EPA 260 B 01 015 September 2001 Office of Environmental Information Washington, DC 20460 United States Environmental Protection Agency Emergency Planning and Community Right To Know Act Section 313 Reporting Guidance for the Production of Pulp, Paper and Paperboard Industry DISCLAIMER This guidance is intended to assist industry with EPCRA section313 reporting for the pulp, paper and paperboard industry. In addition to providing an overview of aspects of the statutory and regulatory requirements of the EPCRA section 313 program, this document also provides recommendations and emission factors to assist industry with EPCRA reporting. These recommendations do not supercede any statutory or regulatory requirements, are subject to change, and are not independently binding on either EPA or covered facilities. Additionally, if a conflict exists between this guidance and the statutory or regulatory requirements, the conflict must be resolved in favor of the statute or regulation. Although EPA encourages industry to consider these recommendations and emission factors, in reviewing this document, industry should be aware that these recommendations and emission factors were developed to address common circumstances at typical facilities. The circumstances at a specific facility may significantly differ from those contemplated in the development of this document. Thus individual facilities may find that the recommendations and emission factors provided in this document are inapplicable to their processes or circumstances, and that alternative approaches or information are more accurate and/ or more appropriate for meeting the statutory and regulatory requirements of EPCRA section 313. Facilities are encouraged to contact the Agency with any additional or clarifying questions about the recommendations and emission factors in this document, or if the facility believes that EPA has incorrectly characterized a particular process or recommendation.

Additional guidance documents, including industry specific and chemical specific guidance documents, are available at the EPA TRI website: http:// www. epa. gov/ tri/. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii OVERVIEW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . viii CHAPTER 1  INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 1 1.0 PURPOSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 1 1.1 Background on EPCRA Section 313 and PPA Section 6607 . . . . . . . . 1 2 CHAPTER 2  REPORTING REQUIREMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 1 2.0 PURPOSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 1 2.1 Must You Report? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 2 2.2 SIC Code Determination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 3 2.3 Number of Employees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 6 2.4 Manufacturing, Processing, and Otherwise Use of EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals or Chemical Categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 8 2.5 Activity Categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 11 2.6 Persistent, Bioaccumulative, and Toxic ( PBT) Chemicals . . . . . . . . . 2 15 2.7 How Do You Report? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 19 2.8 Form R . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 20 2.9 Form A Certification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 20 2.10 Trade Secrets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 22 2.11 Recordkeeping and Penalty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 23 CHAPTER 3  EPCRA SECTION 313 CHEMICAL OR CHEMICAL CATEGORY ACTIVITY THRESHOLD DETERMINATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 1 3.0 PURPOSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 1 3.1 Step 1  Identify Which EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals or Chemical Categories are Manufactured ( Including Imported), Processed, or Otherwise Used . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 1 Qualifiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 5 3.2 Step 2  Identify the Activity Category and Any Exempt Activities for Each EPCRA Section 313 Chemical and Chemical Category . . . . . 3 8 3.2.1 Concentration Ranges for Threshold Determination . . . . . . . . 3 13 3.2.2 Evaluation of Exemptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 14 <IP_ADDRESS> De Minimis Exemption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 15 <IP_ADDRESS> Articles Exemption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 18 <IP_ADDRESS> Facility Related Exemption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 20 Laboratory Activity Exemption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 20 <IP_ADDRESS> Activity Related Exemptions ( Otherwise iv Use Exemptions) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 20 3.2.3 Additional Guidance on Threshold Calculations for Certain Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 22 <IP_ADDRESS> Reuse Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 22 <IP_ADDRESS> Remediation Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 23 <IP_ADDRESS> Recycling Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 24 3.3 Step 3  Calculate the Quantity of Each EPCRA Section 313 Chemical and Chemical Category and Determine Which Ones Exceed an Activity Threshold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 24 CHAPTER 4  ESTIMATING RELEASE AND OTHER WASTE MANAGEMENT QUANTITIES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 1 4.0 PURPOSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 1 4.1 General Steps for Determining Release and Other Waste Management Activity Quantities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 1 4.1.1 Step 1: Prepare a Process Flow Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 3 4.1.2 Step 2: Identify EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals and Chemical Categories and Potential Sources of Chemical Release and Other Waste Management Activities . . . . . . . . . . . 4 3 4.1.3 Step 3: Identify Release and Other Waste Management Activity Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 4 4.1.4 Step 4: Determine the Most Appropriate Method( s) and Calculate the Estimates for Release and Other Waste Management Activity Quantities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 18 <IP_ADDRESS> Monitoring Data or Direct Measurement ( code M) . . 4 19 <IP_ADDRESS> Mass Balance ( code C) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 20 <IP_ADDRESS> Emission Factors ( code E) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 22 <IP_ADDRESS> Engineering Calculations ( code O) . . . . . . . . . 4 25 <IP_ADDRESS> Estimating Release and Other Waste Management Quantities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 27 4.2 Determination of Release and Other Waste Management Activity Quantities from Production of Pulp, Paper, and Paperboard . . . . . . . 4 32 4.2.1 Pulp Production . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 39 4.2.2 Paper and Paperboard Production . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 44 5.0 REFERENCES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 1 INDEX Appendix A EPCRA SECTION 313 GUIDANCE RESOURCES Appendix B BASIC CALCULATION TECHNIQUES Appendix C UNIT CONVERSION FACTORS v LIST OF TABLES Page 2 1 SIC Codes Covered by EPCRA Section 313 Reporting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 3 2 2 EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals and Chemical Categories Commonly Reported in 1997 for Pulp Mills, Paper Mills, and Paperboard Mills ( SIC Codes 2611, 2621, and 2631) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 10 2 3 Activity Categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 13 2 4 Reporting Thresholds for EPCRA Section 313 Listed PBT Chemicals . . . . . 2 16 2 5 Chemicals Included in the EPCRA Section 313 Dioxin/ Dioxin Like Compound Category . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 17 2 6 Chemicals Included in the EPCRA Section 313 PAC Category . . . . . . . . . . . 2 18 3 1 Reporting Thresholds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 8 3 2 Description of Manufacturing Subcategories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 10 3 3 Description of Processing Subcategories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 11 3 4 Description of Otherwise Use Subcategories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 12 3 5 EPCRA Section 313 Reporting Threshold Worksheet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 27 3 6 Sample EPCRA Section 313 Reporting Threshold Worksheet . . . . . . . . . . . 3 28 4 1 Summary of Residue Quantities From Pilot Scale Experimental Study a, b . . . . . 4 9 4 2 Potential Data Sources for Release and Other Waste Management Calculations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 19 4 3 Release and Other Waste Management Quantity Estimation Worksheet . . . . 4 28 4 4 Pulp Production Process and Associated EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals and Chemical Categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 36 vi LIST OF FIGURES Page 2 1 EPCRA Section 313 Reporting Decision Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 4 4 1 Release and Other Waste Management Activity Calculation Approach . . . . . . 4 2 4 2 Possible Release and Other Waste Management Types1 for EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals and Chemical Categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 5 4 3 Process Flow Diagram  Overall Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 33 4 4 Process Flow Diagram  Pulp Production . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 40 4 5 Process Flow Diagram  Production of Paper and Paperboard . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 45 vii ACKNOWLEDGMENT The U. S. EPA wishes to acknowledge the valuable contributions made by the staff and members of the National Council of the Paper Industry for Air and Streams Improvement ( NCASI). Without the insight provided by those in industry with actual experience in fulfilling the reporting requirements of EPCRA Section 313 we would not have been able to produce a document that we believe will be of great assistance to those who must prepare future EPCRA Section 313 reports. Special thanks go to Ms. Susan Crowley, Manager, Environmental Affairs,

AFPA, and Mr. John Pinkerton, Ph. D., Vice President, Air Quality, NCASI. viii OVERVIEW This document supersedes the booklet entitled Title III Section 313 Release Reporting Guidance, Estimating Chemical Releases from Paper and Paperboard Production ( EPA 560/ 4 88 004k), dated February 1988. It is intended to assist establishments and facilities in the production of pulp, paper, and paperboard industry in complying with the Emergency Planning and Community Right To Know Act ( EPCRA) Section 313 and Pollution Prevention Act ( PPA) Section 6607 reporting requirements, including the preparation of Form R or Form A certification statement. The EPCRA Section 313 program is commonly referred to as the Toxics Release Inventory ( TRI).

The principal differences in this new document include:

More detailed examples;

New EPCRA Section 313 regulations and guidance developed since 1988;

PPA Section 6607 reporting requirements;

U. S. Environmental Protection Agency's ( U. S. EPA's) guidance on various issues specific to production of pulp, paper, and paperboard; and

EPCRA Section 313 issues regarding processes not discussed in the earlier documents.

This document is designed to be a supplement to the annual issue of the Toxic Chemical Release Inventory Reporting Forms and Instructions, ( TRI Forms and Instructions)

( 2000 version, EPA 745 B 01 001). It is organized to provide a step by step guide to compliance with EPCRA Section 313 and PPA Section 6607, starting with how to determine if your facility must report and ending with guidance for estimating release and other waste management activity quantities.

It is recognized that not all pulp, paper, and paperboard production establishments will have all unit operations described in this document. However, each of the unit operations discussed are common operations found in the production of pulp, paper, and paperboard establishments covered by EPCRA Section 313 reporting requirements. To use this guidance, ix select the operation, or combination of operations, that most closely fits the activities at your establishment.

Chapter 1 introduces EPCRA Section 313 and PPA Section 6607 reporting and provides a brief background on Section 313 of EPCRA and Section 6607 of PPA.

Chapter 2 discusses reporting requirements and begins with how to determine whether your facility must report. This determination is based on your answers to a series of four questions:

Is your facility's primary SIC Code on the EPCRA Section 313 list?

Does your facility employ ten or more full time employees or the equivalent?

Does your facility manufacture, process, or otherwise use any EPCRA Section 313 chemicals or chemical categories?

Does your facility exceed any of the activity thresholds for an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category?

If the answer to ANY ONE of the first three questions is " No" you are not required to submit an EPCRA Section 313 report for any toxic chemicals. If you answer " Yes" to the first three questions and " No" to the forth, you are not required to submit an EPCRA Section 313 report for that chemical or chemical category. If you answer " Yes" to ALL four questions,

the next step is to determine what kind of report you must prepare, a Form R or Form A certification statement ( 40 CFR § 372.22). Chapter 2 provides detailed information on the requirements for each kind of report. Chapter 2 concludes with a discussion on how to address trade secrets and the records that should be kept to support your reporting.

Chapter 3 discusses ways to calculate the activity thresholds ( manufacture,

process, and otherwise use) for the EPCRA Section 313 chemicals or chemical categories.

Information is provided on how to determine which EPCRA Section 313 chemicals or chemical categories your facility manufactures, processes, or otherwise uses and how to calculate the quantities of each. Detailed information is also provided on the various exemptions: x

De minimis exemption;

Article exemption;

Facility related exemption; and

Activity related exemptions.

Chapter 3 concludes with a discussion of how to determine which EPCRA Section 313 chemicals or chemical categories exceed a reporting threshold.

Chapter 4 discusses ways to estimate the release and other waste management activity amounts for those EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories for which you must prepare a report. The first part of this chapter provides a step by step approach designed to minimize the risk of overlooking an activity involving an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category and any potential sources or types of release and other waste management activities. This procedure consists of:

Preparation of a detailed process flow diagram;

Identification of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories and potential sources of toxic chemical release and other waste management activities;

Identification of the potential types of release and other waste management activities from each source; and

Determination of the most appropriate methods for estimating the quantities of EPCRA Section 313 chemical and chemical category release and other waste management activities.

The second part of Chapter 4 is organized by the typical activities in pulp, paper,

and paperboard production operations where EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories are used. The commonly used EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories,

process descriptions, release and other waste management activity estimates, example calculations, and common problems are presented.

