribal governments, on or before July 1, for
activities in the previous calendar year. The owner/operator of the facility on July 1 of the reporting
deadline is primarily responsible for the report, even if the owner/operator did not own the facility
during the reporting year. However, property owners with no business interest in the operation of the
facility, for example, owners of an industrial park who only have a real estate interest, are not
responsible for any reporting requirements.
EPCRA also mandates that EPA establish and maintain a publicly available database consisting
of the information reported under Section 313, and applicable PPA information. This database, known
as the Toxic Chemical Release Inventory (TRI), can be accessed through the following sources:
• National Library of Medicine (NLM) TOXNET on-line system;
• EPA's Internet site, http://www.epa.gov/tri;
• Envirofacts Warehouse Internet site, http://www.epa.gov/enviro/tris-overview.html;
CD-ROM from the Government Printing Office (GPO);
• Microfiche in public libraries;
• Magnetic tape and diskettes from the National Technical Information Service; and
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EPA's annual TRI data release materials (summary information).
In addition to being a resource for the public, TRI is also used in the research and development
of regulations related to EPCRA Section 313 chemicals.
Alternative Submission (Form A)
To reduce the burden for facilities that must comply with EPCRA Section 313, EPA has
established an alternate threshold of one million pounds manufactured, processed, or otherwise used for
facilities with total annual reportable amounts of 500 pounds or less of the EPCRA Section 313
chemical. Provided the facility does not exceed either the reportable amount or the alternate threshold,
the facility may file a certification form (Form A) rather than a Form R. By filing the Form A, the facility
certifies that it did not exceed the reportable amount or exceed the alternate threshold. (See Chapter
2.9 for more detail.)
Note that the annual reportable amount includes the quantity of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals
in all production-related waste management activities, not just releases (see the waste management
discussion in Chapter 4 for more detail). Also, a covered facility must submit either a Form A or a
Form R for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical exceeding an applicable reporting threshold, even if
there are no releases and other waste management quantities.
Enforcement
Violation of Section 313 reporting provisions may result in federal civil penalties of up to
$27,500 per day. State enforcement provisions may also be applicable depending on the state's
adoption of any "EPCRA Section 313-like" reporting regulations.
Regulatory Assistance Resources
The TRI Forms and Instructions also contain a discussion of common problems in completing
the Form R. You are encouraged to read this section before filling out the Form R (or Form A) for
your facility. If, after reading both the TRI Forms and Instructions and this guidance document, you
still have questions about EPCRA Section 313 reporting, please contact the EPCRA Hotline at 1-800-
424-9346. Assistance is also available from the designated EPCRA Section 313 Coordinator in the
EPA regional office and the EPCRA contact in your state (see the TRI Forms and Instructions for a
current list of these contacts). Appendix C contains a list of additional reference sources.
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Chapter 2 - Reporting Requirements
2.0 PURPOSE
The purpose of this chapter is to help you determine whether you must prepare an EPCRA
Section 313 submission(s) and, if so, what kind of a submission(s) you should prepare (Form R or
Form A). This chapter presents the EPCRA Section 313 reporting requirements to help you determine
whether these requirements apply to your facility. It also discusses the records that you must keep.
The following terms and concepts are described in this chapter to help you understand the scope of
Section 313 reporting and determine whether you need to report, including:
• Definition of facility;
• SIC code determination;
• Employee determination;
• Definitions of manufacture, process, and otherwise use; and
• Determination of whether you exceed one of the thresholds.
2.1 Must You Report?
How do you determine if your facility must prepare an EPCRA Section 313 report? This is
decided by your answers to the following four questions (illustrated by Figure 2-1):
1) Is the primary SIC code(s) for your facility included in the list covered by EPCRA
Section 313 reporting (see Chapter 2.3)?
2) Does your facility employ 10 or more full time employees or the equivalent (see
Chapter 2.4)?
3) Does your facility manufacture (which includes importation), process (which includes
repackaging), or otherwise use EPCRA Section 313 chemicals (see Chapter 2.5)?
4) Does your facility exceed any applicable thresholds of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals
(25,000 pounds per year for manufacturing; 25,000 pounds per year for processing
(see Table 3-5 for threshold determinations based on gallonage); or 10,000 pounds per
year for otherwise use - see Chapter 3)?
If you answered "No" to any of the four questions above, you are not required to prepare any
submissions under EPCRA Section 313. If you answered "Yes" to ALL of the first three questions,
you must perform a threshold determination for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical at the facility, and
submit a Form R or Form A for each chemical exceeding a threshold.
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Is Ysur Ficdrty m i CovsiidSIC Cod:?
(Stt Chafer 2.3)
Xrcs
DOCK Your Ficdity Have ID •» MOIE Full-
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JJES
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EFCEASicti£iiti313
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(Set Chafer 3)
NO
NO
NO
NO
STOP
NO EPCRA SECTION 313
REPORTS REQUIRED
FOR ANY CHEMICALS
N EPCP.A SECTION 313 EEPOiET IS
3EOUTEED FOR THIS CHEMICAL
JjES
Is tht itofl'-lllt flUfiufiCtUltd, OSplflCiSSid, OiR. flthifvPiSt USiiltSS thin £d tqUil tQ 1 jYftjYfl p.TflinHg
i£ tin itpcdtihlt ifliDunt IEKK thin ct tquil to
FOEM A orFOiEM EIS REQUIRED FOR
THIS CHEMICAL
FORM R IS REGUERED FOR THIS
CHEMICAL
(FO3M A CANNOT BE SUBMITTEE)
Figure 2-1. TRI Reporting Determination Diagram
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2.2 Definition of "Facility"
To understand the applicability of EPCRA Section 313, you must first understand how EPCRA
defines a facility. The term "facility" is defined as "all buildings, equipment, structures and other
stationary items which are located on a single site or on contiguous or adjacent sites and which are
owned or operated by the same person (or by any person which controls, is controlled by, or is under
common control with such person). A facility may contain more than one establishment" (40 CFR
372.3). An "establishment" is defined as "an economic unit, generally at a single physical location,
where business is conducted, or services or industrial operations are performed" (40 CFR 372.3).
EPA recognizes that some facilities have unique and separate activities ("establishments") taking
place at the same facility, and for some of these facilities it may be easier and more appropriate for
individual establishments to manage their chemical usage and management information separately. EPA
provides for these cases and allows individual establishments at the same facility to report separately.
However, for threshold determinations, quantities of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals manufactured,
processed, or otherwise used in all establishments in that facility must be combined and considered
together. Also, the combined releases and other waste management activities reported separately for
each establishment must equal those for the facility as a whole.
Example - Multiple Establishments
Your facility has several different establishments, all with SIC codes covered by EPCRA Section 313. One
establishment repackaged and distributed into commerce oil product containing 20,000 pounds of an EPCRA
Section 313 chemical during the year. Another establishment blended 7,000 pounds of the same chemical in a
fuel blending process during the same year. Both activities constitute "processing" of the EPCRA Section 313
chemical (as presented in Section 2.5 and described in detail in Chapter 3) and the total quantity processed at
the facility exceeded the 25,000 pound processing threshold for the year. If your facility meets the employee
threshold, you must file a Form R for that chemical. EPA allows multi-establishment facilities to submit Form
Rs from each establishment for an EPCRA Section 313 chemical when thresholds have been exceeded at the
facility level. Please note that Form A eligibility is also made at the facility-level, but only one Form A can be
submitted per chemical for the entire facility.
Contiguous and/or Adjacent Facilities. In defining the parameters of your facility, you must
consider all buildings and other stationary items located on multiple contiguous or adjacent sites that are
owned or operated by the same person for EPCRA reporting purposes. For example, an industrial
park could contain a manufacturing company and a solvent recovery operation, both operated
independently, but owned by the same parent company. Since the two establishments are contiguous
or adjacent to each other, they are considered one "facility." The amount of each EPCRA Section 313
chemical manufactured, processed, or otherwise used and the number of employees must be
aggregated for all of these contiguous or adjacent sites to determine whether the entire facility meets
reporting thresholds. If a company's operations are carried out at two distinctly separate, physical sites
that are not contiguous or adjacent, that company is operating two separate facilities for the purposes of
EPCRA reporting. The company, therefore, must make SIC code, employee, threshold
determinations, and if appropriate, release and other waste management estimates individually for each
facility.
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If two establishments owned or operated by the same company are connected to each other by
a piece of property that is owned by one of the establishments or the same parent corporation, or if
they are separated by an easement (e.g., railroad tracks, public road, public catchment basin), they are
still considered to be contiguous or adjacent and are therefore part of the same facility. Both
"establishments" may report together as the same facility or they may report separately provided
threshold determinations are based on activities at the entire facility and that the sum of the releases of
the establishments reflects the total releases of the whole facility. Facility operations that are not
connected to each other by a piece of property, that is commonly owned, controlled, or operated by
the same person(s), are not considered contiguous and may be considered two separate facilities.
However, if these operations are relatively near each other, they may be considered adjacent; in which
case, they would be part of the same facility.
Example - Separate Facilities
Two covered bulk petroleum stations owned by the same parent company are connected to each other by a pipeline
some distance apart from each other. The parent company controls the easement of the pipeline but the land on
which the pipeline rests is not owned by the parent company. For the purposes of reporting on the Form R, are the
two stations considered two separate facilities?
Yes. Since the two bulk petroleum stations are not contiguous or adjacent properties and are connected only by a
pipeline, the two stations are considered two separate facilities with the same owner, even though the parent
company controls the easement on which the pipeline is located.
2.3 SIC Code Determination
Facilities with the SIC codes presented in Table 2-1 are covered by the EPCRA Section 313
reporting requirements. For assistance in determining which SIC code best suits your facility, refer to
Standard Industrial Classification Manual, 1987, published by the Office of Management and
Budget.
Petroleum bulk stations and terminals in SIC 5171 include facilities engaged in the
wholesale distribution of liquid petroleum products and liquified petroleum gases. Products
handled by these facilities include gasoline, diesel, fuel oil, kerosene, crude oil, naphtha, and
lubricating oils. Bulk storage stations and terminals have a bulk storage capacity of 10,000 gallons
or more. Facilities in SIC code 5172 include establishments primarily engaged in the wholesale
distribution of petroleum and petroleum products without bulk liquid storage facilities (i.e., storage
capacity less than 10,000 gallons) such as packaged and bottled petroleum products distributors,
truck jobbers, and others marketing petroleum and its products at wholesale, but without bulk
liquid storage facilities.1 Facilities classified in SIC code 5172 are not subject to EPCRA section
313 reporting. If, during the reporting year, a facility usually classified in SIC code 5172 (such as
a truck jobber) stores greater than 10,000 gallons of petroleum product on-site, the facility becomes
classified in SIC code 5171 and is then subject to Section 313 reporting for the reporting year.
U.S. Bureau of Census. 1992 Industry Product Classification Manual, pp. 212-213.
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Table 2-1
SIC Codes Covered by EPCRA Section 313 Reporting
SIC Code Industry Sectors
SIC Codes
10
12
20 through 39
491 1,4931, and 4939
4953
5169
5171
7389
Industry
Metal Mining
Coal Mining
Manufacturing
Electric and Other Services and
Combination Utilities
Refuse Systems
Chemicals and Allied Products
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals
Business Services
Qualifiers
Except SIC codes 1011, 1081, and 1094
Except SIC code 1241
None
Limited to facilities that combust coal
and/or oil for the purpose of generating
electricity for distribution in commerce
Limited to facilities regulated under
RCRA Subtitle C
None
None
Limited to facilities primarily engaged in
solvent recovery services on a contract
or fee basis
While you are currently required to determine your facility's reporting eligibility based on the
SIC code system described above, it is important to be aware that the SIC code system will be
replaced by a new system in the future. On April 9, 1997 (62 FR 17287), the Office of Management
and Budget promulgated the North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS). NAICS is a
new economic classification system that replaces the SIC code system as a means of classifying
economic activities for economic forecasting and statistical purposes. The transition to the new NAICS
may require statutory and/or regulatory actions. As a result, the SIC code system is still required to be
used as the mechanism to determine your facility's reporting eligibility. EPA will issue notice in the
Federal Register to inform you and other EPCRA Section 313 facilities of its plans to adopt the
NAICS and how facilities should make their NAICS code determination.
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Example - SIC Code Determination
Many bulk petroleum stations operating in some Midwestern states sell their petroleum products directly to end
users. These plants typically sell to farmers and construction companies, as well as state and local governments.
Generally, the products are transferred to the customer in quantities of 500 gallons or less. For these facilities,
distribution to retail facilities may make up approximately 5 percent of their overall business. Are these facilities
considered bulk wholesale distributors of petroleum products, or are they more appropriately classified in retail
trade and therefore not covered under EPCRA Section 313?
Based on these facts, the facilities are properly classified in SIC code 5171 (bulk petroleum stations and terminals)
and not SIC code 5541 (gasoline service stations). Therefore, these facilities must comply with the reporting
requirements of EPCRA Section 313. According to theSC Code Manual (1987 ed) "...establishments or places
of business primarily engaged in selling merchandise to retailers; to industrial, commercial, institutional, farm,
construction contractors, or professional business users; or other wholesalers; or acting as agents or brokers in
buying or selling merchandise to such persons or companies" are properly classified in Division F, Wholesale
Trade, SIC code 5171, and are therefore covered under EPCRA Section 313, beginning with the reporting year
1998.
Primary SIC Code Determination. Assuming your facility has several establishments with
different SIC codes that are owned or operated by the same entity, you will need to determine if your
facility has a primary SIC code that is subject to EPCRA Section 313. Your facility is subject to
EPCRA Section 313 reporting requirements if:
• All the establishments have SIC codes covered by EPCRA Section 313; OR
• The total value of the products shipped or services provided at establishments with
covered SIC codes is greater than 50% of the value of the entire facility's products and
services; OR
• Any one of the establishments with a covered SIC code ships and/or produces
products or provides services whose value exceeds the value of services provided or
products produced and/or shipped by all of the other establishments within the facility
on an individual basis.
Example - Primary SIC Code
A facility is made up of two establishments. The first establishment, a petroleum bulk storage operation, which
has 100,000 gallons of storage capacity, is in SIC code 5171 and is regulated under EPCRA Section 313. The
second establishment, a gasoline service station, in SIC code 5541, is not within an SIC code covered by EPCRA
Section 313. The facility then determines that the value added by the gasoline service station is worth
$500,000/year whereas the value of the petroleum bulk storage operation is $l,500,000/year. The value of the
covered establishment is more than 50% of the facility's value; therefore, the primary SIC code of the facility is
5171 (a covered SIC code) and the entire facility is subject to EPCRA Section 313 reporting.
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POSSIBLE ERROR - Multi-Establishment Facilities
In the above example, the "multi-establishment" facility should not overlook the EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in
the petroleum products sold or other chemicals used at the gasoline service station. Once your facility meets the
SIC code and employee threshold criteria, facility personnel are required to consider all non-exempt activities in all
establishments in its threshold and release and other waste management calculations.
To determine the value of production or service attributable to a particular establishment, you
can subtract the product or service value obtained from other establishments from the total product or
service value of the facility. This procedure eliminates the potential for "double counting" production or
service in situations where establishments are engaged in sequential production activities at a single
facility.
Auxiliary Facilities Some companies may own and/or operate a non-contiguous and non-
adjacent facility that primarily supports a covered EPCRA Section 313 facility. These auxiliary facilities
assume the SIC code of a covered facility that it directly supports. For example, an off-site warehouse
that directly supports a covered petroleum bulk terminal (SIC code 5171) must assume the SIC code
5171 itself. For the purposes of EPCRA Section 313, auxiliary facilities must be engaged in performing
support services for another facility or establishment within a covered facility. Therefore, if an auxiliary
facility's primary function is to support/service a covered petroleum bulk storage facility, the auxiliary
facility may assume the SIC code of the main facility and may then be covered by the EPCRA Section
313 reporting requirements for purposes of the facility's SIC code.
Example - Auxiliary Facilities
A retail gas station sells only products supplied by one covered bulk petroleum station. Is the retail gas station
considered an auxiliary facility and therefore does it take on the covered SIC code of the bulk petroleum station?
No. While the retail gas station sells only products supplied by the covered bulk petroleum station it is not an
auxiliary facility because it does not support the operation of the bulk petroleum station (i.e., the retail sale of
gasoline and other petroleum products is a distinctly separate activity that benefits the gas station as opposed to
benefitting the bulk petroleum station). An auxiliary facility is one that supports another facility's activities. An
auxiliary facility can assume the SIC code of another covered facility if its primary function is to serve that other
covered facility's operations.
2.4 Number of Employees
Facilities must also meet or exceed the 10 or more full-time employees or equivalent criterion to
be subject to EPCRA Section 313 reporting requirements. A full-time employee equivalent is defined
as a work year of 2,000 hours. If your facility's staff (including contractors and certain other non-
company personnel) work 20,000 or more hours in a calendar year, you meet the 10 or more full-time
employee criterion. While many facilities may easily exceed this criterion, your facility may be small or
highly automated and your on-site staff may be small. In these cases, in particular, you should carefully
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consider all personnel supporting your operations, including other operations at establishments at the
facility, to determine if you meet the 10 or more full-time employee criterion.
If you have determined that your facility is covered and it is made up of multiple
establishments, you must include the hours worked by employees in all establishments for the
overall facility's employee threshold. For example, if your petroleum bulk terminal also has a
retail gas service station and convenience store on-site, and you have determined that the primary
SIC code of the facility is 5171, then the hours worked by employees at the gasoline service
station and convenience store must be included in the "facility's" employee hour calculation when
considering if the employee threshold has been exceeded.
Hours worked by employees who happen to be on-site who directly support another
facility do not have to be counted at the facility where they are "temporarily" located, such as a
sales representative supporting other facilities, provided that the facility can demonstrate through
time keeping records that the time worked by such an employee was in support of another facility.
The following personnel and time should be included in your employee calculations:
• Owners working at the facility;
• Operations staff;
Clerical staff;
• Temporary employees;
• Sales personnel;
• Truck drivers (employed by the facility);
• Other off-site facility employees directly supporting the facility;
• Paid vacation and sick leave; and
• Contractor employees (excluding contract truck drivers).
In general, if an individual is employed or hired to work at the facility, all the hours worked by
that individual must be counted in determining if the 20,000 hour criterion has been met.
Example - Calculating Employees
Your facility has six full-time employees working 2,000 hours/year in the plant bulk terminal operation. There
are also three full-time truck drivers (employed by the facility) assigned to the plant, each working
2,000 hours/year but predominantly on the road. You built an addition to the tank farm during the year, using
four contractor personnel who were on site full time for six months (working an average of 1,000 hours each).
You would calculate the number of full-time employee equivalents as follows:
• Hours for your nine full-time employees (six plant personnel and three truck drivers) for the
year are:
9 employees x 2,000 hours/year = 18,000 hours;
• Hours for the construction crew are:
4 contractors x 1,000 hours = 4,000 hours.
This is a total of 22,000 hours for the year, which is above the 20,000 hours/year threshold; therefore, you meet
the employee criterion.
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POSSIBLE ERROR - Construction Workers and Maintenance Service Contractors
Remember to include construction workers and maintenance service contractors in your employee threshold
calculation.
Example - Truck Jobbers
A petroleum bulk terminal contracts with truck jobbers who purchase its petroleum products. The terminal has no
direct control over the activities of the truck drivers. Are the hours worked by these jobbers and their drivers at
the petroleum terminal counted towards the terminal's employee threshold calculation?
No. The hours worked by the truck jobbers do not directly support the terminal. The jobbers purchase the
petroleum products and function as customers to the terminal. The terminal has processed the petroleum product
at the point that the jobbers take possession of the petroleum products.
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2.5 Manufacturing. Processing, and Otherwise Use of EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals
If you have determined that your facility meets the SIC code and employee threshold
determinations, you must determine what EPCRA Section 313 chemicals are manufactured, processed,
or otherwise used at your facility during the reporting year and whether an activity threshold was
exceeded. This section of the chapter will introduce the terms and concepts behind this determination;
whereas, Chapter 3 will take you through a detailed step-by-step process to determine whether you
need to report for any EPCRA Section 313 chemicals.
Identifying Chemicals. If you are in a covered SIC code and have 10 or more full-time
employee equivalents, you must determine which EPCRA Section 313 chemicals are manufactured,
processed, or otherwise used at your facility in excess of threshold quantities. To assist in doing this,
you should prepare a list of all chemicals manufactured, processed, or otherwise used by all
establishments at the facility, including the chemicals present in mixtures and other trade name products
and managed in wastes received from off-site. This list should then be compared to the CURRENT list
of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals found in the TRI Forms and Instructions document for that
reporting year (available from the EPCRA Hotline, 1-800-424-9346 or at the website:
http://www.epa.gov/tri). In addition to the individually listed chemicals, the list of EPCRA Section 313
chemicals includes several chemical categories (discussed in detail in Chapter 3). You must include
chemical compounds that are members included in any of these categories when evaluating activities at
the facility for threshold determinations and release and waste management calculations. Once you
identify the EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories at your facility, you must evaluate
the activities involving each chemical or chemical category and determine whether any activity
thresholds have been met.
Note that the chemicals listed under EPCRA Section 313 are periodically added, delisted, or
modified. Therefore, it is imperative that you refer to the appropriate reporting year's list. Also, note
that a list of synonyms for EPCRA Section 313 chemicals can be found in the EPA publication
Common Synonyms for Chemicals Listed Under Section 313 of the Emergency Planning and
Community Right-To-Know Act (updated March 1995). Table 2-2 lists EPCRA Section 313
chemicals that may be commonly processed or otherwise used at petroleum bulk storage facilities.
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Table 2-2
EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals Commonly Processed or Otherwise Used
by Petroleum Bulk Storage Facilities
Product EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals Likely to be
Present Above De minimis Concentrations
Gasoline
No. 6 Fuel Oil
Crude Oil
No. 2 Fuel
Oil/Diesel Fuel
Lubricating Oils
Aviation Gas
Jet Fuel (JP-4)
Solvents
Cleaning/
Disinfectant Uses
Benzene, ethylbenzene, MTBE, -hexane, toluene, 1,2,4-
trimethylbenzene, xylene (mixed isomers)
(PACs)
Benzene, n-hexane, xylene (mixed isomers)
n-Hexane, 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene
Zinc compounds
Benzene, toluene, xylene (mixed isomers)
Benzene, cyclohexane, n-hexane, toluene, xylene (mixed isomers)
n-Butyl alcohol, dichloromethane, -hexane, phosphoric acid,
cyclohexane, and tert-butyl alcohol
Chlorine, chlorine dioxide, formaldehyde, nitric acid, phosphoric acid, and
1,1,1 -trichloroethane
2.6 Activity Thresholds
There are three activity thresholds for the EPCRA Section 313 chemicals defined in EPCRA
Section 313: manufacturing (which includes importing), processing, and otherwise use. The activity
thresholds are 25,000 pounds per year for manufacturing, 25,000 pounds per year for processing, and
10,000 pounds per year for otherwise use. These thresholds apply to each chemical individually. The
determination is based solely on the quantity actually manufactured (including imported), processed, or
otherwise used. Only the amounts of the listed EPCRA Section 313 chemical that meet activity
definitions are considered towards threshold determinations. Any other amounts not considered to be
manufactured, processed, or otherwise used are not considered toward threshold determinations. For
example, EPCRA Section 313 chemicals that are brought on-site (excluding amounts imported) and
stored for future use or disposal, but are not incorporated into a product for distribution or are not
otherwise used on-site during the reporting year, are NOT considered towards any activity threshold
for that reporting year.
More detailed explanations of threshold activities (manufactured, processed, or otherwise
used), with examples of each are found in Chapter 3, Tables 3-2, 3-3, and 3-6. These terms are
briefly defined in Table 2-3, with a detailed discussion to follow:
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Table 2-3
Activity Thresholds
Threshold
Definition
Threshold
(Ibs/yr)
Manufacture
To produce, prepare, import, or compound an EPCRA Section 313 chemical.
"Manufacture" applies to an EPCRA Section 313 chemical that is produced
coincidentally during the manufacture, processing, otherwise use, or disposal
of another chemical or mixture of chemicals as a byproduct or impurity.
Examples would be the production of ammonia or nitrate compounds in a
wastewater treatment system or the creation of metal compounds during the
combustion of coal.
25,000
Process
The preparation of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical, after its manufacture, for
distribution in commerce:
(1) In the same form or physical state as, or in a different form or
physical state from, that in which it was received by the person so
preparing such chemical; or
(2) As part of an article containing the EPCRA Section 313 chemical.
