On this page:

• Overview
• Data Sources
• Using the Dashboard
• Chart Types
  • Facilities
  • Compliance Monitoring Activities
  • Federally Reportable Violations
  • High Priority Violations
  • Enforcement Actions
  • Penalties
• Common Questions

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Using the Dashboard

Chart Functionality

The dashboard is organized in a structure logical to the scope and activities of federal compliance and enforcement programs. To learn more about these programs, visit the EPA's Basic Information on Enforcement page. There are six chart types, described in the chart types section below. Select the pulldown menu at the top of each chart to see a list of available chart metric views.  

For the best user experience with the dashboard, we recommend setting the browser zoom level between 80 and 90%. If you are having trouble viewing parts of the dashboard, you can try experimenting with this zoom level. 

Expand any chart to full screen by clicking the crossed arrows icon at the top right of the chart.  

Download the underlying data from each chart view in Excel format by selecting the download arrow icon  at the top right of the chart. 

View underlying data for any chart by selecting "Details" from the pulldown menu to display a preview table of the selected data. Note that this table preview is interactive and data fields can be sorted and searched on. We suggest expanding this view to full-screen to best view the data table. Also note that the table can be slower to load than the other charts. 

Filters

The dashboard defaults to show nationwide activity and performance metrics for the most recent ten fiscal years. Eight filters are available at the top of the dashboard, which allow users to create many possible customizations of the charts. 

Click on any of the filters to see the list of values. Note that after selecting a filter, a search bar will appear that allows users to search for values of interest. Multiple values may be selected by clicking on multiple selection options. Current selections will be highlighted in green. The charts dynamically update as the user selects value(s) from the dropdown list.

Filter selection changes will be saved either by clicking away from the filter dropdown or by clicking the green Confirm Selection button.

If a user selects or de-selects filter options but does not want to save the changes, they can be canceled by clicking the red Cancel Selection button.

Note that the Cancel Selections button does not clear filter selections. An individual filter can be cleared of all selections by clicking the Clear Selections button to the left in the filter dropdown. There is also a Clear All Selections button at the top left of the dashboard page. 

Additionally, the dashboard charts are interactive, and users can click directly on data within the charts (e.g., the bars on the chart and the items in the chart legend) to change/add filters. 

Current filter selections will appear as tabs at the top of the screen, above the page title. Clicking on the "x" button on the filter tab will remove the filter. 

Filters available on the Air Dashboard include: 

State

Filter the dashboard data by State.

EPA Region

Filter the dashboard data by EPA Region.

Classification

Filter the dashboard using one or more of four categories: major, minor, synthetic minor, and other. A facility's classification as having permit components designated as major, synthetic minor, minor, or other reflects the amount of pollution the facility has the potential to emit. The “other” classification is used for a small number of facilities with seasonal or intermittent emissions. The threshold rate for a facility's permitted components to be classified as major may vary within a state due to nonattainment of a National Ambient Air Quality Standard in a geographic area.

Permitting Agency

Filter the dashboard data by permitting agency (i.e., EPA, State, or Local). The option of choosing "Agency" is provided because EPA may be responsible for permitting, compliance, and enforcement under the Clean Air Act at some facilities located within a state. Selections here will filter results to all facilities permitted by the selected agency, regardless of whether a different agency has taken any compliance or enforcement action against that facility.

Lead Agency

Filter the dashboard data by lead agency (i.e., EPA, State, or Local). Note that the lead agency refers to the agency that led the compliance or enforcement action, not to the permitting agency. Selections here will filter results to facilities which have been subject to any compliance or enforcement action from the agency selected, regardless of which agency permitted the facility. 

Local Agency

Filter the dashboard data by Local Control Agency, an agency within a state that has been delegated the authority to enforce the Clean Air Act. 

Federal Facility

Filter the dashboard data by Federal Facilities (Yes/No). A “Yes” indicates that the facility is owned or operated by the US Federal Government.

Tribe Name

Filter the dashboard data by a specific Tribe Name. The association of a facility to a tribe is based on comparing the best available spatial location of the facility to tribal boundaries supplied by the US Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Indian Affairs. Some tribal areas may overlap, so a facility may be associated with more than one tribe. This is a geographic distinction and is not based on who has permitted the facility.

