When most of us think of handling hazardous materials, we think of strange looking vehicles with bio-hazard symbols and people in hazmat suits dealing with some sort of green mixture of unidentified chemicals. But in places like New York City, there are all types of hazardous materials that may not be readily recognizable by the average person. Some of these items are just oils and fuel materials that have a great deal of toxicity, while others are products used routinely in manufacturing that produce dangerous “off-gases.” A new report in the digital publication CityLimits.org showed that over 7000 city inspections of commercial and industrial locations around the urban area resulted in almost 500 violations related to hazardous waste. One of the points made in the article was the idea that some facilities have more of a hazardous material or contain many more hazardous items than others. From a cursory look at a report by the New York City Department of Environmental Protection, we see clues about the scope of some of the more extreme scenarios. For example, over 1000 facilities were included as “facilities reporting 10,000 pounds or more of a hazardous substance.” Using available public maps, citizens can learn more about what is in their neighborhood and how companies are handling different kinds of hazardous materials.