This document includes examples and common errors applicable to pulp, paper,

and paperboard production operations. These examples are based on information identified during voluntary site surveys of facilities that have filed EPCRA Section 313 reports in the past,

discussion with representatives of the American Forest and Paper Association and the National xi Council of the Paper Industry for Air and Stream Improvement, and on questions received by the EPCRA Hotline. 1 1 CHAPTER 1  INTRODUCTION 1.0 PURPOSE The purpose of this guidance manual is two fold. The primary purpose is to assist pulp, paper, and paperboard production facilities in complying 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). This manual explains the EPCRA Section 313 reporting requirements and discusses specific release and other waste management activities encountered at many facilities that conduct pulp, paper, and paperboard production operations. Since each plant is unique, the recommendations presented may have to be modified for your particular facility. The secondary purpose is to provide information to other interested parties ( such as management, legal professionals, inspectors, consultants, teachers,

students, and the general public) about the processes and some of the toxic chemicals used in this industry.

This manual is intended solely for guidance and does not alter any statutory or regulatory requirements. The document should be used in conjunction with the appropriate statutes and regulations, but does not supersede them. Accordingly, the reader should consult other applicable documents ( for example, the statute, the Code of Federal Regulations ( CFR),

relevant preamble language, and the current Toxic Chemical Release Inventory Reporting Forms and Instructions ( TRI Forms and Instructions)) ( 2000 version, EPA 745 B 01 001).

This document supersedes the 1988 document entitled Title III Section 313 Release Reporting Guidance, Estimating Chemical Releases from Paper and Paperboard Production ( EPA 560/ 4 88 004k). This new document includes:

More detailed examples;

New EPCRA Section 313 regulations and guidance developed since 1988;

PPA Section 6607 reporting requirements; 1 2

U. S. Environmental Protection Agency's ( U. S. EPA's) guidance on various issues specific to production of pulp, paper, and paperboard; and

EPCRA Section 313 issues regarding processes not discussed in the earlier document.

This document supplements the TRI Forms and Instructions document that is updated and published annually by U. S. EPA. It is essential that you use the current version of the TRI Forms and Instructions to determine if ( and how) you should report. Changes or modifications to EPCRA Section 313 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:

Reduce the level of effort expended by those facilities that prepare an EPCRA Section 313 report; and

Increase the accuracy and completeness of the data being reported.

U. S. EPA cannot anticipate every potential issue or question that may apply to your facility. Therefore, this manual attempts to address those issues most prevalent or common for the production of pulp, paper, and paperboard. Used in conjunction with the most current TRI Forms and Instructions and Estimating Releases and Waste Treatment Efficiencies for the Toxic Chemical Release Inventory Form ( 2002 version), facilities should be able to provide complete and accurate information for EPCRA Section 313 reporting. Additional discussions on specific issues can be found in U. S. EPA's current edition of EPCRA Section 313, Questions and Answers ( the 1998 edition is EPA 745 B 98 004), which is available on the U. S. 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.

1.1 Background on EPCRA Section 313 and PPA Section 6607 The following overview of EPCRA Section 313 and Section 6607 of the PPA, will provide you with a basic understanding of the objectives and requirements of this program, and will help you in completing your forms. 1 3 One of the primary goals of EPCRA is to increase the public's knowledge of, and access to, information on both the presence of toxic chemicals in their communities and on releases into the environment and other waste management activities of those chemicals. EPCRA Section 313 requires certain designated businesses ( see SIC Code discussion, Chapter 2, Section 2.2) to submit annual reports ( commonly referred to as Form R reports and Form A certification statements) on over 600 EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories ( 40 CFR § 372.22). Covered facilities report the amounts released or otherwise managed as waste ( 40 CFR § 372.85). However, if a facility meets the reporting criteria for listed toxic chemicals, the facility must report even if there are no releases or other waste management quantities associated with these chemicals ( 40 CFR § 372.30( a)); ( 40 CFR § 372.85( b)( 15)). Throughout this document,

whenever EPCRA Section 313 chemicals are discussed, the discussion includes toxic chemical categories, as appropriate. Toxic chemicals or chemical categories may be added or deleted from the list ( EPCRA § 313 ( d)( 2)). 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 and chemical categories present at your facility. Copies of the reporting package can be requested from the EPCRA Hotline, 1 800 424 9346 or accessed through TRI web site, www. epa. gov/ tri/.

All facilities meeting the EPCRA Section 313 reporting criteria must report the annual release and other waste management activity quantities ( routine and accidental) of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories to all environmental media. A separate report is required for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category that is manufactured ( including imported), processed, or otherwise used above the reporting threshold ( 40 CFR § 372.85). The reports must be submitted to U. S. EPA and State or Tribal governments, on or before July 1, for activities in the previous calendar year ( 40 CFR § 372.30( d)). On July 1, the owner/ operator of the facility is primarily responsible for the report, even if the owner/ operator did not own the facility during the reporting year ( 40 CFR § 372.5). However, property owners with no business interest in the operation of the facility, other than a lessor interest, are exempt from reporting requirements ( 40 CFR § 372.38( e)).

EPCRA also mandates U. S. EPA to establish and maintain a publicly available database system consisting of the information reported under Section 313 and under Section 6607 1 4 of the PPA. This database, known as the Toxics Release Inventory ( TRI) database, can be accessed through the following sources:

U. S. EPA Internet site, http:// www. epa. gov/ tri;

U. S. EPA Internet site, http:// www. epa. gov/ triexplorer;

Envirofacts Warehouse Internet site, http:// www. epa. gov/ enviro; and

Right to Know network, http:// www. rtk. net/ trisearch. html.

However, information qualifying as a trade secret, in accordance with the regulatory requirements, is protected from public release ( 40 CFR § 350). In addition to being a resource for the public, TRI data are also used in the research and development of regulations related to EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories.

Members of the American Forest and Paper Association and the National Council of the Paper Industry for Air and Stream Improvement provided input on common problems,

specific to the production of pulp, paper, and paperboard, encountered by those completing the EPCRA Section 313 reports. U. S. EPA has combined this input with questions forwarded to the EPCRA Hotline and those identified during voluntary site surveys of facilities that have filed EPCRA Section 313 reports in the past. Selected issues and guidance addressing these common problems are presented throughout this document as applicable. 2 1 CHAPTER 2  REPORTING REQUIREMENTS 2.0 PURPOSE The purpose of this chapter is to help you determine if you must prepare an EPCRA Section 313 report( s) and, if so, what kind of a report( s) should be prepared ( Form R or the alternate certification statement, the Form A). This chapter presents the EPCRA Section 313 reporting requirements to help you determine if these requirements apply to your facility. It also discusses the reporting of trade secrets and the records that must be kept.

To understand the following discussion 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 under common control with such person) ( 40 CFR § 372.3). A facility may contain more than one establishment. An " establishment" is defined as, " an economic unit, generally at a single physical location, where business is conducted, or where services or industrial operations are performed" ( 40 CFR § 372.3).

U. S. EPA recognizes that for business reasons it may be easier and more appropriate for establishments at one facility to report separately. However, the combined quantities of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories manufactured, processed, or otherwise used in all establishments making up that facility must be considered for threshold determinations ( 40 CFR § 372.25( c); 40 CFR § 372.25( d)). Also, the combined release and other waste management activity quantities reported singly for each establishment must total those for the facility as a whole.

Note that if a facility is comprised of more than one establishment, once an activity threshold is met by the facility, providing the facility meets the SIC Code and employee threshold 2 2 criteria, release and other waste management activities from all establishments at the facility must be reported ( 40 CFR § 372.25( c); 40 CFR § 372.25( d)).

Example  Multiple Establishments Your facility has several different establishments, all with SIC Codes covered under EPCRA Section 313. One establishment used 7,000 pounds of toluene, an EPCRA Section 313 chemical, during the year to clean equipment. Another establishment purchased and used 4,000 pounds of toluene during the year as a solvent to separate a component from a mixture, with recovery of the toluene for reuse. Both activities constitute otherwise use of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical ( as presented in Section 2.5 and described in detail in Chapter 3) and the total for the facility exceeded the 10,000 pound otherwise use threshold for the year. Thus, if your facility meets the employee threshold, you must file one Form R for the release and other waste management activities of toluene from your facility, or two Form Rs, one from each establishment. Please note that you may be eligible to file one Form A certification for the facility but you cannot file a separate Form A certification statement for each establishment.

2.1 Must You Report?

How do you determine if your facility must prepare an EPCRA Section 313 report? Your answers to the following four questions will help you decide ( illustrated by Figure 2 1):

1) Is the primary SIC Code for your facility included in the list covered by EPCRA Section 313 reporting ( see Section 2.2)?

2) Does your facility have 10 or more full time employees or the equivalent ( see Section 2.3)?

3) Does your facility manufacture ( which includes importation), process, or otherwise use EPCRA Section 313 chemicals or chemical categories ( see Section 2.4)?

4) Does your facility exceed any applicable thresholds of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals or chemical categories ( for non PBT chemicals: 25,000 pounds per year for manufacturing; 25,000 pounds per year for processing; or 10,000 pounds per year for otherwise use  see Section 2.5; For PBT chemicals  see Section 2.6 for applicable thresholds)?

If you answered " No" to any of the first three questions, you are not required to prepare any EPCRA Section 313 reports. If you answered " Yes" to ALL of the first three questions, you must complete a threshold calculation for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical at 2 3 the facility, and submit an EPCRA Section 313 report for each toxic chemical and chemical category exceeding the applicable threshold ( 40 CFR § 372.22).

2.2 SIC Code Determination Facilities with the SIC Codes presented in Table 2 1 are covered by the EPCRA Section 313 reporting requirements ( 40 CFR § 372.22( b)).

Table 2 1 SIC Codes Covered by EPCRA Section 313 Reporting SIC Codes Industry Qualifiers 10 Metal Mining Except SIC Codes 1011, 1081, and 1094 12 Coal Mining Except SIC Code 1241 20 through 39 Manufacturing None 4911, 4931, and 4939 Electric and Other Services and Combination Utilities Limited to facilities that combust coal and/ or oil for the purpose of generating electricity for distribution in commerce 4953 Refuse Systems Limited to facilities regulated under RCRA Subtitle C 5169 Chemicals and Allied Products None 5171 Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals None 7389 Business Services Limited to facilities primarily engaged in solvent recovery services on a contract or fee basis Pulp mills, paper mills, and paperboard mills are generally covered by SIC Codes 2611, 2621, and 2631, respectively. You should determine the SIC Code( s) for your facility,

based on the activities on site. 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 or visit the U. S. Census Bureau's web site at www. census. gov/ epcd/ www/ sic. html. 2 4 Figure 2 1. EPCRA Section 313 Reporting Decision Diagram 2 5 Note that auxiliary facilities can assume the SIC Code of another covered establishment if the primary function is to support the covered establishment's operations ( 40 CFR § 372.22). For the purpose of EPCRA Section 313, auxiliary facilities are defined as those that are primarily engaged in performing support services for another covered establishment or multiple establishments of a covered facility, and are in a different physical location from the primary facility ( 53 FR 4503; Standard Industrial Classification Manual, OMB, 1987). In addition,

auxiliary facilities perform an integral role in the primary facility's activities. In general, the auxiliary facility's basic administrative services ( e. g., paperwork, payroll, employment) are performed by the primary facility. If an auxiliary facility's primary function is to support/ service a facility with a covered SIC Code, the auxiliary facility assumes the covered SIC Code as its primary SIC Code and must consider the other reporting requirements (( 40 CFR, § 372.22; 53 FR 4503) 40 CFR Section 372.22) to determine if it must comply with the EPCRA Section 313 reporting requirements. However, if the SIC Code for the primary facility is not covered by EPCRA Section 313, then neither the primary nor the auxiliary facility is required to submit a report.

