You are here

Home » Resources » General Information » Become an ECHO Pro

Become an ECHO Pro

Use this guide to expand your capabilities beyond the Quick Search, and learn what you can do with the tools that ECHO offers in Explore Facilities, Create Maps, and Analyze Trends. See the ECHO Tool Guide for additional instruction on how to choose and utilize the tools available.

ECHO home page showcasing three features: Explore Facilities, Create Maps, and Analyze Trends

Explore Facilities

Explore Facilities provides access to ECHO’s facility and enforcement case searches.

Facility Searches: These help you target the facilities that are most important to you. Use facility searches if you want to limit results based on:

  • Location
  • Environmental conditions
  • Facility or system characteristics
  • Enforcement and compliance activity
  • Pollutant

Example Facility Searches

  • Identify facilities in your zip code that are classified as major generators of hazardous waste.
  • Identify petroleum refineries with multiple violations in the last five years.
  • Identify facilities operating in non-attainment areas that have not been recently inspected.
  • Identify facilities that report large toxic chemical releases to the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI).

EPA Enforcement Case Searches: Use these searches to find information on formal federal administrative and judicial enforcement actions. Search for cases using criteria such as:

  • Facility characteristics
  • Location
  • Case identifiers
  • Case milestone dates
  • Case attributes
  • Outcome

Example Enforcement Case Searches Searches

  • Locate case information by case number or docket number.
  • Identify EPA cases for Clean Air Act violations in your state.
  • Identify EPA cases that were settled in 2012 for a specific industrial sector.
  • Identify EPA cases for Company XYZ that resulted in large penalties or supplemental environmental projects.

Additional resources: All Data Search Help, EPA Enforcement Case Search Help, ECHO Tutorials, About the Data

Top of Page

Create Maps

Create Maps contains interactive maps displaying enforcement and compliance information. Below are a few examples:

State Comparative Maps
Example state comparative maps
  • Quickly review national enforcement and compliance trends and compare states and territories.
  • Select tabs to view maps for air, hazardous waste, or water.
  • Use the map controls to change the comparison metrics, such as regulated facility counts, inspection coverage, violations, enforcement actions, and penalties.
  • Click on a state to view statistics for that state. Use the timeline at the top to view year-to-year changes.
EPA Enforcement Cases Map
Example EPA Enforcement Cases Map
  • View locations of facilities and violations that were cited in official enforcement actions and cases for fiscal years 2009–2012.
  • Enter a location of interest (e.g., your address) in the text box at the top to refine the map.
  • Use the side controls to limit results by case type.
  • Click on a map marker to access more information about the location and enforcement case.
EPA and State Annual Enforcement Actions Map
Example EPA and State Annual Enforcement Actions Map
  • Quickly review national enforcement and compliance trends and compare states and territories.
  • Select tabs to view maps for air, hazardous waste, or water.
  • Use the map controls to change the comparison metrics, such as regulated facility counts, inspection coverage, violations, enforcement actions, and penalties.
  • Click on a state to view statistics for that state. Use the timeline at the top to view year-to-year changes.

Additional resources: Map Guides

Top of Page

Analyze Trends

Example trends charts

EPA routinely assesses state and local enforcement of the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and hazardous waste laws. Analyze Trends links provide access to tools that EPA uses to measure performance and view reports of EPA’s findings.

State Dashboards: These aggregate ECHO’s enforcement and compliance data to the state and national level, and compare state activities to goals and national averages. Each dashboard includes a series of charts that present statistics, such as regulated facilities, inspection coverage, violations, enforcement actions, and penalties. Use the menus at the top of each chart to refine the statistics presented. Click on the charts to generate facility-specific reports.

State Review Framework and Clean Water Act Annual Noncompliance Report: State Dashboards provide a starting point for assessing state performance, and you can access more in-depth program review information in EPA’s State Review Framework reports. Through this program, EPA partners with states to identify and recommend ways to improve their enforcement and compliance programs. Also, enforcement and compliance information at Clean Water Act non-major facilities is included in annual reports posted on ECHO.

Additional resources: Comparative Maps and Dashboards, Dashboards, Webinar Exit

Top of Page