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Search
Main Features
- EPA Search engine functions based on Northern Light algorithms
- Highlights provide direct links to Search Help; Advanced Search; Zip Code Search; Find Staff; Publications Search; and Search Other EPA Sites
- Note: Search does not access some databases, including the Online Library System (OLS)
The EPA search engine can be configured to search across multiple parameters and yields results ranked by relevance.
Description
Many of EPA’s documents, Web sites, publications and databases are categorized based on an EPA controlled vocabulary. This same vocabulary generates the Browse EPA Topics pages, as described previously. This topical hierarchy allows for an efficient search of approximately one million pages of html text and PDF files. Some databases, including the Online Library System, EPA’s National Library Network catalog, need to be searched separately.
The Search function itself is based on Northern Light algorithms. Terms can be entered in either lower or upper case. The search function is located on the top of every EPA Web page. Only searches initiated from the EPA home page and other top level pages apply to the entire site. Searches conducted from any other page default to that page and any subsequent pages in that topical area. For example, a search on the Wetlands home page will only search Wetlands materials, not all of EPA’s web documents. To search the entire site, select the “All EPA” radio button.
Search Operators and Modifiers
Search results can be narrowed by adding Boolean operators to queries.
- OR: By linking search terms with OR, the search engine will find pages that contain at least one of the search terms
- AND: By linking search terms with AND, the search engine will find pages that contain all of the search terms
- NOT: Irrevalent pages can be excluded by preceding search terms with NOT.
Boolean operators can be combined in one search. A search for: “lead AND paint OR lead AND solder” will produce documents that contain the words “lead” and “paint” or documents that contain the words “lead” and “solder”.
General searches conducted from the EPA home page use a special process to supplement the standard full-text index of the EPA Web content. A metadata database is first searched, than a more comprehensive full-text query follows. It is more or less like a library's card catalog. (However, only about 10% of EPA’s Web pages are catalogued.) This approach adds human oversight to the process of identifying the best pages for starting an information discovery effort on a particular topic.
Search results can include “breadcrumbs” which are based on the Browse EPA Topics pages – pathway descriptions of broader categories within which the search term is nested. By clicking on the “breadcrumbs,” topic-related sites will be displayed. Results contain PDF and html files, but do not display publications listed in the Online Library System or information from some other databases. Further refine results by selecting the “search within these results” radio button.
If the search results generated by the EPA search engine do not yield the appropriate information, a link at the bottom of the page allows the user to conduct a Google or USASearch.gov search of the EPA Web site.
Advanced Search allows users to narrow their search by field (e.g. title, keywords, description, or URL) and to choose by document type. Results can be sorted by relevance or date.
Highlights (in Advanced Search)
Search Methods and Examples
- Searches are not case sensitive. Searches for BMP or bmp with get the same results
- To search for words in exact order, include the phrase in double quotation marks. Searches for “wetlands awards” will return results with the word wetlands followed by the word awards
- Words and phrases in the query are stemmed. Searches for the word hazard will include hazards and hazardous
- Wildcards act as word extenders. The asterisk * replaces zero to many characters, while the percent % replaces one character
- Natural language queries, which approximate normal speech, are generally formulated as questions, like “What is BMP?”
- Search Help
- ZIP Code Search leads to the Search Your Community page that features searches of the Envirofacts, EnviroMapper, Surf Your Watershed, and the UV Index sites. See the Where You Live section of this booklet for further information.
- The EPA Employee Directory is accessible through Find Staff.
- Publications Search
- Search other EPA Sites