If your facility has more than one SIC Code ( i. e., several establishments with different SIC Codes are owned or operated by the same entity and are located at your facility),

you are subject to 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, products produced and/ or shipped by every other establishment within the facility ( 40 CFR § 372.22). 2 6 Example  Primary SIC Code A facility has two establishments. The first, a scrap and waste materials establishment, is in SIC Code 5093. SIC Code 5093 is not a covered SIC Code. However, the second establishment, a paperboard mill, is in SIC Code 2631, which is a covered SIC Code. The facility also determines the product is worth $ 50/ unit as received from the establishment in the non covered SIC Code and the value of the product is $ 150/ unit after processing by the establishment in the covered SIC Code. The value added by the establishment in the covered SIC Code is more than 50% of the product value; therefore, the primary SIC Code is 2631, a covered SIC Code. Thus, the establishment is covered by EPCRA Section 313 reporting and the entire facility ( i. e., both establishments) is subject to reporting.

A pilot plant within a covered SIC Code is considered a covered facility and is subject to reporting, provided it meets the employee and activity criteria ( note that pilot plants are not eligible for the laboratory exemption, which is discussed in Chapter 3). Warehouses on the same site as facilities in a covered SIC Code are also subject to reporting. Likewise, warehouses that qualify as auxiliary facilities of covered facilities also must report, provided all applicable reporting requirements are met ( 53 FR 4503).

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 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. U. S. 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.

2.3 Number of Employees If your facility meets SIC Code and activity threshold criteria, you are required to prepare an EPCRA Section 313 report if your facility has 10 or more full time employees or the 2 7 equivalent ( 40 CFR § 372.22( a)). A full time employee equivalent is defined as a work year of 2,000 hours. If your facility's employees hours total 20,000 or more hours in a calendar year, you meet the 10 or more employee threshold criterion ( 40 CFR § 372.3).

The following information should be included in your employee calculations:

Owners;

Operations/ manufacturing staff;

Clerical staff;

Temporary employees;

Sales personnel;

Truck drivers ( employed by the facility);

Other non manufacturing or off site facility employees directly supporting the facility;

Paid vacation and sick leave; and

Contractor employees ( maintenance, construction, etc. but excluding contracted truck drivers and minor intermittent service vendors ( e. g., trash handlers)).

In general, if an individual is employed or hired to work at the facility, all the hours worked by that individual ( including paid leave and overtime) for the facility should be counted in determining if the 20,000 hour criterion has been met.

Example  Employee Equivalent Calculation Your facility has six full time employees working 2,000 hours/ year. You also employ two full time sales people and a delivery truck driver ( employed by the facility) who are assigned to the plant, each working 2,000 hours/ year but predominantly on the road or from their homes. The wastewater treatment system ( on site and owned by the facility) is operated by a contractor who spends an average of two hours per day and five days per week at the plant. Finally, you built an addition to the plant warehouse 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, two salespeople, and one delivery truck driver) are: ( 9 employees) × ( 2,000 hours/ year) = 18,000 hours/ year

Hours for the wastewater treatment system operator are: ( 2 hours/ day) × ( 5 days/ week) × ( 52 weeks/ year) = 520 hours/ year; and

Hours for the construction crew are: ( 4 contractors) × ( 1,000 hours) = 4,000 hours/ year.

Your facility has a total of 22,520 hours for the year, which is above the 20,000 hours/ year threshold; therefore, you meet the employee criterion. 2 8 2.4 Manufacturing, Processing, and Otherwise Use of EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals or Chemical Categories If you are in a covered SIC Code and have 10 or more full time employee equivalents, determine which EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories are manufactured, processed, or otherwise used at your facility. One way to do this is to prepare a list which includes all toxic chemicals and chemical categories found in mixtures and trade name products at all establishments at the facility. This list should then be compared to the CURRENT list of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories found in the TRI Forms and Instructions document for that reporting year ( also available from the EPCRA Hotline, 1 800

424 9346). Once you identify the EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories at your facility, evaluate the activities involving each toxic chemical and chemical category and determine if any activity thresholds have been met.

The original list of toxic chemicals and chemical categories subject to EPCRA Section 313 reporting was a combination of lists from New Jersey and Maryland. Refinements to the list have been made and changes are anticipated to continue. The list can be modified by U. S.

EPA initiative, or industry or the public can petition U. S. EPA to modify the list ( EPCRA § 313 ( d) + ( e)). When evaluating a toxic chemical or chemical category for addition or deletion from the list, U. S. EPA must consider the toxic chemical's potential acute human health effects and chronic human health effects or its adverse environmental effects ( EPCRA § 313( d)( 2)). U. S.

EPA reviews these petitions and initiates a rulemaking to add or delete the toxic chemical or chemical category from the list, or publishes an explanation why it denied the petition ( EPCRA § 313( e)( 1)).

Note that toxic chemicals and chemical categories are periodically added, delisted,

or modified. Therefore, it is imperative that you refer to the appropriate reporting year's list.

You can refer to the U. S. EPA's TRI website, http:// www. epa. gov/ tri, for updated guidance.

Also, note that a list of synonyms for EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories can be found in the U. S. EPA publication Common Synonyms for Chemicals Listed Under 2 9 Section 313 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right To Know Act, ( EPA 745 R 95

008). Table 2 2 lists the EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories most frequently reported for paper and paperboard production facilities. This list is not intended to be all inclusive and should only be used as a guide. 2 10 Table 2 2 EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals and Chemical Categories Commonly Reported* in 1997 for Pulp Mills, Paper Mills, and Paperboard Mills ( SIC Codes 2611, 2621, and 2631)

EPCRA Section 313 Chemical/ Chemical Category CAS Registry Number Process/ Application Acetaldehyde 75 07 0 Pulping, bleaching, and chemical recovery operations ( 9) Combustion byproduct Ammonia 7664 41 7 Sulfite pulping ( 7, 9), kraft pulping, black liquor pyrolysis, smelt recovery, pH adjustment, wastewater treatment ( 9)

Barium Compounds N040 Stock preparation ( 7)

Biphenyl 92 52 4 Kraft pulping process byproduct Catechol 120 80 9 Kraft pulping process byproduct Certain Glycol Ethers N230 Recovered fiber deinking activities, otherwise used Chlorine 7782 50 5 Bleaching, water & wastewater treatment ( 1, 9) Manufacture of ClO2 ( 9)

Chlorine dioxide 10049 04 4 Bleaching ( 1, 7), manufacture Chloroform 67 66 3 Bleaching ( 1), coincidental manufacture Chloromethane 74 87 3 Bleaching ( 1) and Kraft recovery furnace, coincidental manufacture Chromium compounds N090 Equipment maintenance; manufactured/ processed while pretreating pulp with chelating agents before peroxide bleaching Catalytic decomposition agents; combustion byproduct Copper compounds N100 Equipment maintenance; Cu( NO3) 2 used in production of light sensitive papers Fungicides, CuSO4 is a wood/ pulp preservative, combustion byproduct Cresol ( mixed) 1319 77 3 Surfacant; pulping byproduct Dazomet 533 74 4 Biocide ingredient, otherwise used Ethylene glycol 107 21 1 Heat transfer fluid and antifreeze ( otherwise used), specialty paper coating Formaldehyde 50 00 0 Wet strength additive( 2), Kraft pulping process byproduct, combustion byproduct Formic acid 64 18 6 Paper dyeing/ finishing, Kraft pulping process byproduct Hydrochloric acid ( acid aerosol) 7647 01 0 Coal, oil, and spent pulping liquor combustion byproduct Hydrogen fluoride 7664 39 3 Coal, oil, and spent pulping liquor combustion byproduct Table 2 2 ( Continued)

EPCRA Section 313 Chemical/ Chemical Category CAS Registry Number Process/ Application 1These activity thresholds are for non PBT chemicals. See Section 2.6 for the activity thresholds applicable to PBT chemicals.

2 11 Manganese compounds N450 Manufactured/ processed while pretreating pulp with chelating agents before peroxide bleaching Paint additive ( pigments/ dyes), catalytic decomposition agents, combustion byproduct Methanol 67 56 1 Pulping, chemical recovery, bleaching, and combustion Printing inks, solvents, antifreeze, and manufacture of ClO2 ( 9), byproduct Methyl ethyl ketone 78 93 3 Pulping, combustion, and chemical recovery ( 9), bleaching ( 1), byproduct Nickel compounds NN495 Manufactured/ processed while pretreating pulp with chelating agents before peroxide bleaching Nitrate compounds N511 Wastewater treatment system byproduct Nitric acid 7697 37 2 Equipment descaling, otherwise used Phenol 108 95 2 Slimicide, dye/ indicator, solvent, and combustion byproduct Potassium dimethyldithiocarbamate 128 03 0 Fungicide, corrosion inhibitor Sulfuric acid ( acid aerosol) 7664 93 9 Coal, oil, wood, and black liquor combustion byproduct ( 9)

Toluene 108 88 3 Solvent Vinyl acetate 108 05 4 Paper coating additive ( solvent)

Xylene ( mixed isomers) 1330 20 7 Paper coating additive ( solvent)

Zinc compounds N982 Stock preparation, bleaching ( 7)

* Reported by five or more facilities 2.5 Activity Categories EPCRA Section 313 defines three activity categories for the listed chemicals and chemical categories: manufacturing ( which includes importing), processing, and otherwise use.

For non PBT chemicals, 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 use1 ( 40 CFR § 372.25). These thresholds apply to each toxic chemical or chemical category individually. The 2 12 quantity of toxic chemicals or chemical categories stored on site or purchased is not relevant for threshold determinations. Rather, the determination is based solely on the annual quantity actually manufactured ( including imported), processed, or otherwise used. Therefore, EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories that are brought on site and stored, and are neither incorporated into a product for distribution in commerce nor otherwise used on site during the reporting year, are not considered towards any activity threshold ( EPCRA § 313( a) & ( b);

EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers, Revised 1998 Version, Q& A 87 ( 1998) ( EPA 745

B 98 004)).

Example  Activity Determination A paperboard manufacturer buys a melamine formaldehyde resin, dissolves it in water and applies it to paper to produce a polymer coated product. The resin contains a small amount of unreacted formaldehyde monomer which evaporates during the coating process. Since the formaldehyde ( CAS Registry No. 50 00 0) is not incorporated into the final product it would be classified as otherwise used and the amount used should be included in calculations to determine if the 10,000 pound/ year otherwise used activity threshold has been reached. If the formaldehyde concentration in the incoming resin mixture is below the 0.1% de minimis concentration it should not be included in any threshold calculations.

Expanded definitions, with examples, of each of the three activities are found in Chapter 3, Tables 3 2, 3 3, and 3 4. The terms are briefly defined in Table 2 3. 2 13 Table 2 3 Activity Categories Activity Category Definition Threshold1 ( lb/ yr)

Manufacture To produce, prepare, import, or compound an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category. Manufacture also applies to an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category that is produced coincidentally during the manufacture, processing, otherwise use, or disposal of another chemical or mixture of chemicals as a byproduct, and an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category that remains in that other chemical or mixture of chemicals as an impurity during the manufacturing, processing, or otherwise use or disposal of any other chemical substance or mixture ( 40 CFR § 372.3). An example of coincidental manufacturing could be the production of ammonia or nitrate compounds in a wastewater treatment system. 25,000 Process To prepare an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category, or a mixture or trade name product containing an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category, for distribution in commerce ( 40 CFR § 372.3). For example, the addition of EPCRA Section 313 listed pigments to paint should be reported if you exceeded the reporting threshold. Processing includes the preparation for sale to your customers ( and transferring between facilities within your company) of a chemical or formulation that you manufacture. For example, if you manufacture an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category or product, package it, and then distribute it into commerce, this chemical has been manufactured AND processed by your facility. 25,000 Otherwise Use Generally, use of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category that does not fall under the manufacture or process definitions is classified as otherwise use ( 40 CFR § 372.3). An EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category that is otherwise used does not function by being incorporated into a product that is distributed in commerce, but may instead be used as a manufacturing or processing aid ( e. g., catalyst), in waste processing, or as a fuel ( including waste fuel). For example, xylene used as a carrier solvent for paint is classified as otherwise used.

