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The Environment: Data Presentation

National Air Pollutant Emissions, 1940-1998

Thousand tons.
CO NOX VOC SO2 PM-10 Pb Total
1940 93,616 7,374 17,161 19,952 15,957 NA 154,060
1945 94,825 9,548 17,308 26,007 16,545 NA 164,233
1950 102,609 10,093 0,936 22,357 17,133 NA 173,128
1955 101,281 11,563 1,973 20,883 16,245 NA 171,945
1960 109,745 14,140 4,249 22,227 15,558 NA 185,919
1965 115,928 16,579 7,630 26,750 14,198 NA 201,085
1970 129,444 20,928 0,982 31,161 13,042 220,869 446,426
1975 116,757 22,632 26,079 28,011 7,671 159,659 360,809
1980 117,434 24,384 6,336 25,905 7,119 74,153 275,331
1985 117,013 23,198 4,428 23,658 45,445 22,890 256,632
1990 98,523 24,049 0,936 23,660 29,962 4,975 202,105
1995 93,353 24,921 0,817 19,181 27,070 3,929 189,271
1998 89,454 24,454 7,917 19,647 34,741 3,973 190,186
Source: Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. National Air Pollutant Emissions Trends, 1900-1998, March 2000. Retrieved July 2, 2002 from http://www.epa.gov/ttn/chief/trends/trends98/trends98.pdf. Note: NA stands for data not available.

National Water Quality: Percentage of Polluted Bodies of Water, 1992-1998

1992 1994 1996 1998 % of Total Assessed
1992 1994 1996 1998
Rivers and streams (miles) 38 36 36 35 18 17 19 23
Lakes, reservoirs, ponds (acres) 44 37 39 45 46 42 40 42
Estuaries (sq. miles) 32 37 38 44 75 78 72 32
Great Lakes shoreline (miles) 67 97 97 96 99 94 94 90
Ocean shoreline (miles) 14 7 NA 12 6 9 6 5
Source: Office of Water. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Water Quality Report, 1992-1996. Retrieved June 26, 2002 from http://www.epa.gov/305b. U.S. Census Bureau. Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2001. Notes: NA stands for not available.

Leading Water Pollutants, 1998

Percentage of miles, acres, or square miles of impaired waterway affected by the pollutant.
Rivers & Streams (miles) Lakes, Reservoirs, & Ponds (acres) Estuaries (sq. miles) Great Lakes Shoreline(miles)
Siltation 38.2 14.8 NA NA
Pathogens (bacteria) 35.6 NA 47.4 3.9
Nutrients 28.9 43.7 23.1 4.9
Oxygen-depleting substances 23.2 13.9 41.5 3.7
Metals 20.6 26.7 27.5 3.0
Suspended solids NA 10.2 NA NA
Thermal modifications 12.8 NA 17.8 NA
Priority toxic organic chemicals NA NA 6.5 29.2
Pesticides 15.3 NA NA 21.4
Nonpriority organic chemicals NA NA NA 21.4
Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 1998 National Water Quality Inventory. Retrieved June 26, 2002 from http://www.epa.gov/305b/98report/. Note: NA stands for data not available.

Community Water Systems (CWS), 1993-2001

1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001
Total CWS 56,483 56,133 55,427 54,340 57,425 54,367 53,923 54,067 53,783
Total pop. (000) 258,119 260,637 263,082 265,502 268,048 270,509 272,945 281,421 284,797
Pop. served by CWS (000) 250,967 248,852 251,450 255,871 258,307 252,530 253,795 263,926 264,145
Total CWS with health violation 6,778 6,736 6,097 5,434 4,594 4,613 4,164 4,617 4,583
Pop. served by health violators (000) 52,703 42,305 40,232 35,822 33,580 27,722 23,990 24,640 24,217
Arsenic violations 10 10 9 19 13 14 24 14 27
Fluoride violations 118 93 87 92 65 81 64 49 143
Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Factoids: Drinking Water and Ground Water Statistics, 1998-2001. U.S EPA. Summary Inventory, Violations, and GPRA MS Excel PivotTables. All EPA data retrieved June 28, 2002 from http://www.epa.gov/safewater/. U.S. Census Bureau. Statistical Abstract of the United States, 2001. 2000 and 2001 total population data: U.S. Census Bureau. "Your Gateway to Census 2000." Retrieved June 28, 2002 from http://www.census.gov/main/www/cen2000.html. Population Division. U.S. Census Bureau. "Table US2001EST-01-Time Series of National Population Estimates: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2001," December 27, 2001. Retrieved June 28, 2002 from http://eire.census.gov/popest/data/national/populartables/files/national01.pdf.
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