Home buyers worried about environmental problems in their destination communities may want to check out a Web site called "Scorecard," which rates states, cities and even zip codes on the amount of toxins in the air and water, and lists who is putting them there.

The site, http://www.scorecard.org, is posted by Environmental Defense, the large, New York-based non-profit that has been tracking national environmental issues for more than 30 years.

One of the primary values of the site to consumers is that it goes well beyond property disclosure requirements in any state. While most states require property defects to be disclosed, and some states may require real estate agents to be involved in disclosing nuisances - such as proximity to landfills and known sex offenders (Megan's Law) - Scorecard provides details on an a community's environmental health.

According to Environmental Defense findings, Louisiana, Pennsylvania, Texas, Mississippi, and Florida are the worst overall states for pollutants. Arizona is the best.

But while that kind of general information is interesting, Scorecard's real value its ability to drill down to the community level and discuss what companies are polluting the environment, to what degree, and what chemicals they are releasing.

It also gives consumers the ability to assess magnitude by allowing comparisons between one community and another, and even one company and another.

The purpose of Scorecard is to deliver information on the toxic chemicals released by manufacturing facilities and the health risks of air pollution. To do that, scorecard profiles some 6,800 chemicals, making it easy for consumers to find out where they are used and how hazardous they are.

Environmental Defense gets its data from more than 300 authoritative scientific and government sources. Much of the data is supplied by companies themselves, which is reported to the Toxic Release Inventory.

The site separates out pollutants released into the air and water, as well as waste chemicals stored underground.

It also is scores the cancer risks of the various chemicals, the non-cancer risks and even the likelihood of the chemicals depleting the Ozone layer. It goes into what kinds of chemicals can cause damage to the nervous system or the skin.

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Published: January 31, 2000

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