On May 1, 1997 U. S. EPA revised the interpretation of otherwise use. The following new otherwise use definition became effective with the 1998 reporting year ( 62 FR 23834, May 1, 1997):

Otherwise use means " any use of a toxic chemical, including 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 a toxic chemical does not include disposal, stabilization ( without subsequent distribution in commerce), or treatment for destruction unless:

( 1) The toxic chemical that was disposed, stabilized, or treated for destruction was received from off site for the purposes of further waste management; OR ( 2) The toxic chemical that was disposed, stabilized, or treated for destruction 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 1These activity thresholds are for non PBT chemicals. See Section 2.6 for the activity thresholds applicable to PBT chemicals. 2 14 COMMON ERROR  Coincidental Manufacture The coincidental manufacture of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category, outside the primary product process line but in direct support of the process, is frequently overlooked. For example, a paperboard manufacturer ( SIC Code 2631) uses steam heated rollers in the dryer process. These rollers use large quantities of steam which is generated on site by a coal fired steam plant. The burning of coal will potentially result in the coincidental manufacture of several EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories including the aerosol forms of sulfuric and hydrochloric acid, metal compounds, and formaldehyde. The burning of waste fuel including, but not limited to, wood for energy recovery may result in coincidental manufacture of metal compounds. The amount of each coincidentally manufactured EPCRA Section 313 chemical and chemical category must be included in any threshold determinations and, if a threshold is exceeded, any subsequent release and other waste management activity quantity calculations.

Assuming the toxic chemical has not been imported, the relabeling or redistribution of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category where no repackaging occurs does not constitute manufacturing, processing, or otherwise use of that chemical ( EPCRA § 313( a) & ( b);

40 CFR § 372.3). This type of activity should not be included in threshold determinations.

Example  Relabeling You buy a mixture in small containers that contains an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category. When it arrives you put your own label on each container and put the containers in a larger box with several other items you manufacture, and sell the larger box as a kit. The quantity of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category in the small containers should not be counted toward the processing threshold ( because you did not repackage the chemical) or the otherwise use threshold, nor should it be counted toward the manufacturing activity threshold unless the small containers were imported. However, you must consider other EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories that you manufactured in the kit toward manufacturing and processing threshold determinations.

Example  Treatment of Wastes from Off Site A covered facility receives a waste containing 12,000 pounds of Chemical A, an EPCRA Section 313 chemical, from off site. The facility treats the waste, destroying Chemical A and in the treatment process manufactures 10,500 pounds of Chemical B, another EPCRA Section 313 chemical. Chemical B is disposed on site.

Since the waste was received from off site for the purpose of waste management, the amount of Chemical A must be included in the otherwise use threshold determination for Chemical A. The otherwise use threshold is 10,000 pounds and since the amount of Chemical A exceeds this threshold, all release and other waste management activities for Chemical A must be reported.

Chemical B was manufactured in the treatment of a waste received from off site. The quantity of chemical B should be counted towards the manufacturing threshold. However, the facility disposed of Chemical B on site and waste received from off site for treatment for destruction, disposal, or stabilization is considered to be otherwise used ( 40 CFR § 372.3). Therefore, the amount of Chemical B must also be considered in the otherwise use threshold determination. Thus, the reporting threshold for Chemical B has also been exceeded and all release and other waste management activities for Chemical B must be reported. 2 15 Also, note that the threshold determinations for the three activity categories ( manufacturing, processing, and otherwise use) are mutually exclusive. That is, you must conduct a separate threshold determination for each activity category and if you exceed any threshold, all release and other waste management activities of that EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category at the facility must be considered for reporting ( 40 CFR § 372.25( c) & ( d)).

2.6 Persistent, Bioaccumulative, and Toxic ( PBT) Chemicals U. S. EPA promulgated the final rule for Persistent, Bioaccumulative, and Toxic ( PBT) chemicals in the October 29, 1999 Federal Register ( 64 FR 58666). This rule applies for the reporting year beginning January 1, 2000 ( for EPCRA Section 313 reports that must be filed by July 1, 2001).

In this rule, U. S. EPA has added seven chemicals and lowered the reporting thresholds for 18 chemicals and chemical categories that meet the EPCRA Section 313 criteria for persistence and bioaccumulation. The PBT chemicals and their thresholds are listed in Table 2 4. 2 16 Table 2 4 Reporting Thresholds for EPCRA Section 313 Listed PBT Chemicals Chemical Name or Chemical Category CASRN Section 313 Reporting Threshold ( in pounds unless noted other wise)

Aldrin 309 00 2 100 Benzo( g, h, i) perylene1 191 24 2 10 Chlordane 57 74 9 10 Dioxin and dioxin like compounds category1 ( manufacturing; and the processing or otherwise use of dioxin and dioxin like compounds if the dioxin and dioxin like compounds are present as contaminants in a chemical and if they were created during the manufacturing of that chemical) NA 0.1 grams Heptachlor 76 44 8 10 Hexachlorobenzene 118 74 1 10 Isodrin 465 73 6 10 Methoxychlor 72 43 5 100 Octachlorostyrene1 29082 74 4 10 Pendimethalin 40487 42 1 100 Pentachlorobenzene1 608 93 5 10 Polycyclic aromatic compounds category NA 100 Polychlorinated biphenyl ( PCBs) 1336 36 3 10 Tetrabromobisphenol A1 79 94 7 100 Toxaphene 8001 35 2 10 Trifluralin 1582 09 8 100 Mercury 7439 97 6 10 Mercury compounds NA 10 1 Chemical or chemical category added to the EPCRA Section 313 list with this rulemaking. Other chemicals and chemical categories in this table were previously reportable for EPCRA Section 313; however, the thresholds have now been lowered as indicated.

U. S. EPA also added two toxic chemicals to the polycyclic aromatic compounds ( PACs) category that is listed above:

Benzo( j, k) fluorene ( fluoranthene); and

3 methylchloanthrene. 2 17 ( 40 CFR § 372.65( c)) These two toxic chemicals are not to be reported individually; rather, they must be included within the PACs compound category ( 40 CFR § 372.25( h)).

Tables 2 5 and 2 6 present the individual chemicals in the dioxin and dioxin like compound category and in the PAC category, respectively.

Table 2 5 Chemicals Included in the EPCRA Section 313 Dioxin/ Dioxin Like Compound Category CASRN Polychlorinated dibenzo p dioxins 1,2,3,4,6,7,8 heptachlorodibenzo p dioxin 35822 46 9 1,2,3,4,7,8 hexachlorodibenzo p dioxin 39227 28 6 1,2,3,6,7,8 hexachlorodibenzo p doixin 57653 85 7 1,2,3,7,8,9 hexachlorodibenzo p dioxin 19408 74 3 1,2,3,4,6,7,8,9 octachlorodibenzo p doixin 3268 87 9 1,2,3,7,8 pentachlorodibenzo p dioxin 40321 76 4 2,3,7,8 tetrachlorodibenzo p dioxin 1746 01 6 Polychlorinated dibenzofurans 1,2,3,4,6,7,8 heptachlorodibenzofuran 67562 39 4 1,2,3,4,7,8,9 heptachlorodibenzofuran 55673 89 7 1,2,3,4,7,8 hexachlorodibenzofuran 70648 26 9 1,2,3,6,7,8 hexachlorodibenzofuran 57117 44 9 1,2,3,7,8,9 hexachlorodibenzofuran 72918 21 9 2,3,4,6,7,8 hexachlorodibenzofuran 60851 34 5 1,2,3,4,6,7,8,9 octachlorodibenzofuran 39001 02 0 1,2,3,7,8 pentachlorodibenzofuran 57117 41 6 2,3,4,7,8 pentachlorodibenzofuran 57117 31 4 2,3,7,8 tetrachlorodibenzofuran 51207 31 9 2 18 Table 2 6 Chemicals Included in the EPCRA Section 313 PAC Category Chemical Name CAS Number Benz[ a] anthracene 56 55 3 Benzo[ a] phenanthrene [ chrysene] 218 01 9 Benzo[ a] pyrene 50 32 8 Benzo[ b] fluoranthene 205 99 2 Benzo[ j] fluoranthene 205 82 3 Benzo[ k] fluoranthene 207 08 9 Benzo[ j, k] fluorene [ fluoranthene] 1 206 44 0 Benzo[ rst] pentaphene 189 55 9 Dibenz[ a, h] acridine 226 36 8 Dibenz[ a, j] acridine 224 42 0 Dibenzo[ a, h] anthracene 53 70 3 Dibenzo[ a, e] fluoranthene 5385 75 1 Dibenzo[ a, e] pyrene 192 65 4 Dibenzo[ a, h] pyrene 189 64 0 Dibenzo[ a, l] pyrene 191 30 0 7H Dibenzo[ c, g] carbazole 194 59 2 7,12 Dimethyl benz[ a] anthracene 57 97 6 Indeno[ 1,2,3 cd] pyrene 193 39 5 3 Methylchloroanthracene1 56 49 5 5 Methylchrysene 3697 24 3 1 Nitrpoyrene 5522 43 0 1 Chemical or chemical category added to the EPCRA Section 313 list of PACs with this rulemaking. Other chemicals and chemical categories in this table were previously reportable for EPCRA Section 313 as PACs.

U. S. EPA finalized two thresholds based on the toxic chemicals' potential to persist and bioaccumulate in the environment. The two levels include setting Section 313 manufacture, process, and otherwise use thresholds to 100 pounds for PBT chemicals and to 10 pounds for that subset of PBT chemicals that are highly persistent and highly bioaccumulative.

One exception is the dioxin and dioxin like compounds category. U. S. EPA set the threshold for the dioxin and dioxin like compound category at 0.1 gram. 2 19 The de minimis exemption is inapplicable to the reporting of the PBT chemicals ( 40 CFR § 372.38( a)). However, this action does not affect the applicability of the de minimis exemption to the supplier notification requirements ( 40 CFR § 372.45( d)( 1)). U. S. EPA also excluded all PBT chemicals from eligibility for the alternate threshold of 1 million pounds ( see Section 2.9) ( 40 CFR § 372.27( e) and eliminated range reporting of PBT chemicals and chemical categories for on site releases and transfers off site for further waste management ( 40 CFR § 372.85( b)( 15) & ( 16)).

Note that U. S. EPA is currently developing four guidance documents for PBT chemicals modified in the PBT rule:

Dioxins and dioxin like compounds ( EPA 745 B 00 021);

Polycyclic aromatic compounds ( PACs) category ( EPA 260 B 01 003);

Mercury and mercury compounds ( EPA 260 B 01 004); and

Pesticides and other PBT chemicals ( EPA 260 B 01 005).

Please refer to these guidance documents as appropriate if they are applicable to your facility.

2.7 How Do You Report?

You must submit an EPCRA Section 313 report for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category that exceeds a threshold for manufacturing, OR processing, OR otherwise use ( providing you meet the employee and SIC Code criteria) ( 40 CFR § 372.25).

Provided you do not exceed certain alternate activity thresholds and total annual reportable amounts, you may prepare a Form A certification statement ( See Section 2.9) rather than a Form R for non PBT chemicals ( 40 CFR § 372.27). The TRI Forms and Instructions contain detailed directions for the preparation and submittal of EPCRA Section 313 reports for the reporting year.

The TRI Forms and Instructions are sent to all facilities that submitted EPCRA Section 313 reports the preceding year. However, if you do not receive a courtesy copy, you may request copies of the TRI Forms and Instructions from the EPCRA Hotline ( 1 800 424 9346). 2 20 2.8 Form R Form R is the report in which the information on the release or other waste management activities for toxic chemicals required by EPCRA Section 313 is reported. If you are submitting a Form R, it is essential that you use the TRI Forms and Instructions for the appropriate reporting year. U. S. EPA encourages the electronic submittal of the Form R, via the Automated Toxic Chemical Release Inventory Reporting Software ( ATRS) or TRI Made Easy ( TRI ME) Software. Use of the ATRS and TRI ME Software will save preparation time in data entry and photocopying and reduce errors via on line validation routines and use of pick lists. In addition, the TRI ME Software will guide you through the process of determining your reporting requirements and assist you in completing Form Rs.

