Status: In Production (See note below on forthcoming changes)
data exchange description
Network partners can use their Exchange Network Nodes to submit data for U.S. EPA's National Emissions Inventory (NEI). U.S. EPA accepts submissions to NEI on an annual basis during the month of May. The NEI is a national database of air emissions information from numerous State and local air agencies, tribes, other federal databases, and industry. The NEI data are used for air dispersion modeling, regional strategy development, regulation setting, air toxics risk assessment, and tracking trends in emissions over time. This database contains information on stationary and mobile sources that emit criteria air pollutants and their precursors, as well as hazardous air pollutants (HAPs).
*Important Note on Changes to the NEI Exchange* Beginning with the 2008 National Emissions Inventory (reported in 2010), U.S. EPA will be using a new data system called the Emissions Inventory System (EIS) for receiving and storing all current and historical emissions inventory data. Network partners will need to migrate to the EIS data exchange to share their NEI data using the Exchange Network. Please visit the EIS page for more information on the transition. Network partners that have used this exchange in past years to submit their NEI data will be able to do so again during the May 2009 reporting period. If you have not previously implemented the NEI data exchange, U.S. EPA strongly recommends waiting for the EIS data exchange to become available for the reporting of the 2008 NEI in 2010.
implementation resources
These implementaion resources for version 3.0 of the NEI data exchange will be available for the May 2009 reporting period. Subsequent submissions will utilize the EIS data exchange.
Step-by-step instructions on making an NEI submission appear below in the Getting Started section.
contact info
For more information on this data exchange, please contact:
Sally Dombrowski
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
(919) 541-3269
getting started
Note: These instructions have not yet been updated for the 2009 reporting period.
The following information is being made available to guide submitters of 2005 NEI data using an Exchange Network Node. Each section broadly outlines the major steps you will need to take. For more detailed guidance, consult the Flow Configuration Document or contact the Network Help Desk at 1-(888)-890-1995.
Note: These instructions assume that your Department or Agency already has a fully functional and tested Exchange Network Node.
Step 1: Register with EPA's Central Data Exchange
Work with the CDX Help Desk to complete the following steps for registering with EPA's Central Data Exchange. You can contact the CDX Help Desk by calling 1-(888)-890-1995 and then selecting option 1.
Establish a NAAS operator account if your agency does not already have one. Typically, if your agency has an operational Network Node then it already has a NAAS operator account.
Call the CDX Help Desk to establish a CDX Web account with the authority to upload NEI files.
Ask the CDX Help Desk to match the operator account with the CDX Web account that you have set up.
Step 2: Map Data to XML Schema and Create an XML Instance File
In order to use your Node to submit NEI data, you must create properly formatted XML files to carry your data. The NEI Input Format (NIF) is the format most widely used by state and local agencies to transfer data to the U.S. EPA's national NEI database. The NIF specification includes four data source types; Point, Area and Non-road Mobile, On-road Mobile, and Biogenics. For the 2005 inventory year, EPA will be accepting XML submissions of Point source data only. The Area and Non-road Mobile, On-road mobile, and Biogencis source types are required but will not be accepted in XML format.
XML schemas that reflect the NIF specifications are available for submitting NEI data over the Exchange Network. Follow the instructions below to download these XML schema, map your data, and create your own XML instance file.
Download XML schemas Click here to download a zip file containing the NEI XML schemas. Five schema files are provided, one for each of the four NIF source types and a fifth that describes common elements used throughout the other four. For the 2005 inventory year, only the Point source inventory will be accepted in XML format. Consult the Flow Configuration Document for more details.
Map your data to the XML schemas
You can use the NEI Data Exchange Template (DET) to help you map your data to the NEI schema. The DET is in MS Excel format and includes separate tabs for each of the major groups in the NEI schema.
Alternatively, you can use the following EPA resources to map your data to the NEI XML schemas. Each of these Excel files fully describes the data elements included in each of the four NIF source file types.
If you have questions related to the schemas or the data itself, please contact Sally Dombrowski the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency at 919-541-3269 or
.
Step 3: Create a Document Header for Your XML Submission
NEI submissions sent via your Exchange Network Node must include a header document with the XML instance documents. The document header provides information to identify the contents of a data payload. It was developed to further automate the data exchange process so that data can be more readily identified during transport and at its processing destination.
Essentially, the Header document is XML which serves as a wrapper around the individual XML documents or payloads. It is used to describe the payload documents, providing basic metadata for the submission. The document header can describe what a data payload contains, who submitted it and when, as well as instructions on processing payload contents, such as whether the contents are additions, deletions, or updates.
This NEI Header Description lists and decribes the metadata that should be included in your Header. When you are ready to create your header, you can design one using an XML generator and the Exchange Network Header schema.
If you need additional help with Header documents, consult the Flow Configuration Document or contact the Network Help Desk at 1-(888)-890-1995.
Step 4: Validate Your XML Files
Prior to transmitting any XML files to EPA, you are required to validate your files with EPA’s XML schema validation tool called schematron. Submissions will not be considered received by EPA until you have completed a successful core validation. The web based validation tool is a set of XML web services for validating XML documents against the associated schemas and custom rules.
EPA has prepared a guide to assist you in using the validation site. Be sure that you conform to the current schematron rules located in this list of schematron validation rules. You can also use the NEI Code Lookup tables to assist you in the vaildation process. If you have any questions or need additional assistance, contact the Network Help Desk at (888)-890-1995.
To begin the validation process, visit the following web site:
Type or paste the following URL in the WSDL address box and click the Retrieve button:
https://tools.epacdxnode.net/xml/validator.wsdl
Follow the remaining instructions in the validation guide. Once you have resolved any errors in your XML files and your data is validated, you are ready to send the data to EPA via your Node.
Step 5: Configure the Network Exchanges and Data Services
At this time, NEI submissions should be sent from the state Node to EPA's CDX Node using a SUBMIT webservice. Consult the Flow Configuration Document for details on how to configure the Network Exchanges and Data Services.
Once your data passes validation using the validator tool, submit to EPA CDX Test Node which checks for a properly constructed Exchange Network message with associated Header Document information to ensure the entire submission is successful. The Node Administrators should forward errors to Program for correction.
Once the EPA CDX Test Node has successfully processed the submitted file, the same file may be submitted to the CDX Production Node. This is a separate account from the CDX Test Node.