For example, if you receive a mixture containing an EPCRA Section 313
chemical and package it, including transferring from storage tank to a tank
truck, and then distribute it into commerce, this chemical has been processed
by your facility.
25,000
Otherwise
Use
Generally, use of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical that does not fall under the
manufacture or process definitions is classified as otherwise use. An EPCRA
Section 313 chemical that is otherwise used is not intentionally incorporated
into a product that is distributed in commerce, but may be used instead as a
manufacturing or processing aid (e.g., catalyst), in waste processing, or as a
fuel (including waste fuel). For example, methanol used as a cleaning solvent
is classified as otherwise used.
Otherwise use means "any use of a toxic chemical contained in a
mixture or other trade name product or waste, that is not covered by
the terms "manufacture" or "process." Otherwise use of an EPCRA
Section 313 chemical does not include disposal, stabilization (without
subsequent distribution in commerce), or treatment for destruction
unless the:
1) EPCRA Section 313 chemical that was disposed, stabilized, or
treated for destruction was received from off-site for the purposes of
further waste management; or
2) EPCRA Section 313 chemical that was disposed, stabilized, or
treated for destruction that was manufactured as a result of waste
management activities on materials received from off-site for the
purposes of further waste management activities."
10,000
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There are some activities which do not meet the definitions of manufacture, process, or
otherwise use. For instance, storage, relabeling, or redistribution of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical
where no repackaging occurs does not constitute manufacturing, processing, or otherwise use of that
chemical. This type of activity should not be included in threshold calculations. In addition, transfers of
EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in wastes for energy recovery, treatment, or disposal are not
considered "distribution into commerce." For example, if you receive an EPCRA Section 313
chemical in waste from off-site and repackage the waste and send it to a landfill off-site, that activity
should not be included in threshold determinations.
Also, note that the threshold determinations for the three threshold activities (manufacturing,
processing, and otherwise use) are mutually exclusive. That is, you must conduct a separate threshold
determination for each threshold activity and if you exceed any threshold, all releases and other waste
management activities of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals at the facility must be considered for
reporting.
2.7 How Do You Report?
You must file a report (Form R) for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical that exceeds a
threshold for manufacturing, OR processing, OR otherwise use (providing you meet the employee and
SIC code criteria). As an alternative, you may file a Form A certification statement rather than a Form
R if you meet certain criteria as explained in Chapter 2.9. The TRI Forms and Instructions contain
detailed directions for the preparation and submittal of Form R and Form A for each EPCRA Section
313 chemical for the reporting year. The TRI Forms and Instructions are sent to all facilities which
submitted Form Rs or Form As the preceding year. However, if you do not receive a courtesy copy or
did not report in the preceding year, then copies of the TRI Forms and Instructions can be requested
from the EPCRA Hotline (1-800-424-9346) or obtained from EPA's TRI website
(http://www.epa.gov/tri).
2.8 FormR
If you are submitting a Form R, it is essential that you use the TRI Forms and Instructions for
the appropriate reporting year. EPA encourages the electronic submittal of the Form R, via the
Automated TRI Reporting System (ATRS). Use of the ATRS saves time in data entry and
photocopying and reduces errors by means of automated validation procedures. The ATRS produces
a certification letter with each validated submission (set of EPCRA Section 313 reports) which
provides for an original signature to certify that the submission is accurate and correct. The ATRS is
available free of charge from EPA's TRI website at http://www.epa.gov/opptintr/afr.
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The ATRS is available in both DOS and Windows versions. More information can be found in
the TRI Forms and Instructions., EPA's TRI website, or by calling the ATRS User Support Hotline at
(703)816-4434.
Each Form R must consist of two parts:
Part I. Facility Identification Information This part of the form provides general information to
identify the facility, including the name and address of the facility, parent company information,
and identification numbers used under reporting regulations. When submitting hard copies of
Form R, this part may be photocopied and re-used for each Form R you submit, except for the
signature which must be original for each Form R; and
Part n. Chemical Specific Information. This part of the form provides chemical-specific
information on the reportable activities, releases, other waste management estimates, and
source reduction activities for the reporting year. This must be completed separately for each
EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category and not reused year to year even if
reporting has not changed.
Submission of incomplete Form Rs may result in an issuance of a Notice of Technical Error
(NOTE), Notice of Significant Error (NOSE), or Notice of Non-compliance (NON). See the current
TRI Forms and Instructions for more detailed information on completing and submitting the Form R.
The ATRS has a validation program which helps to identify and eliminate many potential data entry
errors.
2.9 Form A
EPA developed the Form A, also referred to as the "Certification Statement," to reduce the
annual burden for facilities with lesser amounts of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals released and/or
otherwise managed as a waste, applicable beginning reporting year 1995 and beyond (59 FR 61488;
November 30, 1994). A facility must meet the following two criteria in order to use a Form A:
• First, the amount of the chemical manufactured, processed, OR otherwise used cannot
exceed 1,000,000 pounds. It is important to note that the quantities for each activity
are mutually exclusive and must be evaluated independently. If the quantity for any one
of the activities exceeds 1,000,000 pounds, a Form A cannot be submitted.
• Second, the total annual reportable amount of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical
cannot exceed 500 pounds per year. The "reportable amount" is defined as the sum of
the on-site amounts released (including disposal), treated, recycled, and combusted for
energy recovery, combined with the sum of the amounts transferred off-site for
recycling, energy recovery, treatment, and/or release (including disposal). This total
corresponds to the total of data elements, 8.1 through 8.7 in Part n of the Form R
(explained in Chapter 4).
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Example - Form A Threshold
Provided the combined total annual reportable amount from all activities (the sum of data elements 8.1-8.7 of the
Form R) does not exceed 500 pounds, a facility that processes 900,000 pounds of an EPCRA Section 313
chemical and otherwise uses 150,000 pounds of the same EPCRA Section 313 chemical, is eligible to use the
Form A because the facility did not exceed the one million pounds for either activity; even though the
combined amount managed exceeded one million pounds.
The Form A Certification Statement must be submitted for each eligible EPCRA
Section 313 chemical. The information on the Form A is included in the publicly accessible TRI
database, however these data are marked to indicate that they represent certification statements
rather than Form Rs. Note that separate establishments at a facility cannot submit separate
Form As for the same chemical; rather, only one Form A per EPCRA Section 313 chemical can
be submitted per facility.
Like the Form R, Form A includes facility identification information. However, no release
and other waste management estimations to any media are provided. You must simply certify that
the total annual reportable quantity of the chemical or chemicals addressed in the Form A did not
exceed 500 pounds and that amounts manufactured, or processed, or otherwise used did not
exceed one million pounds. Once a facility has completed estimates to justify the submission of a
Form A, there is a considerable time savings in using the Form A especially in subsequent years
provided activities related with the chemical do not change significantly. It is strongly
recommended that you document your initial rationale and reconfirm it every year to verify that
you have not made any modifications to the process that would invalidate the initial rationale
supporting submission of a Form A.
2.10 Trade Secrets
EPCRA's trade secrets provision only applies to the EPCRA Section 313 chemical
identity. If you submit trade secret information, you must prepare two versions of the
substantiation form as prescribed in 40 CFR Part 350, published in the Federal Register on July 29,
1988, (53 FR 28801) as well as two versions of the Form R. One set of forms should be "sanitized"
(i.e., it should provide a generic name for the EPCRA Section 313 chemical identity). This version will
be made available to the public. The second version, the "unsanitized" version, should provide the
actual identity of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical and have the trade secret claim clearly marked in
Part I, Section 2.1 of the Form R or Form A. All other parts of the Form R or Form A must be filled
out accordingly.
Individual states may have additional criteria for confidential business information and the
submittal of both sanitized and unsanitized reports for EPCRA Section 313 chemicals. Facilities may
jeopardize the trade secret status of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical by submitting an unsanitized
version to a state agency or Indian tribe that does not require an unsanitized version.
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More information on trade secret claims, including contacts for individual state's submission
requirements, can be found in the most current version of the TRI Forms and Instructions.
2.11 Recordkeeping
Complete and accurate records are absolutely essential to meaningful compliance with EPCRA
Section 313 reporting requirements. Compiling and maintaining good records will help you to reduce
the effort and cost in preparing future reports and to document how you arrived at the reported data in
the event of an EPA compliance audit. EPA requires you to maintain records substantiating the Form R
or Form A submission for a minimum of three years from the date of submission. Each facility must
keep copies of the Form R or Form A along with all supporting documents, calculations, work sheets,
and other forms that you use to prepare the Form R or Form A. EPA may request this supporting
documentation during a regulatory audit.
Specifically, EPA requires that the following records be maintained for a period of three years
from the date of the submission of a report (summarized from 40 CFR 372.10):
1) A copy of each report that is submitted;
2) All supporting materials and documentation used by the person to make the compliance
determination that the facility or establishment is a covered facility;
3) Documentation supporting the report that is submitted, including documentation
supporting:
• Threshold determinations;
• Employee threshold determinations (including timesheets);
• Claimed allowable exemptions;
• Calculations for each quantity reported as being released, either on or off site,
or otherwise managed as waste;
• Activity use determinations, including dates of manufacturing, processing, or
otherwise use;
• Basis of all estimates;
• Receipts or manifests associated with transfers of waste to off-site locations;
and
• Waste treatment methods, estimates of treatment efficiencies, ranges of influent
concentrations to treatment, sequential nature of treatment steps, and operating
data to support efficiency claims.
4) All supporting materials used to make the compliance determination that the facility or
establishment is eligible to submit a Form A;
5) Documentation supporting the Form A, including:
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• Data supporting the determination that the alternate threshold applies;
• Calculations of annual reporting amounts; and
• Receipts or manifests associated with the transfer of each chemical in waste to
off-site locations.
Because EPCRA Section 313 reporting does not require additional testing or monitoring, you
must determine the best "readily available data" available source of information to make reporting
determinations. Alternatively, you may use reasonable estimates to make reporting determinations.
The amount and type of data and records will vary from facility to facility. Examples of records that
you should keep, if applicable, include the following:
• Each Form R or Form A submitted;
• Section 313 Reporting Threshold Worksheets (sample worksheets can be found in
Chapter 3 of this document as well as in the TRI Forms and Instructions);
• Engineering calculations and other notes;
• Purchase records and MSDSs from suppliers;
• Inventory and receipt data;
• Analytical results and profiles for wastes received from off site;
• NPDES/SPDES permits and monitoring reports;
EPCRA Section 312, Tier H reports;
• Monitoring records;
• Air permits;
• Flow measurement data;
• RCRA hazardous waste generator's reports;
• Pretreatment reports filed with local governments;
• Invoices from waste management firms;
• Manufacturer's estimates of treatment efficiencies;
CERCLA Reportable Quantity (RQ) reports;
• EPCRA Section 304 follow-up release notifications;
• RCRA manifests; and
• Process flow diagrams (including emissions, releases and other waste management
activities).
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Chapter 3 - EPCRA Section 313 Threshold Determinations
3.0 PURPOSE
This chapter provides a step-by-step procedure for determining if any EPCRA Section 313
chemicals or chemical categories exceed a reporting threshold at your facility.
Step 1) Determine if you manufacture (including import), process, or otherwise use any
EPCRA Section 313 chemicals.
Step 2) Determine the quantity of each EPCRA Section 313 chemical you manufacture
(including import), process, or otherwise use.
Step 3) Determine which EPCRA Section 313 chemicals exceed a threshold.
3.1 Step 1 - Determining which EPCRA Section 313 chemicals are manufactured (including
imported), processed, or otherwise used
Compiling Chemical Lists. Compile lists of all chemicals, mixtures, or other trade name
products, and wastes at your facility. Petroleum bulk storage facilities may find it helpful to create two
lists: one of chemicals processed in petroleum products, and one of purchased chemicals otherwise
used at the facility. When developing the list of chemicals processed, refer to information your facility
may have or have access to regarding specific chemical constituents and their concentrations, in
combination with information found later in this chapter. For the otherwise use list, identify the name of
each mixture or other trade name product and write the names of all chemicals contained in each
mixture or other trade name product. Next, compare the individual chemicals on both lists to the
current EPCRA Section 313 chemical list found in the TRI Forms and Instructions (remember that
chemicals may be periodically added and deleted so you should always use the most current
instructions). Highlight the EPCRA Section 313 chemicals that are on your list. You must perform
threshold determinations for these chemicals.
Review the list to be sure each chemical is shown by its correct EPCRA Section 313 name.
For example, a common EPCRA Section 313 chemical found at petroleum bulk storage facilities is n-
hexane. N-Hexane (CAS No. 110-54-3) has several synonyms, including hexane, hexyl hyride, and
Gettysolve-B. It must be reported on Form R (or Form A), Item 1.2, by its EPCRA Section 313
chemical name, n-hexane. Synonyms can be found in the U.S. EPA's document Common Synonyms
for Chemicals Listed Under Section 313 of the EPCRA (EPA 745-R-95-008) (updated March
1995). EPA's Automated TRI Reporting System (ATRS) has a pick list containing a complete list of
EPCRA Section 313 chemical and chemical category names and the corresponding CAS numbers and
category codes.
While every chemical and chemical category on the EPCRA Section 313 chemical list must be
considered, certain chemicals are more likely than others to be encountered at petroleum bulk storage
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facilities. As a guide, certain chemicals that petroleum bulk storage facilities are likely to process and/or
otherwise use were provided in the previous chapter in Table 2-2. This is not a comprehensive list of
all chemicals that may be processed or otherwise used at petroleum bulk storage facilities, but is merely
a starting point for identifying chemicals for threshold determinations.
Information that is useful in performing threshold determinations and preparing your reports
includes the following:
• Mixtures and other trade name products containing EPCRA Section 313 chemicals;
• Associated CAS numbers;
• Throughput quantities; and
• Whether the chemical is manufactured, processed, or otherwise used at the facility (be
sure to include quantities that are coincidentally manufactured and imported, as
appropriate).
Use of Spreadsheets or Databases. A computerized spreadsheet or database may be helpful in
developing your facility's chemical list and performing threshold calculations. The type of information
useful as input in a spreadsheet or database includes the chemical name, mixture or other trade name
product, or waste name with corresponding chemical component, concentrations, the CAS number,
and the yearly quantity manufactured, processed, or otherwise used. The spreadsheet or database
could also be designed to identify the total quantity by activity threshold (amounts manufactured,
processed, and otherwise used) for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical in every waste, mixture, and
other trade name product.
Smaller facilities that do not have an established electronic method of tracking their chemical
throughout and waste managed, should consider developing a spreadsheet to assist them in their
chemical management activities. Developing a spreadsheet will require an initial investment of time;
however, the time and effort saved in threshold calculations in subsequent years can be significant.
Such a system will also reduce the potential of inadvertently overlooking EPCRA Section 313
chemicals that are present in wastes received or mixtures purchased from off-site sources.
EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals in Purchased Chemicals
To develop the chemical list and identify the associated threshold activities for
purchased chemicals you may want to consult the following:
Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS);
• Facility purchasing records;
• Inventory records;
• Individual manufacturing/operating functions; and
• Operation and process knowledge;
• Industry Specifications and Reports.
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For purchased chemicals, MSDSs are generally considered to be good sources of information
for the type and composition of chemicals in mixtures and other trade name products. Petroleum bulk
storage facilities may receive MSDSs for any mixtures or other trade name products purchased for the
purposes of repackaging, fuel blending, ancillary cleaning operations, or other operations that require
mixtures and other trade name products. As of 1989, chemical suppliers of facilities in SIC codes
2000 through 3999 are required to notify customers that they may be subject to EPCRA Section 313
reporting requirements for any EPCRA Section 313 chemicals present in mixtures or other trade name
products that are distributed to facilities. The notice must be provided to the receiving facility and may
be attached or incorporated into that product's MSDS. If no MSDS is required, the notification must
be in a letter that accompanies the first shipment of the product to your facility. This letter must contain
the chemical name, CAS number, and the weight or volume percent of the chemical (or a range) in the
mixture or other trade name product. Beginning with the 1998 reporting year, seven new industries will
be covered by most of the EPCRA Section 313 reporting requirements and, therefore, facilities in SIC
codes 2000 through 3999 will be required to provide these new industries with this supplier notification
information. While the new industries are not required to prepare supplier notifications for materials
that they distribute to their customers, they are encouraged to pass along the notification to customers
receiving these materials who may be subject to EPCRA Section 313. For more information on
supplier notification requirements, see TRI Forms and Instructions, EPCRA Section 313 Question
and Answers, Revised 1998 Version - Appendix A, Directive 9 (EPA-745-B-98-004), or Supplier
Notification Requirements, (EP A-5 60/4-91 -006).
Carefully review the entire MSDS for your purchased chemicals. Although MSDSs must list
whether EPCRA Section 313 chemicals are present, the language and location of this notification is not
currently standardized. Depending on the supplier, this information can be found in different sections of
the MSDS. The most likely sections of an MSDS to provide information on identity and concentration
of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in purchased chemicals are:
• Hazardous components section;
• Regulatory section;
• Physical properties/chemical composition section;
• Labeling section; and
• Additional information section.
EPCRA Section 313 Chemical List
In order to identify which chemicals are EPCRA Section 313 chemicals, and (in some cases)
the form in which they are reportable, you need to compare your list of chemicals managed at your
facility to the current Section 313 list of chemicals. The most current list of EPCRA Section 313
chemicals can be found in the TRI Forms and Instructions document for the current reporting year.
The following discussion is a brief overview of the EPCRA Section 313 list of chemicals, including a
description of possible chemical qualifiers.
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The original list of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories was comprised from
two lists developed by New Jersey and Maryland. EPA refined the list and anticipates changes to
continue. The list can be modified by an EPA initiative or though a petition process. When evaluating a
chemical for addition or deletion, EPA must consider potential acute and chronic human health effects
and adverse environmental effects and the Agency publishes its findings and any regulatory action
through the Federal Register.
The EPCRA Section 313 chemical list includes individually listed chemicals and several
chemical categories. If you meet the SIC code criterion and exceed the employee threshold, you must
file a Form R or Form A for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category manufactured,
processed, or otherwise used above threshold quantities. When conducting threshold determinations
for individually listed chemicals, simply compare the amount of that chemical manufactured, processed,
or otherwise used, to each threshold quantity. If you exceed the threshold, you must file a Form R or
Form A for that chemical. When determining thresholds for chemical categories, you must total the
weights of all members of the category, and compare this sum to each activity threshold. It is important
that you compare the amount of compounds in a category separately to each individual activity
threshold (manufacturing, processing, or otherwise use). If you exceed any of the three activity
thresholds for a chemical category, you must file a Form R or Form A for that chemical category.
Many of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical categories are metal compound categories (e.g.,
chromium compounds). Metal compound categories include any unique chemical substance that
contains the metal as part of that chemical's infrastructure. When calculating thresholds for metal
compound categories, you must consider the entire weight of the metal compound, not just the weight
of the parent metal. However, if you exceed an activity threshold for a metal compound category and
you are filing a Form R for that metal compound category, you need only use the weight of the parent
metal when calculating quantities released or otherwise managed as waste. Elemental forms of metals
(e.g., chromium) are also individually listed on the EPCRA Section 313 chemical list. You must make
separate threshold determinations for the elemental metal and the metal compound category (e.g.,
chromium and chromium compounds). If you exceed thresholds for both the metal and metal
compound category, you may submit separate Form Rs, or one Form R for both the metal and metal
compound category. However, if both the metal and the metal compound qualify for Form A
reporting, you must submit separate Form A certifications for the metal and metal compound
category.
Several chemicals on the EPCRA Section 313 chemical list include qualifiers related to use or
form. A few chemicals are reportable ONLY if manufactured by a specified process or in a specified
activity threshold. For example, isopropyl alcohol is only reportable if it is manufactured using the
strong acid process and saccharin is reportable only if it is manufactured. Some other chemicals are
only reportable if present in certain forms. For example, only yellow or white phosphorus are
reportable, while black or red phosphorus are not.
3-4
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Example - Lead and Lead Compounds
A facility has determined that it needs to report under EPCRA Section 313 for both elemental lead and lead
compounds. Can this facility file one Form R that takes into account both the releases and other waste
management activities of lead and lead compounds, or is it required to report separately?
If a covered facility exceeds thresholds for both the parent metal and compounds of that same metal, it is allowed
to file one joint report (e.g.. one report for lead compounds and elemental lead). EPA allows this because the
release and other waste management information reported in connection with metal compounds will be the total
pounds of the parent metal released and otherwise managed as a waste. For data management purposes, EPA
requires that the chemical category name and code be placed on the form R (Sections 1.1 and 1.2).
Examples - Chemical Categories
Example 1 A facility otherwise uses 5,000 pounds of l,3-bis(methylisocyanate)-cyclohexane, 3,000 pounds
of 1,5-naphthalene diisocyanate, and 3,000 pounds of 2,2,4-trimethylhexamethylene diisocyanate. All three of
these chemicals are members of the diisocyanates category, an EPCRA Section 313 chemical category. The
facility otherwise uses 11,000 pounds of diisocyanates, which exceeds the 10,000 pound threshold for otherwise
use. The facility must file a Form R or Form A for diisocyanates category.
Example 2 A facility otherwise uses 6,000 pounds of zinc oxide, manufactures 20,000 pounds of zinc
sulfate, and processes 18,000 pounds of zinc sulfide. All three compounds are members of the zinc compounds
category, an EPCRA Section 313 chemical category. Because the facility does not exceed the otherwise use,
manufacturing, or processing thresholds, the facility is not required to file a Form R or Form A for the zinc
compound category.
The qualifiers associated with these chemicals which may be applicable to petroleum bulk
storage facilities are presented below. A detailed discussion of the qualifier criteria can be found in the
TRI Forms and Instructions.
• Fume or dust - Three metals (aluminum, vanadium, and zinc) are qualified as "fume or
dust forms only." This definition excludes "wet" forms such as solutions or slurries, but
includes powder, particulate, or gaseous forms of these metals. For example, on-site
disposal of a waste received from off-site containing elemental zinc metal needs to be
considered in threshold determinations if the zinc is in the form of a fume or dust.
However, if zinc (fume or dust) are found during treatment of a zinc-containing waste
stream, then these amounts would need to be considered toward the facility's
manufacturing threshold. Additionally, the entire weight of all zinc compounds should be
included in the threshold determination for zinc compounds. Keep in mind that most
metals in most wastes are expected to be in the compound form.
• Ammonia has the following qualifier: "ammonia (includes anhydrous ammonia and
aqueous ammonia from water dissociable salts and other sources; 10% of total aqueous
ammonia is reportable under this listing)." Aqueous ammonia is formed from the
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dissociation of ammonium salts (including ammonium sulfate, ammonium nitrate, and
ammonium chloride) in water and is an EPCRA Section 313 chemical. You must
determine the amount of aqueous ammonia generated from solubilizing these chemicals
in water and apply it toward the threshold for ammonia. EPA has published guidance
on reporting for ammonia, and ammonium salts in EPCRA Section 313 Question and
Answers, Revised 1998 Version -AppendixA, Directive 8. Additionally, ammonium
nitrate in aqueous solutions must be included in threshold determinations and release
and other waste management calculations for the nitrate compounds category. (See
below)
Nitrate Compounds (water dissociable; reportable only in aqueous solution) - A
nitrate compound is covered by this listing only when in water and if dissociated.
Although the complete weight of the nitrate compound must be used for threshold
determinations for the nitrate compounds category, only the nitrate ion portion of the
compound must be considered for release and other waste management determinations.
Nitrate compounds are manufactured during the neutralization of nitric acid and in
biological treatment of wastewater. EPA has published guidance for these chemicals in
Water Dissociable Nitrate Compounds Category and Guidance for Reporting (see
Appendix C for more information).
Phosphorus (yellow or white) - Only manufacturing, processing, or otherwise use of
phosphorus in the yellow or white chemical forms require reporting. Black and red
phosphorus are not subject to EPCRA Section 313 reporting.
Asbestos (friable) - Asbestos only need be considered when it is handled in the
friable form. Friable refers to the physical characteristic of being able to crumble,
pulverize, or reduce to a powder with hand pressure.
Aluminum oxide (fibrous) - Beginning with reports for calendar year 1989, aluminum
oxide is only subject to threshold determination when it is handled in fibrous forms.
EPA has characterized fibrous aluminum oxide for purposes of EPCRA Section 313
reporting as a man-made fiber that is commonly used in high-temperature insulation
applications such as furnace linings, filtration, gaskets, joints, and seals.
