• Activity thresholds for reporting are based on the amount of the toxic chemical or chemical category that is manufactured, processed, or otherwise used onsite during the calendar year.
• It is possible for a toxic chemical to be present at a facility and not be considered manufactured, processed, or otherwise used at the facility. Examples of this include storage, relabeling, or redistribution of a container where no repackaging occurs.

Activity thresholds for reporting are based on the amount of the toxic chemical or chemical category that is manufactured, processed, or otherwise used onsite during the calendar year. The amount of the toxic chemical that is released during the calendar year does not affect the activity threshold determination. Except as provided in 40 CFR 372.27, .28, .29 (which relate to the alternate threshold provision, lower thresholds for chemicals of special concern, and thresholds for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances), the threshold amounts for the purpose of Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) reporting are:

• Manufacturing more than 25,000 pounds of the toxic chemical in the calendar year;
• Processing more than 25,000 pounds of the toxic chemical in the calendar year; or
• Otherwise using more than 10,000 pounds of the toxic chemical in the calendar year.

Facilities should not aggregate the quantities of a toxic chemical manufactured, processed, or otherwise used. Each activity requires a separate threshold determination.

Manufacture

Manufacture means to produce, prepare, compound, or import an Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) 313 chemical.

Import is defined as causing the EPCRA 313 chemical to be imported into the customs territory of the U.S. If the company orders an EPCRA 313 chemical (or a mixture containing the chemical) from a foreign supplier, then the company has imported the chemical when that shipment arrives at the facility directly from a source outside of the U.S. By ordering the chemical, the company has caused it to be imported, even though they may have used an import brokerage firm as an agent to obtain the EPCRA 313 chemical.

Manufacture also includes coincidental production of an EPCRA 313 chemical (e.g., as a byproduct or impurity) as a result of the manufacture, processing, otherwise use or disposal of another chemical or mixture of chemicals. In the case of coincidental production of an impurity (i.e., an EPCRA 313 chemical that remains in the product that is distributed in commerce), the de minimis exemption applies. The de minimis exemption does not apply to byproducts (e.g., an EPCRA 313 chemical that is separated from a process stream and further processed or disposed of). Certain EPCRA 313 chemicals may be manufactured as a result of wastewater treatment or other treatment processes. For example, neutralization of wastewater containing nitric acid can result in the coincidental manufacture of a nitrate compound (solution), reportable as a member of the nitrate compounds category.

Process

Process means the preparation of a listed EPCRA 313 chemical, after its manufacture, for distribution in commerce. Processing is usually the incorporation of an EPCRA 313 chemical into a product. However, a facility may process an impurity that already exists in a raw material by distributing that impurity in commerce. Processing includes preparation of the EPCRA 313 chemicals in the same physical state or chemical form as that received by the facility, or preparation that produces a change in physical state or chemical form. The term also applies to the processing of a mixture or other trade name product that contains a listed EPCRA 313 chemical as one component.

Relabeling or redistributing of the EPCRA 313 chemical where no repackaging of the EPCRA 313 chemical occurs does not constitute processing of the EPCRA 313 chemical.

Otherwise Use

Otherwise use means any use of an EPCRA 313 chemical, including an EPCRA 313 chemical contained in a mixture or other trade name product or waste, that is not covered by the terms manufacture or process. Otherwise use of an EPCRA 313 chemical includes disposal, stabilization (without subsequent distribution in commerce), or treatment for destruction if:

• The EPCRA 313 chemical that was disposed of, stabilized, or treated for destruction was received from off-site for the purposes of further waste management; or
• The EPCRA 313 chemical that was disposed of, stabilized, or treated for destruction was manufactured as a result of waste management activities on materials received from off-site for the purposes of waste management activities.

Relabeling or redistributing of the EPCRA 313 chemical where no repackaging of the EPCRA 313 chemical occurs does not constitute an otherwise use of the EPCRA 313 chemical.

Examples

Several examples of manufacture, process, and otherwise use are found in the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) publication Toxic Chemical Release Inventory Reporting Forms and Instructions. On the flip side, note that it is possible for a toxic chemical to be present at a facility and not be considered manufactured, processed, or otherwise used at the facility. Examples of this include storage, relabeling, or redistribution of a container where no repackaging occurs.