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Pollution Abatement Costs and Expenditures Survey

Purpose:

To provide data on pollution abatement capital expenditures and operating costs. This survey is a source of data for monitoring and measuring the impact of environmental programs on the economy. The survey is conducted jointly by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Authority:

The law that authorizes this survey, Title 13, United States Code, Sections 131, 182, 193, 224 and 225 requires that we keep your report in full confidence. It may be seen only by persons sworn to uphold the confidentiality of Census Bureau information and may be used only for statistical purposes. Copies retained in your files are immune from legal process.

Coverage:

Approximately 20,000 manufacturing plants, defined by the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS), were randomly selected to complete this survey. Probability of selection was proportionate to a measure of size obtained from the 2002 Economic Census The survey covers NAICS subsectors 311-339 with the exception of 315.

Content:

Data collected includes capital expenditures and operating costs for prevention, treatment, diposal and recycling. It includes data by type of media, air, water and solid waste. It also includes data on permits and fees, site cleanup, product redesign and cost offsets.

Frequency:

The PACE survey was conducted annually from 1973 to 1994 (with the exclusion of 1987) and 1999.

Method:

A mail-out/mail-back survey with periodic follow-ups will be used to collect the data.

Products:

The final report includes industry and state statistics on capital expenditures and operating costs for prevention, treatment, diposal and recycling. It will also include data by type of media, air, water and solid waste in the United States for 2005.

Uses:

Data users include the Environmental Protection Agency who use the data to satisfy legislative and executive requirements to track the costs of regulatory programs and to provide aggregate national statistics on costs and expenditures for pollution abatement activities. The Bureau of Labor Statistics use these data as a component of total capital expenditures when analyzing investment and productivity. State and local governments, trade associations, the academic community and private businesses use these data to evaluate pollution abatement spending and local legislation of specific industries.