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Profiles of Agriculture Sectors (Sector Notebooks)

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The EPA's Office of Compliance has developed a series of profiles (called Sector Notebooks) containing information on selected major industries. These profiles have been thoroughly reviewed by experts from both inside and outside the EPA. The profiles include summary information on the following topics, with references to more in-depth information:

Three profiles of agricultural industries are available from the Office of Compliance:

Related publications from the Ag Center
Pollution Prevention
Ag Sector Profiles (Sector Notebooks)

More information from EPA
Sector Notebooks available for other industries

Profile of the Agricultural Crop Production Industry

(link to download entire document, information on profiles, updates, comments, and questions)

Information is provided on the three types of agricultural crop production industries:

The Agricultural Crop Production Industry Sector Notebook contains the following sections:

First Section: 20 pages (PDF, 241KB) includes:
> Introduction to the Agricultural Crop Production Industries
Background information on the three types of crop production industries.

Second Section: 68 pages (PDF, 179KB) includes:
>Summary of Operations, Impacts, and Pollution Prevention Opportunities
Overview of commonly employed operations and maintenance activities in the agricultural production industries of crops, greenhouses, nurseries, and forestry. General pollution prevention and waste minimization opportunities are also discussed in the context of each of the operations and maintenance activities.

Third Section, 50 pages (PDF, 426KB) includes:
>Summary of Applicable Federal Statutes and Regulations
Federal regulations that may apply to the crop production industry. The purpose of this section is to highlight and briefly describe the applicable federal requirements, and to provide citations for more detailed information.

Fourth Section, 36 pages (PDF, 1.06MB) includes:
> Compliance and Enforcement History
Inspection, violation, and enforcement data to provide information about the historical compliance and enforcement activity of the crop production sector.

> Review of Major Legal Actions
Summary information about major cases that have affected the crop production sector and a list of Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEPs) for this sector. SEPs are compliance agreements that reduce a facility's stipulated penalty in return for an environmental project that exceeds the value of the reduction.

> Compliance Assurance Activities and Initiatives
Activities undertaken by the crop industry sector and public agencies to voluntarily improve the sector's environmental performance. This section also contains a listing and description of national and regional trade associations.

> Contacts, Resource Materials, Bibliography
Contacts and publications that provide further information on selected topics within the agricultural crop production industries.

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Profile of the Agricultural Livestock Production Industry

(link to download entire document, information on profiles, updates, comments, and questions)

The Agricultural Livestock Production Industry Sector Notebook contains the following sections:

First Section, 24 pages (PDF, 197KB) includes:
>Introduction to the Agricultural Livestock Production Industries
Background information on the livestock production industry.

Second Section, 44 pages (PDF, 379KB) includes:
>Summary of Operations, Impacts, and Pollution Prevention Opportunities
Overview of commonly employed operations and maintenance activities in the agricultural livestock production industry. General pollution prevention and waste minimization opportunities are also discussed in the context of each of the operations and maintenance activities.

Third Section, 49 pages (PDF, 464KB) includes:
>Summary of Applicable Federal Statutes and Regulations
Federal regulations that may apply to the livestock production industry. The purpose of this section is to highlight and briefly describe the applicable federal requirements, and to provide citations for more detailed information.

Fourth Section, 39 pages (PDF, 1.48MB) includes:
> Compliance and Enforcement History
Inspection, violation, and enforcement data to provide information about the historical compliance and enforcement activity of the livestock production sector.

> Review of Major Legal Actions
Summary information about major cases that have affected the livestock production sector and a list of Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEPs) for this sector. SEPs are compliance agreements that reduce a facility's stipulated penalty in return for an environmental project that exceeds the value of the reduction.

> Compliance Assurance Activities and Initiatives
Activities undertaken by the livestock industry sector and public agencies to voluntarily improve the sector's environmental performance. This section also contains a listing and description of national and regional trade associations.

> Contacts, Resource Materials, Bibliography
Contacts and publications that provide further information on selected topics within the agricultural livestock production industries.

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Profile of the Agricultural Chemical, Pesticide, and Fertilizer Industry

(link to download entire document, information on profiles, updates, comments, and questions)

The Agricultural Chemical Production Industry Sector Notebook covers the manufacturing and production of fertilizers, the formulation of pesticide chemicals (both agricultural and non-agricultural) manufactured at separate facilities, and the production of other miscellaneous agricultural chemicals. It does not include the use, sale, distribution, or storage of such chemicals. The Agricultural Chemical, Pesticide, and Fertilizer Industry Sector Notebook contains the following sections:

First Section, 74 pages (PDF, 784KB) includes:
>Introduction to the Agricultural Chemical Production Industry
Background information on the Agricultural Chemical Production Industry.

> Industrial Process Description
Major industrial processes within the Fertilizer, Pesticide, and Agricultural Chemical Industry, including the materials and equipment used, and the processes employed. The section is designed for those interested in gaining a general understanding of the industry, and for those interested in the interrelationship between the industrial process and the topics described in subsequent sections of this profile -- pollutant outputs, pollution prevention opportunities, and federal regulations.

This section specifically contains a description of commonly used production processes, associated raw materials, the by-products produced or released, and the materials either recycled or transferred off-site. The discussion, coupled with schematic drawings of the identified processes, provide a concise description of where wastes may be produced in the process. This section also describes the potential fate (via air, water, and soil pathways) of these waste products.

Second Section, 74 pages (PDF, 563KB) includes:
> Chemical Release and Transfer Profile
Background information on the pollutant releases that are reported by the agricultural chemical production industry in correlation with other industries. The best source of comparative pollutant release information is the Toxic Release Inventory (TRI). Pursuant to the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act, TRI includes self-reported facility release and transfer data for over 600 toxic chemicals. Facilities within SIC Codes 20 through 39 (manufacturing industries) that have more than 10 employees, and that are above weight-based reporting thresholds are required to report TRI on-site releases and off-site transfers. The information presented within the sector notebooks is derived from the most recently available (1996) TRI reporting year (which includes over 600 chemicals), and focuses primarily on the onsite releases reported by each sector. Because TRI requires consistent reporting regardless of sector, it is an excellent tool for drawing comparisons across industries. TRI data provide the type, amount and media receptor of each chemical released or transferred.

> Pollution Prevention Opportunities
General and company-specific descriptions of some pollution prevention advances that have been implemented within the Fertilizer, Pesticide, and Agricultural Chemical Industry. While the list is not exhaustive, it does provide core information that can be used as the starting point for facilities interested in beginning their own pollution prevention projects. This section provides summary information from activities that may be, or are being implemented by this sector. When possible, information is provided that gives the context in which the technique can be used effectively.

>Summary of Applicable Federal Statutes and Regulations
Federal regulations that may apply to the Fertilizer, Pesticide, and Agricultural Chemical Industry. The purpose of this section is to highlight and briefly describe the applicable federal requirements, and to provide citations for more detailed information.

Third Section, 40 pages (PDF, 530KB) includes:
> Compliance and Enforcement History
Inspection, violation, and enforcement data to provide information about the historical compliance and enforcement activity of the agricultural chemical production sector.

> Compliance Assurance Activities and Initiatives
Activities undertaken by the agricultural chemical production industry sector and public agencies to voluntarily improve the sector's environmental performance. This section also contains a listing and description of national and regional trade associations.

> Contacts, Resource Materials, Bibliography
Contacts and publications that provide further information on selected topics within the agricultural chemical production industries.

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