Delaware ranked 7th among states and U.S. territories in toxic releases according to Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data. The 57 Delaware facilities that filed 208 reports for 2013 showed a total of 6,077,932 pounds (lb) in on-site and off-site disposal or other releases, a decrease from the state’s 2013 totals.
On-site disposal or other releases totaled 3,754,104 lb in 2014, which is a decrease from 2013, but off-site totals increased to 2,323,827 lb. The highest amount of disposal or other releases was 2,931,067 lb to on-site surface water discharges followed by 2,208,474 lb to off-site landfills.
The top five chemicals released by Delaware facilities in 2014 were:
- Nitrate compounds: 2,911,359 lb
- Manganese compounds: 1,650,759 lb
- Sulfuric acid: 298,445 lb
- Carbonyl sulfide: 225,270 lb
- Asbestos (friable): 166,240 lb
Delaware facilities recycled 11,636,106 lb of materials on-site, and 7,384,097 lb were sent off-site for recycling. Energy recovery efforts included 15,930,970 lb recovered on-site and 2,005,555 lb of chemicals recovered off-site. In other waste management activities, 470,213,664 lb of toxic chemicals were treated on-site, and 1,191,416 lb were sent off-site for treatment.
INFO: Contact DNREC’s Debra Nielsen at Debra.Nielsen@state.de.us or by phone at 302-739-9431.