The State of Ohio is now using the Google search engine. To search Ohio EPA's Web pages, type in a few descriptive words into the box above and click on the 'Search' button for a list of relevant Web pages.

Since Google only returns Web pages that contain all the words in your query, refining or narrowing your search is as simple as adding more words to the search terms you have already entered. Your new query will return a smaller subset of the pages Google found for your original "too-broad" query. 

When entering more than one search term, be sure to put items that you want to appear together in quotes. For example, if you want to search for information about surface water, entering "landfill facilities" into the search box will get you more specific results than entering landfill facilities or landfill, facilities. You may also combine search terms in quotes with singular terms. For instance, to locate a map of Ohio's solid waste districts, you could type "solid waste", district, map.

The following information is derived from Google's search help area. To view the original Google search help in it's entirety, click here.

• For best results, it's important to choose your keywords wisely. Keep these tips in mind:
• Try the obvious first. If you're looking for information on the Division of Air Pollution Control, enter "Division of Air Pollution Control" rather than "air"
• Use words likely to appear with the information you want. "Watershed map" gets better results than "watershed"
• Make keywords as specific as possible. "Landfill" gets more relevant results than "trash"
• You do not need to use capitalization.
• There is no need to include "and" between terms. However, keep in mind that the order in which the terms are typed will affect the search results.
• Google ignores common words and characters such as "where" and "how", as well as certain single digits and single letters. If you want to include these within your search, be sure to use quotation marks.