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Facilities and Enforcement Activities Related to the Clean Air Act Stationary Source Program

Overview of Clean Air Act (CAA) Stationary Source Program, Data Collection, and Information Sources

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This page provides information about federal, state and local enforcement of Clean Air Act (CAA) emissions control requirements for industrial facilities (stationary source standards).  The CAA allows EPA to authorize or delegate the implementation of most CAA provisions to state, local or tribal governments, enabling them to perform many of the permitting, planning, administrative, compliance monitoring and enforcement aspects of the CAA Programs. However, EPA oversees this implementation process and maintains dual authority for enforcement of all CAA requirements.

For compliance and enforcement purposes, the CAA Stationary source program falls into three main categories of regulated facilities based primarily on annual potential emissions:

EPA has emission control and data reporting requirements that apply to each of these categories of sources. EPA places greater priority on major facilities. See report on the types of CAA Regulated Facility Universe Counts (PDF) (1 pg, 284K About PDF). The compliance and enforcement related information is stored in the national database called the Air Facility System (AFS) and can be searched on the Enforcement & Compliance Online (ECHO) Web page. Other key CAA program databases include those tracking CAA emissions, acid rain and operating permits. Data entry and minimum reporting requirements for compliance and enforcement programs are summarized here (EPA ECHO Data Entry Requirements).

EPA collects key information including:

You will need Adobe Reader to view some of the files on this page. See EPA's PDF page to learn more.

Finding CAA Program Enforcement Data - Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

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Local Air Quality, Facility Emissions and Releases Information

  1. What types of stationary facilities regulated by EPA and its state partners under the Clean Air Act? How many are there?

    The CAA Stationary facilities tracked for compliance, enforcement and permitting purposes fall into three main categories of regulated facilities:

    • Major - facilities that have potential emissions above CAA program thresholds
    • Synthetic Minor or SM - facilities that would be major but have enforceable permit limits to restrict them below major thresholds
    • Minor or Area sources - facilities that physically cannot emit above major program thresholds

    The definition of "major" in the CAA is a primary factor for facilities and agencies in determining which CAA or state regulations and permit requirements apply to them. The term for potential to emit (PTE) also plays a significant role. These threshold definitions also play a significant role in the compliance monitoring and enforcement program implementation planning by EPA, state and local agencies and Tribal Nations. Definitions for these terms may be found at EPA's Web site for Permits and Enforcement: Plain English Guide to the Clean Air Act.

    EPA requires authorized and delegated states, local agencies, Tribal Nations and its own regional offices to track and report facility universes * and activities, known as Minimum Data Requirements (MDRs), on all majors, synthetic minors and some minor facilities. For more details on MDRs see the Summary of EPA ECHO Data Entry Requirements . Other EPA CAA programs also track regulated CAA facilities such as Title V Operating Permits, Acid Rain, National Emissions Inventory. The following table provides a universe count for each state for most types of CAA Regulated Facilities Counts by State (PDF) (1 pg, 284K). (Note: State programs may have more detailed information including more regulated facilities not required to be reported to EPA.)

    *"Universe" is the standard term used to mean "number of regulated facilities."

    Currently there are approximately 15,000 major facilities. These facilities have a potential to emit (PTE) regulated pollutants above the CAA "major" threshold. About 138,000 additional facilities fall into our report category of Non-major, which includes synthetic minor and other minor facilities. It is important to note that state/EPA agencies and Tribal Nations must maintain accurate major operating facility universes and certain minor facility universes (e.g., synthetic minor, etc). However, the MDRs do not require reporting of most minor source universe information, with some exceptions. Therefore, the non-major category universe counts in EPA's national database AFS may not include all minor facilities. The completeness of these minor facility universes could vary from state to state because many states voluntarily report more than the minimum required. The individual state/local agencies may have additional information in their databases or web sites. More details about these categories are provided in the descriptive sections of each report.

    Please see table of CAA Regulated Facilities Counts by State (PDF) (1 pg, 284K)

  2. Where can I find emissions and chemical release data for a facility?

    Enforcement Compliance History Online (ECHO) has been recently enhanced to allow searching for facilities with Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) information. The Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986, and the Pollution Prevention Act of 1990, require facilities in certain specified industry sectors to report data on chemical releases to the environment, waste treatment and recycling, and pollution prevention. The data is collected by the TRI program and made available to the public each year.

