ERCs created in the five Philadelphia counties, such as the credits approved for the U.S. Naval Hospital and the United States Steel Group, may be transferred to users in the five-county area or users throughout the state, with some restrictions. ERCs created in other parts of the state may be used throughout the state except in the five Philadelphia counties. Community groups and regulatory agencies have identified several areas of concern in those regions, including an oil refinery, auto body shops, dry cleaners, stadium traffic and several industrial facilities. Data from the sites will be analyzed in the coming months as part of a federal environmental study. The lab is one of four such vehicles in the world.
Instrumentation can deliver real-time results for air, soil and water samples.
In previous investigations in southeastern Pennsylvania, the lab has been used to track landfill odors and fugitive emissions from a refinery.