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Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA)
Pesticide regulation in order to protect applications, consumers and the overall environment. The Environmental Protection Agency is responsible of implementing the following regulations: proof of chemical manufacturer for registration and enforce guidelines for the unregistered products. This mainly ensured protection for farmers and consumers from ineffective and unregistered products. Revised in 1972 and was renamed Federal Environmental Pesticide Control Act. -
Federal Water Pollution Control Act
Implements water pollution reduction or elimination in order to regulate water quality. Public health services help in making programs to improve surface and underground water conditions. Purpose was conserving waters for use of fish and aquatic life, by limiting the use of agricultural and indistrial use. This not only helps conserve aquatic species, but for use of recreational purposes. -
National Air Pollution Control Act
First clean air act in regards to assisting the national environment air pollution problem. States are in charge of research and assistance to control and prevent air pollution. The United States Surgeon General was responsible of informing federal government about research and investigation, in relation to air pollution. The act's purpose was taddress that air pollution was dangerous to public health, and stated that the states/local government are responsible of controlling air pollution. -
Clean Air Act
Improvement of air pollution by increasing programs, than those previously made, to prevent and delete air pollution. This act was the actual action and beginning of establishing more federal programs, developed and enforced by U.S. Public Health and and Environmental Protection Agency. These agencies researched techniques to monitor and control the air pollution. -
Wilderness Act
Began the establishment of National Wilderness Preservation System, where areas defined as "wilderness areas" are to be owned by the federal government, but only administered for enjoyment of the public. This will provide protection and preserve the wilderness habitat, where humans are to not construct or create any type of human habitat in the area. These wilderness areas were selected based on ecological/historic value, suze, recreation opportunity and affected areas by nature or human work. -
Motor Vehicle Air Pollution Control Act
Addition to the Clean Air Act in regulating automobile pollution. Originally called Motor Vehicle Control Act. Sets the standards to what kind of substance can be used in new motor vehicle engines, depending whether it falls under the "cause or contribution" category of air pollution. Certain standards were to be applied by incorporating other things to prevent or control the air pollution. Administor's were allowed to regulate or prohibit fuel additive considered to endanger human health. -
Solid Waste Disposal Act
First act protecting the environment, in regards to improving waste disposal technology. The purpose was to protect human health from generation of hazardous waste. So, this created information on how to dispose large volumes of municipal/industrial solid wastes, safely and correctly. The Environmental Protection Agency generate standards to waste disposals because it was becoming a local issue, therefore, waste disposal technology was to be improved. -
Water Quality Act
Protects and ensures surface and groundwater quality. This act has related goals to the Water Pollution Control Act in determining principles followed for better water quality. Yet, this act added more goals due to concerns of interstate waters. Programs were established by identifying the beneficial uses and review standards for atleast 3 years, with the help of the Environmental Protection Agency, where necessary, to implement the requirements. -
National Emissions Standards Act
Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare required emission standards on light-duty vehicles. Models made in 1968 came in with new standards and models made in 1963 were reduced. This also required a 72% hydrocarbon reduction, 56% carbon monoxide reduction and 100% crankcare hydrocarbon reduction. In 1966, new standards were made in coordination control with Canada and Mexico to decrease production. -
California Air Resources Board
Also known as the Clean Air Agency, which was a combination of Bureau of Air Sanitation and Motor Vehicle Pollution Control Board. It is the cabinet-level of the California Environmental Protection Agencey, composed of eleven members, all experts in science and law fields. Many states follow the board's regulations, which are maintaining healthy air quality. They are in charge of protecting the public from toxic contamination and improve air pollution regulations. -
Air Quality Act (amendment to CAA)
This was the next step in addressing air pollution. The Environmental Protection Agency, with the help of the U.S. Public Health Service, monitored the ambient and made actual stationary source inspectors. Air quality control regions and state implementation plans were determined by pollution control agencies, over a three-year period. This act was passed as regional rather than national, so air quality regions were responsible for enforcing pollution control standards. -
Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act
Created mining enforcement and safety administration, which required two annual surface coal mine inspections and four annual underground coal mine inspections. This helped miners, since it brought mandatory health and safety standards to the employers. Disable miners that acquired progressive respiratory disease, by inhalation of fine dust, were compensated. -
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
Established the President's Council on Environmental Quality. It is a process that consist of an evaluation of three leveles of analysis: categorical exclusion, preparation of an environmental assessment/finding of no significant impact, and preparation of an environmental impact statement. The act establishes an environmental policy for environmental protection and enhancement. The federal government is responsible to create conditions, where humans and natre come to harmony. -
Williams-Steiger Occupational Safety and Health Act
