Chapter 14: Regulation of the Environment

Endangered Species Criteria

(1) present or threatened destruction of the species habitat or range (2) overuse of the species for commerce, recreation, science or education (3) losses due to disease or predators (4) current inadequate protection (5) other man-made or natural threats to the species.

How many miles out can US govt clean up oil spills?

12 miles

In which presidental campaign was environmental issues an important topic

1968 - Nixon wanted to profit from the environment like FDR

Toxics Release Inventory (TRI)

A government database that reports the annual releases of pollutants by large industrial facilities. 22k plants and 300 chemicals

Public Nuisance

Action that interfere with health, safety, and property rights of a community. Permamnent injuctions common here. Only brought forward by public officials.

Command and control

All of then ineffective without enforcement emission limits on certain wages. Pros: equal treatment of all producers Con: constant monitoring different business have more efficient ways to pollute less Tax emissions Pro: encourage new technology Con: Must know great deal of info about where to set tax

1990 Clean Air Act

An act that strengthened controls on emissions, acid deposition, and ozone depletion and created transferable industry permits for SO2 emissions, for which the amount permitted decreased each year. 150.10 tons of sulfur dioxide at $122-450 per ton

Boomer v. Atlantic Cement Company

Could not ignore economic costs of inuuctions. led to permanent damages

Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980

Created Superfund regulate the cleanup of disposal sites where hazardous wastes were leaking into the environment The first thing the EPA had to do was identify hazardous waste sites and rank them in order of severity of the risk sites with the greatest severity of risk were put on a National Priority List (NPL) to receive first consideration contains a right-to-know provision that requires businesses to disclose the presence of certain chemicals to the community, annually disclose emissions of chemical substances that are released into the environment, and immediately notify the government of any spills

What is the Superfund?

Created by CERCLA Fund to finance the cleanup of sites through taxes on products that have the potential to create a hazardous waste site. The Superfund is a tort law that imposes strict liability and joint and several liability also retroactive, so even if you legally disposed of the chemicals when you disposed of them, it might be illegal now; therefore, you are responsible for the cleanup. ^^^ challenged to be unconstitutional

United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

Executive Order 1970 Nixon independent executive agency. Its administrator is appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. The EPA administers most of the environmental laws and spends most of the federal budget for environmental regulation has broad rule-making powers to adopt regulations to promote all environmental laws. It also has adjudicatory power to hold hearings and order remedies for violations of environmental laws has been quite active in using its power to put pressure on polluters to reduce pollution EPA reduced the emissions standards for small particles of dust and soot because of the susceptibility of asthmatic children to said particles. In 1999, the court of appeals overturned the new standards on the grounds that they were arbitrary and capricious EPA attempts to update its standards whenever new scientific information becomes available EPA has identified over 180 chemicals that are designated toxic air pollutants EPA standards for toxic substances are set without regard to economic or technological feasibility. EPA estimates that the air inside a building is 100 times more polluted than outside air. EPA has not adopted any regulations governing indoor air quality. EPA designates what solids qualify as hazardous wastes and can continually add to the list. The EPA has implemented a system to track hazardous waste from creation to.

Steps to reach optimal pollution levels

First, courts enforce the property rights accompanying the ownership of land through a system of tort law Second, the government uses its considerable influence to seek voluntary compliance with emissions standards by businesses. Third, Congress passes broad legislation that mandates the reduction of pollution.

Listed Nuclear Wastes

Low-level waste (LLW). Includes radioactively contaminated protective clothing, tools, filters, etc Waste incidental to reprocessing (WIR). Refers to certain waste by products that result from reprocessing spent nuclear fuel. High-level waste (HLW). Used nuclear reactor fuel, irradiated. Uranium mill tailings. Residues remaining after the processing of natural ore to extract uranium and thorium.

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)

Most lasting environmental contribution by FDR created nine dams that helped control flooding on the Tennessee River, provided electricity to the Southeast, created recreation areas, and supplied drinking water. The TVA manages 293,000 acres of land and 11,000 miles

Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)

New Deal program provided job for unemployed young men, up to 300,000 at one time at its height and a total of over three million total, to plant trees and perform other conservation efforts. The CCC planted about 3 billion trees

Other Legal Doctrines

New England states and the Pacific Northwest are now generally recognized as having the most strenuous environmental laws. One of the big oppositions to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was that many businesses would move to Mexico Canada's grievance with the U.S. was that the U.S. pollutions greatly contributed to Canada's acid rain problem. Many people feel this was partially the reason for the Clean Air Act amendment in 1990. Environmentalists are beginning to get more political as seen in the emergence of the Green Party as a political force to be reckoned with in the 2000 Presidential race.