    TRI data is collected directly from facilities based on their calculations and estimates. This data does not necessarily reflect permit allowances or indicate noncompliance. Additionally, TRI data reflect releases and other waste management quantities of chemicals, not exposures of the public to those chemicals. TRI data alone are not sufficient to determine exposure or to calculate potential adverse effects on human health and the environment. Also, note that TRI does not cover all toxic chemicals or industry sectors. For additional information on and assistance in using and interpreting TRI data, please refer to EPA's The Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) and Factorsto Consider When Using TRI Data (PDF) (29pp, 192K)

    ECHO now includes the most recent TRI data from 2007 and will be updated annually. To search for facilities that report to TRI, go to the ECHO Air data page and look in the section called "Chemical Releases". Select one of the options for different "Release Amounts" (e.g., >1,000, >10,000 lbs, etc.). You may also select different categories of TRI Releases (e.g., TRI Releases to Air (Total), Carcinogenic Releases to Air, TRI Hazardous Releases to Air). TRI data can also be accessed through TRI.net and TRI Explorer. These tools are not linked to compliance data, put provide additional search options. Find them at EPA's Search TRI Data and Tools Web site.

    You can also use ECHO to determine emissions of criteria CAA pollutants such as particulate matter, sulfur dioxide and volatile organic compounds that may not be reported in TRI. These emissions are in the National Emissions Inventory (NEI). Many states also report air toxics emissions data to the NEI. This data also is in ECHO for the 2002 inventory. Every three years states are required to collect emissions of criteria pollutants and send them to EPA for inclusion in the NEI. Currently, the NEI contains emissions for 2002 and 2005. The 2008 NEI is under development. ECHO provides 2002 data. NEI documentation and data summary tables are located at EPA's Emission Inventories Technology Transfer Network Clearinghouse for Inventories & Emissions Factors . Customizable NEI reports and maps are available at EPA's Air Emission Sources Web page and EPA's Air Emission Sources Where You Live Web page.

  3. Where can I find air quality information for an area of interest to me?

    Under the Clean Air Act, EPA establishes air quality standards to protect public health and the environment. EPA has set national air quality standards for six criteria air pollutants. These pollutants are:

    • carbon monoxide
    • ozone
    • lead
    • particulate matter (also known as particle pollution (PM10 and PM2.5)
    • sulfur dioxide
    • nitrogen dioxide

    Some of these pollutants are emitted directly from a variety of sources while others may be formed in the atmosphere through reactions with one or more of these criteria pollutants. Under the Clean Air Act, EPA establishes primary air quality standards to protect public health, including the health of sensitive populations such as people with asthma, children, and older adults. EPA also sets secondary standards to protect public welfare. To find out more about these topics, please visit EPA's Air Trends Basic Information Web page.

    Each year EPA tracks the levels of these pollutants in the air and how much of each pollutant (or the pollutants that form them) is emitted from various pollution sources. The Agency looks at these numbers annually to see how the pollutants have changed over time. EPA posts the results of those analyses to the EPA Air Trends Web site.

    EPA, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Park Service (NPS), tribal, state, and local agencies developed the AIRNOW Web site to provide the public with easy access to national air quality information. The Web site offers daily Air Quality Index (AQI) forecasts as well as real-time AQI conditions for over 300 cities across the US, and provides links to more detailed State and local air quality Web sites.

    AirCompare is an interactive Web site that provides the public with easy-to-access air quality information throughout the United States, based on specific health conditions of interest. This air quality information can help in making informed, health-protective decisions about moving, vacationing, or living in a given area. Results are based on the Air Quality Index which considers several criteria air pollutants. The number of unhealthy days based on the levels of these pollutants is reported for locations of interest, providing a basis for comparing air quality.

    The Air Quality System (AQS) contains ambient air pollution data collected by EPA, state, local, and tribal air pollution control agencies from thousands of monitoring stations. AQS also contains meteorological data, descriptive information about each monitoring station (including its geographic location and its operator), and data quality assurance/quality control information.

    Areas of the country where air pollution levels persistently exceed the national ambient air quality standards may be designated by EPA as "nonattainment." EPA lists these areas and tracks their status on the "Green Book Web site." Each county or other designated area size with criteria pollutant nonattainment designations can be found in a National County table. A National map exists showing all counties with 1, 2 or 3 pollutant/standards designated in nonattainment.