Protects employees by requiring employers to have the place of employment, free of hazards that can cause major physical harm or death. Also, employers are required to provide occupational safety and health standards. The Department of Labor is responsible in inspection and issue violoations, and the Secretary of Health is responsible to question employer/employees. Therefore, it is set to make policies for inspection, citation and penalties necessary to those violating safety and human health. -
Environmental Quality Improvement Act
Purpose to prevent and delete environmental pollution, along with water, land resources, and economical and regional development. Works in conjunction with the National Environmental Policy Act to create an Environmental Quality Office and assure that the federal department and agencies enforce the policies under existing laws, improve environment quality. -
Clean Air Act (extension)
Failure to completed the improvement of air quality, due to public acceptation, only a few regions were air quality controlled. From this act, four regulatory programs were created: National Ambient Air Quality Standards, State Implementation Plans, New Source Performance Standards, and Natural Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants. Federal and state regulations limited production of industrial and mobie sources. -
Lead-Based Paint Poisoning Prevention Act
Based on the Secretary of Health and Human Services, it is prohibited to use lead-based paint as it is considered a harmful environmental pollutant. It is also prohibited to use in application to cooking, drinking or eating utensils. By the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, lead-based paint is prohibited to use in residential structures. Lastly, by the Consumer Product Saftey Commission, lead-based paint is prohibited in application to toys or furniture articles. -
Clean Water Act
Was followed after the Federal Water Pollutant act, which followed the same conservation purposes, but with more enforcements were made. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency became responsible in creating more water quality programs, but now with federal limitations and state water quality standards. Therefore, these new implementations required permits for pollutant discharges in surface/navigable waters. Also, it provided authorized funding for waste water treatments and quality programs. -
Endangered Species Act
Officially recognized the ecological, educational, recreational and scientific value of natural species. This brought to the attention of endangered species, plants and animals, administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, along with the Commerce Department’s National Marine Fisheries Service, This act created a list of endangered, species in danger of extinction, and threatened, species likely to become endangered. -
Safe Drinking Water Act
Made to ensure that the public is given safe drinking water. The Environmental Protection Agency is responsible for implementing standards and regulations in water quality obtained by water suppliers. This prevents the natural and man-made contamination that may be found in drinking water, that can be harmful to human health. Standards must be met as they are a requirement for every state. -
Hazardous Materials Transportation Act
Act protects human health due to risks of transportation of hazardous materials, by air, highway, rail, and water. Secretary of Transportation is responsible of securing safe transportation, by applying regulations to transporters of hazardous materials and also manufacturers with packages marked and certified of carrying hazardous material. This makes packaging requirements to be labeled with material description and safety requirements to those transporting actual hazardous material. -
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
TSCA is an act that requires tests to be performed in order to protect human health of hazardous chemical substances and provide restrictions to use such chemicals. The main purpose is to eliminate existing chemicals open to consumptions prior to 1976 that may cause human harm, administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. -
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
Amendment to the Solid Waste Disposal Act. It provided and increase of protection to ground water, surface water, air and land affected. The Environmental Protection agency was responsible in controlling generation, treatment and storage of hazardous waste. This brought to the attention of underground tanks that store petroleum, that can ultimately be hazardous. Their main goal was human health protectin and conserving energy and natural resources. -
Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act
Provides a relation between the Secretary of the Interior and the States with a regulation for surface coal mining achievement and renovation of abandoned mines. Two programs were created through the act: one for regulating coal mines and the other for reclaiming abandoned mines. This act was written after Post WWII, where demand for coal was high and miners began to strip more with low concern for environmental consequences. -
National Energy Conservation Policy Act
This act was established to amend the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975, which change voluntary standards to mandatory standards. This amended act requires the Department of Energy to approve, implement, and monitor the used of non renewable energy in order to comply with state regulations. -
Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act
Also known as Nongame Act, which provides financial an technical assistance for the states to develop, implement and revise conservation plans. The original act provided $5 million per year for the first three years starting in 1982-1985, for additional study of U.S. Fish and Wildlife. This, also, created potential mechanisms, which help conserve fish and wildlife. -
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act
Also known as superfund, the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act provides a regulation for a safe release of hazardous materials and waste disposed at contaminated areas. This act also provides a federal fund to clean contaminated or polluted areas that may harm the environment or public health. Although the fund is available, each party at each site is responsible for cleaning. -
