166 



STATE TOXICS INFORMATION NEEDS 



In a pioneering effort, the FOSTTA carried out a needs assessment in 1993 to 

 gather information about state toxics control programs (see attachment). The assess- 

 ment used a broad definition of toxic chemicals that included any specific organic 

 or inorganic chemical that is part of a pertinent listing in state and federal law or 

 regulation. Toxics control programs were defined ". . . as any existing program that 

 has as its primary focus the control, whether regulatory or otherwise, of toxic chemi- 

 cals, or distinct sub-programs that primarily emphasize toxics control." The re- 

 sponse rate was very good in that one or more survey forms came from 48 states 

 and a total of 87 forms were sent by environmental and health agencies. 



A number of key findings were derived fix)m this assessment as follows: 



1. State agencies are extensively involved in the regulation of toxic chemicals. 

 Eight-two percent of the respondents reported fi-om one to six on-going toxics 

 programs. 



2. Information about the storage and use of toxic chemicals at industrial fa- 

 cilities is not well known to many state agencies. Only 24 percent of the re- 

 spondents reported that such information was well known and available. 



3. State agency awareness of industrial facilities that are regulated under 

 TSCA is quite limited. Eighty-five percent of the respondents reported that they 

 have very little knowledge or just some awareness of such facilities. 



The respondents listed seven top priorities for more effective state toxics control 

 programs: 



• Better databases on the use and release of toxic substances 



• Increased funding 



• Better data on the effects of toxics on human health and the environment 



• More emphasis on toxics pollution prevention 



• Improved risk assessment procedures 



• Increased expertise in addressing complex chemical concerns 



• Better cooperation and coordination among state, federal and local govern- 

 ments. 



Until the relatively recent advent of the FOSTTA, there has been very limited co- 

 operative exchange of toxics information between the USEPA and the states. With- 

 out doubt, the chilling effects of TSCA's CBI provisions have played a large role in 

 this regard. Much to their credit, the USEPA has begun to more openly respond to 

 the states' overtures for data within the context of FOSTTA. Summaries of informa- 

 tion fi"om the latest chemical inventory update rule (lUR) reports have been pro- 

 vided to more than a dozen interested states. Of course, only non-CBI data was pro- 

 vided, and thus, we were limited in what we could readily access. The lEPA has 

 evaluated the information that was available for our state and determined that, at 

 least 54 chemicals were of real interest and concern. Comparison between these 

 chemicals and Form R filings (TRI data) for Illinois showed only about a 40 percent 

 overlap. The significance of this finding is that access to even the non-CBI portion 

 of the inventory update reports does enrich a state's toxic control database. We can 

 also access some non-CBI, health and safety studies, chemical test results, and sub- 

 stantial risk notices via the TSCATS database, and we have used this source on 

 some occasions. Once again, the usefulness of these data are limited by the amounts 

 of information that are not available due to CBI. 



Based on our experiences with toxic chemicals, we can foresee the following uses 

 for more toxics information: 



1. Emergency preparedness and response — State environmental agencies fi-e- 

 quently play a major role in handling chemical emergency incidents. In IlUnois, 

 tiie lEPA is the lead state agency for such incidents. In the past four years 

 (1990-1993), we have responded to some 6,055 emergency incidents involving 

 470 hazardous chemicals (see attachment). Fixed facilities have generated about 

 51 percent (3,107) of these incidents which overlaps with some of the same busi- 

 ness sites regulated under TSCA. During this same time period, 34 fatalities, 

 846 persons with injuries and 1,546 evacuations occurred due to these incidents. 