Sulfuric acid and hydrochloric acid (acid aerosols) - EPA delisted non-aerosol
forms of sulfuric acid (CAS No. 7664-93-9) and hydrochloric acid (CAS No. 7647-
01-0) from the EPCRA Section 313 chemical list beginning in the 1994 and 1995
reporting years, respectively. Threshold determinations and release and other waste
management estimates now only apply to the aerosol forms. EPA considers the term
aerosol to cover any generation of airborne acid (including mists, vapors, gas, or fog)
without any particle size limitation. Sulfuric acid and hydrochloric acid (acid aerosols)
are manufactured during the combustion of sulfur containing wastes (for sulfuric acid)
and chlorine containing wastes (for hydrochloric acid). EPA has published guidance for
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sulfuric acid in Guidance for Reporting Sulfuric Acid (acid aerosols including mists,
vapors, gas, fog, and other airborne forms of any particle size) (see Appendix C
for more information).
3.2 Step 2. Determining the quantity of each EPCRA Section 313 chemical manufactured
(including imported), processed, or otherwise used
The next step is to determine the quantities manufactured (including imported), processed, and
otherwise used for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical on your list (developed in Step 1). Table 3-1
lists the annual reporting thresholds for each of these threshold activities (Tables 3-2 through 3-4
provide detailed definitions of subcategories for each Threshold Activity).
Table 3-1
Reporting Thresholds
Activity
Manufacturing (including importing)
Processing
Otherwise used
Threshold
More than 25,000 pounds per EPCRA
Section 313 chemical
More than 25,000 pounds per EPCRA
Section 313 chemical
More than 10,000 pounds per EPCRA
Section 313 chemical
For each EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category during the reporting year, each
threshold must be individually calculated; they are mutually exclusive and are not additive.
Example -Threshold Determination
If your facility manufacturers 22,000 pounds of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical and you also otherwise use 8,000
pounds of the same chemical, you have not exceeded either activity threshold and an EPCRA Section 313 report
for that chemical is not required. However, if your facility manufactures 28,000 pounds per year of an EPCRA
Section 313 chemical and otherwise uses 8,000 pounds of the same chemical, you have exceeded the
manufacturing threshold and all non-exempt releases and other waste management activities of that chemical must
be reported on the Form R, including those from the "otherwise use" activity. Additionally, you must also
indicate on the Form R in Part II, Section(s) 3.1, 3.2, and 3.3, all non-exempt activities involving the reportable
EPCRA Section 313 chemical.
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Common Error -Threshold Determination
The amount of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical that is actually manufactured (including the quantity imported),
processed, or otherwise used, not the amount in storage or previously disposed, is the amount applied to the
threshold determination. For example, your facility disposes of nickel compounds in an on-site landfill. The
landfill contains hundreds of thousands of pounds of nickel compounds. Over the course of the reporting year,
you dispose of an additional 5,000 pounds of nickel compounds in wastes received from off-site. In this example,
only the 5,000 pounds that were disposed of in the current year count toward the "otherwise use" threshold.
Therefore, unless you "otherwise use" more than 5,000 pounds elsewhere at the facility, the "otherwise use"
threshold has not been exceeded and you would not have to report for nickel compounds.
Each of the threshold activities is divided into subcategories. As discussed in the TRI Forms
and Instructions, you are required to designate EACH activity and subcategory that applies to your
facility not only those for which a threshold was exceeded.
Manufacturing
Manufacturing means producing, preparing, importing, or compounding an EPCRA Section
313 chemical. While petroleum bulk storage facilities may not intend to manufacture an EPCRA
Section 313 chemical during its operations, some of the activities could produce EPCRA Section 313
chemicals that may need to be considered towards the manufacturing threshold. You will need to
consider if EPCRA Section 313 chemicals are produced coincidentally during any of your operations
towards the manufacturing threshold, regardless of whether the chemical only exists for a short period
of time, is destroyed by air control equipment, or is captured as residual materials. An example would
be the production of ammonia or nitrate compounds in a wastewater treatment system.
The following discussion describes the subsections of manufacturing for reporting purposes (see
Table 3-2), and other manufacturing threshold issues that are relevant to petroleum bulk storage
facilities.
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Table 3-2
Definitions and Examples of Manufactured Chemicals
Manufacturing Activity
Subcategory
Examples
Produced or imported for on-site
use/processing
-Importation of a chemical for use in spill cleanup activities.
Produced or imported for
sale/distribution
-Toluene in jet fuel (JP-4) imported into the customs territory
of the U.S.
Produced as a by-product
-Any chemical which is produced during the processing of
another chemical that does not remain with the chemical and is
sent off-site for distribution in commerce.
Produced as an impurity
-Any chemical which is produced during the processing of
another chemical that remains with the chemical and is sent
off-site for distribution in commerce.
* More complete discussions of the industry-specific examples can be found in Chapter 4 of this guidance manual.
Chemical Conversions. Perhaps the most overlooked form of manufacturing is chemical
conversions. Any new EPCRA Section 313 chemicals produced as a result of these chemical
conversions must be counted towards the manufacturing threshold. For example, wastewater
treatment is known to form new compounds, notably nitrate compounds. Combustion can also
result in the manufacture of other EPCRA Section 313 chemicals, such hydrogen fluoride,
hydrochloric acid (aerosol), and sulfuric acid (aerosol).
Manufacturing Threshold as it Applies to Chemical Conversion
The conversion of one metal compound to another metal compound within the same metal compound category is
considered the "manufacture" of a metal compound, which must be considered toward threshold calculations.
This is identical to how threshold calculations are derived for EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in non-metal
compound categories. The unique aspect for metal compounds, as compared to non-metal compounds within a
compound category, is how amounts released and otherwise managed are reported. As stated in the final rule (62
FR 23850; May 1, 1997), "if a metal is converted to a metal compound or if a metal compound is converted to
another metal compound, a metal compound has been "manufactured" as defined under EPCRA Section 313."
However, provided that thresholds are exceeded, facilities are instructed to report only the amount of the parent
metal contained in the metal compounds for amounts released or otherwise managed. Facilities have the option to
submit one Form R that includes the amounts of the elemental metal from the parent metal along with amounts of
the metal portion from the metal compounds on their report, if thresholds for both the elemental metal and its
metal compounds have been exceeded.
Importing. The "manufacture" threshold includes importing an EPCRA Section 313 chemical if
the facility has caused the chemical to be imported. If your facility orders or enters into an agreement
to obtain or accept an EPCRA Section 313 chemical (or a mixture or other trade name product or
waste containing an EPCRA Section 313 chemical) from a source outside the customs territory of the
United States (the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico) then your facility has imported
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a EPCRA Section 313 chemical and amounts must be considered toward the manufacturing threshold.
Note that if an entity other than the facility, such as a third party not directly associated with the facility
(e.g., a chemical broker), ordered the chemical without specific direction from the facility, then that third
party has "caused" the chemical to be imported, and the facility does not need to consider the EPCRA
Section 313 chemical toward their manufacturing threshold. Imported chemicals, as well as any others
that undergo a manufacturing activity, may also be subsequently processed and/or otherwise used, and
amounts associated with these activities need to be applied to all appropriate threshold determinations.
Processing
Processing means preparing an EPCRA Section 313 chemical, or a mixture or other trade
name product containing an EPCRA Section 313 chemical for distribution in commerce (usually thought
of as the intentional incorporation of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical into a product). Petroleum bulk
storage facilities should pay considerable attention to this activity threshold since much of their
operations involve blending and repackaging of petroleum products prior to distribution off site in
commerce. These activities constitute processing, and amounts of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals
"processed" must be considered toward threshold determinations and release and other waste
management calculations.
Perhaps the most pivotal element of the processing definition is that the EPCRA Section 313
chemical must be prepared for distribution into commerce. If a material is produced or recovered,
for use on-site, the material has not been prepared for distribution into commerce, and thus is not
counted towards the processing threshold (see the discussion of otherwise use for the applicability of
chemicals used on-site). In addition, distribution into commerce does not only mean that the material
must be sold to a customer. Distributed in commerce includes any distributive activity in which benefit
is gained by the transfer, even if there is no direct monetary gain (e.g., intra-company transfers).
Note: In making threshold determinations, facilities are only required to consider amounts
managed at the facility. If a bulk petroleum distribution facility sells products that are not received at the
facility, these amounts are not considered toward threshold determinations. For example, if a facility
sells 5 million gallons of gasoline within a reporting year, but only 3 million gallons arrive at the facility
for subsequent repackaging and distribution, then the facility would only consider 3 million gallons
toward threshold determinations.
The following discussion describes various processing activities for reporting purposes (see
Table 3-3), along with some processing threshold issues that are relevant to petroleum bulk storage
facilities.
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Table 3-3
Definitions and Examples of Processed Chemicals
Processing Activity
Subcategory
As a reactant
As a formulation component
As an article component
Repackaging for distribution into
commerce
Examples
-May not apply to petroleum bulk storage facilities.
-Blending of additives or other agents into gasoline and
aviation fuel prior to distribution into commerce.
-May not apply to petroleum bulk storage facilities
-Transfer of gasoline containing MBTE, benzene and
toluene from bulk storage tanks to tanker trucks for further
distribution in commerce.
* More complete discussions of the industry-specific examples can be found in Chapter 4 of this guidance manual.
Petroleum bulk storage facilities commonly process EPCRA Section 313 chemicals by adding
proprietary additive packages to raw gasoline product prior to distribution off-site. Facilities that
perform these blending activities must consider the EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in the agents and
additives towards the 25,000 pound threshold for processing, even if the concentration of the additives
or agents in the final product distributed off site falls below the de minimis concentration level.
Another blending operation may consist of mixing refined motor fuel with oxygenated compounds such
as methanol, ethanol, or methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE). However, these blending operations
typically occur at the petroleum refinery rather than at the petroleum bulk storage facility.
Petroleum bulk storage facilities must determine what EPCRA Section 313 chemicals
are present in petroleum products. Facilities must use their best "readily available data" to identify and
estimate the quantity of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in the petroleum products. If a facility has data
regarding chemical constituents in the petroleum products used by the facility, and the facility believes
that this is the best "readily available data," then the facility should use this information. If specific
concentration data of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in petroleum products does not exist at your
facility, there are several sources where the facility can go to get this. Table 3-4 lists concentrations of
EPCRA Section 313 constituents typically found in crude oil and petroleum products. Table 3-5 lists
some of the most common petroleum products along with concentrations of EPCRA Section 313
constituents typically present and estimates of how much product must be processed to exceed the
25,000 pound threshold for that constituent.
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Table 3-4
Estimated Concentration Values of EPCRA Section 313 Constituents
in Crude Oil and Petroleum Products (Weight Percent)
EPCRA Section
313 Chemical
Benzene
Biphenyl
Bromine
Chlorine
Cyclohexane
Ethylbenzene
n-Hexane
MTBE"
Naphthalene
Phenanthrene
Phenol
PACs'
Styrene
Toluene
1,2,4-Trimethyl-
benzene
Xylene
Antimony0
Arsenic a
Beryllium0
Cadmium a
Chromium a
Cobalt-
Copper8
Lead Compounds
Manganese a
Mercury0
De Minimis
Level*
0.1
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
0.1
0.1
1.0
1.0
1.0
0.1
0.1/1.0'
0.1/1.0'
0.1/1.0'
0.1/1.0"
1.0
1.0
1 .0 (organic)
0.1 (inorg.)
1.0
1.0
Crude Oil
0.446 "
0.060"
N/A
N/A
0.700
0.346"
2.463"
N/A
0.219"
N/A
0.323
0.0004
N/A
0.878"
0.326
1.420"
l.OE-05
2.0E-05
2.0E-07
4.0E-07
4.0E-05
0.0003
4.0E-05
N/A
N/A
0.0006
Gasoline
(Various
Grades)
1.608"
0.010"
N/A
N/A
0.240
1.605"
l.O1
15.00
0.444"
N/A
0.055
N/A
N/Ae
7.212"
2.501
7.170"
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
No.2 Fuel
Oil/ Diesel
Fuel
8.0E-04*
0.100
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.013*
1.0*
N/A
0.550
0.125
0.064
N/A
0.032"
0.032*
l.Oi
0.290*
N/A
8.5"'
5.0™
2.1"s
9.5 "'
N/A
5.6E-04
N/A
2.1E-05
4.0E-05
Jet Fuel
(JP-4)
1.0*
0.120"
N/A
N/A
1.240
0.50*
1.51
N/A
0.468 "
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
3.20*
N/A
3.20*
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Kerosene
0.004*
0.120"
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.127*
0.005*
N/A
0.733"
N/A
0.770
N/A
N/A
.131
N/A
0.31*
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Lubri-
cating
Oil
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
No. 6
Fuel Oil
0.001
N/A
3.0E-06
0.0131°
N/A
0.0022
N/A
N/A
0.10
N/A
N/A
1.13
N/A
0.006
N/A
0.013
l.OE-06
3.06E-
05°
2.7E-
06°
2.0E-
06D
3.1E-05
1.63E-
04°
3.0E-05
1.41E-
04°
3.51J-05
9.2E.-07
Aviation
Gasoline
0.515"
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.432"
0.126"
N/A
0.10"
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
7.327
N/A
2.204
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.14-
(organic)
N/A
N/A
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EPCRA Section
313 Chemical
Nickel-
Selenium a
Silver-
Zinc Compounds
De Minims
Level*
0.1
1.0
1.0
1.0
Crude Oil
0.0055
4.0E-05
N/A
N/A
Gasoline
(Various
Grades)
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
No.2 Fuel
Oil/ Diesel
Fuel
3.38E-04
N/A
N/A
N/A
Jet Fuel
(JP-4)
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Kerosene
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Lubri-
cating
Oil
N/A
N/A
N/A
1.0
No. 6
Fuel Oil
2.61J-03
9.5^-06
2.0E-08
N/A
Aviation
Gasoline
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Unless otherwise noted, Source: Economic Analysis of the Final Rule to Add Certain Industry Groups to EPCRA Section 313, Appendix
B "Composition of Crude Oil and Petroleum Products."
A American Petroleum Institute report prepared for Mr. Jim Durham, EPA (December 23, 1993), regarding revised estimates of heavy
petroleum product liquid constituents mat are listed as hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) under section 112 of the Clean Air Act
Amendments (CAAA).
R Radian Corporation report prepared for Mr. James Durham, EPA (August 10, 1993), regarding liquid HAP concentrations of various
petroleum products.
D Appendix D, Study of Hazardous Air Pollution Emissions from Electric Utility Steam Generating Units—Final Report to Congress,
USEPA, OAQPS (February 1998) 453/R-98-004b.
T These values have been revised to be consistent with the current version of EPA's emission estimation program TANKS 4.0.
* The de minimis concentration values for the metals is for the metal compound.
Lead compounds concentration for Aviation Gasoline 100 (Exxon-MSDS).
* Concentrations updated with comments received from API.
a Constituents are most likely metal compounds rather than the elements. Elements are listed in this table because concentration data
are for only the metals occurring in the fuel. Concentrations for metal compounds would be somewhat higher depending on the metal
compound. For threshold determination, if the weight of the compound is not known, facilities may use the weight of the lowest metal
compound likely to be present.
® Data from EPA report prepared by Radian Co. for this constituent are considered suspect and are not recommended for use, based on
discussion with Jim Durham of EPA on November 30, 1998.
b MTBE may be present to enhance octane in concentrations from 0-15% (industry practice, not sampling results).
c The de minimis level for inorganic compounds is 0.1; for organic compounds is 1.0.
d The de minimis level for chromium VI compounds is 0.1; for chromium III compounds is 1.0.
e The petroleum products may contain one or more of the following chemicals under the polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs) category:
benz(a)anthracene, benzo (b)fluoranthene, benzo(j)fluoranthene, benzo(k)fluoranthene, benzo(rst)pentaphene, benzo(a)phenanthrene,
benzo(a)pyrene, dibenz(a,h)acridine, dibenz(a,j)acridine, dibenzo(a,h)anthracene, 7H-Dibenzo(c,g)carbazole, dibenzo(a,e)fluoranthene,
dibenzo(a,e)pyrene, dibenzo(a,h)pyrene, dibenzo(a,l)pyrene, 7,12-dimethylbenz(a)anthracene, indeno[l,2,3-cd]pyrene, 5-methylchrysene,
1-nitropyrene. For No. 6 fuel oil, the value given is for benzo(a)anthracene.
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Table 3-5
Estimated Quantities Required to Exceed the Processing Threshold for
Several Petroleum Products
Product
Gasoline
(Various Grades)
No. 6 Fuel Oil
Crude Oil
No. 2 Fuel
Oil/Diesel Fuel
Lubricating Oil
Aviation Gas
Jet Fuel (JP-4)
EPCRA Section 313
Chemicals That May
Be Present Above De
Minimis
Benzene
Ethylbenzene
MTBE
-Hexane
Toluene
1 ,2,4-Trimethylbenzene
Xylene (mixed isomers)
Benz(a)anthracene
(PACs)
Benzene
n-Hexane
Xylene (mixed isomers)
1 ,2,4-Trimethylbenzene
Zinc Compounds
Benzene
Toluene
Xylene (mixed isomers)
Benzene
Cyclohexane
n-Hexane
Toluene
Xylene (mixed isomers)
Concentration
(weight percent)
1.608
1.605
15.000
1.0
7.212
2.500
7.170
1.130
0.446
2.463
1.420
1.000
1.000
0.515
7.327
2.204
1.0
1.240
1.5
3.20
3.20
Quantity of Product
Required to Meet the
25,000-lb Threshold for
Processing (Gallons)
258,389
258,872
27,699
415,282
57,611
166,196
57,948
276,549
794,526
143,873
249,548
357,143
351,865
831,940
58,475
194,396
380,359
323,305
266,667
125,281
125,281
Source: Economic Analysis of the Final Rule to Add Certain Industry Groups to EPCRA Section 3_/.?,Appendices Band
H, "Memorandum from Patrick B. Murphy, Radian/RTF to James F. Durham, EPA/CPE Concerning Petroleum Refinery
Liquid HAP and Properties Data, August 10, 1993, " and "Memorandum from Paul C. Bailey, Jr., API/Washington, DC
to James F. Durham, EPA/CPE Concerning Revised Estimates of Heavy Petroleum Product Liquid Constituents,
December 23, 1993"
Updated information from comments received on guidance document for 1,2,4-Trimethylbenzene in gasoline and No. 2 fuel oil/Diesel
fuel. Subsequently revised (February 2000) to be consistent with EPA's emission estimation program Tanks, for n-Hexane in gasoline
and jet fuel.
Repackaging. An EPCRA Section 313 chemical that is repackaged and distributed into
commerce is considered processed for the purposes of EPCRA Section 313. Because EPA does not
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currently consider a transfer of waste off site for treatment, disposal, or energy recovery distribution in
commerce, repackaged wastes only need to be considered processed if the waste is sent off-site for
recycling. Furthermore, repackaging does not include simple relabeling or direct transfers of containers
when the product has not been transferred from the packaging in which it was received. For example,
if a facility receives pallets of product in individual containers and simply relabels the individual
containers and sends them to several customers, then the facility has not processed amounts of EPCRA
Section 313 chemicals in the individual containers.
Example - Repackaging as Processing
A manufacturing/aci/iifv receives shipments of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical in rail cars. The EPCRA Section
313 chemical is transferred from the rail cars into large tank trucks for distribution to customers. The quantity of
the EPCRA Section 313 chemical held in the tank trucks is approximately equivalent to the amount held in the
rail cars. Would the transfer of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical from the rail cars to the tank trucks be
considered repackaging and therefore included in "processing" threshold determinations?
Yes. All activities involving the preparation of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical, after its "manufacture," for
distribution in commerce are to be included in the "processing" threshold determination for that chemical. The
Agency defines "processing" to include "...the preparation of a chemical for distribution in commerce in a
desirable form, state, and/or quantity (i.e., repackaging)..." (53 FR 4506; February 16,1988). The act of removing
an EPCRA Section 313 chemical from one container and placing it in another is considered repackaging,
regardless of the size of the containers involved. As such, the facility must include any amounts transferred from
the rail cars to the tank trucks in its "processing" threshold for that chemical.
Example - Repackaging as Processing
A bulk petroleum terminal receives petroleum via pipeline. The petroleum goes from the pipe into a storage tank
and exits the facility again through the pipeline. It is then sent to a petroleum bulk station within the same
company but located on non-contiguous or non-adjacent property, which then distributes the petroleum into
commerce (i.e., their customers). Did the petroleum terminal "repackage" and "process" the petroleum?
Yes. The petroleum received via pipeline, stored and subsequently transferred to another facility has been
repackaged and the EPCRA Section 313 chemicals have been distributed in commerce. Amounts of EPCRA
Section 313 chemicals contained in the amount "repackaged" must be considered toward the "processing"
threshold.
Transfers Off-site for Recycling. Amounts of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals sent off-site for
recycling also must be considered toward the processing threshold of 25,000 pounds. Amounts of
materials containing EPCRA Section 313 chemicals sent off-site for recycling are prepared for
distribution into commerce. Materials sent off-site for recycling must undergo a recovery step and are,
therefore, considered a waste and not eligible for the de minimis exemption. Wastes destined for off-
site recycling are considered wastes sent off-site for further waste management, which are not eligible
for the de minimis exemption and must be reported on the Form R in Sections 6 and 8.
Transfers Off-site for Direct Reuse. Amounts of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals sent off-
site for direct reuse must be considered toward the processing threshold of 25,000 pounds. Materials
are considered to be sent off-site for direct reuse if the materials are distributed into commerce and are
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going to be directly used in an operation or application without any recovery steps including the
extraction of contaminants. Materials sent off-site for direct reuse are not reported on the Form R in
Sections 6 and 8 as recycled or released because the materials are not considered wastes. Because
materials sent off-site for direct reuse are not considered wastes, these materials may qualify for the de
minimis exemption if any EPCRA Section 313 chemical in the material is below the de minimis level
(see Chapter 3.2.2.3). EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in waste that are sent off-site for further waste
management; e.g., disposal, are not considered to be reused.
Otherwise Use
"Otherwise use" is any use of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical that does not fall under the
definitions of "manufacture" or "process." Chemicals otherwise used are not incorporated into a
product that is distributed into commerce and includes such uses as a processing or manufacturing aid
and for such ancillary uses as treating wastes.
Otherwise use of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical also includes disposal, stabilization (without
subsequent distribution in commerce), and treatment for destruction if the:
(1) EPCRA Section 313 chemical that was disposed, stabilized, or treated for destruction
was received from off-site for the purposes of further waste management, or
(2) EPCRA Section 313 chemical that was disposed, stabilized, or treated for destruction
was manufactured as a result of waste management activities of materials received from
off-site for the purpose of further waste management.
The following discussion describes the subsections of the otherwise use threshold for reporting
purposes (see Table 3-6).
Table 3-6
Definitions and Examples of Otherwise Used Chemicals
Otherwise Use Activity
Subcategory
As a chemical processing aid
As a manufacturing aid
Ancillary or other use
Examples
May not occur in the petroleum bulk storage industry.
Application of lubricants containing zinc compounds for
pump and valve operation.
1,2,4-trimethylbenzene in diesel fuel used to clean bulk
storage tanks.
* More complete discussions of the industry-specific examples can be found in Chapter 4 of this guidance manual.
Otherwise Use of EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals In Fuels. The use of fuels to generate
power to operate the facility processes is considered an otherwise use activity. Fuels may contain
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EPCRA Section 313 chemicals above de minimis levels. For example, No. 6 fuel oil may contain
benzo(a)anthracene, a member of the poly cyclic aromatic compound chemical category, in
concentrations above de minimis levels. EPA has assembled information on EPCRA Section 313
chemicals in various fuel types from a number of sources. This information is provided in Table 3-6. In
the absence of better facility-specific data, facilities may use this table to calculate threshold quantities
for EPCRA Section 313 chemicals otherwise used in fuels.
Other Activities. Otherwise use includes the use of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in activities
such as cleaning, maintenance, and water purification. The use of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical to
treat another chemical constitutes otherwise use.
Other Examples of EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals that Petroleum Bulk Storage Facilities
"Otherwise-Use "
• EPCRA Section 313 chemicals used to clean storage tanks and other equipment (e.g.,
solvents);
• EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in materials that are used to maintain process
equipment (e.g., lubricants, metal alloys);
• EPCRA Section 313 chemicals used to treat wastewater
• EPCRA Section 313 chemicals used to treat wastes; and
• EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in fuel used in any on-site equipment (other than motor
vehicles which may be eligible for the motor vehicle maintenance exemption, see TRI
Forms and Instructions).