  4. Where can I find out about the health effects associated with the various air pollutants?

    The Air Quality Index (AQI) at AIRNOW tells you how clean or unhealthy your air is, and what associated health effects might be a concern. The AQI focuses on health effects you may experience within a few hours or days after breathing unhealthy air. The booklet "Air Quality Index – A Guide to Air Quality and Your Health (PDF)" (12 pp, 629K) explains the AQI and health effects of major air pollutants.

    Health information is also available on EPA's Web site for each criteria air pollutant.

    Health information on toxic air pollutants is available in the Health Effects Notebook for Hazardous Air Pollutants.

  5. Where can I find air quality data for a "nonattainment" area in which the facility is located?

    EPA designates areas that violate one or more of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards as "nonattainment." Industrial facilities operating or planning to relocate within a nonattainment area, must generally take action to reduce emissions that contribute to poor air quality.

    To retrieve data about facilities located in nonattainment areas designated by EPA please use EPA's ECHO Search for Compliance (CAA Program).

    ECHO Non-Attainment Area for Any Pollutant check box.

    This search will give you those facilities known to the CAA Stationary program and are located in a nonattainment area for one or more CAA criteria pollutants. The search results will not guarantee that all listed facilities actually emit the same nonattainment pollutant(s). However, for each facility listed in your search output you may open the Detailed Facility Reports (DFR) to see which criteria pollutants were reported to the National Emissions Inventory (NEI) by clicking on the NEI "System Source ID" link to open a special Pollutant Report which shows the NEI pollutant emissions in units of tons per year (tpy). These emission values are the actual and annual emission estimates. They are not the "potential to emit" or PTE estimates used for facility permitting level determinations.

    For more discussion and details about air quality data and nonattainment areas see Question 2.

  6. Where can I find exposure and risk data for the area in which the facility is located?

    EPA's National-Scale Air Toxics Assessment (NATA) is an ongoing comprehensive evaluation of air toxics in the United States. NATA provides estimates of the risk of cancer and other serious health effects from breathing air toxics in order to inform both national and more localized efforts to identify and prioritize air toxics, emission source types and locations which are of greatest potential concern in terms of contributing to population risk. Assessments provide a snapshot of the outdoor air quality and the risks to human health that would result if air toxic emissions levels remained unchanged.

Facility-Specific Compliance and Enforcement Information

  1. Where can I find compliance and enforcement information about CAA Stationary facilities?

    EPA maintains the Enforcement and Compliance History Online (ECHO) Web site. Using this web site, users can search for ECHO Clean Air Act facilities based on ZIP code, city, or other area of interest. Other search options include Facility Name, Industry sector (e.g.,Standard Industrial Classification {SIC} / North American Industry Classification System {NAICS} code), Inspection/Enforcement History, Violation status and enforcement history. This data can be charted in map form.

  2. Can I search for a company or particular facility to see their compliance and enforcement history?

    Yes. Navigate to ECHO select "Air Data" from left-hand navigation menu. Search by facility name and/or some geographic indicator (e.g., state, city, ZIP code, etc.). Then select one or more of the violation types in the Compliance Information box (e.g., Current Status or History), then chose one or more of the drop down options (e.g., High Priority Violations {HPV}, In Violation or Months in HPV, past 3 years or Pollutant Currently In Violation, etc.). Remember that all options selected are combined as the search criteria, therefore all select criteria must be met for your data output.

  3. Where can I find more information about specific enforcement actions taken by EPA under the Clean Air Act?

    There are several sources of information.

    In order to limit your case search to cases related to Clean Air Act compliance, scroll to the "Case Attributes" section of the ICIS Enforcement Data (EPA Cases). Search, and select "CAA - Clean Air Act" from the "Primary Law" drop down menu. {Note: This public web site shows only cases which have been finalized or concluded.}

Statewide Compliance and Enforcement Information

  1. Where can I find the number of inspections, violations and enforcement activity within a state?

    There are several ways to do this. EPA has posted data for 2008 that can be downloaded using the resources below 1 (state corrections may apply).

