Data Sources & Limitations
This page describes each data set presented in our Community Health Atlas, lists its data sources, and discusses the limitations on and disclaimer for the data.
Data Sources
| Data Set/Description | Data Source(s) |
|---|---|
Facilities with violations (last 3 years)
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U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Enforcement and Compliance History Online. https://echo.epa.gov/facilities/facility-search?mediaSelected=caa. |
Air emissions estimates (CAPs, Hg)Includes data from EPA's Emissions Modeling Platform (EMP), which provides estimates for emissions of four of the six criteria air pollutants (CAPs): particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10); carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide (included in the nitrogen oxides category). Ozone (which is formed in the environment by reactions between precursor chemicals but not released directly by polluting facilities) and lead are not included in the EMP. The data also includes estimates for certain CAP precursors (ammonia, hydrochloric acid, nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds) which are chemicals that react with other substances in the environment and lead to the formation of CAPs. Estimates for mercury, which is a hazardous air pollutant but not a CAP or CAP precursor, are also provided. |
EPA and National Emissions Collaborative. Emissions Modeling Platform 2022 v. 1. https://www.epa.gov/air-emissions-modeling/2022v1-emissions-modeling-platform. |
National Ambient Air Quality Standards: Nonattainment areas
Displays areas of the country designated as nonattaining areas for each National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) listed above. A nonattainment area is an area where air pollution levels persistently exceed the national ambient air quality standards. |
EPA. Green Book GIS Download. https://www.epa.gov/green-book/green-book-gis-download. |
Air monitoring data
Summary air monitoring data for individual regulatory air monitors in EPA’s AirData system. Includes data on exceedances of National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). (where applicable). |
EPA. Pre-generated Data Files. Concentration by monitor. https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html. |
Toxic releases by chemical & facility (TRI 2022, 2023, 2024)Data on chemical releases by chemical and facility as reported to EPA’s Toxics Release This data set also contains facility-level Risk Screening Environmental Indicator (RSEI) data. Per EPA, a RSEI score is a unitless risk-related result value calculated as the product of a chemical's estimated dose, the exposure route-specific toxicity weight, and the potentially exposed population. RSEI Scores do not describe a level or estimate of risk (such as the number of excess cancer cases), and cannot be used solely to draw conclusions about risk. RSEI Scores are designed to be compared to provide context from a relative risk-related perspective. A computed RSEI Score value that is 10 times higher than another RSEI Score value suggests that the potential for risk-related impacts is 10 times higher. |
Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data: EPA. TRI Basic Data Files: Calendar Years 1987-Present. https://www.epa.gov/toxics-release-inventory-tri-program/tri-basic-data-files-calendar-years-1987-present. Risk-Screening Environmental Indicators (RSEI): EPA. EasyRSEI Dashboard Version 2.3.12. Updated March 21, 2024. https://edap.epa.gov/public/extensions/EasyRSEI/EasyRSEI.html#analysis. |
Risk Management Plan facilitiesThe Risk Management Program (RMP) rule requires facilities that use extremely hazardous, toxic, or flammable substances to develop and implement a Risk Management Plan. The facilities in this data set are those facilities in EPA's Facility Registry Service (FRS) that link to the Agency's Risk Management Plan (RMP) System. |
EPA. EPA Facility Registry Service - Risk Management Plan (RMP). Accessed through Esri, ArcGIS.com. https://www.arcgis.com/home/item.html?id=370365ee65ef46bc8f1b010aad931294. |
Underground storage tank releasesContains location data for underground storage tank releases (USTs) documented in EPA’s UST Finder database. |
EPA. UST Finder Version 1.0. https://www.epa.gov/ust/ust-finder. |
Industrial/commercial sites
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Airports: U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT)/Federal Aviation Administration. [Data Dictionary.] https://doi.org/10.21949/1529011. Biosolids program facilities:
Rail yards:
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Superfund sitesSuperfund sites are sites on the National Priorities List (NPL), the U.S. Environmental Agency's list of most seriously contaminated sites prioritized for long-term cleanup under the Superfund program. This data set includes proposed, current and former NPL sites. EPA deletes sites from the NPL once it determines that no further response is necessary to protect human health or the environment. |
EPA. National NPL Superfund Site Boundaries, U.S. EPA (Public). https://www.arcgis.com/home/item.html?id=d6e1591d9a424f1fa6d95a02095a06d7#overview. |
Community infrastructure
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Head Start centers: Hospitals and medical centers: Mobile home parks: Nursing homes: Places of worship: Schools: |
Drinking water
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Public water systems (PWS) with SDWA violations, last 3 years: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Community Water Service Area Boundaries. Version 3.0. https://epa.maps.arcgis.com/home/item.html?id=80c6912ef14f46e480f5afd807767b4b#overview. PWS with unregulated contaminant detections (UCMR 5, 2023-25): EPA. Community Water Service Area Boundaries. Version 3.0. https://epa.maps.arcgis.com/home/item.html?id=80c6912ef14f46e480f5afd807767b4b#overview. PWS with lead service lines: EPA. Service Line Inventory. https://sdwis.epa.gov/ords/sfdw_pub/r/sfdw/sdwis_fed_reports_public/service-line-inventory. Water system service areas: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Community Water Service Area Boundaries. Version 3.0. https://epa.maps.arcgis.com/home/item.html?id=80c6912ef14f46e480f5afd807767b4b#overview. |
Percent impaired watershed area (census tracts)Percentage of watershed area classified as impaired in each census tract as calculated by ATSDR based on 2023 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Watershed Index Online (WSIO) data. An impaired watershed contains waters that do not meet one or more Water Quality Standards (WQSs) even after point sources of pollution (e.g., municipal and industrial discharges) have installed required levels of pollution controls. |
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), CDC. EJI Explorer. 2024 version. https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/place-health/php/eji/eji-explorer.html. |
Congressional districts: Health and socioeconomic profiles |
CDC. PLACES: Local Data for Better Health, Census Tract Data 2024 release. https://data.cdc.gov/browse?category=500+Cities+%26+Places&q=2024&sortBy=relevance&tags=places&pageSize=20.
Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME). United States Health Care Spending by Health Condition and County 2010-2019. Seattle, United States of America: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), 2025. Obtained by request. Thanks to Dr. Joseph Dieleman and Mr. Drew DeJarnatt. (Detailed data for 2018 were obtained from the researchers and used to develop our estimates of spending on asthma and cancer treatment per congressional district.)
CDC. 2023 Child Current Asthma Prevalence and Number by State. https://www.cdc.gov/asthma-data/nsch-prevalence/index.html#cdc_data_surveillance_section_2-2023.
U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey. S2701 Selected Characteristics of Health Insurance Coverage in the United States. [2023: ACS 5-Year Estimates; Census tract level] https://data.census.gov/table/ACSST5Y2024.S2701?q=S2701.
U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2023. S0101 Age and Sex [2023: ACS 5-Year Estimates; Census tract level] https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/data.html.
U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2023. B17020 Poverty Status in the Past 12 Months by Age [2023: ACS 5-Year Estimates; Census tract level] https://data.census.gov/table/ACSDT5Y2024.B17020?q=B17020&g=010XX00US$1400000.
Esri. Updated Demographics USA Variables 2023. [Congressional districts] https://www.arcgis.com/home/item.html?id=ddd1510ed1964e2e8fb1ded93e9b03b1#overview.
U.S. Census Bureau. "GROUP QUARTERS POPULATION BY SEX BY AGE BY GROUP QUARTERS TYPE." Decennial Census, DEC 119th Congressional District Summary File, Table PCT19, https://data.census.gov/table/DECENNIALCD1192020.PCT19?q=pct19&g=010XX00US$5000000.
U.S. Census Bureau. "GROUP QUARTERS POPULATION BY SEX BY AGE BY GROUP QUARTERS TYPE." Decennial Census, DEC 119th Congressional District Summary File, Table PCT19, https://data.census.gov/table/DECENNIALCD1192020.PCT19?q=pct19&g=010XX00US$5000000.
U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2023. S1501 Educational Attainment [2023: ACS 5-Year Estimates; Census tract level] https://data.census.gov/table?q=s1501&g=010XX00US$1400000.
U.S. Census Bureau. Decennial Census. H2 URBAN AND RURAL. 2020: DEC Demographic and Housing Characteristics. https://data.census.gov/table/DECENNIALDHC2020.H2?q=urban+rural&g=010XX00US$1400000.
U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2023. B03002 Hispanic or Latino Origin by Race [2023: ACS 5-Year Estimates; Census tract level] https://data.census.gov/table?q=B03002&g=010XX00US$1400000.
U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2023. S1602 Limited English Speaking Households [2023: ACS 5-Year Estimates; Census tract level] https://data.census.gov/table/ACSST5Y2024.S1602?g=010XX00US$1400000.
Song HJ, Blake KV, Wilson DL, Winterstein AG, Park H. Medical Costs and Productivity Loss Due to Mild, Moderate, and Severe Asthma in the United States. J Asthma Allergy. 2020 Oct 29;13:545-555. doi: 10.2147/JAA.S272681. PMID: 33149626; PMCID: PMC7605920
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. CPI Inflation Calculator.
USDOT, Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Congressional Districts. ArcGIS Hub. https://hub.arcgis.com/maps/usdot::congressional-districts.
United States Census Bureau. Cartographic Boundary Files. 1 : 5,000,000 (national) shapefile. https://www.census.gov/geographies/mapping-files/time-series/geo/cartographic-boundary.html. |
Health burdens
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[The cancer and asthma data sets are subsets of the Congressional districts: Health & socioeconomic profiles data set above and share the same data sources as the cancer and asthma data in that data set.]