Waste Management Activities. For purposes of the otherwise use definition, EPA interprets
waste management activities to include recycling, combustion for energy recovery, treatment for
destruction, waste stabilization, and release, including disposal. However, for calculating thresholds, the
only quantity that should be applied to the otherwise use definition are those that are treated for
destruction, stabilized, or disposed on-site. Waste management does not include the storage, container
transfer, or tank transfer of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical if no recycling, combustion for energy
recovery, treatment for destruction, waste stabilization, or release of the chemical occurs at the facility
(62 FR 23850; May 1, 1997).
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Table 3-7
EPA Guidance Related to Waste Management Activities
Waste Management
Activity
Description
Recycling
As referenced in the May 1, 1997, Federal Register and defined in the document,
Interpretations of Waste Management Activities: Recycling, Combustion for Energy
Recovery, Treatment for Destruction, Waste Stabilization, and Release (April 1997),
recycling means: (1) the recovery for reuse of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical from a
gaseous, aerosol, aqueous, liquid, or solid stream; or (2) the reuse or the recovery for use
of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical that is a RCRA hazardous waste as defined in 40 CFR
Part 261. Recovery is the act of extracting or removing the EPCRA Section 313 chemical
from a waste stream and includes: (1) the reclamation of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical
from a stream that entered a waste treatment or pollution control device or process where
destruction of the stream or destruction or removal of certain constituents of the stream
occurs (including air pollution control devices or processes, wastewater treatment or
control devices or processes, Federal or state permitted treatment or control devices or
processes, and other types of treatment or control devices or processes); and (2) the
reclamation for reuse of an "otherwise used" EPCRA Section 313 chemical that is spent
or contaminated and that must be recovered for further use in either the original or any
other operations.
Combustion for
energy recovery
Combustion for energy recovery is interpreted by EPA to include the combustion of an
EPCRA Section 313 chemical that is (1) (a) a RCRA hazardous waste or waste fuel, (b) a
constituent of a RCRA hazardous waste or waste fuel, or (c) a spent or contaminated
"otherwise used" material; and that (2) has a significant heating value and is combusted
in an energy or materials recovery device. Energy or materials recovery devices are
boilers and industrial furnaces as defined in 40 CFR §372.3 (See 62 FR 23891). If a
reported toxic chemical is incinerated but does not contribute energy to the process (e.g.,
metal, metal compounds, and chloroflorocarbons), it must be considered treatment for
destruction. In determining whether an EPCRA Section 313 listed chemical is
combusted for energy recovery, the facility should consider the heating value of the
EPCRA Section 313 chemical and not the heating value of the chemical stream.
Treatment for
destruction
Means the destruction of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical in waste such that the
substance is no longer the EPCRA Section 313 chemical subj ect to reporting. Treatment
for destruction does not include the destruction of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical in
waste where the EPCRA Section 313 chemical has a heat value greater than 5,000 British
Thermal Units (BTU) and is combusted in any device that is an industrial boiler or
furnace. (See 40 CFR §372.3.) "Treatment for destruction" includes acid or alkaline
neutralization if the EPCRA Section 313 chemical is the entity that reacts with the acid or
base. "Treatment for destruction" does not include: (1) neutralization of a waste stream
containing EPCRA Section 313 chemicals if the EPCRA Section 313 chemicals themselves
do not react with the acid or base (See 40 CFR §372.3), (2) preparation of an EPCRA
Section 313 chemical for disposal, (3) removal of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals from
waste streams, and (4) activities intended to render a waste stream more suitable for
further use or processing, such as distillation or sedimentation. (Note: Amounts of
metals CAN NOT be destroyed and therefore should not be reported as treated for
destruction.)
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Waste stabilization
Means any physical or chemical process used to either reduce the mobility of hazardous
constituents in a hazardous waste or eliminate free liquid as determined by a RCRA
approved test method (e.g., Test Method 9095). A waste stabilization process includes
mixing the hazardous waste with binders or other materials and curing the resulting
hazardous waste and binder mixture. Other synonymous terms used to refer to this
process are "stabilization," "waste fixation," or "waste solidification." (See 40 CFR
§372.3.)
Release
Release is defined by EPCRA Section 329(8) to mean any spilling, leaking, pumping,
pouring, emitting, emptying, discharging, injecting, escaping, leaching, dumping, or
disposing into the environment (including the abandonment or discarding of barrels,
containers, and other closed receptacles) of any EPCRA Section 313 chemical. (See 40
CFR §372.3.)
Disposal
Disposal means any underground injection, placement in landfills/surface
impoundments, land treatment, or other intentional land disposal. (See 40 CFR §372.3.)
(See EPA document, Interpretations of Waste Management Activities: Recycling, Combustion for Energy Recovery,
Waste Stabilization and Release for further detail.,)
Waste management activities conducted by a facility on EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in
wastes generated on-site are not considered an otherwise use of that chemical. The otherwise use
threshold applies to amounts disposed, stabilized (without subsequent distribution in commerce), or
treated for destruction from wastes received from off-site or from chemicals generated from waste
received from off-site. Simply receiving and storing a waste from off-site for waste management
sometime in the future does not trigger an "otherwise use" of those chemicals in waste. However,
subsequent activities involving the EPCRA Section 313 chemical in waste managed on-site may require
you to consider those amounts toward other threshold activities. For example, recycling of an EPCRA
Section 313 chemical for distribution into commerce would apply towards the processing threshold.
Likewise, if an EPCRA Section 313 chemical taken from an on-site waste is burned for energy
recovery, then amounts would be considered toward the otherwise use threshold.
3.2.1 Concentration Ranges for Threshold Determination
You are required to use your best "readily available data" for estimating EPCRA Section 313
threshold determinations and release and other waste managed calculations. In some cases, the exact
concentration of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical in a mixture or other trade name product or in a
waste may not be known. In these cases, the waste profile, customer, supplier, or MSDS may only
provide ranges, or upper or lower bound concentrations. EPA has developed the following guidance
on how to determine concentrations from this type of information for use in threshold determinations:
• If exact concentration is provided, use it.
• If the concentration is provided as a lower and upper bound or as a range, you should
use the mid-point in your calculations for the threshold determination. For example, the
waste profile states methanol is present in a concentration of not less than 20% and not
more than 40%, or it may be stated as present at a concentration between 20 to 40%.
You should use 30% methanol in your threshold calculations.
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If only the upper bound concentration is provided you must use this value in your
threshold calculation.
If only the lower bound concentration of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical is specified
and the concentration of other components are given, subtract the other component
values from 100%. The remainder should be considered the upper bound for the
EPCRA Section 313 chemical and you should use the given lower bound to calculate
the mid-point as discussed above. For example, an MSDS states that a solvent used
for cleaning contains at least 10% MEK and 60% water. Subtracting the water portion
of the compound from 100% leaves 40% as the upper bound for MEK. The mid-point
between upper (40%) and lower (10%) bounds is 25%, the value you should use in
your threshold calculation.
• If only the lower bound is specified and no information on other components is given
assume the upper bound is 100% and calculate the mid-point as above.
Even if the concentration of a chemical is known through engineering knowledge only, the
facility is still required to consider the chemical for threshold determinations. For example, facility
engineers may have knowledge that nitric acid is manufactured in an on-site incinerator. If there are no
waste profiles or permit information specifically listing nitric acid, the facility must still consider the
chemical for threshold determinations. This determination should be made based on their best "readily
available data", be it process knowledge or other reasonable estimation techniques.
When determining concentration information for wastes, it is important to understand that the de
minimis exemption does NOT apply to wastes. If your waste profiles (or other information) indicate
that there are chemicals present that are below the detection limit, you may still need to include those
chemicals in your threshold determinations and release and other waste management calculations. If
you have no information to indicate that the chemical exists in the waste stream, you may assume that
the concentration is zero. However, if the facility has reason to believe that the EPCRA Section 313
chemical is present in the waste, it may use half of the detection limit for that chemical when making
threshold determinations and release and other waste management calculations.
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Example - Average Concentration
Is it appropriate for a petroleum bulk storage facility to develop an average concentration for an EPCRA Section 313
chemical contained in thousands of different petroleum products received by the facility, and then use that average
as a basis of threshold determination? If so, does EPA have a recommended approach for developing such an
average?
EPCRA allows facilities to use their best "readily available data" to provide information required under EPCRA
Section 313. When data are not readily available, EPCRA allows facilities to use "reasonable estimates"of the
amounts involved. A facility must use its best judgment to determine whether data are "readily available." Thus,
with regard to use of average concentration levels, a facility must use its best judgment to decide whether the raw
data from which it might base any average concentration level are readily available. In any event, a facility should
carefully document its decision making. For example, if a facility decides to use average concentration levels, it
should document why the raw data from which the averages are based are not readily available, how it arrived at
any average concentration level used, and why the average concentration level is a "reasonable estimate"of the
amount of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical in the waste stream. EPA does not have a recommended approach for
determining average concentration levels.
3.2.2 Evaluation of Exemptions
EPCRA Section 313 provides facilities with certain exemptions:
• Laboratory activities exemption;
• De minimis exemption;
• Article exemption;
• Exemptions that apply to the otherwise use of chemicals: routine janitorial/facility
grounds maintenance exemption; personal use exemption; structural component
exemption; motor vehicle maintenance exemption; exemption for air or water drawn
from the environment or municipal sources for certain uses.
Each of these exemptions is discussed in detail below.
3.2.2.1 Laboratory Activities Exemption.
This exemption includes EPCRA Section 313 chemicals that are manufactured, processed, or
otherwise used in a laboratory under the supervision of a technically qualified individual. This
exemption may be applicable in such circumstances as laboratory sampling and analysis, research and
development, and quality assurance and quality control activities. It does not include pilot plant scale or
specialty chemical production. It also does not include laboratory support activities. For example,
chemicals used to maintain laboratory equipment are not eligible for the laboratory activities exemption.
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Example - Laboratory Activities Exemption
If a facility takes a sample from its process stream to be tested in a laboratory for quality control purposes, are
releases of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical from the testing of the sample in the laboratory exempt under the
laboratory activities exemption?
Yes, provided that the laboratory at the covered facility is under the direct supervision of a technically qualified
individual as provided in 40 CFR 372.38(d). The laboratory exemption applies to the "manufacture," "process," or
"otherwise use" of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and any associated release and other waste management
amounts that take place in a qualifying laboratory.
3.2.2.2 De Minimis Exemption
If the amount of EPCRA Section 313 chemical(s) present in a mixture or other trade name
product processed or otherwise used by the facility is below its de minimis concentration level, that
amount is considered to be exempt from threshold determinations and release and other waste
management calculations. (Note that this exemption does not apply to manufacturing, except for
importation or as an impurity as discussed below.) Because wastes are not considered mixtures or
other trade name products, the de minimis exemption does not apply to wastes. The de minimis
concentration for mixtures or other trade name products is 1%, except for OSHA-defmed carcinogens,
which have a 0.1% de minimis concentration. If a mixture or other trade name product contains more
than one member of a compound category, the weight percent of all members must be summed. If the
total meets or exceeds the category's de minimis level, the de minimis exemption does not apply.
Information may only be available that lists the concentration of chemicals in mixtures as a range. EPA
has developed guidance on how to determine quantities that are applicable to threshold determinations
and release and other waste management calculations when this range straddles the de minimis value.
EPA has published several detailed questions and answers along with a directive in the EPCRA
Section 313 Q&A Document that may be helpful if you have additional concerns about the de minimis
exemption. The TRI Forms and Instructions list each EPCRA Section 313 chemical and compound
category with the associated de minimis value. Tables 3-4 and 3-5 provide de minimis levels for
chemicals found in petroleum products processed and otherwise used by petroleum bulk storage
facilities.
The de minimis exemption also applies in limited circumstances to the manufacture of EPCRA
Section 313 chemicals. The specific case where EPCRA Section 313 chemicals are coincidentally
manufactured in a product and remain in the product as an impurity which is then subsequently
distributed in commerce, amounts of EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals are eligible for the de minimis
exemption. The de minimis exemption also applies to EPCRA Section 313 chemicals below the de
minimis concentration in an imported mixture or other trade name product.
The de minimis exemption, however, does not apply to EPCRA Section 313 chemicals that
are coincidentally manufactured as byproducts that are separated from the product; nor does it apply to
chemicals that are coincidentally manufactured as a result of waste treatment or other waste
management activities, or to waste brought on site for waste management. For example, many facilities
treat waste solvents by incinerating them. Combustion processes can result in the coincidental
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manufacture of such EPRCA Section 313 chemicals as sulfuric acid aerosols, hydrochloric acid
aerosols, hydrofluoric acid, and metal compounds. Since the de minimis exemption does not apply to
the coincidental manufacture of chemicals as byproducts, the formation of these compounds in any
concentration must be considered for threshold determinations and release and other waste
management calculations. The de minimis exemption, however, does apply to recovered products in
that if a waste solvent is received from off-site and recycled, then sent off site as a product, the de
minimis exemption could apply to the recovered product.
Once the de minimis level has been met or exceeded, the exemption no longer applies to that
process stream, even if the concentration of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical in a mixture or other
trade name product later drops below the de minimis level. All releases and other waste management
activities are subject to reporting after the de minimis concentration has been equaled or exceeded,
provided an activity threshold has been exceeded.
Example - De minimis
A facility receives a mixture with an EPCRA Section 313 chemical in a concentration below the de minimis
concentration. During processing, the concentration of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical exceeds its de minimis
level. This facility must consider amounts toward threshold determination and releases and other waste
management activities that take place after the point in the process where the de minimis level is met or exceeded.
The facility does not have to consider toward threshold determinations and release and other waste management
estimates, activities that took place before the de minimis level was met or exceeded.
3.2.2.3 Article Exemption
An article is defined as a manufactured item if each of the three criteria below applies:
• Is formed to a specific shape or design during manufacture;
• Has end-use functions dependent in whole or in part upon its shape or design; and
• Does not release an EPCRA Section 313 chemical under normal conditions of
processing or otherwise use of the item at the facility.
If you receive a manufactured item from another facility and process or otherwise use the item
without changing the shape or design, and your processing or otherwise use results in the release of 0.5
pound or less of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical in a reporting year from all like articles, then the
EPCRA Section 313 chemical in that item is exempt from threshold determinations and release and
other waste management reporting. The article exemption does not apply to the manufacturing of items
at your facility.
The shape and design of a manufactured item can change somewhat during processing and
otherwise use activities as long as part of the item retains the original dimensions. That is, as a result of
processing or otherwise use, if an item retains its initial thickness or diameter, in whole or in part, then it
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still meets the definition of article. If the item's basic dimensional characteristics are totally altered
during processing or otherwise use, the item would not meet the definition, even if there were no
releases of an EPCRA 313 chemical from these manufactured items. As an example, items that do not
meet the definition would be items that are cold extruded, such as bar stock that is formed into wire.
However, stamping a manufactured item into pieces that are recognizable as the original articles would
not change the exemption status as long as the diameter and the thickness of the item remain
unchanged. For instance, metal wire may be bent and sheet metal may be cut, punched, stamped, or
pressed without losing the article status as long as no change is made in the diameter of the wire or
tubing or the thickness of the sheet and, more important, there are no releases of the EPCRA Section
313 chemical(s).
Any processing or otherwise use of an article that results in a release above 0.5 pound per year
for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical for all like articles will negate the article exemption. Cutting,
grinding, melting, or other processing of a manufactured item could result in a release of an EPCRA
Section 313 chemical during normal conditions of use and, therefore, could negate the exemption as an
article if the total release exceeds 0.5 pound in a year. However, if all of the resulting waste is recycled
or reused, either on site or off site such that the release and other waste management of the EPCRA
Section 313 chemical in all like articles does not exceed 0.5 pound, then the article exemption status is
maintained. Also, if the processing or otherwise use of similar manufactured items results in a total
release and other waste management of less than or equal to 0.5 pound of any individual EPCRA
Section 313 chemical in a calendar year, EPA will allow this quantity to be rounded to zero and the
manufactured items to maintain their article exemption. The 0.5 pound limit does not apply to each
individual article; instead, it applies to the sum of releases and other waste management activities
(except recycling) from processing or otherwise use of all like articles for each EPCRA Section 313
chemical contained in these articles.
The EPCRA Section 313 Q&A document presents several specific questions and
answers/discussion pertaining to the article exemption.
3.2.2.4 Exemptions that Apply to the Otherwise Use of EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals
Some exemptions are limited to the "otherwise use" of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical.
EPCRA Section 313 chemicals used in these activities do not need to be included in a facility's
threshold determinations nor the associated release and other waste management calculations, provided
thresholds are met elsewhere. The following otherwise use activities are considered exempt (see most
current versions of TRI Forms and Instructions and EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers
documents):
• EPCRA Section 313 chemicals used in routine janitorial or facility grounds
maintenance. Examples are bathroom cleaners and fertilizers and garden pesticides in
similar type or concentration distributed in consumer products. Materials used to clean
process-related equipment do not qualify for this exemption.
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EPCRA Section 313 chemicals for personal use. Examples are foods, drugs,
cosmetics, and other personal items including those items used in cafeterias and
infirmaries.
Example - Personal Use Exemption
Ammonia used to clean a cafeteria grill is exempt from threshold determinations and
release and other waste management calculations. Chlorine added to the water supply
system to prepare potable water for consumption at the facility is also exempt under
the personal use exemption.
EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in structural components of the facility. This
exemption applies to EPCRA Section 313 chemicals present in materials used to
construct, repair, or maintain non-process related structural components of a facility.
An example common to all facilities would be the solvents and pigments used to paint
the administrative office buildings. Materials used to construct, repair, or maintain
process-related equipment (e.g., storage tanks, reactors, and piping) are not exempt.
EPCRA Section 313 chemicals used to maintain facility motor vehicles. This
exemption includes the use of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals for the purpose of
maintaining motor vehicles operated by the facility. Common examples include EPCRA
Section 313 chemicals in gasoline, radiator coolant, windshield wiper fluid, brake and
transmission fluid, oils and lubricants, batteries, cleaning solutions, and solvents in paint
used to touch up the vehicle. Motor vehicles include cars, trucks, forklifts, and
locomotives. Note that this exemption applies only to the OTHERWISE USE of the
chemical only. The coincidental manufacture of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals
resulting from combustion of gasoline is not considered part of the exemption and any
amounts of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals coincidently manufactured should be
considered as part of the manufacturing threshold.
Example - Motor Vehicle Exemption
Methanol is purchased for use as a processing aid and as a windshield washer anti-
freeze in company vehicles. The amount used for the latter purpose would be exempt
and subtracted from the facility total BEFORE the facility total is compared to the
otherwise use activity threshold. Even if the facility still exceeds the otherwise use
threshold, the amount in the anti-freeze is exempt from release and other waste
management reporting.
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Example - Motor Vehicle Exemption
How does a facility that collects quantities of used motor oil from motor vehicles owned
and operated by the facility consider amounts of the used oil that are subsequently sent
off site for recycling?
Amounts of releases (including disposal) or other waste management practices
associated with an exempt "otherwise use" of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals are also
exempt from release or other waste management calculations, provided the facility does
not conduct a subsequent non-exempt activity involving the chemical.
This exemption does NOT apply to stationary equipment. The use of lubricants and
fuels for stationary process equipment (e.g., pumps and compressors) and stationary
energy sources (e.g., furnaces, boilers, heaters), are NOT exempt.
Example - Use of Lubricants
Lubricants containing EPCRA Section 313 chemicals used on facility vehicles or on-site
structural maintenance activities that are not integral to the process are exempt
activities. However, lubricants used to maintain pumps and compressors, which aid in
facility process-related operations, are not exempt and the amount of the chemical in
that lubricant should be applied to the otherwise use threshold.
EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in certain air and water drawn from the
environment or municipal sources. Included are EPCRA Section 313 chemicals
present in process water and non-contact cooling water drawn from the environment or
a municipal source, or chemicals present in compressed air or air used in combustion.
Example - Chemicals in Process Water
A facility uses river water in its cooling tower. The facility draws out of and ultimately
returns to the river water that contains 100 pounds of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical.
Any amount of the EPCRA Section 313 chemicals that may be contained in the river
water does not have to be considered for threshold determinations and release and
other waste management calculations because the EPCRA Section 313 chemicals were
present in the water as it was drawn from the environment and used in this fashion.
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3.2.3 Additional Guidance on Threshold Calculations for Certain Activities
This section covers two specific situations in which the threshold determination may vary from
normal facility operations: reuse and remediation activities of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals.
3.2.3.1 On-site Reuse Activities
Threshold determinations of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals that are reused at the facility are
based only on the amount of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical that is added during the year, and not
the total volume in the system or the amounts reused.
Example - Reuse Activities
A facility operates a heat transfer unit that contains 15,000 pounds of ethylene glycol at the beginning of the year
that was in use in prior years. The system is charged with 2,000 pounds of ethylene glycol during the reporting
year. The facility has therefore "otherwise used" only 2,000 pounds of the covered EPCRA Section 313 chemical
within that particular reporting year. A facility reporting for the first time would consider only the amount of
EPCRA Section 313 chemical that is added during its first reporting year towards its "otherwise use" threshold for
that year. If, however, the entire heat transfer unit was recharged with 15,000 pounds of ethylene glycol during
the year, the facility would consider the 15,000 pounds toward its otherwise use threshold and, exceeding the
otherwise use threshold, be required to report.
3.2.3.2 Remediation Activities
EPCRA Section 313 chemicals that are being managed at a remediation site (e.g., Superfund)
are not considered manufactured, processed, or otherwise used and therefore, these amounts are not
included in the threshold determinations. However, if during remediation activities an EPCRA Section
313 chemical is manufactured, then these amounts would have to be considered toward the
manufacturing threshold.
Additionally, if you are conducting remediation for an EPCRA Section 313 chemical for which
you have exceeded a threshold elsewhere at the facility above an activity threshold level, you must
consider this activity in your release and other waste management calculations. In that case, you must
report any release and other waste management of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical due to
remediation in Part n, Sections 5 through 8, accordingly, of the Form R. Those quantities, however,
would not also be considered as part of the reportable amount for determining Form A eligibility
because they are not considered part of normal production related activities.
3.3 Step 3. Determine which EPCRA Section 313 chemicals exceed a threshold
The final step is to determine which chemicals exceed a threshold. At this point you should
have:
1. Determined each EPCRA Section 313 chemical at your facility;
5-27
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2. Determined the threshold activity for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical
(manufactured, processed, or otherwise used) and calculated the quantity for each
activity.
Now, you must sum the usage for each chemical by threshold activity, subtract all exempt
quantities, and compare the totals to the applicable thresholds. Each EPCRA Section 313 chemical
exceeding any one of the activity thresholds requires the submission of a Form R. Provided you meet
certain criteria you may be eligible to file a Form A rather than a Form R.
POSSIBLE ERROR - What if Your Facility Has No Releases and Other
Waste Management Quantities of EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals?
If you meet all reporting criteria and exceed any threshold for an EPCRA Section 313 chemical, you must file a
Form R or Form A for that chemical, even if you have zero releases and other waste management activities.
Exceeding the chemical activity threshold, not the quantity released and no otherwise managed as waste,
determines whether you must report. Note that if the total annual reportable amount is 500 pounds or less, and
you do not exceed one million pounds manufactured, processed, or otherwise used for that chemical, then you are
eligible to submit a Form A rather than a Form R for that chemical (see Chapter 2.9).
Calculating the Manufacturing Threshold for Section 313 Chemicals in Wastes
Petroleum bulk storage facilities typically do not manufacture chemicals or products
intentionally. However, these facilities may coincidently manufacture Section 313 chemicals during
incineration, wastewater treatment, and other waste management operations. You will also need to
consider whether EPCRA Section 313 chemicals are produced coincidentally, even if the chemical
exists for only a short period of time, and later is destroyed by air control equipment. Most commonly,
incineration may result in the manufacture of metal compounds (usually as a result of oxidation), acid
aerosols, and other organic compounds, or convert metal compounds to the parent metal (e.g., mercury
compounds in coal convert to elemental mercury). The following discussion describes how to calculate
the manufacturing threshold for these situations.