The Form R consists of two parts:

Part I, Facility Identification Information. This part may be photocopied and reused for each Form R you submit, except for the signature, which must be original for each submission.

Part II, Chemical Specific Information. You must complete this part separately for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category; it cannot be reused year to year even if reporting has not changed.

Submission of incomplete EPCRA Section 313 reports may result in issuance of a Notice of Technical Error ( NOTE), Notice of Significant Error ( NOSE), or Notice of Noncompliance ( NON). See the current TRI Forms and Instructions for more detailed information on completing the Form R and submitting the EPCRA Section 313 report.

2.9 Form A Certification U. S. EPA developed the Form A, also referred to as the " Certification Statement,"

to reduce the annual reporting burden for facilities with minimal amounts of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals or chemical categories released and otherwise managed as waste ( 59 FR 61488, 2 21 November 1994; applicable beginning reporting year 1994 and beyond). On the Form A certification, you certify that you are not required to report the release and other waste management information required by EPCRA Section 313 and PPA Section 6607. A facility must meet the following two criteria to use a Form A:

First, the total annual reportable amount of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category cannot exceed 500 pounds per year. The " reportable amount" is defined as the sum of the on site amounts released ( including disposal), treated, combusted for energy recovery, and recycled, 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 on the 2001 version of the Form R ( 40 CFR § 372.27).

Second, the amount of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category manufactured, processed, OR otherwise used cannot exceed one million 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 used ( 40 CFR § 372.27).

Example  Form A Certification Threshold If the combined annual reportable amounts from all activities do not exceed 500 pounds, a facility that manufactures 900,000 pounds of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category and processes 150,000 pounds of the same chemical or chemical category is eligible to use the Form A certification because the facility did not exceed the one million pounds for either activity, even though the total usage exceeds 1,000,000 pounds.

The Form A Certification Statement must be submitted for each eligible EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category ( 40 CFR § 372.27). The information on the Form A will be 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 or chemical category; rather, only one Form A per EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category can be submitted per facility ( 40 CFR § 372.27).

While Form A certification statement requests facility identification and chemical identification information, no release and other waste management quantity estimations to any 2 22 media are required. You simply certify that the total annual reportable amount did not exceed 500 pounds and that amounts manufactured, processed, or otherwise used did not exceed 1,000,000 pounds. Once the facility has completed estimates to justify the submission of a Form A certification, there is a considerable time savings in using the Form A certification, especially in subsequent years, providing activities involving the toxic chemical or chemical category did not change significantly. U. S. EPA strongly recommends that you document your initial rationale and refer to it every year, to verify that you have not modified a part of the process that would invalidate the initial rationale supporting submission of Form A certification.

2.10 Trade Secrets If you submit trade secret information, you must prepare two versions of the substantiation form as prescribed in 40 CFR Part 350 ( see 53 FR 28801, July 29, 1988) as well as two versions of the EPCRA Section 313 report. One set of reports should be " sanitized" ( i. e., it should provide a generic name for the EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category 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 or chemical category and have the trade secret claim clearly marked in Part I, Section 2.1 of the Form R or Form A certification. The trade secrets provision only applies to the EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category identity. All other parts of the Form R or Form A certification must be filled out accordingly ( 40 CFR § 350.3).

Individual states may have additional criteria for confidential business information and the submittal of both sanitized and unsanitized reports for EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories. Facilities may jeopardize the trade secret status of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category by submitting an unsanitized version to a state agency or tribal government that does not require an unsanitized version.

More information on trade secret claims, including contacts for individual state's submission requirements, can be found in the TRI Forms and Instructions. 2 23 2.11 Recordkeeping and Penalty Complete and accurate records are absolutely essential to 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 U. S. EPA compliance audits. U. S. EPA requires you to maintain records substantiating each EPCRA Section 313 report submission for a minimum of three years ( 40 CFR § 372.10). Each facility must keep copies of every EPCRA Section 313 report along with all supporting documents, calculations, work sheets, and other forms that you used to prepare the EPCRA Section 313 report ( 40 CFR § 372.10). U. S. EPA may request this supporting documentation during a regulatory audit.

Specifically, U. S. EPA requires 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 EPCRA Section 313 report that is submitted.

2) All supporting materials and documentation used to make the compliance determination that the facility or establishment is a covered facility.

3) Documentation supporting the report submitted, which may include some or all of the following:

Claimed allowable exemptions,

Threshold determinations,

Calculations for each quantity reported as being released, either on or off site, or otherwise managed as waste,

Activity determinations, including dates of manufacturing, processing, or use,

The basis of all estimates,

Receipts or manifests associated with transfers of each EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category in waste to off site locations, and

Waste treatment methods, treatment efficiencies, ranges of influent concentrations to treatment, sequential nature of treatment steps, and operating data to support efficiency claims. 2 24 4) For facilities submitting a Form A certification, all supporting materials used to make the compliance determination that the facility or establishment is eligible to submit a Form A certification, which may include:

Data supporting the determination that the alternate threshold applies,

Calculations of the annual reportable amounts,

Receipts or manifests associated with the transfer of each EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category in waste to off site locations, and

Waste treatment methods, treatment efficiencies, ranges of influent concentrations to treatment, sequential nature of treatment steps, and operating data to support efficiency claims.

EPCRA Section 313 reporting does not require additional testing or monitoring.

Rather, in order to report, facilities may use readily available data collected pursuant to other provisions of the law, or where such data are not readily available, reasonable estimates of the amounts involved ( EPCRA § 313( g)( 2)). Some facilities may have detailed monitoring data and off site transfer records that can be used for estimates while others may only have purchase and inventory records. Examples of records that you could use, if applicable, might include:

Each EPCRA Section 313 report submitted;

EPCRA 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);

EPCRA Section 313 Reporting Release and Other Waste Management Quantity Estimation Worksheets ( sample worksheets can be found in Chapter 4 of this document);

Engineering calculations and other notes;

Formulation Sheets;

Purchase records from suppliers;

Inventory data;

Material Safety Data Sheets ( MSDS);

New Source Performance Standards ( NSPS);

National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System ( NPDES)/ State Pollutant Discharge Elimination System ( SPDES) permits and monitoring reports;

EPCRA Section 312, Tier II reports;

Monitoring records;

Air permits;

Clean Air Act Title V Permit Data;

Flow measurement data; 2 25

Resource Conservation and Recovery Act ( RCRA) hazardous waste generator's reports;

Pretreatment reports filed with local governments;

Invoices from waste management firms;

Manufacturer's estimates of treatment efficiencies;

Comprehensive Environmental Response, Conservation, and Liability Act of 1980 ( CERCLA) Reportable Quantity ( RQ) reports;

RCRA manifests; and

Process flow diagrams ( including emissions, releases, and other waste management activities).

Violation of EPCRA Section 313 reporting provisions may result in federal civil penalties of up to $ 27,500 per day for each violation ( 40 CFR § 372.18);( 40 CFR § 19.4). State enforcement provisions may also be applicable depending on the state's EPCRA Section 313 reporting regulations. 3 1 CHAPTER 3  EPCRA SECTION 313 CHEMICAL OR CHEMICAL CATEGORY ACTIVITY 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. Threshold determinations are essentially a three step process:

Step 1) Identify any EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories you manufacture/ import, process, or otherwise use.

Step 2) Identify the activity category and any exempt activities for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category.

Step 3) Calculate the quantity of each EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category and determine which ones exceed an activity threshold.

3.1 Step 1  Identify Which EPCRA Section 313 Chemicals or Chemical Categories are Manufactured ( Including Imported), Processed, or Otherwise Used Compile lists of all chemicals and mixtures at your facility. For facilities with many different chemicals and mixtures it is often helpful to prepare two lists: one with the pure ( single ingredient) chemicals ( including chemical compounds) and one with the mixtures and trade name products. On the second list, under the name of each mixture/ trade name product, write the names of all chemicals in that product. Next, compare the chemicals and chemical categories on both lists to the current EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories list found in the TRI Forms and Instructions ( remember that chemicals and chemical categories may be periodically added and deleted and you should use the current reporting year's instructions).

Highlight the EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories that are on your lists. 3 2 Review the lists to be sure each toxic chemical and chemical category is shown by its correct EPCRA Section 313 name. For example, a common EPCRA Section 313 chemical found in the production of pulp, paper, and paperboard is methanol. Methanol ( Chemical Abstracts Service ( CAS) Registry No. 67 56 1) has several synonyms including: carbinol; methyl alcohol; methyl hydroxide; and wood alcohol. It should be reported on Form R ( or Form A certification), Item 1.2, by its EPCRA Section 313 chemical name, methanol ( 40 CFR § 372.85( b)( 10)). Synonyms can be found in the U. S. EPA document Common Synonyms for Chemicals Listed Under Section 313 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act ( EPA 745 R 95 008).

While you must consider every toxic chemical on the EPCRA Section 313 chemical and chemical category list, you should be aware of the toxic chemicals and chemical categories typically manufactured, coincidentally manufactured as byproducts, or otherwise used in the production of pulp, paper, and paperboard ( 40 CFR § 372.25( h)). As a guide, the most frequently reported EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories for reporting year 1995 by pulp, paper, and paperboard production facilities, and the processes they are typically used in, are listed in Table 2 2.

A computerized spreadsheet may be helpful in developing your facility's toxic chemical and chemical category list and performing threshold calculations. The spreadsheet could show the toxic chemical, chemical category or chemical mixture with corresponding component concentrations; the yearly quantity manufactured, processed, or otherwise used; and the CAS Registry number. The spreadsheet could also be designed to identify the total quantity by activity category ( amounts manufactured, processed, and otherwise used) for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category in every mixture, compound, and trade name product. You may want to use the TRI ME Software as one easy way to perform chemical threshold determinations.

An initial investment of time will be required to develop this spreadsheet; however,

the time and effort saved in threshold calculations in subsequent years will be significant. Such a system will also reduce the potential of inadvertently overlooking EPCRA Section 313 chemicals or chemical categories present in mixtures purchased from off site sources. 3 3 To develop the toxic chemical and chemical category list and the associated activity categories you may want to consult the following:

Material Safety Data Sheets ( MSDSs);

Facility purchasing records;

New Source Performance Standards ( NSPS);

Inventory records;

Air and water discharge permits;

Individual manufacturing/ operating functions; and

Receipts or manifests associated with the transfer of each EPCRA Section 313 chemical and chemical category in waste to off site locations.

The following is suggested useful information needed to prepare your EPCRA Section 313 reports and should be included for each toxic chemical and chemical category on your spreadsheet:

The mixture name and associated EPCRA Section 313 chemical and chemical category names;

The associated Chemical Abstract Service ( CAS) Registry numbers;

The trade name for mixtures and compounds;

The throughput quantities; and

Whether the toxic chemical or chemical category is manufactured, processed, or otherwise used at the facility ( be sure to include quantities that are coincidentally manufactured and imported, as appropriate).

MSDSs provide important information for the type and composition of chemicals and chemical categories in mixtures, and for determining whether you have purchased raw materials that contain EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories. As of 1989,

chemical suppliers to facilities in SIC Major Group Codes 20 through 39 are required to notify manufacturing customers of any EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories present above the applicable de minimis concentrations in mixtures or trade name products distributed to facilities ( 40 CFR § 372.45( a)). The notice must be provided to the receiving facility and may be attached or incorporated into that product's MSDS ( 40 CFR § 372.45( c)( 5)). If no MSDS is required, the notification must be in a letter that accompanies the first shipment of the product to your facility each year ( 40 CFR § 372.45( c)). This letter must contain the chemical name, CAS 3 4 Registry number, and the weight or volume percent ( or a range) of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category in mixtures or trade name products ( 40 CFR § 372.45( b)).

Carefully review the entire MSDS. Although new MSDSs must list whether EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories are present ( 40 CFR § 372.45( b)), the language and location of this notification is not currently standardized. Depending on the supplier, this information could be found in different sections of the MSDS. The most likely sections of an MSDS to provide information on EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories are:

Physical properties/ chemical composition section;

Regulatory section;

Hazardous components section;

Labeling section; and

Additional information section.

