What's New for 2023 TRI Reports Due July 1?

Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) reporting from covered facilities is due July 1. TRI reporting is known by various other names, including “Form R,” “EPCRA 313,” “SARA 313,” or “Toxic Chemical Release Reporting."

The Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) regulations require annual reporting from facilities in specific industry sectors that manufacture, import, process, or use a listed chemical in an amount that exceeds the given threshold for that chemical and activity (e.g., 25,000 lbs., 10,000 lbs. 100 lbs. etc.). 

In this article:

• Who submits TRI reporting?
• What chemicals are covered?
• What's new for TRI reporting in 2023?
• 2023 EPCRA TRI reporting cheat sheet 

Who Submits TRI Reporting?

Facilities that must submit TRI reporting are those that:

• Employ 10 or more full-time employees (or equivalent hours worked); and
• Are assigned SIC Major Group code 10, 12, or 20–39 or SIC Industry Groups 4911, 4931, 4939, 4953, 5169, 5171, 7839; or that are Federal agencies; and
• Manufactured, imported, processed, or used a covered chemical in a quantity exceeding the given threshold.

Exact details on who must report, which chemical substances require reporting, and reporting thresholds are found at 40 CFR 372.1, 40 CFR 372.65, and 40 CFR 372.25

What Chemicals are Covered by TRI?

Chemicals that require reporting include about 800 substances with acute or chronic effects on human health or the environment. These chemicals are listed in 40 CFR 372.65 and 372.28. The substances listed in 372.28 are dubbed "chemicals of special concern."

Typical thresholds for reporting TRI are 25,000 or 10,000 lbs, depending on the activity. Much lower reporting thresholds apply to chemicals of special concern—a list that includes aldrin, hexachlorobezene, mercury, mercury and lead compounds, and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). [See 40 CFR 372.28]. 

2023 TRI Reporting: What's New for Reports Due July 1

Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) reports are due from facilities that manage reportable volumes of covered chemicals by July 1. Some notable new provisions are in effect for TRI reporting submitted in 2023. These include: 

• Natural Gas Processing Facilities Must Submit the TRI

EPA added natural gas processing facilities to the list of industrial sectors subject to EPCRA TRI reporting requirements in 2021. July 1, 2023 will mark the first deadline for covered NGP facilities to report.

• Updated “Parent Company” Definition for TRI 

For the purpose of TRI reporting under ECPRA, EPA now defines “parent company” to mean:  

“the highest level company (or companies) of the facility’s ownership hierarchy as of December 31 of the year for which data are being reported…”

[87 FR 63951].

• More PFAS Chemicals Added to EPCRA TRI Reporting List

US EPA added five additional per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) to the list of substances subject to TRI reporting in July 2022. TRI reports submitted July 1, 2023 must account for the five PFAS named in the image below, as well as all of the other PFAS added to the TRI list by EPA in recent years.

• Updated NAICS Codes for Many Industries 

Some facilities are required to use an updated NAICS code for 2023 TRI reports, including, but not limited to: apparel mills and manufacturing; paper mills; mining (coal, gold, silver, fertilizer minerals, and other); machinery manufacturers, car and truck, manufacturers, and others.

EPCRA Compliance and Complete EPA Regs Training

Managing site compliance with the many EPA programs that affect your facility is a demanding responsibility—and it's not your only one.  

Superfund and Right-to-Know Act Online Training

Get a handle on the chemical reporting and emergency preparedness requirements under Right-to-Know and Superfund programs like the TRI, Tier II reporting, and others.

Get clarity on the must-know environmental rules that industrial facilities deal with most often, including Clean Air Act compliance, NPDES and stormwater issues, chemical inventory reporting and emergency planning/preparedness, and more.

Learn at your own pace with Lion’s Complete Environmental Regulations online training.

Cheat Sheet to 40 CFR Part 372 Reporting ("TRI", "SARA 313", or "Form R") 

Tags: environmental compliance, EPCRA, reports, Right-to-Know, TRI