environmental legislation acts
10. The Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA)
-Summary: Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSHA) is a law designed to protect the health and safety of industrial workers by limiting their exposure to chemicals and pollutants in the workplace and also the operators of water supply systems and treatment plants. -Draft Year: 1970 -Amendment years: January 1974- June 2002 -Group Responsible: U.S Department of Labor -National -Environmental Issues: Global Warming, Pollution, Sustainability, etc. -Related Unit: 4
18. Law of the Sea Convention of 1982 (LOSC)
-Summary: creates a comprehensive regime governing the rights of nations with respect to the world's oceans. Also plays a role in the protection and preservation of the marine environment, and others. -Draft year: 1982 -Amendment Years: 1982-2015 -Group Responsible: United Nations -International -Environmental issues affected: International Whaling, Protecting Fish Stocks, Marine Pollution Control, Deep Sea Mining, Natural Resources on the Continental Shelf, etc. -Related Units: 1,3 & 4
19.The Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA)
-caused by Exxon Valdez spill -works to avoid oil spills from vessels and facilities by enforcing removal of spilled oil and assigning liability for the cost of cleanup and damages -Draft year: 1990 -Amendment Years: n/a -EPA -Units 5 and 6
16. National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA)
-summary: a set of laws that encourage all branches of the US government to consider how their actions may affect the environment before moving forward with their plans -issues: environmental degradation and health, resource depletion, conservation -draft year: 1969 -amendment years: 1975 (twice), 1982 -national -agency: presidential council on environmental quality -units: 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, & 8
6. Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of 1973
-summary: a treaty to prevent species from becoming endangered or extinct because of international trade -issues: endangered species -draft year: 1963 -amendment years: 1973, 1975 -international -agency: the world conservation union -units: 7, 8
14. Convention of Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol of 1997
-summary: an agreement to reduce greenhouse emissions by 5.2% of each nation's 1990 levels by 2012 -issues: global warming -draft year: 1997 -amendment years: 2012 (Doha amendment) -international -agency: united nations -units: 7 & 8
2.The Clean Water Act 1977, 1981, 1987 (CWA)
-the primary federal law in the US governing water pollution -objective: to restore and maintain the chemical, biological, and physical integrity of the nation's waters by preventing point and non point pollution sources, providing assistance publicly owned treatment works for the improvement of wastewater treatment and maintaining the integrity of wetlands -Draft year: 1972; AM Years: 1977, 1981, 1987; US EPA -Units 1 and 6
23.Taylor Grazing Act
1934 Bureau of Land Management NATIONAL Enacted by President Roosevelt to protect lands from overgrazing and soil deterioration. The act took place due to conflicts with livestock operators in western territory. It gave power to the Secretary of Interior authority to classify land for public domain. Many ranchers specially large operators supported this legislation. - An act created to end overgrazing by creating a permit system from federal rangelands. It protects soil from being deteriorated and eliminates the danger of the tragedy of the commons on rangelands.
24. Food Security Act (Farm Bill)
Protection of land and keeping food available at affordable prices for low income families. Draft Year 1985. Amendment Years 5 year omnibus. Agency US Department of Agriculture. Units According to AP Topic Outline 3 &4
5.Toxic Substances Control Act
The TSCA does not separate chemicals into categories of "toxic" and "non-toxic". Instead it prohibits the manufacture/importation of chemicals that are not on the TSCA list of chemicals. Also it provides EPA with authority to require reporting, record-keeping and testing requirements, and restrictions relating to chemical substances and/or mixtures. Certain substances are generally excluded from TSCA, including, among others, food, drugs, cosmetics and pesticides. Environmental issues affected: TSCA addresses the production, importation, use, and disposal of specific chemicals including polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), asbestos, radon and lead-based paint.
4.CERCLA
• Year drafted: 1980 • Years amended: 1986, 1990 • National Law • The "Superfund" is enforced by EPA. Function: Created a tax on chemical and petroleum industries and provided broad Federal authority to respond directly to releases or threatened releases of hazardous substances that may endanger public health or the environment. Over five years, $1.6 billion was collected and the tax went to a trust fund for cleaning up abandoned or uncontrolled hazardous waste sites.
