Universities Seek New Uses For Toxics Data

EPA has selected three universities to develop innovative ways to use and visualize the 2015 Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data. Submitted by private and federal facilities and compiled by EPA and made public each year, TRI data track industrial chemical releases to air, water, and land, as well as what companies are doing to reduce and prevent these releases. EPA tapped the University of North Carolina, Charlotte, to develop interactive ways to visualize and analyze data to help users study correlations. Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, meanwhile, will develop a Web tool for communities to use TRI data. And Mercyhurst University in Erie, Pa., will produce TRI profiles for individual counties with a standard set of measures and trend data. The database has a wide variety of applications, including academic research, policy development, sustainability metrics, advocacy, and environmental education.