CDC. Childhood Blood Lead Surveillance: State Data County-level data not available through the CDC was obtained from the following sources: Arizona: Arizona Department of Health Services. Arizona 2022. Annual Report Blood Lead Surveillance; Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program. https://www.azdhs.gov/documents/preparedness/epidemiology-disease-control/lead-poisoning/2022-annual-blood-lead-report.pdf. Indiana: Indiana Department of Health. 2024 Childhood Lead Surveillance Report Michigan: Department of Health and Human Services. Lead Exposure – Children. https://www.michigan.gov/mdhhs/safety-injury-prev/environmental-Health/topics/mitracking/childhood-lead. Minnesota: Minnesota Department of Health. 2024 Blood Lead Surveillance Report. https://www.health.state.mn.us/communities/environment/lead/docs/reports/annualreport.pdf. Nevada: Nevada Institute for Children's Health Research and Policy; Nevada Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program. Nevada Childhood Blood Lead Data 2022-2023 Annual Report 2022-2023-Nevada-Annual-Blood-Lead-Report_FINAL.pdf. Ohio: DataOhio. Blood Lead Testing Public (2016-Present). https://data.ohio.gov/wps/portal/gov/data/view/blood-lead-testingpublic-_2016-present_. Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania Department of Health. 2023 Childhood Lead Surveillance Annual Report. https://www.pa.gov/content/dam/copapwp-pagov/en/health/documents/topics/documents/environmental-health/2023%20Childhood%20Lead%20Surveillance%20Annual%20Report.pdf. South Dakota: South Dakota Department of Health. 2023 Blood Lead Annual Report. https://doh.sd.gov/media/vc1gcnyk/2023-blood-lead-annual-report.pdf. Texas: Texas Health and Human Services. Blood Lead Testing and Blood Lead Levels (BLL) ≥ 3.5μg/dl in Texas Children, Under 6 years of age, by County, 2023. https://www.dshs.texas.gov/sites/default/files/CHI-BloodLead/Annual%20Tables/2023-by-county-under-6yrs-updated.pdf. Washington: Washington State Department of Health. Data Portal. https://doh.wa.gov/data-and-statistical-reports/washington-tracking-network-wtn/data-portal. Missing or suppressed data: Data for Arkansas, Idaho, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont and Wyoming are not included. Some of these states have not publicly released the relevant data, use a higher blood lead level reporting threshold than the CDC, release data for a smaller age cohort (for example, 0-2 years old) or do not report data by county. Even in states that have published their data, data for some counties may not be available or may have been suppressed for confidentiality reasons. This usually occurs when there is only a small number of children who have been tested or who have elevated blood lead levels (typically five children or fewer). |
Percent of students (K-12) experiencing homelessness (by school district) |
Student homelessness (School year 2023-24): Department of Education. ED Data Express. Data Download Tool. https://eddataexpress.ed.gov/download/data-builder/data-download-tool. School district enrollment & demographic data: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). ElSi: Elementary/Secondary Information System. Table Generator. http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/elsi/. School District Boundaries: NCES. School District Boundaries. Single Composite File. https://nces.ed.gov/programs/edge/geographic/districtboundaries |
Heat and Health Index (ZIP codes)Heat and Health Index (HHI) data by ZIP code. The HHI represents a percentile ranking of the places where people are more likely to experience harmful effects from heat. It is based on historical data on temperature, heat-related illness, pre-existing health conditions, sociodemographic factors, and natural and built environment factors. |
ATSDR. Heat & Health Index. https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/place-health/php/hhi/index.html. ATSDR. Heat & Health Index (HHI). [Fact sheet.] https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/place-health/media/pdfs/2025/09/CDC-ATSDR-HHI-Fact-Sheet-508.pdf. |
Natural hazard risks (counties)
This data set includes compliance and enforcement information (federal and state) for PWS with documented violations of the SDWA over the last 3 years as reflected in EPA's Enforcement and Compliance History Online (ECHO) database. It also contains information on water sources and population served. The map displays the service area for each included PWS. |
FEMA. National Risk Index Annualized Frequency Drought. https://resilience-fema.hub.arcgis.com/maps/8d62f0329a984141a97d1c9e86f081dd. National Risk Index Version: March 2023 (1.19.0).
FEMA. Resilience Analysis and Planning Tool. https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/0a317e8998534c30a9b2d3861c814d42/. |
Congressional district information(Congressional district information is included within multiple data sets, particularly those containing facility and monitoring location data.) |
USDOT, Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Congressional Districts. ArcGIS Hub. https://hub.arcgis.com/maps/usdot::congressional-districts. |
Data Limitations and Disclaimer
The data provided in the Community Health Atlas (CHA) have been sourced from government, academic and private sources and are provided as a public resource. While efforts have been made to ensure the accuracy of the data, Earthjustice Action makes no warranties, expressed or implied, concerning the accuracy, completeness or suitability of the data. The data and information in the CHA are not to be construed as legal advice.
Environmental, health and sociodemographic data are dynamic and subject to change at any time. Therefore, users are directed to consult the original data sources to ensure they obtain the most recent data. Where the data provided are the result of calculations performed by Earthjustice Action, this is indicated in the notes accompanying the data. Earthjustice Action shall not be held liable for improper or incorrect use of the data described and/or contained therein.