TRI reporting: Key pitfalls and how to avoid them

As summer nears, environmental compliance efforts turn toward Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) reports, which are due annually on July 1. Everybody wants to get that report submitted and checked off the “to-do” list, but be sure to do your due diligence and put in the effort and man-hours necessary to properly prepare your TRI report, even if nothing has changed at your facility in the last year.

What do you have to report?

The first step of TRI reporting is knowing what must be reported. Suppose your facility has at least 10 or more full-time employees and falls within the specified Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) and North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes. In that case, your TRI report must include each TRI-listed toxic chemical (as listed in 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 372.65 and 40 CFR 372.28) that’s manufactured (including imported), processed, or otherwise used in excess of the established thresholds. The thresholds per calendar year are:

• 25,000 pounds (lb) per toxic chemical manufactured or processed other than persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic (PBT) chemicals and per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) (many of which are also PBTs);
• 10,000 lb per toxic chemical for chemicals otherwise used other than PBT and PFAS chemicals; and
• As listed in 40 CFR 372.28 for PBT and PFAS chemicals.

TRI-listed toxic chemicals in mixtures must also be considered when determining if the reporting threshold is exceeded. However, if a toxic chemical is present in a mixture at a concentration below 1% of the mixture, or 0.1% of the mixture if the toxic chemical is a carcinogen, it need not be considered when determining if a reporting threshold has been met.

Avoiding pitfalls

Be aware of the chemical categories on the TRI list.

For example, the TRI list includes “zinc compounds.” This category “includes any unique chemical substance that contains zinc as part of that chemical’s infrastructure.” This is potentially a very large group of listed chemicals, but an electronic search of the TRI list by specific Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) number or specific chemical name may yield no result, even though the chemical is included in this category.

Also, if you manufacture, process, or use more than one chemical in a listed category, the threshold determinations for that chemical category must aggregate all individual chemicals within the category. The determination is made for the category as a whole, not for each individual chemical.

Stay up to date on newly added chemicals.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) periodically adds new chemicals or categories of chemicals to the TRI list, so a chemical you may not have reported in the past may now need to be reported.

The diisononyl phthalate (DINP) category has been added to the list of chemicals that must be included in the TRI report for the 2024 reporting year (RY)—due July 1, 2025. This new category includes “branched alkyl di-esters of 1,2-benzenedicarboxylic acid in which alkyl ester moieties contain a total of nine carbons.” Chemicals in the DINP category include but aren’t limited to:

• DINP (28553-12-0)
• Branched dinonyl phthalate (71549-78-5)
• Bis(3,5,5-trimethylhexyl) phthalate (14103618)
• Di(C8–10, C9 rich) branched alkyl phthalates (68515-48-0)
• Bis(7-methyloctyl) phthalate (20548-62-3)
• Bis(3-ethylheptan-2-yl) benzene-1,2- dicarboxylate (111983-10-9)

In addition, the following PFAS chemicals have been added to the TRI reporting list beginning with the 2024 RY:

• Ammonium perfluorohexanoate (21615474)
• Betaines, dimethyl(.gamma.-omega.- perfluoro-.gamma.-hydro-C8-18-alkyl) (2816091-53-7)
• Lithium bis[(trifluoromethyl)sulfonyl] azanide (90076-65-6)
• Perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA) (307244)
• Perfluoropropanoic acid (PFPrA) (422640)
• Sodium perfluorohexanoate (2923-26-4)
• 1,1,1-Trifluoro-N- [(trifluoromethyl)sulfonyl] methanesulfonamide (82113-65-3)

Keep up with carcinogen classifications.

Carcinogen classifications impact the de minimis mixture concentrations. Periodically, chemicals are reclassified as Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) carcinogens, which means the de minimis concentration for the chemical in a mixture drops from 1% to 0.1%. So again, a chemical you may not have reported in the past may now need to be reported or at least reviewed to determine if it must be included in the report. The following were reclassified last year due to assessments by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC):

• Some cobalt compounds: soluble cobalt(II) salts, cobalt(II) oxide
• Some antimony compounds: trivalent antimony

Pay attention to how you rely on the safety data sheet (SDS).

Section 2 of the SDS provides complete information on the composition and ingredients of a given substance or product. This information is required and will likely prove very useful in preparing a TRI report. Section 15 of the SDS is for regulatory information, and in many cases, that manufacturer may specify whether the product or specific ingredients are on the TRI list. However, while each SDS is required to have this section, OSHA isn’t enforcing what specific regulatory information must be provided in Section 15. Therefore, it isn’t wise to rely on this section for TRI applicability information. Make the determination for yourself.

Avoid complacency.

Don’t become complacent and say “Nothing has changed at my facility, so I just have to report the same chemicals as last year.” Do your due diligence. Each year, review the chemicals, products, and mixtures being used at the facility, and check SDSs to identify the potentially reportable chemicals. Then dig up the production, usage, and inventory data, and do the necessary threshold determinations.

Mistakes happen

TRI reports typically require significant preparation time and effort. Determining what must be included in the report, gathering all of the necessary data to complete it, and filing the report require man-hours, good organizational skills, and comprehensive recordkeeping. There’s a lot to keep track of, and things may slip through the cracks, so it’s a good idea to conduct regular compliance audits.

If you discover something wrong in your TRI reporting process and you’re non-compliant, rectify it rather than hope nobody notices. The EPA recognizes that not all of us are perfect with our TRI and other Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) reporting, so the agency established an “e-disclosure” system that allows facilities to self-report certain EPCRA violations and make corrections without being fined. The e-disclosure portal can be accessed through the EPA’s Central Data Exchange (CDX).