The EPA In The 1970's

With the well-being of future generations in mind, environmental concerns have begun to establish a permanent residence atop the priority ladder for a vast array of Americans. Consequently, writers and political pundits alike are seizing this opportunity to capitalize on advocating their stance on the issue. Information, representing all positions, pours in at an unrelenting and unfathomable rate. For the average American it can be an arduous process sifting through all the rhetoric in attempt to find the real truth regarding our impact as humans on the environment; one such example is Susan Brown’s article The EPA’s Mercury Problem. In this article Brown attempts to expose hypocrisy among progressives by paralleling the Environmental Protection

The federal government has wisely divided up their branches into individual departments. This choice has allowed for the federal government to be more organized. Every federal government department is incredibly important to the United States; there is not one greater than the other. However, the departments under the environmental category have accomplished many fantastic projects that have created a healthier living space for the United States. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the environmental category will be dissected into two main sections: the history of the department and the major responsibilities of the department.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), another federal agency, was created to protect human health and the environment through the writing and enforcing of regulations based on laws passed by Congress.”(yourtrainingprovider.com. n.d.)

It was not until the Clean Act of 1970 that enforcement at the federal level being in more a serious way. To quote the EPA website directly “The enactment of the Clean Air Act of 1970 (1970 CAA) resulted in a major shift in the federal government's role in air pollution control. This legislation authorized the development of comprehensive federal and state regulations to limit emissions from both stationary (industrial) sources and mobile sources. Four major regulatory programs affecting stationary sources were initiated: the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS, pronounced "knacks"), State Implementation Plans (SIPs), New Source Performance Standards (NSPS), and National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAPs). Furthermore,

The EPA is the agency responsible for setting all of the regulations and rules for drinking water. These regulations apply to individuals, businesses, state and local governments, non-profit institutions etc. Congress passes laws to govern the U.S but they have authorized the EPA and other federal agencies to help them put the laws into effect and to make sure they are as effective as possible. The first two steps in this process consists of Congress writing and the president approving a bill. Then the act must be “codified” by applying it to the United States Code. The United States Code is basically a list of permanent laws for the U.S. As soon as the law has been made official, agencies like the EPA begin to create regulations for the specific law to make it apply to individuals, businesses, and local governments; all of this to make the law work for everyone every day. The regulations set standards for each aspect of daily life that go along with the law. For example, the EPA will come up with specific levels of sulfur dioxide that is allowed in our air to coincide with the Clean Air Act to protect human health and the environment. The regulations in this example would tell industries and businesses exactly how much sulfur dioxide they can emit into the air

The national or federal environmental administration asks their states to help maintain a safe and clean environment for all of its’ people to enjoy. The National Environmental Policy Act or also known as NEPA was established in 1969 to aid federal agencies to help convey the message for the need to protect the environment. “Federal agencies are required to systematically assess the environmental impacts of their proposed actions and consider alternative ways of accomplishing their missions, which are less damaging to and protective of the environment” (U.S. General Services Administration). Even though the National Environmental Policy Act “requires” federal agencies to ensure states to follow through, Texas has not fully committed to the requirement. “Texas contains an abundance of natural resources, but efforts to impost environmental regulations have faced roadblocks for many decades” (The Texas Tribune). Texas has neglected to keep the environment’s safety in mind and thought of only the business boom. The natural resources found on the land of Texas represents a magnet that attracts people. Texas desires to continue the attraction of people into the state as it is allowing the state to flourish in economic matters. During the past few decades, “From 1970 and 1980, as oil prices spiraled upward and people flocked to Texas,” (Petersen and Assanie) there has been little attempt made in conserving

Principle, Policy, and Presidential Power Nowhere in the constitution does it say that it is the Federal Government’s responsibility to protect the environment. So the EPA is unconstitutional and Richard Nixon acted outside of his powers to create it and for that sole reason should be impeached. However, he wasn’t (yet) impeached because, as Racheal Carson argued in Silent Spring, the founders could not, in all their wisdom anticipate the problems facing the planet and thusly couldn’t have wrote any provisions therein. Another thing the Framers couldn’t fully predict and add adequate provisions for was the egregious growth of concentrated power in the executive branch. The constitutional system of separated institutions sharing powers is not sufficient to guard against the dangers of concentrated political authority and the rise of political leaders manipulating the masses primarily due to the fact that the Framers’, in drafting the constitution, could not in all their wisdom foresee the geographic, technological, and social changes and