To calculate the amount of EPCRA Section 313 metal compounds manufactured during
combustion of wastes, you will need to determine the concentration of each metal present in the waste
being combusted. The best "readily available data" should be used to estimate the approximate
concentration of the metal(s) in the waste. If you have data regarding chemical concentrations in the
wastes (e.g., analytical data) and believe that is the best
"readily available data", then you should use this information. If specific concentration data of the
metals in the waste do not exist, you can assume that the metals will convert to the lowest weight metal
oxide possible.
During combustion, other EPCRA Section 313 chemicals could be manufactured, particularly
acid aerosols. For instance, sulfuric acid aerosols could be produced depending on a variety of factors
such as sulfur content of the waste. If you have specific data on the manufacture of acid aerosols, then
5-28
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use it. If data are not available, EPA has published guidance on calculating the amount of sulfuric acid
aerosols manufactured during combustion, which could be applied to the combustion of wastes;
Guidance for Reporting Sulfuric Acid (acid aerosols including mists, vapors, gas, fog, and other
airborne forms of any particle size), EPA, March 1998, available on EPA's TRI website at
http://www.epa.gov/tri.
To estimate the amount of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals manufactured during wastewater
treatment, the Clean Water Act typically requires facilities to monitor some Section 313 chemicals. In
particular, the facility's wastewater permit application may have more detailed, chemical-specific
monitoring data. However, it is important to note how the chemical is monitored in relation to the
EPCRA Section 313 chemical being evaluated. For example, wastewater permits may require
monitoring for the nitrate ion, but the nitrogen compound category is calculated by the total weight of
the nitrate compound.
Calculating the Otherwise Use and Processing Thresholds for Section 313 Chemicals
in Wastes
To determine if a chemical exceeds the processing or otherwise use threshold, you must
calculate the annual activity for that chemical. For EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in wastes, start with
the amount of chemical in stored waste as of January 1, add the amount of the chemical in waste both
received from off-site and generated on-site and any amounts that are manufactured during the
treatment during the year, and subtract the amount remaining in storage on December 31. The waste
manifests received from your customers will be an invaluable source for determining the quantities of
different types of wastes managed by your facility, particularly in terms of classifying how various types
and quantities undergo a treatment step, or are disposed by your facility, for example, when determining
if the otherwise use threshold has been exceeded.
Calculating Thresholds for Section 313 Chemicals in Purchases
For purchased chemicals, start with the amount of chemical at the facility as of January 1, add
any purchases during the year and the amount manufactured (including imported), and subtract the
amount remaining in the inventory on December 31. If necessary, adjust the total to account for
exempt activities (see Chapter 3.2.2 for a discussion of exemptions). You should then compare the
result to the appropriate threshold to determine if you are required to submit an EPCRA Section 313
report for that chemical.
Keep in mind that the threshold calculations are independent for each activity: manufactured,
processed, and otherwise used. If more than one activity threshold applies, the amount associated with
each activity is determined separately.
Table 3-8 presents a worksheet that may be helpful when conducting your threshold
determinations and Table 3-9 illustrates an example of how the work sheet can be used for the
following example:
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Example - Threshold Worksheet
Assume your facility purchases two petroleum product mixtures that contain xylene in the applicable reporting
year. You purchased 25,000 pounds of Mixture A (which is 50% xylene per the MSDS) and 110,000 pounds of
Mixture B (which contains 20% xylene). Further, you determine that you repackage the entire quantity of Mixture
A, while you blend as an additive half of Mixture B and use the other half as a cleaning solvent on-site. You do
not qualify for any exempt activities. In this example, you would have processed a total of 23,500 pounds of
xylene (12,500 pounds from activities associated with Mixture A and 11,000 pounds from activities associated
with Mixture B). You would also have otherwise used a total of 11,000 pounds (all from Mixture B). Therefore,
you would not have exceeded the 25,000 pound threshold for processing; however, you would have exceeded the
10,000 pound threshold for otherwise use and would be required to submit a Form R or Form A for amounts of
xylene released or otherwise managed as a waste from all non-exempt sources including those activities where a
threshold had not been exceeded.
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Table 3-8 Section 313 Reporting Threshold Worksheet
Facility Name:
Toxic Chemical or Chemical Category:
CAS Number:
Reporting Year:
Date Worksheet Prepared:
Prepared By:
Amounts of the toxic chemical manufactured, processed, or otherwise used.
Mixture Name, Waste Name, or
Other Identifier
1.
2.
3.
4.
Subtotal:
Information
Source
Total Weight
(lb)
Percent TRI
Chemical
by Weight
TRI Chemical
Weight
(in Ibs)
Amount of the Listed Toxic Chemical by Activity (in Ibs.):
Manufactured
(A) Ibs.
Processed
(B) Ibs.
Otherwise Used
(C) Ibs.
3-31
Exempt quantity of the toxic chemical that should be excluded.
Mixture Name or Waste Name
as Listed Above
1.
2.
3.
4.
Subtotal:
Applicable Exemption (de
minimis, article, facility,
activity)
Fraction or Percent Exempt
(if Applicable)
Amount of the Toxic Chemical Exempt from Above (in
Ibs.):
Manufactured
(A,) Ibs.
Processed
(B,) Ibs.
Otherwise Used
(C,) Ibs.
Ibs.
Amount subject to threshold: (A-A;)_
Compare to threshold for Section 313 reporting. 25,000 Ibs 25,000 Ibs.
If any threshold is exceeded, reporting is required for all activities. Do not submit this worksheet with Form R, retain it for your records.
Ibs. (C-C,)_
Ibs.
10,000 Ibs.
-------
Table 3-9. Sample EPCRA Section 313 Reporting Threshold Worksheet
Facility Name: ABC Petroleum Bulk Storage Company
Toxic Chemical or Chemical Category: Xvlene (mixed isomers'l
CAS Number: 1330-20-7
Date Worksheet Prepared: May 1. 1999
Prepared By:
Reporting Year: 1998
Amounts of the toxic chemical manufactured, processed, or otherwise used.
Mixture Name or Other Identifier
1. Mixture A
2. MixtureB
3.
4.
Subtotal:
Information
Source
MSDS
MSDS
Total Weight
(lb)
25,000
110,000
Percent TRI
Chemical
by Weight
50%
20%
TRI Chemical
Weight
(in Ibs)
12,500
22,000
34,500
Amount of the Listed Toxic Chemical by Activity (in Ibs.):
Manufactured
—
—
(A) 0 Ibs.
Processed
12,500
11,000
(B) 23,500 Ibs.
Otherwise Used
—
11,000
(C) 11,000 Ibs.
3-32
Exempt quantity of the toxic chemical that should be excluded.
Mixture Name as Listed Above
1. None
2.
3.
4.
Subtotal:
Applicable Exemption (de
minimis, article, facility,
activity)
Fraction or Percent Exempt
(if Applicable)
Amount of the Toxic Chemical Exempt from Above (in
Ibs.):
Manufactured
(A,) 0 Ibs.
Processed
(BJ 0 Ibs.
Otherwise Used
(C,) 0 Ibs.
Amount subject to threshold: (A-A,) 0 Ibs. (B-B,) 23,500 Ibs. (C-C,) 11,000 Ibs.
Compare to threshold for EPCRA Section 313 reporting. 25,000 Ibs 25,000 Ibs. 10,000 Ibs.
If any threshold is exceeded, reporting is required for all activities. Do not submit this worksheet with Form R, retain it for your records.
-------
3-33
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Chapter 4 - Estimating Releases and Other Waste Management Quantities
4.0 PURPOSE
Once you have determined which EPCRA Section 313 chemicals have exceeded thresholds at
your facility, as described in Chapter 3, you must then estimate amounts of these chemicals in waste by
particular waste management type (e.g., release to air, transfer off-site, etc.) To aid your facility in
making these calculations, this chapter is intended to help you in developing a systematic approach for
conducting release and other waste management calculations specific to petroleum bulk storage
facilities. This chapter has been divided into two parts. The first part provides a general approach to
identifying sources of potential releases and other waste management activities, collecting data, and
determining the most appropriate method(s) to develop estimates. Chapter 4.1 also provides insights
into the requirements, recommended approaches, and other nuances associated with developing
comprehensive and accurate estimates for reportable EPCRA Section 313 chemicals. To illustrate this
approach, a diagram of recommended steps for estimating quantities of reportable EPCRA Section 313
chemicals released or otherwise managed as wastes is provided in Figure 4-1.
Chapter 4.2 of this chapter provides a focused discussion with examples of methods and tools
to use in calculating estimates of releases and other waste management activities specific to many
petroleum bulk storage facilities. In particular, Chapter 4.2 provides specific examples and issues
pertaining to common chemical thresholds in the petroleum bulk storage industry. These chemical
thresholds are:
• Loading/unloading of petroleum products;
• Storage of petroleum products;
• Blending/mixing of petroleum products;
• Tank cleaning and equipment maintenance; and
• Wastewater treatment and oil water separation.
4-1
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Figure 4-1 Release and Other Waste Management Calculation Approach
-------
4.1 General Steps for Determining Releases and Other Waste Management Activities
You can develop release and other waste management estimates by completing these four basic
steps. See Figure 4-1 for illustration of this four-step process.
Step 1) Identify potential sources of chemicals released or otherwise managed as
waste.
Step 2) Prepare a process flow diagram.
Step 3) Identify on-site releases, off-site transfers, and other on-site waste management
activity types.
Step 4) Determine the most appropriate method(s) to develop the estimates for releases
and other waste management activity quantities and calculate the estimates.
These steps are described in detail in the following sections.
4.1.1 Step 1: Identify Potential Sources of Chemical Release and Other Waste
Management Activities
The first step in release calculations is to identify all areas at your facility that could potentially
release reportable Section 313 chemicals. Consider all potential sources at which reportable EPCRA
Section 313 chemicals may be released and otherwise managed from each unit operation and process.
Remember to include upsets and routine maintenance activities. Potential sources include the following:
• Relief valves;
• Pumps;
• Stacks;
• Volatilization from process or treatment;
• Fittings;
• Transfer operations;
• Flanges;
• Storage tanks;
• Stock pile losses;
• Waste treatment discharges;
• Process discharge stream;
• Container residues;
• Recycling and energy recovery byproducts;
• Accidental spills and releases;
• Storm water runoff;
• Clean up and housekeeping practices;
• Treatment sludge; and
• Combustion byproducts.
4-3
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EPCRA Section 313
Chemical In
Point Sources
Fugitive Emissions
Operation
(EPCRA Section 313
Chemicals Manufactured
On-Site)
Underground Injection
on-site
Receiving Streams
POTWs
Transfer Off-Site
Recycling
Energy Recovery
Treatment
Disposal
Product Containing
EPCRA Section 313
Chemical
(Not Reported on Form R)
Treatment
On-site Management
Energy Recovery
Recycling
Land on-site (landfill, land
treatment, surface impoundment,
other disposal)
Figure 4-2. Possible Release and Other Waste Management Types
for EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals
4-4
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Next, you must identify the reportable EPCRA Section 313 chemicals that are released and otherwise
managed from each source. A thorough knowledge of the facility's operations and processes will be
required to make an accurate determination of which chemicals are involved, including those EPCRA
Section 313 chemicals that are coincidentally manufactured during these processes.
4.1.2 Step 2: Prepare a Process Flow Diagram
Preparing a process flow diagram will help you calculate your releases by illustrating the life-
cycle of the reportable EPCRA Section 313 chemical(s), as well as help you identify any sources of
chemicals that are released and otherwise managed as waste at your facility that you might have missed
in step 1. Depending on the complexity of your facility, you may want to diagram individual processes
or operations rather than the entire facility. The diagram should illustrate how materials flow through the
processes and identify material input, generation, and output points. By reviewing each operation
separately, you can determine where EPCRA Section 313 chemicals are manufactured, processed, or
otherwise used and the medium to which they will be released on-site, transferred off-site for further
waste management, or otherwise managed as wastes on-site.
4.1.3 Step 3: Identify On-Site Releases, Off-Site Transfers and On-Site Waste
Management Activity Types
For each identified source of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical, you must examine all possible
releases and other waste management activities. Figure 4-2 is a schematic of releases and other waste
management activities as they correspond to individual data elements on the Form R. Remember to
include both routine operations and accidents when identifying types of chemical management activities.
This diagram, along with the following descriptions, can be used as a checklist to make sure all possible
types of releases and other waste management activities have been considered.
a. Fugitive or Non-Point Air Emissions (Part II, Section 5.1 of Form R) - Emissions
to the air that are not released through stacks, vents, ducts, pipes, or any confined air
stream. Examples include:
• Equipment leaks from valves, pump seals, flanges, compressors, sampling
connections, open-ended lines, etc.;
• Releases from building ventilation systems, such as a roof fan in an open room;
• Evaporative losses from solvent cleaning tanks, surface impoundments, and
spills; and
• Emissions from any other fugitive or non-point sources.
b. Stack or Point Air Emissions (Part II, Section 5.2 of Form R) - All emissions to
the air which occur through stacks, vents, ducts, pipes, or any confined air stream,
including storage tank emissions and emissions from air pollution control equipment.
Emissions released from general room air through a ventilation system are not
considered stack or point releases for the purpose of EPCRA Section 313 reporting
unless they are channeled through an air pollution control device. Instead, they are
4-5
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considered fugitive releases. You should note that some state air quality agencies
consider ventilation systems without an attached pollution control device to be a stack
or point source, and other agencies consider releases from storage tanks to be fugitive
emissions.
c. Discharges to Receiving Streams or Water Bodies (Part II, Section 5.3 of Form
R) - Direct wastewater discharges to a receiving stream or surface water body.
Discharges usually occur under a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System
(NPDES) permit.
d. Underground Injection On site to Class I Wells (Part n, Section 5.4.1 of
Form R) and to Class H through V Wells (Part II, Section 5.4.2 of Form R) Disposal
into an underground well at the facility. These wells may be monitored under an
Underground Injection Control (UIC) Program permit. RCRA Hazardous Waste
Generator Reports may be a good source of information for wastes injected into a
Class I well. Injection rate meters combined with waste profiles may provide the
necessary information for all classes of wells.
e. Releases to Land On Site (Part II, Section 5.5 of Form R) - All releases to land
on site, both planned (i.e., disposal) and unplanned (i.e., accidental release or spill).
The four predefined subcategories for reporting quantities released to land within the
boundaries of the facility are:
e(l). Landfill - The landfill may be either a RCRA permitted or a non-hazardous
waste landfill. Both types are included if they are located on site.
e(2). Land treatment/application farming - Land treatment is a disposal method in
which a waste containing an EPCRA Section 313 chemical is applied to or
incorporated into soil. Volatilization of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical due
to the disposal operation must be included in the total fugitive air releases
and/or should be excluded from land treatment/application farming to accurately
represent the disposition of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical and to avoid
double counting.
Sludge and/or aqueous solutions that contain biomass and other organic
materials are often collected and applied to farm land. This procedure supplies
a nitrogen source for plants and supplies metabolites for microorganisms. EPA
considers this operation to be land treatment/farming if it occurs on site. If a
facility sends this material off site for the same purpose, it is considered to be a
"transfer to an off site location, disposal" and should be reported under Part II,
Sections 6.2 and 8.1 of the Form R.
The ultimate disposition of the chemical after application to the land does not
change the required reporting. For example, even if the chemical is eventually
4-6
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biodegraded by microorganisms or plants, it is not considered recycled, reused,
or treated.
e(3). Surface impoundment - A surface impoundment is a natural topographic
depression, man-made excavation, or diked area formed primarily of earthen
materials that is designed to hold an accumulation of wastes containing free
liquids. Examples include: holding, settling, storage, and elevation pits; ponds;
and lagoons.
You do not have to report quantities of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical that
are released to a surface impoundment as part of a wastewater treatment
operation in this section. However, if the sludge from the surface impoundment
contains the EPCRA Section 313 chemical, then the EPCRA Section 313
chemical in the sludge must be estimated in this section unless the sludge is
removed and subjected to another waste management activity. In that case, it
should be reported for that activity, as appropriate.
e(4). Other disposal - Releases to land that do not fit the categories of landfills, land
treatment, or surface impoundment are classified as other disposal. This
category also includes any spills or leaks of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical
to land.
f. Transfers Off Site to a Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTW) (Part H,
Section 6.1 of Form R) The amount of EPCRA Section 313 chemical in water
transferred to an off site POTW.
g Transfers to Other Off-Site Locations (Part II, Section 6.2 of Form R) All
amounts of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical transferred off-site for the purposes of
waste treatment, disposal, recycling, or energy recovery. Be sure to include quantities
of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical in non-hazardous wastes (such as sanitary waste
and facility trash) transferred off-site and metals in waste transferred off site for
recycling.
Any residual chemicals in "empty" containers transferred off-site would also be
reported in Section 6.2. EPA expects that all containers (bags, totes, drums, tank
trucks, etc.) will have a small amount of residual solids and/or liquid. On-site cleaning
of containers must be considered for EPCRA Section 313 reporting. If the cleaning
occurs with a solvent (organic or aqueous), you must report the disposition of the waste
solvent as appropriate. If the containers are sent off site for disposal or reclamation,
you should report the EPCRA Section 313 chemical in this section.
Actual data and a knowledge of the unloading methods at your facility can be used to
estimate the quantity of residual chemicals in containers. However, EPA has developed
guidance to assist facilities if there is no site-specific information. Table 4-1 provides
4-7
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results from experimentation on residue quantities for a sample of waste types if left in
drums and tanks when emptied. These results are presented as the mass percent of the
vessel capacity and are categorized based on unloading method, vessel material, and
bulk fluid material properties such as viscosity and surface tension.
Table 4-1
Summary of Residue Quantities From Pilot-Scale Experimental Study"b
(weight percent of drum capacity)
Unloading
Method
Pumping
Pumping
Pouring
Pouring
Gravity Drain
Gravity Drain
Gravity Drain
Vessel Type
Steel drum
Plastic drum
Bung-top steel
drum
Open-top steel
drum
Slope-bottom
steel tank
Dish-bottom
steel tank
Dish-bottom
glass-lined
tank
Value
Range
Mean
Range
Mean
Range
Mean
Range
Mean
Range
Mean
Range
Mean
Range
Mean
Material
Kerosene0
1.93-3.08
2.48
1.69-4.08
2.61
0.244 - 0.472
0.404
0.032 - 0.080
0.054
0.020 - 0.039
0.033
0.031-0.042
0.038
0.024 - 0.049
0.040
Water"
1.84-2.61
2.29
2.54-4.67
3.28
0.266 - 0.458
0.403
0.026 - 0.039
0.034
0.016-0.024
0.019
0.033-0.034
0.034
0.020 - 0.040
0.033
Motor Oile
1.97-2.23
2.06
1.70-3.48
2.30
0.677 - 0.787
0.737
0.328-0.368
0.350
0.100-0.121
0.111
0.133-0.191
0.161
0.112-0.134
0.127
Surfactant
Solution*
3.06
3.06
Not
Available
0.485
0.485
0.089
0.089
0.048
0.048
0.058
0.058
0.040
0.040
aFrom "Releases During Cleaning of Equipment." Prepared by PEI Associates, Inc., for the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, Office of Pesticides and Toxic Substances, Washington, D.C. Contract No. 68-02-4248. June 30,
1986.
bThe values listed in this table should only be applied to similar vessel types, unloading methods, and bulk fluid
materials. At viscosities greater than 200 centipoise, the residue quantities can rise dramatically and the information
on this table is not applicable.
Tor kerosene, viscosity = 5 centipoise, surface tension = 29.3 dynes/cm2
dFor water, viscosity = 4 centipoise, surface tension = 77.3 dynes/cm2
Tor motor oil, viscosity = 97 centipoise, surface tension = 34.5 dynes/cm2
tor surfactant solution viscosity = 3 centipoise, surface tension =31.4 dynes/cm2
The following example describes how the information in the table can be used to estimate the
quantity of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical in water that was used to clean drums on site.
4-8
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Example - Container Residue
You have determined that a Form R for an EPCRA Section 313 chemical must be submitted. The
facility receives and treats 1,000 steel drums that contain 55 gallons of an aqueous waste that
contains 10% of the chemical. Further, it is assumed that the physical properties of the solution
are similar to water. The solution is pumped from the drums directly into a mixing vessel and
the "empty" drums are triple-rinsed with an aqueous cleaning solution. The rinse water is
indirectly discharged to an on-site wastewater treatment system and the cleaned drums are
returned to the supplier.
In this example, it can be assumed that all of the residual solution in the drums was transferred
to the rinse water. Therefore, the quantity transferred to the drum reclaimer should be reported
as "zero."
The quantity of residual solution that is transferred to the rinse water can be estimated by
multiplying the mean weight percent of residual water from pumping a steel drum by the weight
of solution in the drum (density of solution multiplied by drum volume). If the density is not
known, it may be appropriate to use the density of water (8.34 pounds per gallon):
(2.29%*) (8.34 pounds/gallon) (55 gallons/drum) (1,000 drums) = 10,504 pounds
solution
The concentration of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical in the solution is only 10%.
(10,504 pounds solution) (10%) = 1,050 pounds
Therefore, 1,050 pounds of the chemical are transferred to the on-site wastewater treatment
system.
*Mean value taken from Table 4-1
h. On-Site Waste Treatment (Part II, Section 7A of Form R) All on-site waste
treatment of reported EPCRA Section 313 chemicals. The information reported in
Section 7A focuses on the treatment of the waste stream. The information includes:
type of waste stream (gaseous, aqueous or non-aqueous liquid, or solid); treatment
methods or sequence; influent concentrations of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical;
treatment efficiency of each method or sequence; and whether efficiency data are based
on actual operating data. Metal compounds in waste subjected to a combustion
process are not destroyed but should still be reported as going through the treatment
process, with a treatment efficiency of zero.
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Example - On-Site Waste Treatment
A process at the facility generates a wastewater stream containing an EPCRA Section 313
chemical (chemical A). A second process generates a wastewater stream containing two
EPCRA Section 313 chemicals, a metal (chemical B) and a mineral acid (chemical C).
Thresholds for all three EPCRA Section 313 chemicals have been exceeded and you are in the
process of completing separate Form Rs for each chemical.
All wastewater streams are combined and sent to an on-site wastewater treatment system
before being released to a POTW. This system consists of an oil/water separator which
removes 99% of chemical A; a neutralization tank where the pH is adjusted to 7.5, thereby
destroying 100% of the mineral acid (chemical C), and a settling tank where 95% of the metal
(chemical B) is removed from the water (and eventually landfilled off site).
Section 7A should be completed slightly differently for each chemical for which a Form R
must be filed. The table accompanying this example shows how Section 7A should be
completed for each chemical. First, on each Form R you should identify the type of waste
stream in Section 7A. la as wastewater (aqueous waste, code W). Next, on each Form R you
should list the code for each of the treatment steps that are applied to the entire waste stream,
regardless of whether the operation affects the chemical for which you are completing the
Form R (for instance, the first four blocks of Section 7A. Ib of all three Form Rs should show:
P19 (liquidphase separation), Cll (neutralization), Pll (settling/clarification), andNA (to
signify the end of the treatment system). Note that Section 7A. Ib is the only section of the
Form R that is not chemical specific. It applies to the entire waste stream being treated.
Section 7A. 1 c of each Form R should show the concentration of the specific chemical in the
influent to the first step of the process (oil/water separation). For this example, assume
chemicals A, B, and C are all present at concentrations greater than 1%. Therefore, code "1"
should be entered. Section 7A.ld is also chemical specific. It applies to the efficiency of the
entire system in destroying and/or removing the chemical for the Form R you are currently
completing. 99% should be entered when filing for chemical A, 95% for chemical B, and 100%
for chemical C. Finally, you should report whether the influent concentration and efficiency
estimates are based on operating data for each chemical, as appropriate.
Chemical A
TA.la
W
TA.lb 1. P19 2. Cll
3. Pll 4. NA 5.
6. 7. 8.
7A.lc
1
TA.ld
99 %
7A.le
Yes No
X
Chemical B
TA.la
W
TA.lb | 1. P19 2. Cll
3. Pll 4. NA 5.
6. 7. 8.
TA.lc
1
TA.ld
95 %
TA.le
Yes No
X
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Example - On-Site Waste Treatment (cont.)
Chemical C
VA.la
W
VA.lb
3. NA
6.
1. P19 2. Cll
4. 5.
7. 8.
VA.lc
1
VA.ld
100 %
VA.le
Yes No
JL.
