5
TRI Program Impacts
on Reducing Toxic
Chemical Releases
INTRODUCTION
Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) reporting has limitations; however, the program has
been successful in reducing releases of chemicals included in the program. After the
first reporting year, 1988, the releases declined steadily through 1996 (Figure 5.1).
This decline was despite the addition of 286 new chemicals and the addition of
federal facilities in 1994. The 1998 report included seven new industry sectors to
the reports, which caused the reported releases to more than double. Following this
expansion, the release volumes have again declined.
There are numerous factors that contributed to emission reduction over the time
period since the TRI was introduced. Many who have analyzed the effects of TRI
agree that the introduction of the program has led to substantial emission reductions
(Stephan, Kraft, and Abel 2005).
Many give the TRI program credit for reductions as a direct result of the public
disclosure aspect of the program and the pressure it puts on facilities. This pressure comes from a number of sources. For example, once information is published,
the public has access to the data and can put direct pressure on facilities to reduce
releases. This can come in the form of a community-based group, an environmental activist group, or many individuals. In addition, shareholders have been
demonstrated to have tremendous power over the decisions a company makes
regarding its environmental releases. According to one study, companies that
showed the greatest drop in stock price following the initial release of TRI data in
1989 reduced their emissions over the following 3 years more than their industry
peers (Konar and Cohen 1996).
The TRI program also can result in reductions of emissions from the mere potential for public pressure (Stephan, Kraft, and Abel 2005). The TRI data are published
in a format that allows the public to view the top emitters by facility, industry type,
and location. Facilities can monitor their own position in the rankings of top emitters
to benchmark environmental performance based on the total mass of toxic chemicals
released. The simple perception that top emitters will or could be in the spotlight
could be enough to motivate some facilities to reduce releases of reported chemicals.
Another key factor was the desire by facilities to reduce their reporting burden.
By reducing the use of a chemical targeted by the program, the facility is able to
55
TRI Program Impacts
on Reducing Toxic
Chemical Releases
INTRODUCTION
Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) reporting has limitations; however, the program has
been successful in reducing releases of chemicals included in the program. After the
first reporting year, 1988, the releases declined steadily through 1996 (Figure 5.1).
This decline was despite the addition of 286 new chemicals and the addition of
federal facilities in 1994. The 1998 report included seven new industry sectors to
the reports, which caused the reported releases to more than double. Following this
expansion, the release volumes have again declined.
There are numerous factors that contributed to emission reduction over the time
period since the TRI was introduced. Many who have analyzed the effects of TRI
agree that the introduction of the program has led to substantial emission reductions
(Stephan, Kraft, and Abel 2005).
Many give the TRI program credit for reductions as a direct result of the public
disclosure aspect of the program and the pressure it puts on facilities. This pressure comes from a number of sources. For example, once information is published,
the public has access to the data and can put direct pressure on facilities to reduce
releases. This can come in the form of a community-based group, an environmental activist group, or many individuals. In addition, shareholders have been
demonstrated to have tremendous power over the decisions a company makes
regarding its environmental releases. According to one study, companies that
showed the greatest drop in stock price following the initial release of TRI data in
1989 reduced their emissions over the following 3 years more than their industry
peers (Konar and Cohen 1996).
The TRI program also can result in reductions of emissions from the mere potential for public pressure (Stephan, Kraft, and Abel 2005). The TRI data are published
in a format that allows the public to view the top emitters by facility, industry type,
and location. Facilities can monitor their own position in the rankings of top emitters
to benchmark environmental performance based on the total mass of toxic chemicals
released. The simple perception that top emitters will or could be in the spotlight
could be enough to motivate some facilities to reduce releases of reported chemicals.
Another key factor was the desire by facilities to reduce their reporting burden.
By reducing the use of a chemical targeted by the program, the facility is able to
55