Dashboard Chart Types

The following describes the charts available within each of the six sections of the CAA Dashboard. 

Facilities 

Delegated agencies and EPA track a number of stationary source facilities that are regulated by the Clean Air Act. These facilities are referred to as "federally reportable." This group is comprised of:

• Major emissions facilities
• Synthetic minor emissions facilities
• Minor emissions facilities that are subject to 40 C.F.R. Part 61 (National Emission Standard for Hazardous Air Pollutants)
• Any facility that is part of a compliance monitoring strategy
• Any facility with an unresolved high priority violation
• Any facility that is or was subject to a formal enforcement action within the last three years

The Facilities chart shows a breakdown of the number of facilities that were active during the selected fiscal year(s). Please see the Using the Dashboard section for information about applying filters to this chart. 

Compliance Monitoring Activities 

Compliance monitoring activities are conducted to ensure compliance with regulations implemented under the authority of the Clean Air Act. For this dashboard, the following activities are reported:

1. Full Compliance Evaluation (FCE). An FCE is a comprehensive evaluation of the compliance status of the facility. It looks for all regulated pollutants at all regulated emission units, and it addresses the compliance status of each unit, as well as the facility’s continuing ability to maintain compliance at each emission unit. An FCE includes:
   • A review of all required reports and the underlying records
   • An assessment of air pollution control devices and operating conditions
   • An observation of visible emissions 
   • A review of facility records and operating logs
   • An assessment of process parameters, such as feed rates, raw material compositions, and process rates
   • A stack test, if there is no other way to determine compliance with the emission limits.
      
2. Partial Compliance Evaluation (PCE). A PCE is a documented compliance assessment focusing on a subset of regulated pollutants, regulatory requirements, or emission units at a given facility. A PCE should be more comprehensive than a cursory review of individual reports. It may be conducted solely for the purpose of evaluating a specific aspect of a facility or it may combine several PCE evaluations to satisfy the annual requirements of a FCE.
3. Stack Test. A stack test, also referred to in EPA regulations as a performance or source test, measures the amount of a specific regulated pollutant, pollutants, or surrogates being emitted; demonstrates the capture efficiency of a capture system; or determines the destruction or removal efficiency of a control device used to reduce emissions at facilities subject to the requirements of the Clean Air Act (CAA). Stack testing is an important tool used to determine a facility’s compliance with emission limits, or capture or control efficiencies established pursuant to the CAA.
4. Title V Annual Compliance Certification (TVACC) Reviews. The TVACC requires the facility permittee to periodically (but no less frequently than annually) certify that the facility is in compliance with any applicable requirements of the permit, and to promptly report any deviations from permit requirements to the permitting authority.  The TVACC is used as an enforcement tool to indicate possible exceptions to compliance.

Only activities at federally reportable facilities are included in the Air Dashboard. 

Federally Reportable Violations

Violations of federally enforceable Clean Air Act (CAA) requirements at an applicable stationary source, which are to be reported to EPA, are called Federally Reportable Violations, or FRVs. The applicable CAA programs for FRV reporting are NSPS, NESHAP, MACT, NSR, PSD, EPA approved SIP, and Title V. FRVs include the following:

1. Violations of any emission limitation, emission standard or surrogate parameter.
2. Procedural violations including:
   • Failure to maintain reports and underlying records as required by permit or regulation
   • Failure to test or conduct valid monitoring in a timely manner as required by permit or regulation
   • Failure to report in a timely manner
   • Failure to construct, install, or operate facility/equipment in accordance with the permit or regulation
   • Failure to obtain or maintain a permit
   • Work practice violations
   • Violations of consent decrees, court orders or administrative orders

While FRVs may be further distinguished as High Priority Violations (HPVs), the violations displayed on the dashboard charts below are currently identified as FRVs. EPA's Guidance on FRVs for Stationary Air Sources will provide additional detailed information on FRVs.

Unless otherwise specified in the table below, the data for the charts comes from the Integrated Compliance Information System for CAA Stationary Sources (ICIS-Air). Data prior to 2015 comes from the AIRS Facility Subsystem of the Aerometric Information Retrieval System (AIRS-AFS). 