Nuclear Waste Policy Act
This addressed nuclear and radioactive wastes, by establishing programs to safely and permanently dispose of them. Main concern was the high impact on the duration of temporary storages for these wastes and generation of long-lived fission products. This began research on long-term effects and developed permanent repositories to dispose of these radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel, mainly generated by nuclear weapons and plants. -
28. Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRKA)
Creates requirements in reporting annual quantity of toxic chemicals produced by faciliities. This, also requires facilities to report data in order to prove that recycling and pollution prevention is being accomplished. The Environmental Protection Agency is responsible of adding or deleting chemicals from lists given, by category. The act urges to create an emergency plan procedure and communication between local governments and the public, in response to hazardous chemicals. -
Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA)
The act amended CERCLA , which improves technology used to clean up hazardous waste sites. In addition to this improvement, SARA made greater concern factors in making better treatment technologies and reconsider the standards set in the previous act. This created new reinforcements and more state involvement, restating their main focus, human health. These improvements increased public involvement, incresing trust funds. The EPA was responsible to ensure to have correct hazard ranking system. -
Montreal Protocol
International treaty on deleting substances diminishing the ozone layer. Mainly designed to reduce or delete production/consumption of substances to protect the ozone layer. Parties of the Protocol are responsible and are permitted to make any new reductions necessary, which become applicable to all countries agreed. As it has been amended various times, they have enabled to control new chemicals considered harmful for the ozone layer and have developed financially with other countries. -
Basel Convention
A treaty on control of transboundary movements was created by the Conference of Plenipotentiaries, based on hazardous wastes and disposal. This was created to prevent human health harm to the less developed countries, by not transferring hazardous waste and no movements to those areas, from abroad. This helps reduce the toxicity of generated toxic wastes. The environmentally sound management prohibited transboundary movements based on the principles, unless permitted. -
Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act
Reduction strategy to eliminate lead-based paint in houses. The EPA became responsible of revisions by collecting paint chip samples to use for lead test in order to evaluate housing stock. Created programs to educate the public on standards of care and action on childhood lead poisoning. Policies of housings must consider the existence of lead-based paint hazards. -
North American Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act
Comprehensive free trade agreement for multilateral negotiations. This included the first U.S. trading partners, Mexico and Canada. Used to help generate jobs and increase income equilibrium. This included to supplements: the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation and the North American Agreement on Labor Cooperation. NAFTA itself, officially came into force until 1994. -
Executive Order 12898 on Environmental Justice
This action is addressed to the minority and low-income populations. Federal agencies are responsible in identifying human health and environmental effects on these populations. Their goal is give environmental protection to all communities. This, also, implements the removal of discrimination in federal programs, to implement environmental justice, through strategies. The EPA administrator created the Interagency Working Group to establish justice to all. Minority and low-income populations are -
Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21)
Public law that authorizes Federal Transportation programs foa 6-year period. The act requires seven planning factors to be included in regional transportation plans. Some factors were supporting economic growth of planning areas by enabling productivity and efficiency. Others were to increase safety and security for motorized and non-motorized users, enhancing environment, integration and connectivity. This also included emphasizing preservation of existing transportation systems. -
California AB 1493
First legislation to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from passenger vehicles. It is said to bring economic benefits in regards to air quality. Law required assistance for emission reduction by maintaining record of certified green house gas emission baselines and results. This included to the state board to achieve maximum degree emission reduction degree possible to decrease global warming. The main concerns were the public health and environment in the state. -
Kyoto Protocol
International treaty, to implement reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, adopted in Japan. These reductions are based on global warming existence and carbon dioxide emissions created by humans. 192 parties involved in the protocol, to fight global warming in reduction of gas concentration in the atmosphere, which can affect the climate system. -
Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA)
This law guaranteed funds for highways, safety and public transportations. This law correlates with the TEA-21 act in making the highway programs to meet the nation’s transportation changes in needs. It addresses the transportation system issues on the daily basis and focuses on fixing these issues. Theses improvements include interstate highway system, transit system, and rail operations. Gives innovative finance, congestion relief, mobility/productivity, and environmental efficiency. -
Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA)
The EISA, is an act that changes the way the US and its manufacturers use energy. The purpose of this act is to improve the efficiency of energy sources used into more renewable fuel. This act also funded research to gather information towards greenhouse effects on gasses and conservation of rechargeable energy used in homes and vehicles.