17. The Declaration of the Conference of the Human Environment (Stockholm Declaration)
- Summary: the conference was called to promote international cooperation in addressing and solving environmental issues. The conference issued recommendations for green living and led to the creation of the UN Environment Programme - Issues: conservation, pollution, sustainable development, environmental economics, nonrenewable resource use - Draft Year: 1972 - Amendment Years: n/a - International - Agency: the UN
25. Energy Policy Act of 1992
- Summary: this act was created to decrease the use f fossil fuels, promote clean energy use, increase efficiency, and improve the atmosphere. The act defined and named alternative fuels, set efficiency standards, and gave recommendations to help citizens reduce energy use - Issues: nonrenewable resource use, energy use, alternative sources of energy - Draft Year: 1992 - Amendment Years: n/a - National - Agency: Department of Energy
12. Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act
- summary regulates the registration, distribution, sale, and use of pesticides - issues: use of pesticides (harms the land and animals) and soil erosion - draft year: 1910 - amendment years: 1972 and 1988 - national - agency: U.S. Department of Agriculture - units: 1,4
1. The Clean Air Act of 1963, 1965, 1970, 1977, 1990
According to the EPA, "The Air Pollution Control Act of 1955 was the first federal legislation involving air pollution. This Act provided funds for federal research in air pollution. The Clean Air Act of 1963 was the first federal legislation regarding air pollution control. Monitoring and controlling air pollution." Draft Year 1963. Amendment Year 1965, 1970, 1977, 1990. Agency: U.S. Public Health Service Units According to AP Topic Outline 1 & 2
7. Lacey Act of 1900
Draft Year: 1900, Amendment Years: 1969, 1981, 1988, National issue, Agency: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Goal: protect both plants and wildlife by criminalizing the intentional violation of federal wildlife laws Unit 6
22. Nuclear Waste Policy Act
Draft Year: 1982 Amendment Years: 1987 National Agency/Group: Department of Energy (DOE), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) - supports the use of repositories deep in the ground to store and/or dispose of nuclear waste - details a process in which these repository sites are selected, integrating federal and state governments - sets time periods when federal agencies are required to complete certain milestones - requires the Department of Energy (DOE) to create and regulate repositories for high-level waste and spent nuclear fuel - Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must develop regulations to protect the surrounding environment from radioactive material - Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) can only license the DOE to operate a repository if it meets the set standards and requirements Units: 4
15. Convention of Ozone Depletion and the Montreal Protocol of 1986
Draft Year: 1987 Amendment Years: 1990-1993, 1995, 1997-1999, 2016 Summary: an international treaty designed to protect the ozone layer by phasing out the production of numerous substances responsible for ozone depletion Countries in treaty: all UN members, all European Union members, Holy See, and Niue Unit 6: (not named)
13. Food Quality Protection Act
Draft Year: 1996 Amendment Years: None National Agency/Group: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) - focuses on the regulation of pesticide safety tolerances (reassessed every 15 years) to ensure that the pesticides do not harm the human consumer -additional tenfold safety factor -EPA has to expedite approval of reduced risk pesticides, provide a list of pests that significantly affect public health, evaluate whether pesticides can cause harm to the endocrine system, hasten the application process to register antimicrobial pesticide products, and give special consideration to the minor use of pesticides -units: 2
26. Wilderness Act
Draft year: 1964; National issue; Agency: National Park Service; Goal: created National Wilderness Preservation System and protected wilderness areas from human interaction; Unit: 4
8. The Endangered Species Act 1973, 1982, 1985, 1988 (ESA)
Draft year: 1973 Amendment years: 1978, 1982, 1988 International Agency responsible for enforcement and regulation: FWS (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) - support the conservation of endangered species and protect the habitats upon which these species depend - specified what it meant by "endangered" and "threatened" and prohibits actions that affect these species Units: - 2 (ecological niches, species diversity, keystone species, biodiversity) - 3 (Habitat destruction, resource use) - 4 (deforestation, desertification, wilderness areas)
3. Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)
Draft year: 1974; Amendment years: 1986, 1996; National issue Agency: U.S. Environmental Protection Goal: regulate drinking water quality, enforce health standards Units: 1 and 2
9. The Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act (EPCRA)
Draft year: 1986; Amendment year: 2012; summary: requires states and local governments to establish local chemical emergency preparedness programs for their communities. Requires a publicly available toxic chemical release inventory.
21. Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA)
Drafted: 1977; Amendment years: 1990 NATIONAL issue; Unit: 4 Agency: US Department of the Interior Function: SMCRA regulates surface coal mining operations and reclamation of abandoned mines. It is the primary federal law that regulates the environmental effects of coal mining in the US.
