The links below are intended to serve as a guide to information
available under right-to-know laws. They include resources on
the health effects of chemicals and related information.
EPA Toxic Release Inventory
Toxic
Release Inventory System (TRIS)
The EPA requires manufacturers to report releases of more than
600 designated toxic chemicals to the environment. A searchable
database can be accessed by selecting the "TRIS Queries" link
on the TRIS home page.
TRI
Explorer
Access to pollution release reports by county, state or national
totals or by releases from individual facilities. This page is
the easiest place to start a search. Click on the general information
button for links to information sources in local communities.
TRI
and Health Page
Offers suggestions about what to do if you discover toxic chemicals
are being released into your community.
Other TRI Links
Environmental
Defense Scorecard Pollution Locator
Plots pollution releases on local, state and national maps with
concise explanations.
Right-to-Know
Net
Easy to use search engine finds information by geographic area,
facility, industry, parent company or off-site waste transfers.
The
Environmental Systems Research Institute
This site provides a user-friendly way to search for Toxic Release
Inventory information – pinpointing contaminant releases on
street maps so users can see how close they live to pollution sources.
High Production Volume Chemicals
EPA
Report on Chemical Hazard Data
Lists high production volume chemicals with information on whether
health effects testing has been done.
Specifics
on Chemicals and Testing Status
Health Effects of Toxic Chemicals
ATSDR- Centers
for Disease Control, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.
Fact sheets on toxic chemicals.
National
Library of Medicine Fact sheets including the Hazardous Substance
Database. A cluster of databases on toxicology, hazardous chemicals,
and related subjects with detailed technical information.
New
Jersey Right-to-Know Program
New Jersey and Massachusetts have adopted some of the most far-reaching
community right-to-know laws in the country, requiring more extensive
disclosures of toxic releases than the federal government demands.
This site includes NJ release information, as well as easy to
understand fact sheets on toxic chemicals.
EPA's Integrated
Risk Information System (IRIS)
Click on substance file list, search by chemical name or choose
from the list.
EPA’s
Persistent, Bioaccumulative and Toxic fact sheets
Explains the toxic effects of the priority chemicals considered
most hazardous to long-term health.
National
Institute for Environmental Health Sciences, Environmental Health
Perspectives
Explains the toxicity of Benzene in simple terms and discusses
how people are exposed.
EPA’s
Dioxin Reassessment
Highlights
Environmental
Defense Scorecard
One of the most comprehensive and user-friendly sites for information
on pollution releases and toxic chemicals.
Specific
information on health effects of chemicals
Natural
Resources Defense Council
A broad range of information on toxic chemicals and health.
Pesticides
United
States Geological Service Pesticide Use Map
Click on a pesticide to see areas of greatest use, or search by
geographic location.
National
Pesticide Telecommunications Network
Operated jointly by Oregon State University and the EPA. Search
chemicals by category.
EXTOXNET:
The Extension Toxicology Network
A Pesticide Information Project of Cooperative Extension Offices
of Cornell University, Michigan State University, Oregon State
University, and the University of California at Davis.
Fruit
Salad Roulette, Daily Fare
Information on pesticide residues in food from the Environmental
Working Group.
Water
EPA Office
of Groundwater and Drinking Water
Allows searches for contaminants in individual water system.
EPA
Office of Groundwater and Drinking Water Fact Sheets
Contaminant fact sheets explain potential health problems.
Drinking
Water Contaminants
EPA site lists the major water contaminants and potential health
effects.
National
Drinking Water Contaminant Occurrence Database
Database of drinking water contaminants.
Interactive
Database Search:
EPA Fish
Advisories
Shows which states have issued warnings to limit or avoid consumption
of certain types of fish, or fish caught in specific lakes or
rivers because of chemical contamination.
Air
EPA’s
Index to Airborne Toxic Chemicals
Health effects notebooks of hazardous chemicals. Search by name
or select chemicals from a list.
1996
National Air Toxics Assessment
This site generates maps of counties with the highest emissions
and includes tables listing air contaminant releases.
National
Air Quality and Emissions Trends Report, 1998
Smog report analyzes trends by geographic region and assesses
whether air quality is improving or deteriorating.
Medical & Science Information
National
Institutes of Medicine, National Institute of Environmental Health
Sciences Environmental Diseases from A to Z
Simplified explanations of diseases that may be caused by environmental
exposures.
National
Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Environmental Health
Perspectives
Peer-reviewed journal published by NIEHS. Excellent source of
news and discussion of research on chemicals and human health.
Browse Environews by topic, or search for specific subjects. Also
provides abstracts of scientific articles.
National
Toxicology Project, The 9th Report on Carcinogens
Lists chemicals classified as known, probable or suspected human
carcinogens, with details on studies that back up the NTP's conclusions.
World
Health Organization, International Agency for Research on Cancer,
IARC
International database of cancer causing substances.
National
Library of Medicine, PubMed
Searches for peer-reviewed articles from medical journals.
Canadian
Medical Journal - Endocrine Disruption and Potential Human Health
Implications
Explains the role of endocrine disrupting chemicals in human health.
Cancer
Web – Online Medical Dictionary
Quick access to definitions of medical terms.
Toxic Waste
EPA
Superfund Site Information
Gateway to information on specific toxic waste sites.
Money & Politics
Center for
Responsive Politics
Non-partisan, non-profit research group based in Washington, D.C.
tracks money in politics, and its effect on elections and public
policy.
Center
for Public Integrity
Investigations and analyses focus on government accountability
and ethics.
CPI's
Toxic Deception
Includes a table of the top 50 recipients of campaign contributions
from the chemical industry.
Corp
Watch
Guide to finding information about individual corporations. Provides
links to a variety of government, corporate, academic and public
interest group sites.
National
Institute on Money in State Politics
Tracks campaign contributions and spending at the state level
Public Interest Groups
Environmental Working
Group
An extensive selection of well-researched reports, articles, and
databases.
Ohio Citizen
Action
Provides reports on Ohio releases of chemicals that can cause
cancer, birth defects, or reproductive harm. Includes a history
of right-to-know laws, and a section on "Farming Without
Chemicals."
Center for
Responsive Politics
Non-partisan, non-profit research group based in Washington, D.C.
tracks money in politics, and its effect on elections and public
policy.
Coming Clean
A new collaborative campaign for safer chemicals and healthier
communities which began as a joint effort by the Center for Environment
Health and Justice, the Environmental Health Fund, the Environmental
Working Group and Women's Voices for the Earth.
Greenpeace
An independent campaigning organization that uses non-violent
direct action and creative communication to expose global environmental
problems and to promote solutions that are essential to a green
and peaceful future.