High Priority Violations 

An HPV is a federally reportable violation that meets any of the criteria specified below: 

1. Failure to obtain a New Source Review (NSR) permit (for either attainment or non-attainment areas) and/or install Best Available Control Technology (BACT) or Lowest Available Emission Reductions (LAER) (and/or obtain offsets) for any new stationary source or major modification at a major stationary source. This criterion also includes violations of a synthetic minor stationary source of an emission limit or permit condition such that the source’s actual annual emissions exceed or expect to exceed the major stationary source threshold defined in the NSR regulations.
2. A violation of any federally enforceable emission limitation, emission standard, or surrogate parameter where the violation continues or is expected to continue for 7 days. This criterion also includes intermittent violations that occurred for at least 7 days. These limitations, standards or surrogates that were issued pursuant to Title 1, Part C or D of the CAA and their implementing regulations, those issued in an applicable Standards of Performance for New Sources (NSPS) (Part 60), or those issued pursuant to the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (Parts 61 and 63),  or those in an analogous delegated state, local, tribal, or territorial plan apply.
3. A violation that involves federally enforceable work practices, testing requirements, monitoring requirements, recordkeeping or reporting that substantially interferes with enforcement of a requirement or a determination of the source’s compliance. The determination of what is substantial shall be part of a case-by-case analysis/discussion between the EPA Region and the enforcement agency.
4. Any other violations specifically identified and communicated to enforcement agencies by the Director, Air Enforcement Division, U.S. EPA (general applicability) or as mutually agreed upon between the enforcement agency and corresponding EPA Region (case by case).

For the dashboard charts listed below, only those HPVs at federally reportable facilities are included. EPA’s Revised Timely and Appropriate Enforcement Response to HPVs provides additional detailed information regarding HPVs.

Enforcement Actions

Under the Clean Air Act compliance and enforcement program, there are informal and formal enforcement actions. Informal enforcement actions do not direct a regulated facility to do anything or refrain from doing anything, and do not sanction or impose any penalty. An informal enforcement action simply informs the regulated facility of findings concerning noncompliance (Notice of Violation) with a regulation under the Clean Air Act. A formal enforcement action typically occurs after the issuance of an informal enforcement action, and either requires that a facility comply with the requirements or prohibitions established under the Clean Air Act, requires payment of a penalty, initiates a civil action, or constitutes a civil action. Only activities at federally reportable facilities are included.

Penalties 

Assessed penalties are reported as a dollar amount on a formal enforcement action. Only activities at federally reportable facilities are included.

Common Questions

What types of facilities are regulated by the Clean Air Act?

There are three main categories of stationary sources regulated by the CAA:

• Major Sources are facilities that can emit pollutants on an annual basis at a rate greater than thresholds established by the Clean Air Act. The thresholds for a major source vary by location depending on attainment status. For example, a facility that can emit greater than 100 tons per year of any pollutant other than greenhouse gases is major under Title III of the CAA; in areas with extreme non-attainment for ozone, a facility that can emit greater than 10 tons per year of volatile organic compounds would be major under Title I of the CAA;
• Synthetic Minor Sources (SM) are facilities that would be major, but have federally enforceable permit limits to restrict their emissions below major source thresholds; and
• Minor or Area sources are facilities that physically cannot emit above major source thresholds.

For more on the Title V permit program, please visit EPA's Operating Permits Website.

As of November 2019, there are 13,319 active major sources, and 160,843 active synthetic minor, minor, and other sources (collectively referred to as non-major sources). EPA does not require reporting of most minor sources and related data, with some exceptions (see Summary of Data Entry Requirements). Active sources are those that are operating, seasonal or temporarily operating. Therefore, the non-major universe count in EPA's national database does not include all minor emissions facilities. However, some states do report minor facility data on a voluntary basis and additional facility universe data may be found on state and local agency web sites.

What are expectations related to compliance monitoring within states?

Please see ECHO's Compliance Monitoring Expectations page for more information.