Note that the quantity removed and/or destroyed is not reported in Section 7 and that the
efficiency reported in Section 7A. Id refers to the amount of EPCRA Section 313 chemical
destroyed and/or removed from the applicable waste stream. The amount actually destroyed
should be reported in Section 8.6 (quantity treated on site). For example, when completing
the Form R for chemical B you should report "0" pounds in Section 8.6 because the metal has
been removed from the wastewater stream, but not actually destroyed. The quantity of
chemical B that is ultimately land filled off site should be reported in Section 6.2 and 8.1.
However, when completing the Form R for chemical C you should report the entire quantity in
Section 8.6 because raising the pH to 7.5 will completely destroy the mineral acid.
I. On-Site Energy Recovery (Part II, Section 7B of Form R) All on-site energy
recovery of reported EPCRA Section 313 chemicals must be reported. EPA's view is
that chemicals that do not contribute significant heat energy during combustion
processes should not be considered for energy recovery. Therefore, only chemicals
with a significant heating value (e.g., heating value high enough to sustain combustion)
that are combusted in an energy recovery unit, such as an industrial furnace, kiln, or
boiler can be reported for energy recovery. If an EPCRA Section 313 chemical is
incinerated on-site but does not significantly contribute energy to the process (e.g.,
chlorofluorocarbons), it must be considered on-site waste treatment (see Chapter
4.1.3(h). above). Metal and metal compounds in a waste that is combusted cannot be
considered combusted for energy recovery because metals do not have any heat value.
j. On-Site Recycling (Part n, Section 7C of Form R) All on-site recycling methods
used on EPCRA Section 313 chemicals must be reported.
k. Source Reduction and Recycling Activities (Part II, Section 8 of Form R)2
Provide information about source reduction and recycling activities related to the
EPCRA Section 313 chemical for which releases and other waste management
activities are being reported. Section 8 uses some data collected to complete Part n,
Sections 5 through 7. For this reason, Section 8 should be completed last. The
The subsection 8.1 through 8.8 designation are those for the 1997 Form R. Please refer to the
current reporting year's TRIForms and Instructions for any changes.
4-11
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relationship between Sections 5, 6, and 8.8 to Sections 8.1, 8.3, 8.5, and 8.7 are
provided in equation forms below.
k(l). Quantity Released (Part II, Section 8.1 of Form R) - The quantity
reported in Section 8.1 is the quantity reported in all of Section 5 plus the
quantity of metals and metal compounds reported as discharged off site to
POTWs in Section 6.1 plus the quantity reported as sent off site for disposal in
Section 6.2 minus the quantity reported in Section 8.8 that was released on-site
or transferred off-site for disposal:
Section 8.1 = Section 5 + Section 6.1 (metals and metal compounds) +
Section 6.2 (disposal) - Section 8.8 (release or off-site disposal only)
k(2). Quantity Used for Energy Recovery On-Site (Part II, Section 8.2 of
Form R) - Estimate a quantity of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical in wastes
combusted for energy recovery on-site. This estimate should be the quantity of
the chemical combusted in the process for which codes were reported in
Section 7B (unless the 7B code is related to a Section 8.8 activity). Test data
from trial burns or other monitoring data may be used to estimate the quantity of
the EPCRA Section 313 chemical combusted for energy recovery purposes. If
monitoring data are not available, vendor specifications regarding combustion
efficiency may be used as they relate to the reportable EPCRA Section 313
chemical. A quantity should be reported in Section 8.2 when a method is
reported in Section 7B (unless the 7B code is related to a Section 8.8 activity).
Combustion for energy recovery is interpreted by EPA to include the
combustion of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical that is (1) (a) a RCRA
hazardous waste or waste fuel, (b) a constituent of a RCRA hazardous waste
or waste fuel, or (c) a spent or contaminated "otherwise used" material; and
that (2) has a significant heating value and is combusted in an energy or
materials recovery device. Energy or materials recovery devices are boilers
and industrial furnaces as defined in 40 CFR 372.3 (see 62 FR 23891, May 1,
1997). If a reported EPCRA Section 313 chemical is incinerated but does not
contribute energy to the process (e.g., metal, metal compounds, and
chlorofluorocarbons), it must be considered treatment for destruction. In
determining whether an EPCRA Section 313 listed chemical is combusted for
energy recovery, the facility should consider the heating value of the EPCRA
Section 313 chemical and not of the chemical stream. Note that "NA" should
be reported for EPCRA Section 313 chemicals which are halogens, CFCs,
halons, and metals.
k(3). Quantity Used for Energy Recovery Off-Site (Part II, Section 8.3 of
Form R) - The quantity reported in Section 8.3 is the quantity reported in
Section 6.2 for which energy recovery codes are reported. If a quantity is
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reported in Section 8.8, subtract any associated off-site transfers for energy
recovery:
Section 8.3 = Section 6.2 (energy recovery) - Section 8.8 (off-site energy
recovery)
Combustion for energy recovery is interpreted by EPA to include the
combustion of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical that is (1) (a) a RCRA
hazardous waste or waste fuel, (b) a constituent of a RCRA hazardous waste
or waste fuel, or (c) a spent or contaminated "otherwise used" material; and
that (2) has a significant heating value and is combusted in an energy or
materials recovery device. Energy or materials recovery devices are boilers
and industrial furnaces as defined in 40 CFR 372.3 (see 62 FR 23891, May 1,
1997). If a reported EPCRA Section 313 chemical is incinerated but does not
contribute energy to the process (e.g., metal, metal compounds, and
chlorofluorocarbons), it must be considered treatment for destruction. In
determining whether an EPCRA Section 313 listed chemical is combusted for
energy recovery, the facility should consider the heating value of the EPCRA
Section 313 chemical and not of the chemical stream. Note that "NA" should
be reported for EPCRA Section 313 chemicals which are halogens, CFCs,
halons, and metals.
k(4). Quantity Recycled On-Site (Part II, Section 8.4 of Form R) - Estimate a
quantity of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical recycled in wastes on-site. This
estimate should be the quantity of the chemical recycled in the operation for
which codes were reported in Section 7C (unless the 7C code is related to a
Section 8.8 activity). A quantity should be reported in Section 8.4 when a
method of on-site recycling is reported in Section 7C (unless the 7C code is
related to a Section 8.8 activity). To estimate this quantity, you should
determine if operating data exist which indicate a recovery efficiency and use
that efficiency value combined with throughput data to calculate an estimate. If
operating data are unavailable, use available vendor specifications.
k(5). Quantity Recycled Off-Site (Part H, Section 8.5 of Form R) - The
quantity reported in Section 8.5 will generally be the same as the quantity
reported in Section 6.2 for which recycling codes are reported. If a quantity is
reported in Section 8.8, subtract any associated off-site transfers for recycling:
§8.5 = §6.2 (recycling) - §8.8 (off-site recycling)
k(6). Quantity Treated On-Site (Part H, Section 8.6 of Form R) - Waste
treatment in Section 8 is limited to the destruction or chemical conversion of the
EPCRA Section 313 chemical in wastes. The quantities reported in Section
8.6 will be those treated in a subset of the operations for which codes were
4-13
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reported in Section 7 A, where treatment can include physical removal of the
EPCRA Section 313 chemical(s) from a waste stream. To estimate the
quantity, you should determine if operating data exist which indicate a treatment
(e.g., destruction or chemical conversion of EPCRA Section 313 chemical)
efficiency and use that efficiency value combined with throughput data to
calculate an estimate. Because metals cannot be destroyed or chemically
converted into something other than the metal or metal compound, metals
cannot be reported as treated in Sections 8.6 or 8.7. Note that conversion of a
metal from one oxidation state to another (e.g., Cr(VT) to Cr(in) is not
considered treatment in Section 8.6. If operating data are unavailable, use
available vendor specifications. Section 7A must be completed if a quantity is
entered into Section 8.6.
k(7). Quantity Treated Off-Site (Part II, Section 8.7 of Form R) - This quantity
reported in Section 8.7 must be the same as the quantity reported in Section
6.2 for which treatment codes are reported and quantities sent to a POTW as
reported in Section 6.1 except for metal and metal compounds. If a quantity is
reported in Section 8.8, subtract any associated off-site transfers for treatment:
Section 8.7 = Section 6.1 (except metals and metal compounds) + Section 6.2
(treatment) - Section 8.8 (off-site treatment)
Because metals cannot be destroyed or chemically converted into something
other than the metal or metal compound, metals cannot be reported as treated
in Sections 8.6 or 8.7. Quantities of metals reported in Section 6.1 and 6.2 as
being treated should be reported in Section 8.1 (Quantity Released) unless the
facility has knowledge that the metal is being recovered.
k(8). Quantity Released to the Environment as a Result of Remedial Actions,
Catastrophic Events, or One-Time Events Not Associated with
Production Processes (Part II, Section 8.8 of Form R) - The purpose of
this section is to separate quantities recycled, used for energy recovery, treated,
or released (including disposal) that are associated with normal or routine
production from those that are not. The quantity reported in Section 8.8 is the
quantity of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical released directly into the
environment or sent off-site for recycling, waste treatment, energy recovery, or
disposal during the reporting year due to any of the following events:
(1) Remedial actions;
(2) Catastrophic events such as earthquakes, fires, or floods; or
(3) One-time events not associated with normal or routine production
processes.
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The quantity reported in Section 8.8 should not be included with quantities
reported in Part II, Sections 8.1 through 8.7 of Form R, but should be included
in Part n, Sections 5 and 6 of Form R as appropriate. The on-site waste
management activities should also be reported in Section 7.
Spills that occur as a routine part of production operations and could be
reduced or eliminated by improved handling, loading, or unloading procedures
are included in the quantities reported in Sections 8.1 through 8.7 as
appropriate. On-site releases and off-site transfers for further waste
management resulting from remediation of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or
an unpreventable accident unrelated to production (such as a hurricane) are
reportable in Section 8.8.
On-site treatment, energy recovery, or recycling of EPCRA Section 313
chemicals in wastes generated as a result of remedial actions, catastrophic
events, or one-time events not associated with production processes are not
reported in Part II, Section 8.8 nor Sections 8.1 through 8.7 of Form R.
k(9) Prior Year Estimates (for Part II, Sections 8.1 - 8.7 of Form R)- In
several instances, the Form R prompts the facility for information from prior
reporting years. In Section 8, Source Reduction and Recycling Activities,
Column A of Sections 8.1-8.7 requests release and other waste management
information from the prior reporting year. Because 1998 is the first year that
petroleum bulk storage facilities were required to collect data for EPCRA
Section 313 reporting, you may enter "NA" in column A for Form Rs for RY
1998 only. In Section 8.9, you are required to provide a production ratio or
activity index to reflect either the ratio of current year's production to prior
year's production or an index of the current year's activity to prior year's
activity with respect to the reportable EPCRA Section 313 chemical. Because
you were not required to collect data prior to 1998, recently added facilities as
a result of the industry expansion rulemaking may also enter "NA" in Section
8.9 for Form Rs for RY 1998 only.
POSSIBLE ERROR - Double Counting
Releases and other waste management activities should not be inadvertently "double counted." A
single wastewater discharge should not be listed as both a release to water (on site) and a
discharge to POTW (off site). Similarly, a release to land should not be listed as both a release to
land (on site) and a transfer to an off-site landfill. Estimates of releases and other waste
management activities should be prepared for Sections 5 through 7 of the Form R. For the most
part, Section 8 relies on the data collected to complete these previous sections. Therefore, Section
8 should be completed last. However, the data elements of Section 8 (8.1 through 8.7) are mutually
exclusive and care should be taken to avoid double counting.
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4.1.4 Step 4: Determine the Most Appropriate Method(s) to Develop the Estimates for
Releases and Other Waste Management Activity Quantities and Calculate the
Estimates
After you have identified all of the potential sources for release and other waste management
activity types, you must next estimate the quantities of each reportable chemical released and otherwise
managed as waste. EPA has identified four basic methods that may be used to develop estimates (each
estimate has been assigned a code that must be identified when reporting). The methods and
corresponding codes are:
• Monitoring Data or Direct Measurement (M);
• Mass Balance (C);
• Emission Factors (E); and,
• Engineering Calculations (O).
Descriptions of these techniques are provided in Estimating Releases and Waste Treatment
Efficiencies for the Toxic Chemical Release Inventory Form. They are also briefly described
below. EPA does not require you to conduct additional sampling or testing for Section 313 reporting;
however, you are required to use the best "readily available data" or prepare reasonable estimates. For
example, emission factors or engineering calculations may not be the best "readily available data" when
other data, such as stack testing, are available. For each reported amount, you are required to identify
only the primary method used for each estimate.
Based on site-specific knowledge and potential data sources available, you should be able to
determine the best method for calculating quantities for each release and other waste management
activity. Many potential sources of data exist for these (and other) methods of developing estimates.
Table 4-2 presents potential data sources and the estimation methodology in which they are most likely
to be used.
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Table 4-2
Potential Data Sources for Release and Other Waste Management
Calculations
DATA SOURCES
Monitoring Data (M)
• Stack monitoring data
• Outfall monitoring data
• Air permits
• Industrial hygiene monitoring data
NPDES permits
• POTW pretreatment standards
• Effluent limitations
RCRA permit
• Hazardous waste analysis
• pH for acids
• Continuous emission monitoring
Emission Factors (E)
• AP-42 or other EPA emission factors
• Published facility or trade association chemical-
specific emission factors
Mass Balance (C)
• Supply records
• Hazardous material inventory
• Air emissions inventory
• Pollution prevention reports
• Hazardous waste manifests
• Spill event records
Engineering Calculations (O)
• Volatilization rates
• Raoult'sLaw
• Henry's Law
• Solubilities
• Non-published emission factors
• Facility or trade association non chemical specific
emission factors (e.g., SOCMI factors)
Once estimation methods have been determined for all potential sources, releases and other
waste management activities, an estimate for each reportable EPCRA Section 313 chemical can be
developed corresponding to the data elements on Form R.
4.1.4.1 Monitoring Data or Direct Measurement (code M)
Using monitoring data or direct measurements is usually the best method for developing
estimates for chemical releases and other waste management activity quantities estimates. Your facility
may be required to perform monitoring under provisions of the Clean Air Act (CAA), Clean Water Act
(CWA), Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), or other regulations. If so, these data
should be available for developing estimates. Data may have also been collected for your facility
through an occupational health and safety assessment. If only a small amount of direct measurement
data are available or if you believe the monitoring data are not representative, you must determine if
another estimation method would give a more accurate result.
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Example - Monitoring Data
Data from the on-site wastewater treatment facility indicate that the annual average concentration of copper in the
POTW discharge is 2 mg/L. The wastewater treatment facility processed 1.5 million gallons of water in 1997. The
treated wastewater is discharged to an off-site POTW. The amount of copper transferred off site to the POTW
(for Part II, Section 6.1 of the Form R) is estimated as follows:
Amount of copper transferred
IflOOmg) (453.59g) (0.2642gal
25lbs lyr
POSSIBLE ERROR - Treatment Efficiencies
Vendor data on treatment efficiencies often represent ideal operating conditions. Thus, you should adjust such
data to account for downtime and process upsets during the actual reporting year that would result in lower
efficiencies. Remember that efficiencies reported by vendors are often general and may not apply to specific
chemicals or uses of the equipment. For example, an incinerator or flare may be 99.99% efficient in combusting
organic chemicals, but will have a zero percent efficiency in combusting metals.
4.1.4.2 Mass Balance (code C)
A mass balance involves determining the amount of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical entering
and leaving an operation. The mass balance is written as follows:
Input + Generation = Output + Consumption
where:
• Input refers to the materials (chemicals) entering an operation. For example, chlorine
added to process water as a disinfectant would be considered an input to the water
treatment operation.
• Generation identifies those chemicals that are created during an operation
(manufactured, including coincidental manufacturing). For example, additional
ammonia, sodium nitrite, or nitrate compounds may be coincidentally manufactured in
biological wastewater treatment systems.
• Output means any avenue by which the EPCRA Section 313 chemical leaves the
operation. Output may include on-site releases and other on-site waste management
activities; transfers for treatment, disposal, energy recovery, or recycling; or the amount
of chemical that leaves with the final product. In a solvent recovery operation, for
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example, the recovered solvent product and wastes generated from the process are
outputs.
Consumption refers to the amount of chemical that is converted to another substance
during the operation (i.e., reacted). For example, phosphoric acid would be consumed
by neutralization during wastewater treatment.
The mass balance technique may be used for manufactured, processed, or otherwise used
chemicals. It is typically useful for chemicals that are "otherwise used" and do not become part of the
final product, such as catalysts, solvents, acids, and bases. For large inputs and outputs, a mass
balance may not be the best estimation method, because slight uncertainties in mass calculations can
yield significant errors in the release and other waste management estimates.
Example - Estimating Releases to Air Using Mass Balance
A facility uses an EPCRA Section 313 chemical as a refrigerant in condensers to control air emissions and adds
20,000 pounds to the refrigeration system in 1998 (to make up for system losses). The chemical is released to the
air from relief vents, during system filling operations and from leaks in valves and fittings. During system
maintenance, the lines are bled directly into water and the system is vented to the air. Monitoring data of the
wastewater, including chemical concentrations and wastewater throughput, indicate that 1,200 pounds of the
chemical were discharged to the wastewater in 1998. The remaining losses are assumed to be fugitive air releases
and are estimated as follows:
Fugitive air releases of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical
= Amount input (Ibs/yr) - Amount released to wastewater (Ibs/yr)
= 20,000 Ibs/yr - 1,200 Ibs/yr
= 18,800 Ibs/yr
POSSIBLE ERROR - Mass Balances for Otherwise Used Chemicals
If you are performing mass balance to estimate the quantity for a particular data element, make sure you include all
inputs and outputs as precisely as possible. If, for example, you identify all inputs properly, but you fail to
include all outputs, your estimate could be inaccurately inflated. Furthermore, if all inputs and outputs are
identified, but are not precise, the estimate of the release in question could also be inaccurate.
4.1.4.3 Emissions Factors (code E)
An emission factor is a representative value that attempts to relate the quantity of a chemical
released with an associated activity. These factors are usually expressed as the weight of chemical
released divided by a unit weight, volume, distance, or duration of the activity releasing the chemical
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(e.g., pounds of chemical released per pounds of product produced). Emission factors, commonly
used to estimate air emissions, have been developed for many different industries and activities. You
should carefully evaluate the source of the emission factor and the conditions for its use to determine if it
is applicable to the situation at your facility.
Many emission factors are available in EPA's Compilation of Air Pollutant Emission
Factors (AP-42). The use of AP-42 emission factors is appropriate in developing estimates for
emissions from boilers and process heaters. Equations are presented in AP-42 to calculate chemical
specific emission factors for liquid material loading/unloading of transportation vehicles and storage
tanks. AP-42 can be accessed at EPA's Technology Transfer Network (TTN) website:
http://www.epa.gov/ttn/chief/ap42.html.
It should be noted that, for purposes of EPCRA Section 313 reporting, the only estimates that
can be reported as "emission factors (code E)" are published chemical-specific emission factors.
Emission Factors
Emissions from petroleum in storage occur because of evaporative losses. External and internal floating roof
tanks are sources of emissions because of evaporative losses that occur during standing storage and withdrawal
of liquid from the tank. Standing storage losses are a result of evaporative losses through rim seals, deck fittings,
and/or deck seams.
A number of equations used to calculate total VOC losses in pounds per year from storage tanks can be found in
AP-42. The total losses from storage tanks are equal to the sum of the standing storage loss and working loss.
Variables such as tank design, liquid temperature, and wind velocity are taken into account when determining
standing storage loss and working loss. The emission equations for fixed-roof tanks in AP-42 were developed for
vertical tanks; however, the equations can also be used for horizontal tanks by modifying the tank parameters as
specified in AP-42.
Once the total volatile organic compound (VOC) loss is calculated, you can then determine the emission rate of
each constituent in the vapor. In general, the emission rate for individual components can be estimated by
multiplying the weight fraction of the constituent in the vapor by the amount of total VOC loss. The weight
fraction of the constituent in the vapor can be calculated using the mole fraction and the vapor pressure of the
constituent (equations found in AP-42).
4.1.4.4 Engineering Calculations (code O)
Engineering calculations are assumptions and/or judgements used to estimate quantities of
EPCRA Section 313 chemicals released or otherwise managed. The quantities are estimated by using
physical and chemical properties and relationships (e.g., ideal gas law, Raoult's law) or by modifying an
emission factor to reflect the chemical properties of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical in question.
Engineering calculations rely on the process parameters; you must have a thorough knowledge of the
processes at your facility to complete these calculations.
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Engineering calculations can also include computer models. Several computer models are
available for estimating emissions from landfills, wastewater treatment, water treatment, and other
processes.
Non-chemical-specific emission factors (e.g., SOGVfl emission factors) and non-published
emission factors also can be used as discussed in Section 4.1.4.3, but must be classified as "engineering
calculations" forEPCRA Section 313 reporting.
Example - Engineering Calculations
Stack monitoring data are available for xylene but you have exceeded a threshold for toluene and must determine
amount released or otherwise managed. Toluene is used in the same application as xylene at your facility. You
can estimate the emissions of toluene by adjusting the monitoring data of xylene by a ratio of the vapor pressure
for xylene to toluene. This example is an engineering calculation based on physical properties and process
operation information:
From facility stack monitoring data, an estimated 200 Ibs. of xylene is released as air emissions during the
reporting year. Toluene is also present in the air emissions, but not monitored. The stack operates at
approximately 125NC. Based on literature data, the vapor pressures at 125NC for toluene is 1.44 atmospheres and
for xylene is 0.93 atmospheres. Using a ratio of the vapor pressures, the amount of toluene released as air
emissions from the stack can be calculated:
X Ibs/vr toluene = 1.44 atm (vapor pressure of toluene)
200 Ibs/yr xylene 0.93 atm (vapor pressure of xylene)
X Ibs/yr toluene = (200 Ibs/vr xvlene) x (1.44 atm toluene)
(0.93 atm xylene)
Completing the calculation, the facility determines that 310 pounds of toluene were released as stack air emissions
during the reporting year.
4.1.4.5 Estimating Releases and Other Waste Management Quantities
Once all sources, types, and appropriate estimation methodologies have been identified, you
can estimate the release and other waste management activity quantities for each data element of the
Form R. The recommended approach is that you estimate the amounts released from all sources at
your facility by the data element on the form R (i.e., first estimate all fugitive emissions for an EPCRA
Section 313 chemical (Part n, Section 5.1), then estimate all stack air releases for an EPCRA Section
313 chemical (Part II, Section 5.2), etc.). Table 4-3 presents a work sheet that may be helpful in
compiling this information.
If you submit a Form R, you must also enter on-site waste treatment information in Section 7 A,
including the code for each treatment method used, the treatment efficiency for the chemical in the
treated waste stream, and the concentration of the chemical in the influent sent to treatment. You
should report treatment methods that do not actually destroy or remove the chemical by entering "0" for
removal efficiency. Similarly, on-site energy recovery methods and on-site recycling methods must be
reported in Section 7B and 7C, respectively.
