Software:
Links:
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| The world's first PRTR, the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI |
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Existing PRTR systems The world's first PRTR, the Toxics Release
Inventory (TRI), was produced in the U.S. in 1987, established under the
Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986. As a result, over
23,000 facilities currently report releases of more than 600 specific chemicals
while the data is compiled into both state and national databases.
The UK's Chemical Release Inventory was initiated in 1990 - an electronic
database with information about the emissions of various polluting substances
(since the year 1992) from industrial processes which are regulated under the
Integrated Pollution Control scheme. The scheme covers major industrial plants
in England and Wales. Annual emissions of over 370 substances are recorded.
In Canada, the National Pollutant Release Inventory began in 1993.
Currently, over 1700 facilities report. Finally, the Dutch Emission Inventory
System has been in place in various forms since 1974. Currently, emissions of
900 pollutants from 730 major companies are recorded, while emissions from
smaller companies and non-point sources are estimated.
Benefits from the PRTR system The most simple and useful analyses of
the PRTR is compiling lists of companies ranked by quantities of emissions. The
disclosure, and the data collection itself, has been a very powerful incentive
for emission reduction programs. This applies both to voluntary schemes, such as
the US TRI 33/50 program, as well as to corporate initiatives aimed at avoiding
bad publicity. As a CEO of the U.S. Slater Steel Corporation said, "quite
frankly, we want to get off the list."
The main objectives of the inventory are to: 1) provide information to
industry and government that will assist in environmental planning and
management, 2) satisfy community needs by providing accessible information on
specified emissions in their environment, and 3) promote waste minimization and
cleaner production for industry and government.
Public PRTR is intended to be a publicly accessible database tracking
toxins. Members of the public will be able to obtain information about the
presence and release of toxic and hazardous chemicals in their communities so
that they can identify potential concerns, gain a better understanding of risks
involved, and work with industry and government to reduce toxic chemical
releases and risks associated with the chemicals. In the longer term, increased
awareness about the quantities and type of pollutants is expected to result in a
change in the way resources are used. Interestingly, NGOs are one of the key
players in the process of educating the public on the use of PRTR data (i.e.
Friends of the Earth, WWF, Right-To-Know groups in the US). |
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