The focus of the CAA Stationary Source Compliance Monitoring Strategy (CMS) is major facilities within the Title V program and synthetic minor emissions facilities that emit or have the potential to emit any pollutant or pollutants at or above 80% of the Title V major emissions threshold (SM-80). The CMS establishes national goals of conducting a full CAA compliance evaluation at Title V major facilities once every two federal fiscal years; at mega-sites, which are the largest Title V major emissions facilities, once every three federal fiscal years; and at SM-80s once every five federal fiscal years. In addition, states and locals are afforded flexibility under the CAA CMS that accommodates alternative frequencies and other types of sources. For example, with EPA approval, a state agency may put some minor emissions facilities on a compliance evaluation schedule effectively adding them to their CMS; or a Title V major emissions facility, based, in part, on its compliance history, may be evaluated every three fiscal years as opposed to every two fiscal years. When state and local agencies take advantage of these flexibilities, their CMS is identified as an alternative CMS.

Where do the data come from? Are the data frozen or does ECHO use production data from the system of record?

The data come from EPA and delegated state, local, and tribal environmental agencies, which report into the national data system, ICIS-Air. The dashboard was updated in 2019 to use production data for all fiscal years. The fiscal year refers to the federal fiscal year, which runs from October 1 to September 30.

How can I find CAA compliance and enforcement information for a specific facility?

Select Details from the dropdown menus that appear in each panel of the CAA Dashboard to find a facility that is included in the filtered set of records. Each facility identifier is hyperlinked to a Detailed Facility Report that includes, among other things, a five-year history of compliance monitoring, informal enforcement actions and formal enforcement actions.

Where can I find emissions and chemical release data for a facility?

On the ECHO Search for CAA Facilities page under the Pollutant section of the query form, users can find facilities that report emissions and chemical releases to the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) and/or National Emissions Inventory (NEI).

TRI data are updated annually. TRI mapping and query tools are available on the TRI Data and Tools web page.

NEI is updated every three years, but includes data on criteria pollutant emissions as well as hazardous air pollutants. Customizable NEI reports and maps are available at EPA's Air Emission Sources web page. 

How can I find air quality information for an area of interest to me?

EPA maintains inventories of air quality data and facility emissions data. Air quality inventories are developed using monitoring data. Emissions inventories are developed using facility specific data. These data sets are complementary because facility emissions will affect an area's air quality.

The Air Quality System (AQS) contains air monitoring data collected by EPA, state, local and tribal air pollution control agencies from thousands of monitoring stations. To search for data, visit:

• AIRNow Exit – Real-time air quality maps and daily AQI forecasts exit EPA disclaimer for over 300 US cities.
• AirTrends – Air quality trends based on a nationwide network of monitoring sites for each criteria pollutant.
• AirCompare – Interactive website that provides access to air quality information, based on specific health conditions of interest.
• AirExplorer – Access to data from the AQS Data Mart for air quality analysts. AirData provides an annual summary of air pollution data from both NEI and AQS.
• Clean Air Status and Trends Network (CASTNET) – Access to measurements of concentrations of air pollutants involved in acidic deposition affecting regional ecosystems and rural ambient ozone levels.

The National Emissions Inventory contains source specific annual emissions data. To search data, visit Air Emission Sources, a database of facility, industrial sector, county and state criteria pollutant emission summaries.

The ECHO Air Facility Search allows a user to search for specific air emission sources or sources in a specific geographic area.

Areas that do not meet a National Ambient Air Quality Standard for a criteria pollutant can be found using EPA's "The Green Book Nonattainment Areas for Criteria Pollutants".

Does EPA require that all violations or permit deviations at every air emission source be reported to them?

No, EPA has identified a subset of violations as federally reportable violations according to the Guidance on Federally-Reportable Violations for Stationary Air Sources. On a voluntary basis, some states do report all violations at all emissions sources.

All deviations from a source's Title V permit are required to be reported to EPA and the permitting agency.

How can I download detailed information about compliance and enforcement activity for CAA stationary sources? 

ECHO provides national data sets on compliance and enforcement for CAA stationary sources on the ECHO Data Downloads webpage. There are separate data sets for the ICIS-Air data system and legacy system, AFS. EPA also maintains the ECHO Exporter, which provides a download of all regulated facilities in one zip file. There currently over 130 data fields available for each facility, including the frequency of inspections, violations, actions, and penalties. The file includes Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Resource Conservation and Recovery Act and other data, such Toxics Release Inventory releases, industry codes, and permit types.