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4-22
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Table 4-3 Release and Other Waste Management
Quantity Estimation Worksheet
Facility Name:
Toxic Chemical or Chemical Category:
CAS Number:
Reporting Year:
Date Worksheet Prepared:
Prepared by:
ON-SITE
Release or Other Waste Management
Activity Type
Amount (Ibs)
Basis of
Estimate
Form R Element
FUGITIVE AIR
Equipment Leaks
Process Areas
Evaporative Losses (spills, surface
impoundments)
Total =
5.1, (8.1 or 8.8)
5.1, (8.1 or 8.8)
5.1, (8.1 or 8.8)
5.1, (8.1 or 8.8)
STACK AIR
Process Vents
Storage Tanks
Control Device Stacks
Other
Total =
5.2, (8. lor 8.8)
5.2, (8. lor 8.8)
5.2, (8. lor 8.8)
5.2, (8. lor 8.8)
5.2, (8. lor 8.8)
RECEIVING STREAM/WATER BODY DISCHARGE
Stormwater Discharge
On-Site Treatment Plant Discharge
Total =
5. 3, (8.1 or 8.8)
ON-SITE UNDERGROUND INJECTION
Underground Injection to Class I Wells
Underground Injection to Class II -V Wells
ON-SITE LAND
Landfill
Land Treatment/Application Farming
Surface Impoundment
Other
Total =
ON-SITE ENERGY RECOVERY
ON-SITE RECYCLING
ON-SITE TREATMENT
5.4, (8. lor 8.8)
5.4, (8. lor 8.8)
5. 5, (8.1 or 8.8)
5.5,(8.1,8.6,or
8.8)
5. 5,( 8.1 or 8.8)
5.5,(8.1or8.8)
8.2
8.4
8.6
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OFF-SITE
Release or Other Waste
Management
Activity Type
Amount (Ibs)
Basis of
Estimate
Form R Data
Element
Off-Site Location
(name)
OFF-SITE DISPOSAL
Solidification/Stabilization
(metals and metal
compounds only)
Amount of metal and metal
compounds to POTW
Wastewater Treatment
(excluding POTWs) metals
and metal compounds only
Underground Injection
Landfill/Surface
Impoundment
Land Treatment
Other Land Disposal
Other Off-site Management
OTHER AMOUNTS SENT OFF-SITE
Amounts sent for storage
Amounts sent for unknown
waste management practice
6.2, (8. lor 8.8)
6.1, (8. lor 8. 8)
6.2, (8. lor 8. 8)
6.2, (8. lor 8. 8)
6.2, (8. lor 8. 8)
6.2, (8. lor 8. 8)
6.2, (8. lor 8. 8)
6.2, (8. lor 8. 8)
6.2, (8. lor 8. 8)
6.2, (8. lor 8. 8)
OFF-SITE TREATMENT
Solidification/Stabilization
Incineration/Thermal
Treatment
Incineration/Insignificant
Fuel Value
Wastewater Treatment (to
POTW excluding metals and
metal compounds)
Wastewater Treatment
(Excluding POTW and metal
and metal compounds)
Transfer to Waste Treatment
Broker
6.2,(8.7or8.8)
6.2, (8.7 or 8. 8)
6.2, (8.7 or 8. 8)
6.1, (8.7 or 8. 8)
6.2, (8.7 or 8. 8)
6.2, (8.7 or 8. 8)
OFF-SITE ENERGY RECOVERY
Off-site Energy Recovery
Transfer to Energy Recovery
Broker
OFF-SITE RECYCLING
Solvents/Organics Recovery
Metals Recovery
Other Reuse or Recovery
Acid Regeneration
6.2, (8. 3 or 8. 8)
6.2, (8. 3 or 8. 8)
6.2, (8. 5 or 8. 8)
6.2, (8. 5 or 8. 8)
6.2, (8. 5 or 8. 8)
6.2, (8. 5 or 8. 8)
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Transfer to Recycling Waste
Broker
6.2, (8. 5 or 8. 8)
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4.1.5 OTHER FORM R ELEMENTS
4.1.5.1 Maximum Amount On-Site (Part II, Section 4.1 of Form R)
In this section of the Form R, you are required to report the code that indicates the maximum
quantity of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical present at your facility at any time during the reporting
year. This estimate includes any amount of the chemical on-site in storage, in process vessels, in
treatment units, and in shipping containers. This calculation includes quantities of the EPCRA Section
313 chemical present in purchased chemicals and in wastes. When performing the calculation, use only
the total amount of the chemical present at your site at any one time. For example, assume you have a
facility that incinerates waste and sends the remaining ash to an off-site landfill. In February, you
receive waste with 500 pounds of benzene which you process completely within the month. In
September, you receive waste with 600 pounds of benzene which you also process in a similar time
frame. If you have no other sources of benzene on-site, your maximum amount estimation would be
600 pounds (range code 02). These codes are provided in the TRI Forms and Instructions
document.
4.1.5.2 Production Ratio or Activity Index (Part II, Section 8.9 of Form R)
For this data element, you are required to provide a ratio of reporting year production to prior
year production or provide an "activity index" based on a variable other than production that is the
primary influence on the quantity of the reported EPCRA Section 313 chemical recycled, used for
energy recovery, treated, or disposed. The ratio or index must be reported to the nearest tenths or
hundredth place (e.g., one or two digits to the right of the decimal point). Because the facilities added
by the facility expansion rulemaking were not required to collect data until reporting year (RY) 1998,
these facilities may enter "NA" in this data element regardless of whether the chemical existed at your
facility in the previous year (i.e., RY 1997). In future years, however, petroleum bulk storage facilities
may only enter "NA" in the production ratio or activity index data element if the EPCRA Section 313
chemical was not manufactured, processed, or otherwise used in the year prior to the reporting year for
which a Form R is being submitted.
You may choose either the production ratio or activity index depending on the chemical and
how the chemical is used at your facility. The major factor in selecting whether to use a production
ratio or activity index is typically a measure of which activity threshold applies. Typically, production
ratio would apply to EPCRA Section 313 chemicals manufactured and processed by a facility, while
otherwise use activities would be best measured using an activity index. A key consideration in
developing a methodology for determining a production ratio/activity index is that you should choose a
methodology that is least likely to be affected by potential source reduction activities. In most cases,
the production ratio or activity index should be based on some variable of production or activity rather
than on EPCRA Section 313 chemical or material usage.
For example, suppose you use an EPCRA Section 313 chemical as a cleaning solvent to
perform tank washouts. Using a production ratio based on the amount of the product produced in
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the tanks between the prior and current reporting years may seem logical but may not take into
consideration potential source reduction activities. As a result, an activity index may be more
appropriate. In this instance, an activity index based on the number of tank washouts conducted
would be more accurate in reflecting the potential source reduction activities that could be
implemented for that chemical and/or activity. For example, a source reduction activity might
include the facility deciding to modify the production process such that they would need to clean
the tanks less often and, therefore, use less cleaning solvent. The use of an activity index based on
tank washouts would better reflect the factors that influence the amount of solvent managed as a
waste than would a production ratio based on the amount of product produced in the tanks.
Example - Activity Index
A facility repackages formulated gasoline product, containing 1.0% n-hexane. In the previous year, the facility
received 400,000 gallons of the product for repackaging. For the current reporting year, the facility received
300,000 gallons for repackaging. One method that the facility may use to generate a production ratio would be to
divide 300,000 gallons from this year by 400,000 gallons from last year.
300,00 gal. gasoline (current reporting year)
400,000 gal. gasoline (previous reporting year)
Activity Index = 0.75
4.1.5.3 Source Reduction (Part II, Sections 8.10 and 8.11 of Form R)
The final two sections of the Form R are used for reporting any source reduction activities
conducted at the facility. Section 8.10 asks whether there has been any source reduction at the facility
during the current reporting year. If so, TRI Forms and Instructions provides a list of three-digit
codes that the facility must choose from to describe these source reduction activities. Source reduction
activities do not include recycling, treating, using for energy recovery, or disposing of an EPCRA
Section 313 chemical. Report in this section only the source reduction activities implemented to reduce
or eliminate the quantities reported in Section 8.1 through 8.7.
Under Section 8.11, check "yes" if you would like to attach any optional information on source
reduction, recycling, or pollution control activities for the EPCRA Section 313 chemical at your facility.
This information can be reported for the current reporting year, or for prior year activities. The Agency
asks that you limit this information to one page that summarizes the source reduction, recycling, or
pollution control activities implemented by your facility.
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4.2 Calculating Release and Other Waste Management Estimates at Petroleum Bulk
Storage Facilities
This section discusses the most common releases and other waste management activities at
petroleum bulk storage facilities and gives guidance for estimating these quantities. The discussion is
organized by release or other waste management type, as follows:
• Fugitive Air Emissions
• Stack or Point Source Air Emissions
• Water Discharges
• Releases to Land
• On-site Waste Management
• Transfers Off-site
• Pollution Prevention Data
Facilities must report all releases and other waste management activities of any EPCRA Section
313 chemicals that exceed activity thresholds at the facility. While this chapter is designed primarily for
petroleum bulk storage facilities, the release and other waste management reporting issues may be
relevant to all potentially reporting facilities. In particular, facilities that store and transfer large volumes
of product will find the estimation techniques discussed in this chapter (e.g., methods of calculating air
releases) useful.
Note that releases from operations in which petroleum products are not brought on site to be
stored and redistributed off site are not subject to EPCRA Section 313 reporting. For example, a
storage facility may send tanker trucks to pick up gasoline from a refinery and transport it directly to the
gasoline station without bringing the fuel to be stored on site at the storage facility. The releases from
these types of transfers are not reported on the storage facility's Form R.
As mentioned earlier in the chapter, process flow diagrams are a very useful way for facilities to
identify all sources of releases and other waste management activities. Figure 4-3 illustrates common
operations and releases and other waste management outputs at petroleum bulk storage facilities.
Petroleum products enter the facility in bulk quantities via pipeline, rail car, tank truck, or vessel,
depending on the location of the facility. While on site, the petroleum is stored in large storage tanks
and then subsequently dispensed into tanker trucks, rail cars, or pipelines to be distributed in
commerce. The facility also may engage in mixing or blending of the petroleum products prior to
distribution off-site. While Figure 4-3 is not meant to represent all petroleum bulk storage facilities, it
can be used as a starting point for creating a facility-specific process flow diagram.
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Waste/
Recovered
Product Tank
Tanker/Barae
Stack/Point Air Emissions
Fugfe/e/Non-Fbint Air Emissions
Manifold/ Equipment
Maintenance V\aste/
VVastewater
Tank Cleaning
V\aste/
Vfetewater
Note: Petroleum entering and leaving the facility is directed throughapumpandmanifold system, as indicated by the double-arrowed
lines.
Figure 4-3 Process Flow Diagram at Petroleum Terminals and Bulk Storage Facilities
4.2.1 Fugitive Air Emissions, Section 5.1 of Form R
Fugitive air emissions can occur from a number of sources. The primary fugitive emissions
sources for EPCRA Section 313 chemicals at petroleum bulk storage facilities are likely to be:
• Loading/unloading and transfer of petroleum products containing EPCRA Section 313
chemicals;
• Blending and mixing of petroleum products containing EPCRA Section 313 chemicals;
• Wastewater treatment and other sources, including tank cleaning operations, spills, and
tank overfills, containing EPCRA Section 313 chemicals.
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Releases
Tank trucks and rail cars physically enter a facility.
While loading for transport, emissions of EPCRA
Section 313 chemicals may occur. Are these
emissions subject to reporting under EPCRA
Section 313?
Yes, because the loading and the releases occur
within the facility boundary, the releases must be
reported if the facility meets activity threshold for
the EPCRA Section 313 chemical, employee, and
SIC code criteria.
Loading and unloading and transfer
of petroleum products. Loading losses occur
as organic vapors in "empty" cargo tanks are
displaced to the atmosphere by the liquid being
loaded into the tanks. These vapors are
composed of vapors formed in the empty tank by
evaporation of residual product from previous
loads, vapors transferred to the tank as product is
being unloaded, and vapors generated in the tank
as the new product is being loaded. The quantity
of evaporative losses from loading operations
depends on parameters such as the physical and
chemical characteristics of the previous and new
cargo and the method of loading and unloading.
The use of vapor recovery equipment can reduce loading emissions. Vapor recovery
equipment captures organic vapors that are displaced during loading operations and either pipes the
recovered product to a storage unit or to a thermal oxidation unit where the vapor is combusted.
Chapter Five, Section Two, of Compilation of Air Pollutant Emission Factors (AP-42) and Section
Three of Estimating Releases and Waste Treatment Efficiencies For the Toxic Chemical Release
Inventory Form (EPA 560/4-88-002, December 1987) provide detail information on the calculation
of total VOC vapor emissions during the transportation and marketing of petroleum liquids.
Fugitive emissions may occur during the loading, unloading, and transfer of petroleum products
containing EPCRA Section 313 chemicals. Concentrations of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in these
petroleum products will greatly affect the need to determine if fugitive emissions will have to be
calculated for handling activities during use of these products. Table 3-4 lists a number of EPCRA
Section 313 chemicals that may be present in various petroleum products and the estimated
concentration values of the constituents. If the facility does not have any specific information of the
content of EPCRA Section 313 in the petroleum product, Table 3-4 may be used to estimate
concentration values of constituents. During the processing and otherwise use of petroleum products,
EPCRA Section 313 chemicals below de minimis levels do not have to be considered toward
threshold determination or release or other waste management calculations. Petroleum products may
have EPCRA Section 313 chemicals above de minimis levels and facilities should consider fugitive
emissions resulting from the handling and storage of these products. EPA's Protocol For Equipment
Leak Emission Estimates (EPA-453/R-95-017) presents a comprehensive discussion of how to
estimate equipment leaks, such as those from valves, seals, and connectors in fuel handling equipment.
This document is available at http://www.epa.gov/ttnchiel/fyi.html. Four approaches for estimating
equipment leak emissions, in order of increasing refinement, are presented:
• Average emission factor approach;
• Screening ranges approach;
• EPA correlation approach; and
• Unit-specific correlation approach.
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In general, the more refined approaches require more data and provide more accurate emission
estimates for a process unit. Also, it is important to recognize in calculating estimates for these
sources, you may have already calculated these estimates as a result of separate requirements under the
Clean Air Act, particularly the Title V requirements.
In the average emission factor approach and the screening ranges approach, emission factors
are combined with equipment counts to estimate emissions. EPA has also developed emission factors
for the synthetic organic chemical manufacturing industry (SOGVfl), refineries, oil and gas production
units, and petroleum marketing terminals. The SOCMI emission factors are presented in Table 4-4.
These average factors must be multiplied by the number of pieces of equipment being considered and
the length of time each piece of equipment is in service. The average emission factors vary depending
on the service category (e.g., gas, light liquid, or heavy liquid), and the total organic compound (TOC)
concentration of the stream. To estimate emissions with the EPA correlation approach, measured
concentrations (screening values) for all equipment are individually entered into general correlations
developed by the EPA. In the unit-specific correlation approach, screening and leak rate data are
measured for a select set of individual equipment components and used to develop unit-specific
correlations. Screening values for all components are then entered into these unit-specific correlations to
estimate emissions.
The general equation for estimating TOC mass emissions from an equipment leak using average
emission factors is:
ETOC = FA * WFTOC * N
where:
ETOC = emission range of TOC from all equipment in the stream of a given equipment
type (Ib/hr)
FA = average emission factor for the equipment type (Ib/hr/source)
WFTOC = average weight fraction of TOC in the stream
N = number of pieces of equipment
And the equation for determining the emissions of a specific VOC in a mixture or other trade name
product from equipment is:
Ex = ETOC*(WPx/WPTOc)
where:
EX = The mass emissions of organic chemical "x" (Ib/hr)
Epoc = The TOC mass emissions from the equipment (Ib/hr)
WPX = The concentration of organic chemical "x" in the equipment in weight percent
WPTOc = The TOC concentration in the equipment in weight percent.
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Table 4-4
SOCMI AVERAGE EMISSION FACTORS *
Equipment type
Valves
Pump seals'3
Compressor seals
Pressure relief valves
Connectors
Open-ended lines
Sampling connections
Service
Gas
Light liquid
Heavy liquid
Light liquid
Heavy liquid
Gas
Gas
All
All
All
Emission factors a (Ibs/hr/source)
0.0132
0.00888
0.00051
0.0439
0.0190
0.503
0.229
0.00403
0.0037
0.0331
^Protocol for Equipment Leak Emission Estimates (EPA, EPA-453/R-95-017)
a These factors are for total organic compound emissions
b The light liquid pump seal factor can be used to estimate the leak rate from agitator seals
Calculation of Equipment Leak Emissions
At a petroleum bulk storage facility, aviation gasoline passes through a system containing 100
connectors from the storage tank area to the loading/unloading area. The aviation gasoline contains 85
weight percent TOC. The aviation gasoline is in contact with the connectors in the system for 8,000
hours during the year. The weight percent of toluene in the waste is 5.6% based on the facility's data.
The emissions of TOC would be calculated as:
ETC
= FA * WFTOC * N * (Number of hours in contact during the year)
= (0.00403 Ib/hr/connector) (0.85) (100) (8000 hrs/year)
= 2,740 Ib/year of TOC from connectors
The emissions of toluene from the connectors would be calculated as:
Ex =ETOC*(WPX/WPTOC)
= 2,740 Ib/year * (0.056/0.85)
= 181 Ib/year of toluene from connectors
This average emission factor approach is presented as an option for facilities with no data
concerning equipment leaks. As with all estimated derived for compliance with EPCRA Section 313, it
is the facility's responsibility to choose the best method for estimating releases from equipment leaks.
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Potential Errors - Reporting
The most common reporting error in catalyst usage is basing the
threshold determination on the total amount of the chemical in the
processing system. Similar to refrigerant chemicals, the throughput to
be used for a threshold determination is only the amount of new
chemical added to the system during the year. Therefore, the
processing system may contain more than 10,000 pounds of catalyst,
but an EPCRA Section 313 report is not required unless more than
10,000 pounds of new catalyst is added to the system during the year.
The quantities of catalyst added during the year can best be
determined from purchase and inventory records.
Blending and mixing of
petroleum products. Facilities
may generate fugitive emissions
during the blending and mixing of
petroleum products with additives
and catalysts prior to further
distribution in commerce. The
blending and mixing operations in
most petroleum bulk storage
facilities consist of enclosed
systems which are vented through
control devices. Therefore, the
fugitive particulate matter emissions
from these systems are anticipated to be minimal. You should review "readily available data" at your
facility to identify where fugitive emissions may occur and to what extent those emissions can be
quantified. For example, you may have permit requirements in regard to particulate matter emissions
and, as part of these permits, may have facility-specific or other emission factors for particulate matter
released. Estimates for fugitive emissions may be derived by combining these data with data on the
measured or default concentrations of constituents in the petroleum products and additives, along with
annual throughput data. In particular, it may be useful to review your permit applications which may
contain more detailed analyses of the potential for fugitive air emissions related to blending and mixing
activities and, in some cases, may contain actual monitoring data or facility-derived emission factors.
Facilities that do not have such data may use other sources, including engineering judgement to estimate
fugitive emissions. Keep in mind that for estimates below 1,000 pounds, facilities can use the range
codes provided in the TRI Forms and Instructions for reporting information in Sections 5 and 6 of the
Form R, particularly if the estimate is not believed to be very accurate.
Wastewater
Treatment and other sources.
Fugitive air emissions of volatile
EPCRA Section 313 chemicals
from wastewater treatment units
(e.g., oil/water separators) could
be estimated using one of several
programs. Volatile chemicals
can evaporate from solid waste
(e.g., sludge) and non-volatile
chemicals can be released to the
air via particulate emissions. One
tool that can be used to estimate
emissions in these situations is
CHEMDAT8 (See box.) Other programs are available commercially.
CHEMDAT8
Analytical models have been developed to estimate emissions of
organic compounds via various pathways from wastewater and waste
management units. Some of these models have been assembled into a
spreadsheet called CHEMDAT8 for use on a PC. A user's guide for
CHEMDAT8 is also available. Area emission sources for which models
are included in the spreadsheet are as follows: nonaerated
impoundments, which include surface impoundments and open top
wastewater treatment tanks; aerated impoundments, which include
aerated surface impoundments and aerated WWT tanks; disposal
impoundments, which include nonaerated disposal impoundments; land
treatment; and landfills. These models can be used to estimate the
magnitude of site air emissions for regulatory purposes. The
CHEMDAT8 program and manual can be downloaded from the world
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Transfer and treatment operations will
result in fugitive air emissions, but waste
previously disposed of in landfills or surface
impoundments will also generate emissions.
These emissions need to be considered in
your release calculations as well during the
year that they were disposed. These
emissions will be dependent on the types and
quantities of wastes placed in the landfill or
surface impoundments as well as the design
and operating practices of the landfill.
WATERS
A computer program, WATERS, is available for
estimating the fate of organic compounds in various
wastewater treatment units, including collection
systems, aerated basins, and other units. WATERS
is written to run under DOS without the need to
purchase other programs. WATERS contains useful
features such as the ability to link treatment units to
form a treatment system, the ability to recycle among
units, and the ability to generate and save site-
specific compound properties. The WATERS
program and users manual can be downloaded from
the world wide web at:
http://www.epa.gov/ttn/chief/software.htmWwater8
Other Sources - Equipment.
Storage. Spills. Leaks. Cleaning, etc.
Fugitive air releases of EPCRA Section 313
chemicals can occur from equipment in use, leaks in valves and fittings, losses during cylinder
changeovers, tank cleanings, loading/unloading spills, overfills of storage tanks, and periodic process-
related cleaning operations. For small quantities of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals otherwise used,
engineering judgment can be used to estimate fugitive releases (e.g., based on the volume of the storage
tank and the number of changeovers). If significant quantities of chemicals are handled, fugitive releases
can be estimated using the emission factors discussed previously in regards to the use of petroleum
products.
Secondary containment of the storage tanks and loading racks may collect rainwater runoff
contaminated with petroleum and other constituents from equipment cleaning operations, leaks, and
spills. The composition of this waste is highly variable. Fugitive emissions may occur from wastewater
that is accumulated on site in secondary containment, sumps, or impoundments. Programs such as
WATERS or CFEMDAT8 can aid in determining fugitive emissions from these units.
Releases From Transportation Vehicles
A facility is responsible for reporting releases and other waste management activities for an EPCRA Section 313
chemical that occur during loading or unloading of a transportation vehicle provided an activity threshold has
been exceeded for that chemical. Releases of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical from a transportation vehicle that
occur while the material is still under "active shipping papers" is considered to be in transportation and is not
subject to EPCRA Section 313 requirements (EPCRA Section 327). For example, a facility shipping gasoline
containing toluene for further distribution in commerce is not responsible for reporting releases once the shipping
papers have been signed. The facility is responsible for reporting releases of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals,
including those that occur during storage of the chemicals in the transportation vehicle while the vehicle is on
property owned or operated by the facility, up until the point that the shipping papers have been signed.
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4.2.2 Stack or Point Source Air Emissions, Section 5.2 of Form R.
Stack emissions of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals occur primarily from storage tanks, which is
discussed below.
Storage Tanks. Petroleum bulk
storage facilities should consider point
source air emissions from tanks that store
materials containing volatile chemicals such
as Fuel oil No.2. AP-42 provides detailed
information on the calculation of air
emissions during the storage and transfer of
liquids. A number of equations used to
calculate air emissions from storage tanks
can be found in AP-42, Chapter 7. Total
emissions from storage tanks are equal to
the sum of the standing storage loss and
working loss. Variables such as tank
design, liquid.temperature, and wind velocity
are taken into account when determining
standing storage loss and working loss. The
emission equations for fixed-roof tanks in
AP-42 were developed for vertical tanks;
however, the equations can also be used for
horizontal tanks by modifying the tank
parameters as specified in AP-42. Many of these equations have been incorporated into computer
models such as TANKS 3 (See box on
TANKS 3 for more information).
TANKS 3
The TANKS 3 program is designed to estimate emissions
of organic chemicals from several types of storage tanks.
The calculations are performed according to EPA's
AP-42, Chapter 7. After the user provides specific
information concerning a storage tank and its liquid
contents, the system produces a report which estimates
the chemical emissions for the tank on an annual or
partial year basis. The user can also determine individual
component losses by using one of the specification
options available in the program.
The TANKS 3 program relies on a chemical database of
over 100 organic liquids and a meteorological database
which includes over 250 cities in the United States; users
may add new chemicals and cities to these databases by
providing specific information through system utilities.
On-line help provides documentation and user
assistance for each screen of the program. The TANKS 3
program and manual can be downloaded from the world
wide web at http://www.epa.gov/ttn/chief/tanks.html.
Once the total volatile organic
compound (VOC) loss is calculated, you can
then determine the emission rate of each
constituent in the vapor. In general, the
emission rate for individual components can
be estimated by multiplying the weight
fraction of the constituent in the vapor by the
amount of total VOC loss. The weight
fraction of the constituent in the vapor can be
calculated using the mole fraction and the
vapor pressure of the constituent (equations
found in AP-42). The weight percent can
also be obtained from the SPECIATE
database. The SPECIATE data base
Use of AP-42 Emission Factors
The general equation for emission estimation is:
E = AxEFx(l-ER/100)
where:
E = emissions,
A = activity rate,
EF = emission factor, and
ER= overall emission reduction
efficiency, %.
ER is further defined as the product of the control device
destruction or removal efficiency and the capture
efficiency of the control system. When estimating
emissions for a long time period (e. g., one year), both the
device and the capture efficiency terms should account for
upset periods as well as routine operations. Note that
some emission factors already incorporate a removal
efficiency term.
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contains organic compound and particulate matter speciation profiles for more than 300 source types.
The profiles attempt to break down the total VOC or particulate emissions from a particular source into
the individual compounds. The SPECIATE database can be downloaded from the world wide web at
http://www.epa.gov/ttn/chief/software.htmWspeciate.
