Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986

Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986

Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) is a provision of the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986 (Title III). The law’s main purpose is to force businesses to disclose information, to both governments and individual citizens, about the toxic chemicals they are releasing into the environment.  EPCRA is chiefly comprised of two parts. The first feature mandates state and local governments to prepare emergency hazardous materials planning in advance. The law does not require a specific planning model. It merely provides a loose framework in which local officials must work. It also requires that state and local governments be informed immediately upon the release of any toxic materials. EPRCA’s second chief characteristic is the “right-to-know” standard, which is implemented through the “Toxic Release Inventory” (TRI) database. The TRI documents the presence and release of toxic materials in and around industrial areas. The database is open to the average citizen and is maintained by the Environmental Protection Agency.

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