State programs to reduce uncontrolled ammonia releases and associated injury using the hazardous substances emergency events surveillance system.

Objective: To describe how the Hazardous Substances Emergency Events Surveillance (HSEES) program identifies leading causes of uncontrolled ammonia releases and targets activities aimed at reducing the frequency of these incidents.

Methods: Ammonia incidents reported to HSEES nationally were examined. HSEES programs in state health departments conducted and evaluated data-driven prevention outreach.

Results: The primary targeted ammonia incidents in the three HSEES states that are presented include food manufacturing, agriculture, and events related to the production of illicit methamphetamine. Key to these prevention activities was using state-specific HSEES data to identify problems and evaluate the prevention activity, and developing partnerships with other stakeholders.

Conclusion: HSEES data is used to identify determinants of chemical incidents and their outcomes and to help guide strategies to reduce such occurrences. Surveillance of chemical incidents elucidates the causes and consequences of these events and helps identify problems and measure the effectiveness of prevention programs.