Also, many EPCRA Section 313 chemicals or chemical categories are present as impurities in mixtures. These quantities must also be considered in threshold determinations unless the concentration is below the de minimis value ( see Section <IP_ADDRESS>) ( 40 CFR § 372.3);

( 40 CFR § 372.38( a)).

COMMON ERROR  Mixture Components Facilities often overlook EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories that are present in small quantities of bulk solutions. For example, a common chemical used in paper and paperboard production is xylene. Xylene is often purchased in large quantities for use as a solvent, among other things. Most facilities correctly report for xylene; however, ethyl benzene is typically present at up to 15% in solutions of xylene commercially available. Many facilities have historically overlooked the presence of ethyl benzene in their xylene mixtures.

Qualifiers Several toxic chemicals on the EPCRA Section 313 chemical and chemical category list include qualifiers related to use or form. Some toxic chemicals are reportable ONLY if manufactured by a specified process or classified in a specified activity category ( 40 CFR § 3 5 372.25( f)). 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 ( 40 CFR § 372.65).

Some other toxic chemicals are only reportable if present in certain forms ( 40 CFR § 372.25( g)).

For example, only yellow or white phosphorus is reportable, while black or red phosphorus is not reportable ( 40 CFR § 372.65).

The qualifiers and associated toxic chemicals and chemical categories listed in 40 CFR § 372.65 are presented below. Please make special note of the discussion pertaining to Vanadium and Vanadium compounds because effective as of December 31, 1999, U. S. EPA removed the ` fume or dust' qualifier for vanadium and added to the EPCRA Section 313 list all forms of vanadium and vanadium compounds, with the exception of vanadium when contained in alloys.

Aluminum oxide ( fibrous)  Aluminum oxide is only subject to threshold determination and release and other waste management calculations when it is handled in fibrous forms. U. S. EPA has characterized fibrous aluminum oxide for purposes of EPCRA Section 313 reporting as a manmade fiber commonly used in high temperature insulation applications such as furnace linings, filtration, gaskets, joints, and seals ( 55 FR 5221 ( February 14, 1990)).

Ammonia ( includes anhydrous ammonia and aqueous ammonia from water dissociable ammonium salts and other sources)  On June 26, 1995, U. S. EPA qualified the listing for ammonia ( CAS Registry No. 7664 41 7) and deleted ammonium sulfate ( solution) ( CAS Registry No. 7783 20 2) from the EPCRA Section 313 chemical list. Both the qualification and the deletion were effective as of reporting year 1994. The qualifier for ammonia means that anhydrous forms of ammonia are 100% reportable while only 10% of the total aqueous ammonia is reportable. Any evaporation of ammonia from aqueous ammonia solutions is considered anhydrous ammonia. This qualifier applies to both activity threshold determinations and release and other waste management calculations. Note that while ammonium sulfate is no longer an EPCRA Section 313 chemical, 10% of the aqueous ammonia formed from the dissociation of ammonium sulfate ( and all other ammonium salts) is reportable, and must be included in both activity threshold determinations and release and other waste management calculations. Additionally, any ammonium nitrate must also be included in the threshold determination and the nitrate portion included in the release and other waste management calculations, for the nitrate 3 6 compounds category. U. S. EPA has published guidance on reporting for ammonia and ammonium salts in Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know, EPCRA Section 313, Guidance for Reporting Aqueous Ammonia, EPA 745 R 95 012.

Asbestos ( friable)  Asbestos only needs to be considered when it is handled in the friable form. Friable refers to the physical characteristics of being able to crumble, pulverize, or reduce to a powder with hand pressure.

Fume or dust  Two metals ( aluminum and zinc) are qualified with " fume or dust." This definition excludes " wet" forms such as solutions or slurries, but includes powder, particulate, or gaseous forms of these metals. There is no particle size limitation for particulates. For example, use of zinc metal as a paint component is not subject to reporting unless the zinc is in the form of a fume or dust. However, even though elemental zinc is reportable only in the fume or dust form, all forms of zinc compounds are reportable. Note that the entire weight of all zinc compounds should be included in the threshold determination for zinc compounds, while only the metal portion of metal compounds is reported in the release and other waste management amounts. Prior to reporting year 2000, vanadium was also qualified with " fume or dust." As of reporting year 2000 this qualifier has been removed for vanadium such that all physical forms are now reportable. Please see the discussion on vanadium and vanadium compounds below, if applicable.

Hydrochloric acid ( acid aerosols)  On July 25, 1996, U. S. EPA promulgated a final rule delisting non aerosol forms of hydrochloric acid ( CAS Registry No. 7647 01 0) from the EPCRA Section 313 chemical list ( effective for the 1995 reporting year). Therefore, threshold determinations and release and other waste management estimates now apply only to the aerosol forms. Under EPCRA Section 313, the term aerosol covers any generation of airborne acid ( including mists, vapors, gas, or fog) without any particle size limitation. Therefore, spraying hydrochloric acid is manufacturing hydrochloric acid aerosol for TRI reporting purposes and you should include this quantity in the manufacturing threshold determination.

Manufacturing qualifiers  Two chemicals, saccharin and isopropyl alcohol, contain qualifiers relating to manufacture. The qualifier for saccharin means that only manufacturers of the chemical are subject to the reporting requirement. The qualifier for isopropyl alcohol means that only facilities that manufacture the chemical by the strong acid process are required to report. Facilities that only process or otherwise use these chemicals are not required to report. Thus, a facility that uses isopropyl alcohol as a solvent in coatings should not report for isopropyl alcohol. 3 7

Nitrate Compounds ( water dissociable; reportable only in aqueous solution)  A nitrate compound is covered by this listing only when in water and if water dissociable. Although the complete weight of the nitrate compound must be used for threshold determinations for the nitrate compounds category, only the nitrate portion of the compound must be considered for release and other waste management calculations. One issue recently raised by industry is how to report nitrate compounds in wastewater and sludge that is applied to farms as a nitrogen source ( either on site or off site). Although during such use nitrate compounds may be taken up by plants and cycled back into the ecosystem, U. S. EPA considers that the nitrate compounds in wastewater/ sludge are managed as waste. In this scenario, compounds should be reported as being disposed to land ( either on site or off site as appropriate). U. S. EPA has published guidance for these chemicals in List of Toxic Chemicals Within the Water Dissociable Nitrate Compounds Category and Guidance for Reporting, EPA 745 R 96 004.

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.

Sulfuric acid ( acid aerosols)  On June 26, 1995, U. S. EPA promulgated a final rule delisting non aerosol forms of sulfuric acid ( CAS Registry No. 7664 93 9) from the EPCRA Section 313 toxic chemical list ( effective for the 1994 reporting year). Therefore, threshold determinations and release and other waste management estimates now apply only to the aerosol forms. Under EPCRA Section 313, the term aerosol covers any generation of airborne acid ( including mists, vapors, gas, or fog) without any particle size limitation. Therefore, spraying sulfuric acid is manufacturing sulfuric acid aerosol for TRI reporting purposes and you should include this quantity in the manufacturing threshold determination. U. S. EPA has published guidance for acid aerosols in Guidance for Reporting Sulfuric Acid, EPA 745 R 97 007.

Vanadium and vanadium compounds  Note that prior to reporting year 2000, the fume or dust qualifier also applied to vanadium. As of December 31, 1999 ( effective December 31, 1999 for EPCRA Section 313 reports that must be filed by July 1, 2001), U. S. EPA removed this qualifier for vanadium. Effective December 31, 1999, U. S. EPA removed the " fume or dust" qualifier for vanadium and added to the EPCRA Section 313 list all forms of vanadium and vanadium compounds, with the exception of vanadium when contained in alloys. Therefore, vanadium that is present in fumes, dusts, or any other physical forms of alloys should not be considered for EPCRA Section 313 reporting. However, if vanadium is separated from the alloy, all physical forms of the vanadium are considered 3 8 to be manufactured and the quantity manufactured should be applied to the 25,000 pound manufacturing threshold. If the vanadium is subsequently processed or otherwise used, the applicable quantity should also be applied to the processing or otherwise use threshold( s). If an acting threshold is exceeded, all quantities released and other waste management quantities must be reported as appropriate.

3.2 Step 2  Identify the Activity Category and Any Exempt Activities for Each EPCRA Section 313 Chemical and Chemical Category The next step is to identify the activity category ( or categories) and any exempt activities for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical and chemical category on your list. Table 3 1 lists the reporting thresholds for each of these activity categories ( Tables 3 2 through 3 4 provide detailed definitions of subcategories for each activity category). Each threshold must be individually calculated ( 40 CFR § 372.25); they are mutually exclusive and are not additive.

Table 3 1 Reporting Thresholds Activity Category Threshold1 Manufacture ( including import) 25,000 pounds per year Process 25,000 pounds per year Otherwise use 10,000 pounds per year 1These reporting thresholds are for non PBT chemicals. See Section 2.6 for the reporting thresholds applicable to PBT chemicals.

Example  Threshold Determination If your facility manufactures 22,000 pounds of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category and you also otherwise use 8,000 pounds of the same chemical or chemical category, you have not exceeded either threshold, and an EPCRA Section 313 report for that chemical or chemical category is not required. However, if your facility manufactures 28,000 pounds per year of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category and otherwise uses 8,000 pounds of the same chemical or chemical category, you have exceeded the manufacturing threshold and ALL release and other waste management quantities ( except those specifically exempted) of that chemical or chemical category must be reported on the Form R, including those from the otherwise use activity. 3 9 Example  Xylene Isomers Paper and paperboard production facilities use the EPCRA Section 313 chemical xylene, with the xylene ( mixed isomers), CAS Registry No. 1330 20 7, being the most frequently reported type. Ortho, meta, and paraxylenes are listed on the EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories list in addition to xylene ( mixed isomers). The mixed isomers classification must be used when a mixture contains any combination of two or more of the isomers. The threshold determination for xylene must be calculated for each isomeric form individually unless the xylenes are manufactured, processed, or otherwise used as a mixture of xylene isomers. For example, a covered facility annually uses 8,000 pounds of para xylene, 6,000 pounds of ortho xylene, and 8,000 pounds of mixed isomers as carrier solvents in three separate processing lines. All three activities of xylene are classified as otherwise use as the carrier is intended to evaporate and not remain with the product. There are no other uses of any form of xylene in the facility. The otherwise use activity threshold of 10,000 pounds/ year has not been reached for any of the xylenes and an EPCRA Section 313 report need not be prepared for xylene. However, should any two of the streams mix, the facility will exceed the otherwise use threshold for mixed isomers and an EPCRA Section 313 report must be prepared for the mixed isomer form of xylene.

COMMON ERROR  Threshold Determination for Recirculation Facilities often incorrectly base threshold calculations on the amount of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals or chemical categories in a recirculation system rather than the amount actually used in the reporting year. The amount of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category that is actually manufactured ( including the quantity imported), processed, or otherwise used, not the amount in storage or in the system, should be the amount applied to the threshold determination. For example, a solvent containing an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category is used, recirculated on site, and reused as a solvent. The amount of EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category recirculated in the on site recycling process is not considered in the threshold determination because it is considered a " direct reuse" and is not reportable. Only the amount of new chemical added to the system should be included in the otherwise used threshold calculation. However, if you send a solvent containing an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category off site for distillation and subsequent recycling, it should be reported as a transfer to an off site location for recycling ( Part II, Sections 6.2 and 8.5 of the 2001 Form R) because the distillation is considered a waste management activity. The amount of solvent returned to you and subsequently used in the same reporting year must be included in the threshold determination. If the reporting threshold is exceeded, the total quantity recycled should be reported in Section 8.4, i. e., the amount recycled on site must be reported in Section 8.4 each time it is recycled.

