Wisconsin Environmental Public Health Tracking: Air Emissions Data
Description
Tool for mapping numbers of facilities and emissions at the census tract, county, and state level for Wisconsin. Also provides graphs of trends in emissions over time from 2015-2024.
Questions this resource can help answer
- What is the trend in air pollutant emissions in census tracts covering my city?
- How many reporting facilities are located in census tracts covering my city?
How do I use this resource?
Select either state, county, or tract geographic area, and select a pollutant and year. For counties, you can either select from the map or from a drop down menu. You will see below the map a trend graph showing emissions or numbers of facilities over time from 2015 to 2024. There is also a table showing the emissions or facilities by year for a selected geographic unit. You can create a powerpoint slide or pdf of the map/graph/table by clicking the rectangle with down arrow button at the lower right of the table.
Pro tips
You can download the emissions data under the "Where can I download these data" entry under the Frequently Asked Questions heading.
Resource information
Technical specifications
Facilities reported
These data come from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and represent the number of facilities in a geographic area that have reached or exceeded an applicable reportable level in Table 1 in Wis. Admin. Code ch. NR 438. Note: Facilities from years 2012-2014 that were missing addresses were geocoded using the most recent years of data and the facility identification number (FID). This allowed for facilities and reported emissions to be tied to locations at the county and census tract level more accurately.
Total reportable emissions
These data come from the DNR. Under Wis. Adm. Code § NR 438.03 (Air Contaminant Emissions Inventory Reporting Requirements), facilities in Wisconsin must report air contaminant emissions when an air contaminant is emitted in quantities above a certain reportable level. The data exclude emissions less than the reportable levels. State data are greater than summed county or census tract data because of limitations in geocoding. To find out more about reporting levels by pollutant, review Table 1 in Wis. Admin. Code ch. NR 438.
