Information About the Green Chemistry Challenge
Green Chemistry Challenge Awards
The Green Chemistry Challenge Awards promote the environmental and economic benefits of developing and using novel green chemistry. These annual awards recognize chemical technologies that incorporate the principles of green chemistry into chemical design, manufacture, and use.
EPA’s Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention sponsors the Green Chemistry Challenge Awards in partnership with the American Chemical Society Green Chemistry Institute® and other members of the chemical community.
Throughout the 27 years of the awards program, EPA has presented awards to 139 winners. Since its inception, in 1996, EPA has received over 1,800 nominations. The technologies recognized by the Green Chemistry Challenge Awards have significantly reduced the hazards associated with designing, manufacturing, and using chemicals.
Through 2022, the 133 winning technologies have made billions of pounds of progress, including:
- 830 million pounds of hazardous chemicals and solvents eliminated each year—enough to fill almost 3,800 railroad tank cars1 or a train nearly 47 miles long.2
- 21 billion gallons of water saved each year—the amount used by 980,000 people annually.3
- 7.8 billion pounds of carbon dioxide equivalents released to air eliminated each year—equal to taking 770,000 automobiles off the road.4
These data are from award-winning nominations for the Green Chemistry Challenge. Adding the benefits from the nominated technologies would greatly increase the program’s total benefits.
The 2025 Green Chemistry Challenge Award application deadline is Dec. 13, 2024.
Information about the 2025 Challenge:
- Award Categories
- Eligibility and Scope
- Selection Criteria
- Nomination and Selection Process
- 2025 Green Chemistry Challenge Awards Nomination Package (pdf)
- View past Green Chemistry Challenge Award winners.
1 Assumed a tank car with a 110-ton capacity, which is equivalent to a rail car with a 286,000 gross rail load. Source: University of Kentucky College of Engineering.
2 Assumed a length of 60 feet per rail car. Sources: The Greenbrier Companies.
3 Assumed 58.6 gallons of water per person per day for indoor use. Source: Water Research Foundation.
4 Assumed 4.6 metric tons of CO2e per year, or 10,141 pounds per year, per car. Source: U.S. EPA.