Air Emissions
For estimating air emissions of specific chemicals from floating roof tanks that contain mixtures, how does one
calculate the average vapor molecular weight and true vapor pressure to use mAP-42 equations? Does one
calculate emissions for the mixture then adjust by weight percentage later or vice versa?
Calculate emissions of the mixture then adjust for concentration. Convert chemical fractions from weight to mole,
calculate the mixture's true vapor pressure, calculate the chemical's gas mole fraction, calculate the average vapor
molecular weight, and use storage tank equations to calculate mixture emissions. Then calculate the gaseous
weight fraction and multiply by total mixture emissions to get each chemical's emissions. Facilities may choose to
refer to EPA's technical guidance entitled "Estimating Releases and Waste Treatment Efficiencies" (EPA 560/4-88-
002).
4.2.3 Discharges to Receiving Streams or Water Bodies, Section 5.3 of Form R; and
Discharges to Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTWs), Section 6.1 of Form R
Wastewaters discharged include process wastewater, secondary containment wastewater, and
storm water. Each is discussed below.
Process Wastewater. Facilities may discharge wastewater resulting from various on-site
operations. The main source of process wastewater is usually storage tank clean-out water. During
cleaning operations, the tanks are drained down to remove and recover product. Residue from this
operation consists of a liquid and a solid phase. The liquid is primarily wastewater with small amounts
of hydrocarbons including benzene, cyclohexane, ethylbenzene, toluene, 1,2,4-Trimethylbenzene, and
xylene. The wastewater from the tank is either drained and discharged or is directed to a tank for
subsequent fuel recovery. In addition, Section 313 chemicals in wastewater discharges related to spills
also should be reported.
A facility that discharges or has the potential to discharge water containing regulated wastes
must operate under the terms of Federal, State, and/or local permits, such as a NPDES direct
discharge permit, or a POTW indirect discharge agreement. The permit(s) or agreement usually require
measurements of the water volume and monitoring of some generalized wastewater parameters
including concentrations of various constituents. In some cases, the constituent analyses required for
permit compliance includes EPCRA Section 313 chemicals. In other cases, facilities may have
conducted more detailed analysis of specific constituents in its wastewaters as part of its NPDES or
POTW discharge applications. In these instances, releases can be calculated by multiplying the volume
of wastewater released by the concentration of the chemical released. See box for an example
calculation.
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Based on the concentration and wastewater flow data available, an estimate of discharges to
water can be calculated. Facilities should calculate the daily average discharges of a reportable
EPCRA Section 313 chemical in pounds and must use those estimates to determine the annual
discharge in pounds per year. Using the daily concentration data available for the reportable chemical
combined with the wastewater flow data for each of the sampling dates, calculate an estimate of pounds
per day for each sampling date. After the calculations are made for each monitoring point (e.g., daily,
monthly), the pounds discharged are averaged to determine an average daily discharge amount which
would be multiplied by the number of days discharges were possible (e.g., 365 days a year). If no
chemical-specific monitoring data exist, process knowledge (or in some cases, mass balance) may be
used to develop an estimate.
Discharges of listed acids may
be reported as zero if all discharges
have been neutralized to pH 6 or above.
If wastewater containing a listed acid is
discharged below pH 6, then releases of
the acid must be calculated and reported
except for hydrochloric and sulfuric
acid, which are only reportable in the
aerosol form. For more information on
calculating such discharges of acids, see
EPA's Estimating Releases of Mineral
Acid Discharges Using pH
Measurements (EPA 745/F-97-003,
June 1991).
No releases to water of chlorine
are typically expected. Chlorine reacts
very quickly with water to form HOC1,
C1", and FT. Although this is an
equilibrium reaction; at a pH above 4,
the equilibrium shifts almost completely
toward formation of these products.
Therefore, essentially zero releases of
chlorine to water are expected to occur under normal circumstances.
Example Calculation of Yearly Wastewater
Discharge
A facility has monitoring data on discharges to water of xylene, a
EPCRA Section 313 chemical, and a Form R report is required. In
this example, monitoring data on this chemical are only available
for two days in the year. The daily quantities of pounds of xylene
released for those two dates would then be divided by the number
of sample dates to determine the daily average for the whole
reporting year, which would be used to estimate the annual
discharge of xylene in wastewater:
Date
3/1
9/8
Concentration
(mg/1)
1.0
0.2
Flow
(MGD)
1.0
0.2
Daily
Discharge
8.33 Ibs.
0.332 Ibs.
Annual Calculation:
(8.33 Ibs. + 0.332 lbs.)/2 days x 365 days/year = 1580.82 Ibs/yr
Reminder: Reporting of Aqueous Ammonia
Facilities may use ammonia or ammoniated cleaners. When reporting releases and other waste management
activities of ammonia, remember to report only 10 percent of the total amount of ammonia if released or
managed in aqueous form.
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Secondary Containment Wastewater. Precipitation often accumulates in the secondary
containment of the storage tanks and loading/unloading area and must be drained as often as necessary
depending on the weather. This wastewater also may be drained to water ditches or oil/water
separators. Reportable EPCRA Section 313 chemicals present in secondary containment wastewater
should be monitored and reported.
Storm Water Runoff. Storm water runoff at petroleum bulk storage facilities may contain
EPCRA Section 313 chemicals washed from materials such as petroleum products or other raw
materials, waste, and land features. You must report the amount of non-exempt EPCRA Section 313
chemicals in storm water runoff (including unchanneled runoff) if you monitor for releases of reportable
EPCRA Section 313 chemicals. If you do not have periodic measurements of storm water releases,
but have chemical-specific monitoring data on the reportable EPCRA Section 313 chemicals, you must
use these data to calculate the quantity discharged and the percent contribution from storm water to the
overall water discharge estimate. See the current TRI Forms and Instructions document for guidance
on calculating storm water runoff.
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Example - Storm Water Runoff
A facility is located in a semi-arid region of the United States which has annual precipitation (including
snowfall) of 12 inches of rain. (Snowfall should be converted to the equivalent inches of rain; assume one foot of
snow is equivalent to one inch of rain.) The total area covered by the facility is 42 acres (about 170,000 square
meters or 1,829,520 square feet) of which 50 percent is unimproved area, 10 percent is asphaltic streets, and 40
percent is concrete pavement.
The total Storm water runoff from the facility is therefore calculated as follows:
Land Use % Total Area Runoff Coefficient
Unimproved area 50 0.20
Asphaltic streets 10 0.85
Concrete pavement 40 0.90
Weighted runoff coefficient = (50%) x (0.20) + (10%) x (0.85) + (40%) x (0.90) = 0.545
(Rainfall) x (land area) x (conversion factor) x (runoff coefficient) = Storm water runoff
(1 foot) x (1,829,520 ft2) x (7.48 gal/ft3) x (0.545) = 7,458,220 gallons/year
Total storm water runoff = 7.46 million gallons/year
The storm water monitoring data shows that the average concentration of toluene in the storm water
runoff from a facility is 1.0 milligrams per liter. The total amount of toluene discharged to surface water through
the plant wastewater discharge (non-storm water) is 250 pounds per year. The total amount of toluene discharged
with storm water is:
(7,458,220 gallons Storm water) x (3.785 liters/gallon) = 28,229,360 liters Storm water
(28,229,360 liters Storm water) x (1 mg. toluene/liter) x (1 x 10'6) = 28.2 kg toluene= 62 pounds toluene.
The total amount of toluene discharged from all sources at this facility is:
250 pounds toluene from wastewater discharged
+62 pounds toluene from storm water runoff
312 pounds toluene total water discharged
312 pounds of toluene is reported in Section 5.3. A on Form R
The percentage of toluene discharge through storm water reported in Section 5.3.C on Form is:
62-312x100 = 20%
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4.2.4 Disposal to Land On-site, Section 5.5 of Form R
Facilities may dispose of tank residue wastes on site. Accidental releases can also lead to
EPCRA Section 313 chemicals being disposed to land on site. Each of these is discussed below.
Tank Residue Wastes Petroleum bulk storage facilities may dispose of tank residue waste
containing EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in on-site landfills, surface impoundments, or other waste
management units. Facility specific information, such as waste analyses and process knowledge, can be
used to estimate amounts of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in tank residue wastes.
Other Wastes. Petroleum
bulk storage facilities may also
dispose of other wastes such as spill
residues, solids from petroleum
product filtration, and settled
materials from storage tanks. To
calculate quantities of EPCRA
Section 313 chemicals that may be
present in these wastes, facilities can
use waste analyses, process
knowledge, operating records,
pollution prevention data, mass
balance or other "readily available
data" sources.
Note that you must report the
ultimate known disposition of an
EPCRA Section 313 chemical in the
reporting year. In other words, you may need to consider any cross-media transfers that may result
from land disposal. If a waste has been disposed in a land disposal unit, but a portion of that waste
volatilizes into the air, or a portion of that waste discharges to a surface water, the ultimate disposition
of the reportable EPCRA Section 313 chemical during the reporting year must be reported for the year
in which the waste was disposed. Therefore, only the quantity that remains in surface impoundment or
other land disposal unit must be reported as a release to land.
Accidental Releases to Land. Leaks, spills, and drips from the loading and transfer of
petroleum products and other materials received at the facility should be considered and reported in
your release estimates. Data concerning specific incidents (such as notification reports or incident logs)
should be used to estimate releases. In calculating quantities related to accidental releases, you are
required to report the ultimate disposition in the reporting year that the EPCRA Section 313
chemical(s) are released. For instance, releases to land (e.g., Other Disposal, Section 5.5.4 of Form
R), would only include the quantity of spilled material that was not cleaned up as a response to the
accident.
Example - Wastes Stored on Concrete Pads
Are EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in waste stored on
a concrete pad outside considered a release?
Waste stored on a concrete pad must be counted as a
release to land if the facility intends to leave the material on
the pad for an indefinite period. If the facility routinely uses
the pad for "temporary" storage of waste until enough waste
is accumulated and then sends the waste off-site for
treatment or disposal purposes, or otherwise manages the
waste on-site, then the "temporary" storage need not be
reported as a release to land within the reporting year when
it is "temporarily stored" and only those amounts of the
EPCRA Section 313 chemical released from the pad, such
as runoff, would be reported as released, provided thresholds
have been exceeded elsewhere at the facility.
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Equations found in Section 6 of
EPA's Estimating Releases and
Waste Treatment Efficiencies for the
Toxic Chemical Release Inventory
Form, provide guidance on calculating
releases from chemical spills or leaks,
including liquid discharges, fraction of
discharge flashed, vaporization, two-
phase discharges, and gas discharges.
Example - Seepage From a Landfill
If a facility in one of the new industries, which begins reporting
for activities conducted in 1998, has information on the amount of
seepage from a landfill in 1998, do they report this amount as a
release to land, since they were not required to report the initial
disposal to land in the previous year?
No, facilities are required to report only the amounts which are
disposed during the year in which they are disposed, provided
certain thresholds have been meet and the facility does not
conduct any further activities involving amounts previously
disposed. Amounts which move within the same media, such as
seepage from a landfill to surrounding soils do not have to be
included in release estimates in subsequent years. EPA requires
reporting of the amount of EPCRA Section 313 chemical placed
in an on-site landfill during the year. It is not necessary to
estimate migration from the landfill in subsequent years,
provided the facility does not conduct activities that further
involve the EPCRA Section 313 chemical disposed.
4.2.5 Transfers Off-site, Section
6.2 of Form R.
Petroleum bulk storage facilities
may send wastes off-site for waste
management. Most commonly, wastes
will be sent off-site for disposal and
recycling. Facilities must report the quantities of
EPCRA Section 313 chemicals in these wastes in
Sections 6.2 and 8 of Form R. These amounts are
reportable whether they are sent to a facility within the
same company, or from a different company. For
example, if a petroleum bulk storage facility sends
sludge to a landfill owned by the same company that is
on non-contiguous, non-adjacent property (i.e., a
separate facility), then the petroleum bulk storage
facility must report those amounts as transferred off-
site if the ultimate disposition in the reporting year is
for disposal.
The same methods discussed previously for
estimating quantities disposed on-site can be used to
estimate amounts sent off-site for disposal. Wastes
sent off-site that are regulated under RCRA Subtitle C will also have waste analyses and waste profiles.
4.2.6 On-site Waste Management Methods, Section 7A, 7B, and 7C of Form R
On-site waste management at petroleum bulk storage facilities includes treatment and recycling.
Energy recovery of wastes is usually not performed at petroleum bulk storage facilities.
On-site Treatment Methods. Section 7A of Form R. Petroleum bulk storage facilities may
treat wastes on-site using various methods. When completing a Form R for a chemical, you must
report all treatment methods performed on the waste containing that chemical, regardless of its
efficiency. For each treatment method, report the applicable code given in the TRI Forms and
Waste Management Codes for
Metals
Metals and metal compounds in wastewater
sent off-site for treatment should be reported
using code M62 - "Wastewater Treatment
(Excluding POTW) - Metals and Metal
Compounds Only". Similarly, metals in solids
sent off-site for solidification or stabilization
should be reported using code M41 -
"Solidification/Stabilization - Metals and Metal
Compounds Only". These codes are
considered disposal codes for EPCRA Section
313 reporting purposes.
4-41
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Instructions document. The following are some examples of treatment methods that petroleum bulk
storage facilities may use:
• Sludge and other solid wastes may pass through several steps, including filtration (P12),
sludge dewatering (P13), settling/clarification (Pll), and thermal drying/dewatering
(F83).
• Wastewater (such as oil and water, tank clean-out wastewater, etc.) may go through
several treatment steps, including neutralization (Cl 1), settling/clarification (Pll),
filtration (P12), chemical precipitation - lime or sodium hydroxide (C01), sludge
dewatering - non-thermal (P13), or other physical treatment (e.g., evaporation) (P99).
For metal compounds, the calculation of the reportable concentration and waste treatment
efficiency must be based on the weight of the parent metal, not on the weight of the metal compounds.
Metals are not destroyed, only physically removed or chemically converted from one form into another.
The waste treatment efficiency reported must represent only physical removal of the parent metal from
the waste stream (except for incineration), not the percent chemical conversion of the metal compound.
If a listed waste treatment method converts but does not remove a metal (e.g., chromium reduction),
the method must be reported with a waste treatment efficiency of zero.
All data available at your facility must be used to calculate waste treatment efficiency and the
influent concentration of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical. If data are lacking, estimates can be made
using best engineering judgement or other methods.
On-site Recycling Processes. Section 7C. Section 313 chemicals in petroleum products
that has spilled or leaked into the containment area or at the loading/unloading area may be reported in
Section 7C if recovered and reinserted into the product tank. Reportable Section 313 chemicals
present in wastewater and tank sludge residue that is sent through a fuel recovery system also is
reported in Section 7C.
4.2.7 Source Reduction and Recycling Activities, Section 8
Earlier in this chapter, the general method for developing Section 8 quantities was discussed
(See Chapter 4.1.3). An overview of Section 8 quantities are presented below:
4-42
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Table 4-5
Examples of Section 8 Reporting
Section
Section 8.1, Quantity released
Section 8.2, Quantity used for
energy recovery on-site
Section 8.3, Quantity used for
energy recovery off-site
Section 8.4, Quantity recycled
on-site
Section 8.5, Quantity recycled
off-site
Section 8.6, Quantity treated
on-site
Section 8.7, Quantity treated
off-site
Petroleum Products
Fugitive and stack air emissions, releases to water and
POTW, and off-site waste transfers for disposal
Not generally performed at petroleum bulk storage
facilities
Off-site waste transfers with energy recovery codes
On-site wastes recovered and recycled in fuel recovery
system
Off-site waste transfers with recycling codes
On-site wastes recovered and treated
Off-site waste transfers with treatment codes
4.2.8 Source Reduction Activities, Section 8.10
Facilities have the opportunity to report source reduction actions initiated during the reporting
year on the Form R using codes listed in the Form R and Instructions. Some examples of source
reduction activities and suggested codes are given below.
• Reducing the frequency of tank cleanings and, therefore, the amount of tank cleaning
wastes by tracking process chemistry and monitoring tank cleanliness to determine more
precisely the need for cleaning. (W13: Improved maintenance scheduling, recordkeeping,
or procedures)
• Reducing the frequency of tank cleanings and the amount of tank cleaning wastes by
applying a protective coating to the surfaces internal heater coils to prevent accumulation of
scale on coil surfaces. (W52: Modified equipment, layout or piping)
• Reducing the need for corrosion inhibitors on buried piping by using cathodic protection.
(W52: Modified equipment, layout or piping)
4-43
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APPENDIX A
REPORTING GUIDANCE DOCUMENTS
General Guidance
Air/SuperfundNational Technology Guidance Study Series., no date.
Internet Availability: None
Hardcopy Availability: NTIS
Order Number: PB96-162-490
Chemicals in Your Community: A Guide to the Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-
Know Act, 1993.
Internet Availability: http://www.epa.gov/swercepp/gen-pubs.html
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-550-K-93-003
Common Synonyms for Chemicals Listed Under Section 313 of the Emergency Planning and
Community Right-To-Know Act., March 1995.
Internet Availability: None
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-745-R-95-008
Consolidated List of Chemicals Subject to the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-
Know Act and Section 112(r) of the Clean Air Act, as amended (Title III List of Lists), November
1998.
Internet Availability: http://www.epa.gov/swercepp/gen-pubs.html
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-550-B-98-017
The Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act: Section 313 Release Reporting
Requirements, December 1997 (brochure).
Internet Availability: None
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-745-K-97-002
EPCRA Section 313 Questions & Answers, Revised 1998 Version, December 1998.
Internet Availability: http://www.epa.gov/tri
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-745-B-99-004
A-l
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Executive Order 12856 - Federal Compliance 'with Right-to-Know Laws and Pollution
Prevention Requirements: Questions and Answers.
Internet Availability: None
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-745-R-95-011
Interpretations of Waste Management Activities: Recycling, Combustion for Energy Recovery,
Treatment for Destruction, Waste Stabilization and Release, April 1997.
Internet Availability: None
Hardcopy Availability: EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: No order number
Standard Industrial Classification Manual, 1987.
Internet Availability: None (see http://www.epa.gov/tdbnrmrl/help/l_help7.htm for codes)
Hardcopy Availability: NTIS
Order Number: PB-87-100-012
Supplier Notification Requirements
Internet Availability: None
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-560-4-91-006
Toxic Chemical Release Inventory Reporting Forms and Instructions (TRI Forms and Reporting
Requirements), March 23, 1998
Internet Availability: http://www.epa.gov/tri
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-745-K-98-001
Toxic Chemical Release Reporting; Community Right-to-Know; Final Rule, February 16, 1988
(53 FR 4500).
Internet Availability: None
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: None
Trade Secrets Rule and Form, July 29, 1988 (53 FR 28772).
Internet Availability: None
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: None
Waste Analysis at Facilities That Generate, Treat, Store, and Dispose of Hazardous Wastes; A
Guidance Manual, April 26, 1994.
Internet Availability: http://es.epa.gov/oeca/ore/red/wap330.pdf
Hardcopy Availability: NTIS
Order Number: PB94-963-603
A-2
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Chemical-Specific Guidance
Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Section 313: Guidance for Reporting
Aqueous Ammonia., July 1995.
Internet Availability: None
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-745-R-95-012
Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Section 313: List of Toxic Chemicals
Within the Chlorophenols Category, November 1994.
Internet Availability: None
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-745-B-95-004
Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Section 313: List of Toxic Chemicals.,
September 1996.
Internet Availability: None
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-745-B-96-002
Guidance for Reporting Sulfuric Acid Aerosols (acid aerosols, including mists, vapors, gas, fog,
and other airborne forms of any particle size), March 1998 Revision
Internet Availability: http://www.epa.gov/tri
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-745-R-97-007
List of Toxic Chemicals within the Water Dissociable Nitrate Compounds Category and
Guidance for Reporting, May 1996.
Internet Availability: None
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-745-R-96-004
Toxics Release Inventory: List of Toxic Chemicals Within the Glycol Ethers Category and
Guidance for Reporting, May 1995.
Internet Availability: None
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-745-R-95-006
Toxics Release Inventory: List of Toxic Chemicals Within the Nicotine and Salts Category and
Guidance for Reporting, February 1995.
Internet Availability: None
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-745-R-95-004
A-3
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Toxics Release Inventory: List of Toxic Chemicals Within the Polychlorinatd Alkanes Category
and Guidance for Reporting., February 1995.
Internet Availability: None
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-745-R-95-001
Toxics Release Inventory: List of Toxic Chemicals Within the Poly cyclic Aromatics Compounds
Category, February 1995.
Internet Availability: None
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-745-R-95-003
Toxics Release Inventory: List of Toxic Chemicals Within the Strychnine and Salts Category and
Guidance for Reporting, February 1995.
Internet Availability: None
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-745-R-95-005
Release Estimation Guidance
General
Data Quality Checks to Prevent Common Reporting Errors on Form R/Form A, August 1998.
Internet Availability: http://www.epa.gov/tri
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-745-R-98-012
Estimating Releases and Waste Treatment Efficiencies for the Toxic Chemical Release Inventory
Form, December 1987.
Internet Availability: http://www.epa.gov/tri
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI or EPCRA Hotline
Order Number: EPA-560-4-88-002
Releases During Cleaning of 'Equipment, June 30, 1986.
Internet Availability: None
Hardcopy Availability: Prepared by PEI Associates, Inc. for the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency, Office of Prevention, Pesticides & Toxic Substances, Washington, DC, Contract Bo.
Order Number: 68-02-4248
A-4
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Air
Chemdat 8/Water 8: Air Emission Models for Waste and Wastewater (for Microcomputers), 1994
Internet Availability: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/chief/software.html#water8
Hardcopy Availability: NTIS
Order Number: PB95-503595
Compilation of Air Pollutant Emission Factors, Volume 1: Stationary Point and Area Sources,
5th Edition (AP-42).
Internet Availability: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/chief/ap42.html
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI
Order Number: EPA-450-AP-425ED
Protocol for Equipment Leak Emission Estimates., 1987.
Internet Availability: http://www.epa.gov/ttnchiel/fyi.html
Hardcopy Availability: NCEPI
Order Number: EPA-423-R-95-017
Tanks 3: Tanks: Storage Tank Emission Estimation Software, Version 3.0 (for Microcomputers),
March 1996
Internet Availability: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/chief/tanks.html
Hardcopy Availability: NTIS
Order Number: PB97-500-755
Water
Chemdat 8/Water 8: Air Emission Models for Waste and Wastewater (for Microcomputers), 1994
Internet Availability: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/chief/software.html#water8
Hardcopy Availability: NTIS
Order Number: PB95-503595
Information and Document Distribution Centers
Enviro$en$e Information Network
BBS modem: (703) 908-2092
User Support: (703) 908-2007
Internet Home Page: http://es.epa/gov/index.html
National Center for Environmental Publications and Information (NCEPI)
P.O. Box 42419
Cincinnati, OH 45242
(800)490-9198
(513) 489-8695 (fax)
Internet Home Page: http://www.epa.gov/ncepihom/index.html
A-5
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National Technical Information Service (NTIS)
5285 Port Royal Road
Springfield, VA 22151
(800)553-6847
(703) 605-6900 (fax)
Internet Home Page: http://www.ntis.gov
OPPT Pollution Prevention (P2)
Internet Home Page: http://www.epa.gov/opptintr/p2home/index.html
Pollution Prevention Information Clearinghouse (PPIC)
401 M Street, SW (Mail Code 3404)
Washington, DC
(202)260-1023
(202) 260-0178 (fax)
RCRA, Superfund & EPCRA Hotline
(800) 424-9346 (outside the Washington, DC Area)
(703) 412-9810 (inside the Washington, DC Area)
TDD: (800) 553-7672 (outside the Washington, DC Area)
(703) 412-3323 (inside the Washington, DC Area)
RTK-Net
1742 Connecticut Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20009-1146
(202) 797-7200
Internet Home Page: http://www.rtknet.org
Technology Transfer Network (TTN)
(919) 541-5384 (Help Desk)
Internet Home Page: http://www.epa.gov/ttn
EPA Toxic Release Inventory General Information and Guidance
Internet Home Page: http://www.epa.gov/tri
U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO)
(202)512-1800
(202) 512-2250 (fax)
Internet Availability: http://www.gpo.gov
*For the latest list of industry-specific and other technical guidance documents, please refer to the latest
version of the Toxic Chemical Release Inventory Reporting Forms and Instructions, Appendix H.
A-6
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