Example  Chemical Mixtures A manufacturer of resinous impregnated paper, SIC Code 2672, purchases a mixture of natural and synthetic resins and adds chemicals to achieve the desired properties. Any EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories in the purchased resin mixture must be included in the processing threshold determination, providing their concentrations are above the de minimis concentration limits. The amount of any such chemicals can be estimated by multiplying the weight percent of the chemical by the total weight of the mixture. Likewise, any EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories added on site must be included in the processing activity threshold determination.

Each of the activity categories on the Form R, Part II, Section 3, is divided into subcategories. As discussed in the TRI Forms and Instructions, you are required to designate 3 10 EACH category and subcategory that applies to your facility. Detailed definitions, including descriptions of subcategories for each activity and selected examples, are presented in Tables 3 2,

3 3, and 3 4.

Table 3 2 Description of Manufacturing Subcategories Manufacturing Activity Subcategory Description Examples in Pulp, Paper, and Paperboard Production*

Produced or imported for on site use/ processing A toxic chemical or chemical category that is produced or imported and then further processed or otherwise used at the same facility. Chlorine dioxide Produced or imported for sale/ distribution A toxic chemical or chemical category that is produced or imported specifically for sale or distribution outside the manufacturing facility.

Produced as a byproduct A toxic chemical or chemical category that is produced coincidentally during the production, processing, or otherwise use of another chemical substance or a mixture and is separated from that substance or mixture. EPCRA Section 313 chemicals or chemical categories produced and released as a result of waste treatment or disposal are also considered byproducts. Chloroform produced during bleaching, acetaldehyde and sulfuric acid ( aerosols) produced during combustion, biphenyl produced during Kraft pulping Produced as an impurity A toxic chemical or chemical category that is produced coincidentally as a result of the manufacture, processing, or otherwise use of another chemical and remains primarily in the mixture or product with that other chemical. Chloromethane produced during pulping and bleaching * More complete discussions of the industry specific examples can be found in Chapter 4 of this guidance manual. 3 11 Table 3 3 Description of Processing Subcategories Processing Activity Subcategory Description Examples in Pulp, Paper, and Paperboard Production*

Reactant A natural or synthetic toxic chemical or chemical category used in chemical reactions for the manufacture of another chemical substance or product. Examples include feedstocks, raw materials, intermediates, and initiators. Methanol used to produce chlorine dioxide Formulation component A toxic chemical or chemical category that is added to a product or product mixture prior to further distribution of the product and acts as a performance enhancer during use of the product. Examples include additives, dyes, reaction diluents, initiators, solvents, inhibitors, emulsifiers, surfactants, lubricants, flame retardants, and rheological modifiers. Dyes: cobalt compounds, C. I. acid Green 3, C. I. Direct Blue 6 Flame retardants: antimony compounds Coatings: zinc compounds Article component A toxic chemical or chemical category that becomes an integral component of an article distributed for industrial, trade, or consumer use. Adhesives: acrylamide, ammonia Repackaging only A toxic chemical or chemical category that is processed or prepared for distribution in commerce in a different form, state, or quantity. May include, but is not limited to, the transfer of material from a bulk container, such as a tank truck, to smaller containers such as cans or bottles.

* More complete discussions of the industry specific examples can be found in Chapter 4 of this guidance manual. 3 12 Table 3 4 Description of Otherwise Use Subcategories Otherwise Use Activity Subcategory Defscription Examples in Pulp, Paper, and Paperboard Production*

Chemical processing aid A toxic chemical or chemical category that is added to a reaction mixture to aid in the manufacture or synthesis of another chemical substance but is not intended to remain in or become part of the product or product mixture. Examples include process solvents, catalysts, inhibitors, initiators, reaction terminators, and solution buffers. Toluene used for paper coating Manufacturing aid A toxic chemical or chemical category that aids the manufacturing process but does not become part of the resulting product and is not added to the reaction mixture during the manufacture or synthesis of another chemical substance. Examples include process lubricants, metalworking fluids, coolants, refrigerants, and hydraulic fluids. Chlorine, chlorine dioxide Ancillary or other use A toxic chemical or chemical category that is used for purposes other than aiding chemical processing or manufacturing. Examples include cleaners, degreasers, lubricants, fuels ( including waste fuels), and chemicals used for treating wastes. Chlorine, ammonia used in wastewater treatment system * More complete discussions of the industry specific examples can be found in Chapter 4 of this guidance manual.

Example  Chemical Processing Aid A paperboard coating operation uses toluene as the carrier solvent. Ideally all the solvent would evaporate, however, studies have shown 1% of the applied solvent remains on the workpiece. Since the function of the solvent is to improve the application of the coating and is a non incorporative activity, the entire amount of toluene is considered otherwise used. If the solvent's function was such that it was intended to remain with the workpiece, it would be considered processed, as is the case for pigments, binders, and other coating components intended to remain with the workpiece. 3 13 3.2.1 Concentration Ranges for Threshold Determination You should use the best, readily available information collected pursuant to other provisions of law or where such data are not available, reasonable estimates for all calculations in EPCRA Section 313 reporting. The concentration of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category in a mixture or trade name product may be known as a specific concentration,

as an average, as a range, or as an upper or lower bound concentration. If you know the specific concentration of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category in a mixture or trade name product, you must use that value ( 40 CFR 372.30 ( b)( i)). If only an average concentration is provided ( e. g., by the supplier), you can use that value in the threshold determinations. If only the upper bound concentration is known, you must use this value in the threshold determination ( 40 CFR 372.30( b)( 3)( ii)). If only the lower bound concentration is provided or the concentration is given as a range or an upper and lower bound concentrations, U. S. EPA has developed the following guidance on the use of this type of information in threshold determinations.

If the concentration is given as a lower and upper bound or as a range, EPA recommends that you use the mid point in your calculations for threshold determinations. For example, the MSDS for the trade name product 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%. EPA recommends you use the mid point value of 30% methanol in your calculations for threshold determinations.

If only the lower bound concentration is given and the concentration of other components are given, EPA recommends you subtract the other components total from 100% to calculate the upper bound concentration. EPA then recommends you to calculate the mid point concentration for use in your calculations. For example, the MSDS states that a solvent contains at least 50% methyl ethyl ketone ( MEK) and 20% non hazardous surfactants. Subtracting the non hazardous contents from 100% leaves 80% as the upper bound for MEK. The mid point between upper ( 80%) and lower ( 50%) bounds is 65%, EPA recommends you use the value in your calculations for threshold determinations.

If only the lower bound concentration is given and the concentration of the other component( s) is not given, EPA recommends that you assume the upper bound for the EPCRA section 313 chemical or chemical category is 3 14 100% and use the mid point. Alternatively, product quality requirements or information available from the most similar process stream may be used to determine the upper bound of the range.

Special guidance for concentration ranges that straddle the de minimis value is presented in Section <IP_ADDRESS>.

Common Error  Threshold Determinations Based on MSDS Concentration Data During the site surveys conducted to determine the quality of the EPCRA Section 313 data being reported it was noted that many facilities incorrectly applied concentration information provided in the MSDSs. The most frequent error was the use of the upper bound of a concentration range. U. S. EPA guidance is to use the midpoint of the concentration range in any calculations to estimate activity threshold quantities. Use of the upper bound will result in the over estimation of the amount manufactured, processed or otherwise used and may result in the unnecessary filing of an EPCRA Section 313 report. The complete results of the site survey program was published as The 1994 and 1995 Toxic Release Inventory Data Quality Report, EPA 745 R 98 002.

3.2.2 Evaluation of Exemptions When determining thresholds, you can exclude quantities of any EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories that are manufactured, processed, or otherwise used in exempt activities. Exemptions are divided into four classes:

1. De minimis exemption; 2. Article exemption; 3. Facility related exemption; and 4. Activity related exemptions.

COMMON ERROR  Exempt Activities If an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category is used in exempt activities, the quantity used in these activities does not need to be included in your threshold determinations or release and other waste management calculations, even if the chemical or chemical category is used in a reportable activity elsewhere in the facility ( 40 CFR § 372.38). 3 15 <IP_ADDRESS> De Minimis Exemption If the amount of EPCRA Section 313 chemical( s) or chemical categories present in a mixture or trade name product processed or otherwise used is below its de minimis concentration level, that amount is considered to be exempt from threshold determinations and release and other waste management calculations ( 40 CFR § 372.38( a)). Note that this exemption does not apply to manufacturing, except for importation or as an impurity as discussed below. Also note that the de minimis exemption does not apply to the manufacturing, processing,

or otherwise use of the PBT chemicals ( refer to Section 2.6) ( 40 CFR § 372.38( a)). The de minimis concentration for EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories is 1%, except for Occupational Safety and Health Administration ( OSHA) defined carcinogens, which have a 0.1% de minimis concentration ( 40 CFR § 372.38( a)). Note that if a mixture contains more than one member of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical category, the weight percent of all members must be summed ( 40 CFR § 372.25( h)). If the total meets or exceeds the category's de minimis level, the de minimis exemption does not apply. U. S. EPA has published several detailed questions and answers and a directive in the current edition of EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers ( 1998 edition is EPA 745 B 98 004; see Appendix A, Directive # 2) 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 chemical category with the associated de minimis value.

Once the de minimis level has been equaled or exceeded, the exemption no longer applies to that process stream, even if the EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category later falls below the de minimis concentration. All release and other waste management activities that occur after the de minimis concentration has been equaled or exceeded are subject to reporting. The facility does not have to report release and other waste management activities that took place before the de minimis concentration was equaled or exceeded in the process stream. 3 16 Example  De Minimis Your facility processes a mixture containing 1.1% nitric acid and 0.6% manganese. The de minimis exemption would apply to manganese because the concentration is below 1%, which is the de minimis level for manganese; however, it would not apply to nitric acid. All of the nitric acid must be included in threshold determinations, and release and other waste management calculations.

The de minimis exemption also applies to EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories that are coincidentally manufactured below the de minimis level only if that chemical is manufactured as an impurity in a mixture ( 53 FR 4504, February 16, 1988)). In addition, the exemption applies to EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories below the de minimis concentration in an imported mixture or trade name product.

For some mixtures the concentration of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories may be available only as a range. U. S. EPA has developed guidance on how to determine quantities applicable to threshold determinations, and release and other waste management calculations when this range straddles the de minimis value. In general, only the quantity of the processed or otherwise used EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category whose concentration exceeds the de minimis must be considered ( 40 CFR § 372.38( a)).

Therefore, U. S. EPA allows facilities to estimate the quantity below the de minimis and exclude it from further consideration. The following examples illustrate this point. 3 17 ( 8,000,000) × ( 0.0125

0.0099) ( 0.0125

0.0025) × ( 0.0125  0.01) ( 2)  23,400 pounds ( 8,000,000) × ( 0.012

0.009) ( 0.012

0.002) × ( 0.012  0.01) ( 2)  26,400 pounds Examples  De Minimis Concentration Ranges Example 1:

A facility processes 8,000,000 pounds of a mixture containing 0.25 to 1.25% naphthalene. Naphthalene is subject to a 1% de minimis concentration exemption. The amount of mixture subject to reporting is the quantity containing naphthalene above the de minimis concentration:

8,000,000 × [( 0.0125  0.0099) ÷ ( 0.0125  0.0025)]

The average concentration of naphthalene that is not exempt ( above the de minimis) is:

( 0.0125 + 0.01) ÷ 2 Therefore, the amount of naphthalene that is subject to threshold determination and release and other waste management estimates is:

= 23,400 pounds naphthalene ( which is below the processing threshold)

In this example, because the facility's information pertaining to naphthalene was available to two decimal places, 0.99 was used to determine the amount below the de minimis concentrations. If the information was available to one decimal place, 0.9 should be used, as in Example 2 below.