    Note: For the CAA, inspections are defined in terms of "compliance evaluations." There are full and partial compliance evaluations as well as investigations which are very detailed but usually targeted for very specific regulations, unit of pollution or permit avoidance, etc. For more details see descriptions in the above reports, ECHO's Data Dictionary or EPA's Compliance web site for details about the CAA Compliance Monitoring definitions and policies. Readers who are interested in EPA's various CAA programs and how EPA and its state, local, tribal partners assure compliance may go to the CAA Compliance Monitoring programs web page for more details (e.g., New Source Performance Standards, Air Toxics NESHAPs, etc.).

    To retrieve data about which facilities received inspections, had violations, or were subject to enforcement, please use EPA's ECHO CAA Compliance Search for more information.

  2. Where can I find information about compliance and enforcement activity in a state over time?

    EPA performs evaluations of state programs on a rolling basis and has made available the data used in these reviews. You can use the State Review Framework (SRF) CAA State Trends Report to select a state, examine key program indicators that EPA uses in its evaluation of the state. This tool can also produce a graph showing trends for any selected indicator beginning in 2004.

    To see details and definitions regarding the SRF metrics go to the CAA Data Searches page in the Supplemental Information section.

  3. Where can I find information about specific state compliance and enforcement programs?

    This information is available through the State Review Framework (SRF). The SRF is a collaborative tool for EPA and states to use to assess a state's performance in environmental enforcement and compliance assurance programs, and to ensure the implementation of actions to address identified issues. The SRF project assesses performance of basic enforcement activities across the CAA stationary source programs, RCRA Subtitle C, and the CWA NPDES programs. The goal is continuous improvement in program performance.

    During the conduct of these SRF reviews recommendations for improvement may have been included in these reports where deemed necessary. These associated recommendations are also available to the public at EPA's State Review Framework Compliance & Enforcement through State Government Web page.

  4. How can I find information about a specific compliance and enforcement activity across all states?

    That information is now available in ECHO as a part of the State Review Framework CAA Multi-State Report 2 (state corrections may apply)

    To see details and definitions regarding the SRF metrics go to the CAA Data Searches page in the Supplemental Information section.

  5. What types of CAA violations and deviations are identified and reported in the CAA Stationary Program?

    The compliance and enforcement program requires delegated agencies and EPA to report to the national compliance and enforcement database (called Air Facility System) any types of noncompliance or violation. Noncompliance may be discovered through many kinds of compliance evaluations (sometimes called inspections), review of reports or compliance certifications submitted by regulated facilities and occasionally from facility self-disclosures or citizen suit notifications.

    Violations and deviations from permit requirements and standards are discovered and reported to EPA national database AFS based on many types of compliance monitoring activities. These include: full and partial compliance evaluations, investigations, High Priority Violation (HPV) designations, review of facility submitted reports or stack tests, self-disclosures by facilities, etc. The following table provides compilations of several key types of violations and deviations identified by states, local agencies and EPA. (Note: Reporting of all violations discovered by states/locals, while encouraged by EPA, is not a minimum data requirement unless specified in the CAA AFS Information Collection Request (ICR). Therefore, the states and local agencies may have additional data not included in this table.

    Please see table of CAA Violations and Deviations (PDF) (1 pg, 45K).

  6. How can I download summary and detailed information about federal and state compliance and enforcement activity?

    EPA has posted the following national files in three different formats for use. All three files contain the same information. This provides 2008 data for all states 3 (state corrections may apply). Please download the documentation for explanations of the data

    If you are a researcher interested in detailed file downloads for facility data (rather than state summary data), detailed data about all CAA compliance and enforcement information in ECHO is provided at ECHO's IDEA Downloads page. The data sets were downloaded using data from the March 2009 IDEA refresh, and are updated annually. For the Air data downloads there are three separate files:

A compilation of most links in this CAA Overview Resources web site may be found at the CAA Data Searches page.

Footnotes:

DISCLAIMER

EPA is distributing this data to improve the transparency, utility and quality of the data and provide the public with tools and real-time access to better understand facility and state performance in these programs. EPA is not distributing this information to endorse, adopt, use or propose to use the information to support an Agency decision or position. The distribution of this material is therefore not a "dissemination" for purposes of EPA's Information Quality Guidelines.

1 Please visit EPA's state data corrections page to access files or links provided by states that discuss data discrepancies for the 2008 information.

2 same as footnote #1.

3 same as footnote #1.

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