Areas of concern of Clean Water Act

Point Sources Thermal Pollution Toxic Substances Hazardous Solid Wastes nuclear Waste Wetlands

What are Point Sources of water

Point sources are simply the point from which water pollution comes and can include private industry (mines and manufacturing plants), government sources of water pollution (municipal sewage plants) required to install pollution control equipment based on two standards: Best Practical Control Technology (BPCT) and Best Available Control Technology (BACT) previously existing point sources were required to immediately install BPCT New point sources of water pollution, on the other hand, are required to install BACT regardless of cost. all dischargers of water pollutants are required to keep records, maintain monitoring equipment, and keep samples of water pollutant discharges, all of which are subject to EPA review

Politics in Environment

Pollution is forced in businesses because of competition

Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)

Regulates nuclear energy in the U.S.

Clean Air Act

Required all new coal-fired power plants to have scrubbers to remove most of the SO2 from emissions. The political problem with requiring the use of low-sulfur coal was that it would put producers of Eastern coal out of business hey were forced into a compromise measure that provided $250 million to displaced coal miners for unemployment benefits and retraining he compromise was significant in that it was the first time funds were appropriated for an industry that was displaced by environmental legislation.

First Water Pollution controls

River and Harbor Act 1886 established a permit system for the discharge of refuse, wastes, and sewage into the navigable waterways of the U.S. In 1972, the permit system was replaced by the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES)

Conservation President

Roosevelt signed legislation that created five national park

Who can declare a species endangered?

Secretary of Commerce via the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Secretary of the Interior via the National Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) through the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMF)

not-in-my-backyard (NIMBY)

Syndrome in which people do not want something near where they live, even if they may want or need the thing to exist somewhere.

What is the Texas equivalent of EPA?

Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ).

Texas equivalent to the Superfund

Texas Solid Waste Disposal Act

Clean Water Act Amendment History

The Federal Water Pollution Control Act was passed by Congress in 1948 updated by the Clean Water Act of 1972, which was thus amended by the Clean Water Act of 1977 and the Water Quality Act of 198

National Resources Defense Council (NRDC)

The NRDC Goes to court to stop environmentally harmful practices. It also informs and organizes environmental activists.

Tort Law

Trespass to land, nuisances

When did environmental movement became popular?

advent of the movement could arguably be traced back as far as 1652 when Boston established a public water supply system By the mid-1800s literary works started to call attention to the pollution, the most influential of which was probably Walden, of Life in the Woods written by Henry David Thoreau first Earth Day on April 22, 1970. Peaceful movement

national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS).

air quality standards for stationary sources of air pollution. 2 levels The primary level is designed to protect human beings, and the secondary level is designed to protect vegetation, climate, visibility, property (e.g., buildings, statutes and other matter ven though the EPA sets the standards, it is the responsibility of the state governments to enforce these standards through state implementation plan (SIP), which details how the state plans to implement the EPA

Who is liable under CERCLA?

any potentially responsible party (PRP) and that can include the generator who deposited the waste, the transporter of the waste to the site, the owner of the land at the time of the disposal (if different than the current owner), and the current owner and operator of the site. Whoever cleans site, can seek reimbursement from Superfund

Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974

authorizes the EPA to establish national drinking water standards for human consumption and forbids the dumping of wastes into wells used for drinking purposes. his act was amended in 1996 to give the EPA greater flexibility in establishing regulatory standards for the governing of drinking water There are more than 200 known pollutants that exist in groundwater used for drinking in more than 30 states. requires each supplier of drinking water to send to its customers, on a yearly basis, a statement describing the source of its water, the level of any contaminants in the water, and the possible health consequences associated with those contaminants

Wetlands

defined as areas that are inundated, or saturated, by surface water or ground water that supports vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions owner of any wetland is prohibited from filling, dredging or draining the wetland until they have received a permit from the Army Corps of Engineer

Critical habitat

defined as the geographic area occupied by the listed species, or even an area outside the occupied areas if that is deemed necessary for conservation. One option for private landowners is Safe Harbor Agreements (SHA), a voluntary agreement involving owners of private property who attempt to help an endangered species

Thermal Pollution

discharge of heated waters or materials into the navigable waters of the U.S Ex: electricity-generating plants.

Noise Control Act of 1972

establish noise emission standards as well as maximum noise levels, below which no harmful effects occur. achievable by the best available technology and economically within reason. regulates noise sources, such as rail and motor carriers, low noise emission products, construction equipment, trucks, motorcycles and the labeling of hearing protection devices. (currently revising label system) done in conjunction with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) with the intent of updating these standards in light of technology

Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act of 1978

established programs to stabilize and control uranium mill tailings in an effort is to prevent, or at least minimize, the diffusion of radon in to the environment.

Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982

established the federal government as party responsible for providing a permanent site for the disposal of high-level waste Yucca Mountain, Nevada as a possible site

Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act of 1996

for a pesticide to remain on the market, there must be a reasonable certainty of no harm to people due to exposure to the pesticide. requires the EPA to distribute to grocery stores brochures on high-risk pesticides that are in food and stipulates that the grocery stores must display and distribute these brochures

Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA)

gave the federal government regulatory power over pesticides and related chemicals. Pesticides must be registered with the EPA before they can be sold. allows the EPA, or its state counterpart, to inspect the plants where the pesticides are manufactured

Clean Air Act pt. 2

gave the states federal assistance in fighting air pollution 1990 Clean Air Act amendments required some service stations to sell gasoline with higher oxygen content. Nine of the most polluted cities, including Los Angeles, had to sell even cleaner burning gasoline than the national requirements. requires the EPA to establish standards for the emission of these chemicals and requires stationary sources emitting these chemicals to utilize maximum achievable control technology (MACT) to manage their emissions

Low-Level Radioactive Waste Policy Amendments of 1985

gave the states the responsibility to dispose of low-level radioactive waste generated within their own borders.

Tradable permits system

government decides the optimal annual amount of environmental discharge of a particular emission, and are then distributed to producers based on a percentage of their production, or by auction. must adopt emission control technology to eliminate its discharge. The permits can be freely traded, usually, through a broker. Pro: develop tech and sell permits, know amount of emission, purchase permits and retire them, sulfur dioxide on "allowance" not permit to pollute

National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)

government's role was now to "create and maintain conditions under which man and nature can exist in productive harmony" and to "assure for all Americans safe, healthful, productive, esthetically and culturally pleasing surroundings." required all federal agencies to submit environmental impact statements (EISs) create the Council on Environmental Quality

nergy Reorganization Act of 1977

licenses the construction and opening of commercial nuclear power plants and continually monitors the operation of those nuclear power plants

stationary sources of air pollution

manufacturing plant that emits pollutants into the air. Clean Air Act requires states to identify major stationary sources of air pollution and to develop plans to reduce their level of pollution Existing stationary air pollution sources are normally required to install Reasonably Available Control Technology (RACT) new sources of stationary air pollution are required to install Best Available Control Technology (BACT) The severity of the pollution in the area, the cost of the equipment, and the size of the polluting company are all taken into consideration when determining the type and amount of required pollution control devices

air quality control regions (AQCRs)

monitors each region to ensure compliance.

Nuisance

more common tort. unreasonable interference with one's peaceful enjoyment or use of land.

3 The Endangered Species Act (ESA)

most powerful environmental laws can stop a construction project dead in its tracks and prevent the owner from developing their property, covers conservation of the threatened species, both plant and animal, and the habitats where they are located. One success story from the ESA is the America bald eagle.

Regions that do not meet EPA standards are called

nonattainment areas the state must develop a plan to bring that area into compliance within a set time period.

Permanent Damagers

one-time compensation for all future harm caused by the nuisance.

Mobile Sources of Pollution

primary source is vehicles. EPA also regulates the production of automobiles to ensure compliance with its emission standards the EPA is also authorized by the Clean Air Act to regulate fuel and fuel additives. Leaded gasoline was prohibited from being sold in 1995,

American Antiquities Act

proclaims historic landmarks, historic structures, and other historic objects to be national monuments.

Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act of 1972 (or Ocean Dumping Act

protects the oceans from water pollution. It established marine sanctuaries at sea and requires a permit to dump wastes into the ocean. violated often by cruise ship. penalties can result in a civil penalty of not more than $50,000 or revocation or suspension of the permit of the pollute

What gas pollutes inside homes?

radon gas with some estimates suggesting 4 million to 10 million homes have excessive radon gas level

The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)

regulates the disposal of new hazardous wastes Hazardous wastes are solid wastes that might cause or significantly contribute to an increase in the mortality or serious illness or hazard to human health or the environment if managed improperly. EPA also regulates underground storage facilities of hazardous wastes, which can include something as common as underground gasoline storage tanks

Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976

requires manufacturers and processors to test new chemicals to determine the effect of the new chemicals on human health and the environment. These results must be sent to the EPA before the product can be sold.

Oil Pollution Act (OPA)

response to the devastation of the Alaskan shore due to the Exxon Valdez accident Administered by Coast Guard, contains strict requirements for constructing oil tankers, requiring all ocean-going oil tankers to be double-hulled by 2015 must issue a certificate to a tanker before it can enter U.S. waters Civil penalties of $1,000 per barrel of spilled oil or $25,000 per day of the violation are allowed.

Penalties for not developing areas into compliance

severe penalties, including the loss of federal highway funds and limitations on new sources of pollution, which means the EPA can forbid new, pollution-controlling industries from entering nonattainment areas.

Voluntary Compliance

threat of legislation is often necessary to elicit cooperation.

Trespass to Land

unauthorized physical intrusion or entry upon the land of an individual. Example dust or soot. Only need to prove invasion interefered with posession and not injury of land

Silent Spring by Rachel Carson

widespread poisoning by pesticides and its impact on man and the environment.

Soil Conservation Service

works to reduce erosion in agriculture, farming land.