Welcome to Unit 6!!!

Can I get an “Amen!”???

“Earth Day '70: What It Meant” (Senator Gaylord Nelson, D-Wis.)

• http://www.epa.gov/history/topics/earthday/02.htm • Ten years ago this month, the environmental issue came of age in

American political life. When April 22, 1970, dawned, literally millions of Americans of all ages and from all walks of life participated in Earth Day celebrations from coast to coast. It was on that day that Americans made it clear that they understood and were deeply concerned over the deterioration of our environment and the mindless dissipation of our resources. That day left a permanent impact on the politics of America. It forcibly thrust the issue of environmental quality and resources conservation into the political dialogue of the Nation. That was the important objective and achievement of Earth Day. It showed the political and opinion leadership of the country that the people cared, that they were ready for political action, that the politicians had better get ready, too. In short, Earth Day launched the Environmental decade with a bang.

Senator Nelson (cont.)

• So long as the human species inhabits the Earth, proper management of its resources will be the most fundamental issue we face. Our very survival will depend upon whether or not we are able to preserve, protect and defend our environment. We are not free to decide about whether or not our environment "matters." It does matter, apart from any political exigencies. We disregard the needs of our ecosystem at our mortal peril. That was the great lesson of Earth Day. It must never be forgotten.

Four Landmark U.S. Environmental Laws

• Clean Air Act• Clean Water Act• Endangered Species Act• Comprehensive Environmental

Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA, a.k.a. Superfund)

Clean Air Act• http://www.epa.gov/air/caa/caa_history.html • http://ehstoday.com/environment/air/ehs_imp_36973/ • Passed in 1970, the CAA was the first of the major environmental laws. • Sets emission limits (known as “National Ambient Air Quality Standards”)

for 6 major pollutants (known as “criteria pollutants)– sulfur dioxide, particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide,

ozone, and lead• Geographic areas that are within the pollution limits are known as

“attainment areas,” while areas exceeding the pollution limits are known as “non-attainment areas.”

Key points of CAA• Authorized the establishment of National Ambient Air Quality

Standards• Established requirements for State Implementation Plans to

achieve the National Ambient Air Quality Standards• Authorized the establishment of New Source Performance

Standards for new and modified stationary sources • Authorized the establishment of National Emission Standards for

Hazardous Air Pollutants• Increased enforcement authority• Authorized requirements for control of motor vehicle emissions

Major CAA Amendments• 1977

– Authorized provisions related to the Prevention of Significant Deterioration– Authorized provisions relating to areas which are non-attainment with respect

to the National Ambient Air Quality Standards• 1990

– Authorized programs for Acid Deposition Control – Authorized a program to control 189 toxic pollutants, including those

previously regulated by the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants

– Established permit program requirements– Expanded and modified provisions concerning the attainment of National

Ambient Air Quality Standards– Expanded and modified enforcement authority

Previous air-quality/air-control legislation

• Air Pollution Control Act (1955)– First federal air pollution legislation– Funded research for scope and sources of air pollution

• Clean Air Act (1963)– Authorized the development of a national program to address air

pollution related environmental problems – Authorized research into techniques to minimize air pollution

• Air Quality Act (1967)– Authorized enforcement procedures for air pollution problems

involving interstate transport of pollutants– Authorized expanded research activities

Clean Water Act• http://www.epa.gov/regulations/laws/cwahistory.html • http://www.epa.gov/lawsregs/laws/cwa.html • Formal name is the Water Pollution Control Act of 1972• Objective is “to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological

integrity of the nation's waters by preventing point and nonpoint pollution sources, providing assistance to publicly owned treatment works for the improvement of wastewater treatment, and maintaining the integrity of wetlands.”

• Pollutants regulated under the CWA include "priority" pollutants, including various toxic pollutants; "conventional" pollutants, such as biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), total suspended solids (TSS), fecal coliform, oil and grease, and pH; and "non-conventional" pollutants, including any pollutant not identified as either conventional or priority. The CWA regulates both direct and indirect discharges.

Point-source vs. nonpoint-source pollution

• Point Sources– Section 402 of the CWA controls direct discharges into navigable waters. Direct

discharges or "point source" discharges are from sources such as pipes and sewers. NPDES permits, issued by either EPA or an authorized state/tribe contain industry-specific, technology-based and/or water-quality-based limits, and establish pollutant monitoring and reporting requirements. (EPA has authorized 40 states to administer the NPDES program.) A facility that intends to discharge into the nation's waters must obtain a permit before initiating a discharge. A permit applicant must provide quantitative analytical data identifying the types of pollutants present in the facility's effluent. The permit will then set forth the conditions and effluent limitations under which a facility may make a discharge.

• Nonpoint Sources– Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution, unlike pollution from industrial and sewage treatment

plants, comes from many diffuse sources. NPS pollution is caused by rainfall or snowmelt moving over and through the ground. As the runoff moves, it picks up and carries away natural and human-made pollutants, finally depositing them into lakes, rivers, wetlands, coastal waters, and even underground sources of drinking water.

Endangered Species Act

• http://www.epa.gov/lawsregs/laws/esa.html: Under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), the government protects endangered and threatened plants and animals (listed species) and the habitats upon which they depend. The ESA requires federal agencies to ensure that any action it authorizes, funds, or carries out, does not "adversely impact" any listed species, or "destroy or adversely modify" any critical habitat for that species.

• Passed in 1973• Administered by the USFWS:

http://www.fws.gov/Endangered/

ESA (cont.)• Protects both plant & animal species

– See http://ecos.fws.gov/tess_public/ .• An “endangered” species is one that is in danger of extinction

throughout all or a significant portion of its range. A “threatened” species is one that is likely to become endangered in the foreseeable future.

• Everything you want to know about which species are listed as endangered/threatened, where the species are found, which species are being considered for listing, etc: http://www.fws.gov/Endangered/wildlife.html#Species

• Full text of ESA: http://www.fws.gov/Endangered/ESA/content.html

CERCLA (Superfund)• Formal name: Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and

Liability Act (CERCLA, a.k.a. Superfund)– Superfund is the name given to the environmental program established to

address abandoned hazardous waste sites. This law was enacted in the wake of the discovery of toxic waste dumps such as Love Canal and Times Beach in the 1970s. It allows the EPA to clean up such sites and to compel responsible parties to perform cleanups or reimburse the government for EPA-lead cleanups.

• Passed in 1980, CERCLA created a tax on the 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.

CERCLA…

• Established prohibitions and requirements concerning closed and abandoned hazardous waste sites

• Provided for liability of persons responsible for releases of hazardous waste at these sites

• Established a trust fund to provide for cleanup when no responsible party could be identified.

CERCLA (cont.)

• Location of Superfund sites: http://www.epa.gov/superfund/sites/index.htm

• National Priorities List (NPL)– Highest priority sites– http://www.epa.gov/superfund/sites/npl/index.htm

• http://www.epa.gov/superfund/about.htm • http://www.epa.gov/lawsregs/laws/cercla.html • http://www.epa.gov/history/topics/lovecanal/01.htm

Unit 6 To-Do List

• Complete the Readings• Attend Seminar (or submit alternate assignment)• Participate on Discussion Board• Take Quiz• Review Key Terms & Unit Summary• Continue work on Final Project (due at end of

Unit 9)• Have a great Unit!!!