The EPA deals with a lot of pollution regulations in regards to automobile emissions, nuclear materials, and harmful substances in products. They make sure that these regulations are based on the most recent scientific research and attempt to implement them fairly (US Environmental, 2015). This agency not only creates and sets these standards, but works with companies and states to help the federal standards be met, whether the aid is in knowledge of new technologies, money, or innovative ideas.

The United States Congress passed the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 which prevents any vessel that has caused an oil spill of more than 1 million US gallons in any marine area,

The environment and climate change have recently become high profile issues, but that does not mean they haven’t been issues in the past. In 1903, Theodore Roosevelt created the National Wildlife Refuge System is the system of public lands and waters set aside to conserve America's fish, wildlife and plants. In 1970, Richard Nixon created the Environmental Protection Agency protecting human health and the environment by writing and enforcing regulations based on laws. The Bush and Obama administrations had different stands on a lot of issues, and it’s no different when it comes to issues regarding the environment.

Scattered with flowing rivers, lush forests, and everlasting plains, the environment is extraordinary, but is it a place for the government? Since December 2, 1970, the EPA has been restricting the use of our planet and taking our rights away.

If we cut off environmental regulations then this will also give the U.S. to have cheaper things and create new jobs for the environment and this is good because many Americans aren’t employed. The U.S. will have a better position in most thing and most importantly the health of the economy. The U.S. will also be able to control its environment and economy with no restrictive international environmental agreements. International organizations can work on themselves and make the best in their economy. The U.S. doesn’t have to support any environmental issues that might cause danger to its

In 1970 President Nixon established the Environmental Protection Agency because of the public’s concern over pollution and contamination of the environment. The EPA was established to regulate many toxic or possibly toxic substances that have entered the environment. Under the federal “Safe Drinking Water Act” of 1974 the EPA had the ability to regulate activities that have an impact on sources of public drinking water. Due to the injection of potential of toxic substances entering the ground through fracking, the possible effect of the chemicals on drinking water gave the EPA the ability to regulate the rigs that had the potential to effect the water supply through the Underground Injection Control Program (UICP). In 1997 the 11th United States

The Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) (P.L. 80-845, 62 Stat. 1155) of 1948 was the first major law enacted by Congress to address the problems of water pollution in the United States (n.d). Legislators created over 100 bills in an attempt to pass legislation over the previous half century, but were not successful. Industrial and urban growth caused by World War II in 1948, led to obvious, notorious pollution of the country's rivers, streams, and lakes, urging Congress to finally address the issue. Unfortunately, the act was not designed well enough to achieve the goals set out to address the issue. It did not ban pollution, only gave limited power to the federal government, and provided an extremely awkward enforcement mechanism. The Federal Water Pollution Control Act was not successful in preventing and reducing water pollution. Pollution continued to increase because of the federal government's inability to require any direct reduction in discharges. As a result, the quality of the nation's waters had no improvement. On the other hand, the act established a popular and political support for pollution control efforts. Congress rewrote the act in 1972 to provide more acceptable protection for the nation's waters. It also established the basic agenda for water pollution control, which was amended by Congress afterwards. Congress made changes to the act six times before rewriting it in 1972.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that there are over one thousand sites in the United States contaminated with radionuclides. Many of these contaminated sites have been thoroughly cleaned in a process to decontaminate the site to meet certain standards. These locations vary in size ranging from a small laboratory to a decommissioned nuclear power plant and even a large scale nuclear weapons facility. The Department of Energy (DOE) along with many other government agencies understands the risk involved with exposure to large doses of radiation and has established cleanup programs throughout the Unites States. These cleanup programs are responsible for decontaminating the site to ensure the public is safe from radiation exposure. The following describes radioactive cleanup programs in the United States, and the huge role they play in keeping the nuclear industry as safe as possible.