Example 2:

As in Example 1, naphthalene is present in a mixture, of which 8,000,000 pounds is processed. The MSDS states the mixture contains 0.2% to 1.2% naphthalene. The amount of mixture subject to reporting ( above de minimis) is:

( 8,000,000) × ( 0.012  0.009) ÷ ( 0.012  0.002)

The average concentration of naphthalene that is not exempt ( above de minimis) is:

( 0.012 + 0.01) ÷ ( 2)

Therefore, the amount of naphthalene that is subject to threshold determinations and release and other waste management estimates is:

= 26,400 pounds naphthalene ( which is above the processing threshold)

The exemption does not apply to EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories coincidentally manufactured as byproducts and separated from the product, nor does it apply to EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories coincidentally manufactured as a result of waste management activities, from either on site or off site. ( Under EPCRA Section 313, U. S. EPA does not consider waste to be a mixture.) ( see 53 FR 4501, 4504 ( February 16, 3 18 1988); 62 FR 23,845 46 ( May 1, 1997)) For example, many facilities treat waste solvents by incinerating them. If coal is used as the primary fuel source to incinerate these waste solvents,

combustion can result in the coincidental manufacture of sulfuric and hydrochloric acid aerosols and metal compounds. Since the de minimis exemption does not apply to the coincidental manufacture of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals or chemical categories as a byproduct or in a waste treatment process, the formation of these compounds must be considered for threshold determinations, and release and other waste management calculations ( 40 CFR § 372.3).

<IP_ADDRESS> Articles Exemption An article is defined ( 40 CFR § 372.3) as a manufactured item that:

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 or chemical category under normal conditions of processing or otherwise use of the item at the facility.

If you receive a manufactured article from another facility or you produce the article in your facility and process or otherwise use it without changing the shape or design, and your processing or otherwise use does not result in the release of more than 0.5 pound of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category in a reporting year from all like articles, then the EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category in that article is exempt from threshold determinations and release and other waste management calculations ( The 0.5 pound limit does not apply to each individual article, but applies to the sum of all releases from processing or use of all like articles) ( 40 CFR § 372.38( b)). Section 313 chemicals or chemical categories used to produce an article, however, do not qualify for the article exemption.

The shape and design can be changed somewhat during processing and otherwise use 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 still meets the article definition. If the item's original dimensional characteristics are totally altered 3 19 during processing or otherwise use, the item would not meet the definition. As an example, items that do not meet the definition would be items that are cold extruded, such as lead ingots formed into wire or rods. However, cutting a manufactured item into pieces that are recognizable as the article would not change the exemption status as long as the diameter and the thickness of the item remain unchanged ( 53 FR 4507 ( February 16, 1988)). 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 no releases above 0.5 pound per year occur from all like articles.

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 or chemical category for all like articles negates the exemption ( 40 CFR § 372.3, 372.38( b)). Cutting, grinding, melting, or other activities performed on a manufactured item could result in a release of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category during normal conditions of processing or otherwise use and,

therefore, could negate the article exemption if the total annual releases from all like articles exceed 0.5 pound in a calendar year. However, if all of the resulting waste is recycled or reused,

either on site or off site, so that the release quantity of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category does not exceed 0.5 pound for the calendar year, then the article's exemption status may be maintained. If the processing or otherwise use of similar manufactured items results in a total releases of less than or equal to 0.5 pound of any individual EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category to any environmental media in a calendar year, U. S. EPA will allow this quantity to be rounded to zero and the manufactured items maintain their article status. The 0.5 pound limit does not apply to each individual article, but applies to the sum of all release from processing or otherwise use of like articles for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category. The current edition of EPCRA Section 313 Questions and Answers ( 1998 edition is EPA 745 B 98 004) presents several specific question and answers/ discussions pertaining to the articles exemption. 3 20 Example  Articles Exemption If an article is subjected to a process that removes a portion of an EPCRA Section 313 metal from the surface that is not recycled or reused, this process would constitute a release and negate the article exemption if the total release from all like articles is greater than 0.5 lb for its reporting year. For example, stainless steel pipes containing nickel and chromium are cut and installed on site. Some of the nickel and chromium are released as dust from the cutting operation. The dust is washed away during area cleaning and discharged to a POTW. This process is considered a release of the nickel and chromium and, if the release from all like articles is greater than 0.5 pound per year for one ( or both) toxic chemicals, the pipe has lost its article exemption.

<IP_ADDRESS> Facility Related Exemption   Laboratory Activity Exemption EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories that are manufactured,

processed, or otherwise used in laboratories under the supervision of a technically qualified individual are exempted from the threshold determination ( and subsequent release and other waste management calculations) ( 40 CFR § 372.38( d)). This exemption may be applicable in circumstances such 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 ( 40 CFR § 372.38( d)). It also does not include laboratory support activities. For example, toxic chemicals used to maintain laboratory equipment are not eligible for the laboratory exemption.

Example  Laboratory Activity Exemption A paperboard manufacturer at a separate research laboratory facility applies various formulations of polymer coatings containing EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories to product samples for testing. The testing is under the supervision of a " technically qualified individual" in the laboratory. The EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories used in this activity would be exempt from EPCRA Section 313 reporting and should not be included in any threshold determinations or release and other waste management calculations.

<IP_ADDRESS> Activity Related Exemptions ( Otherwise Use Exemptions)

Some exemptions apply to the otherwise use of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical and chemical category. The specific quantities of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories used in these activities do not need to be included in facility threshold determinations ( nor the associated release and other waste management calculations) ( 40 CFR § 372.38( c)). The following otherwise use activities are considered exempt: 3 21

EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories used in routine janitorial or facility grounds maintenance. Examples are bathroom cleaners, fertilizers, and garden pesticides similar in type or concentration to consumer products. Materials used to clean process equipment do not meet this exemption.

Personal use of items. Examples are foods, drugs, cosmetics, and other personal items including those items within the facility such as in a facility operated cafeteria, store, or infirmary. Office supplies such as correction fluid are also exempt.

Example  Personal Use Exemption Toluene in nail polish is exempt from threshold determinations and release and other waste management calculations.

Structural components of the facility. Exemptions apply to EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories present in materials used to construct, repair, or maintain structural components of a facility. An example common to all facilities would be the solvents and pigments used to paint buildings. Materials used to construct, repair, or maintain process equipment are not exempt.

EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories used with facility motor vehicles. This exemption includes the use of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories for the purpose of maintaining motor vehicles operated by the facility. Common examples include gasoline, radiator coolant, windshield wiper fluid, brake and transmission fluid, oils and lubricants, cleaning solutions, and solvents in paint used to touch up the vehicle. Motor vehicles include cars, trucks, forklifts, locomotives, and aircraft. Note that this exemption only applies to the OTHERWISE USE of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories. The coincidental manufacture of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories resulting from combustion of gasoline is not exempt and should be considered toward the manufacturing threshold.

Example  Motor Vehicle Exemption Methanol is purchased for use as a processing aid and as a windshield washer antifreeze in company vehicles. The amount used for the latter purpose would be subtracted from the facility total BEFORE the facility total is compared to the 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 calculations.

This exemption does NOT apply to stationary equipment. The use of lubricants and fuels for stationary process equipment ( e. g., pumps and 3 22 compressors) and stationary energy sources ( e. g., furnaces, boilers, heaters), are NOT exempt.

Example  Process Equipment Chemical Use Lubricants containing EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories 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 that aid facility process operations are not exempt and the amount of the EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories in the lubricant should be applied to the otherwise use threshold.

EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories in certain air or water drawn from the environment or municipal sources. Included are EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories present in process water and non contact cooling water drawn from the environment or a municipal source, or toxic chemicals and chemical categories present in air used either as compressed air or as an oxygen source for combustion.

Example  Activity Exemption  Toxic Chemicals in Process Water Paper manufacturing facilities use large amounts of process water. One such facility draws process water containing 1.0 part per billion ( ppb) of lead ( CAS Registry No. 7439 92 1) from a river. The water the facility returns to the river contains 0.5 ppb lead. Since the EPCRA Section 313 chemical is contained in water drawn from the environment ( or a municipal source) it is exempt under the general category of activity related exemptions. Thus, the facility need not consider the lead in the process water for threshold or release and/ or other waste management activity calculations.

3.2.3 Additional Guidance on Threshold Calculations for Certain Activities This section covers three specific situations in which the threshold determination may vary from normal facility operations: reuse, remediation, and recycling activities of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories.

<IP_ADDRESS> Reuse Activities Threshold determinations of EPCRA Section 313 chemicals or chemical categories that are reused at the facility are based only on the amount of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category that is added to the system during the year, not the total volume in the system. For example, a facility operates a refrigeration unit that contains 15,000 pounds of 3 23 anhydrous ammonia at the beginning of the year. The system is charged with 2,000 pounds of anhydrous ammonia during the year. The facility has therefore otherwise used only 2,000 pounds of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category and is not required to report ( unless the facility has additional otherwise use activities of ammonia that, when taken together, exceed the reporting threshold). If, however, the whole refrigeration unit was recharged with 15,000 pounds of new or fresh anhydrous ammonia during the year, the facility would exceed the otherwise use threshold, and be required to report ( 40 CFR § 372.25( e)).

<IP_ADDRESS> Remediation Activities EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories undergoing remediation are not being manufactured, processed, or otherwise used. Therefore, they are not included in the activity threshold determinations.

However, if you are conducting remediation of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category that is also being manufactured, processed, or otherwise used by the facility above an activity threshold level, you must consider this activity for release and other waste management calculations. You must report any release or other waste management quantities of an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category due to remediation in Part II, Sections 5 through 8, accordingly, of the 2001 Form R ( 40 CFR § 372.85( b)( 15)+( 16)). Those quantities would also be considered as part of the amount for determining Form A certification eligibility.

EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories used for remediation should be considered toward threshold determinations ( 40 CFR § 372.3). If an EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category exceeds one of the reporting thresholds elsewhere at the facility, all release and other waste management activity quantities of that chemical or chemical category must be reported, including release and other waste management activity quantities resulting from remediation ( 40 CFR § 372.85( b)( 15)+( 16)).

Excavation ( that is considered part of the remedial action ) of material already landfilled does not constitute a manufacturing, processing, or otherwise use activity. However, 3 24 routine activities ( e. g., dredging a lagoon), even if not performed every year, are not considered to be remedial actions and may be subject to reporting.

<IP_ADDRESS> Recycling Activities For on site recycling and reuse systems, where the same EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category is recycled and reused multiple times, only count the quantity recycled or reused once ( at the time it is introduced into the system) for threshold calculations ( 40 CFR § 372.25( e)). ( Please note that for reporting on site waste management activities the quantity of the EPCRA Section 313 chemical or chemical category should be counted every time it exits the recycling unit in Section 8 of Form R.) EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories recycled off site and returned to the facility should be treated as newly purchased materials for purposes of EPCRA Section 313 threshold determinations.

3.3 Step 3  Calculate the Quantity of Each EPCRA Section 313 Chemical and Chemical Category and Determine Which Ones Exceed an Activity Threshold The final step is to determine the quantity and which EPCRA Section 313 chemicals and chemical categories exceed an activity threshold. At this point you should have:

1. Identified each EPCRA Section 313 chemical and chemical category at your facility.

2. Determined the activity category for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical and chemical category ( manufactured, processed, or otherwise used).

Now, you sum the amount for each EPCRA Section 313 chemical and chemical category by activity category, subtract all exempt quantities, and compare the totals to the applicable thresholds. Each EPCRA Section 313 chemical and chemical category exceeding any one of the activity thresholds requires the submission of an EPCRA Section 313 report. Provided you meet certain criteria you may prepare a Form A certification statement rather than a Form R ( see Section 2.9). 3 25 COMMON ERROR  Assuming a Threshold is Exceeded U. S. EPA has published a report, The 1994 and 1995 Toxic Release Inventory Data Quality Report, EPA 745 R 98 002, with the site survey results of over 100 facilities to evaluate EPCRA Section 313 reporting quality. One of the findings of this survey was that facilities that simply assumed that chemical activity thresholds were exceeded were often in error. This resulted in many of these facilities filing EPCRA Section 313 reports when thresholds were actually not exceeded. Unless the facility has strong grounds to support such an assumption, the time spent in explicitly calculating the activity threshold is well spent.