Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established in July of 1970, a landmark year for environmental concerns, having been preceded by the passing of the National Environmental Policy Act in January and the first Earth Day celebrations in April. President Richard Nixon and Congress, working together in response to the growing public demand for cleaner air, land, and water, sought to create a new agency of the federal government structured to make a coordinated attack on the pollutants that endanger human health and degrade the environment . The EPA was charged with repairing the damage already done to the environment and with instituting new policies designed to maintain a clean environment.

The EPA's mission is "to protect human health and to safeguard the natural environment." At the time the EPA was formed, at least fifteen programs in five different agencies and cabinet-level departments were handling environmental policy issues. For the EPA to work effectively, it was necessary to consolidate the environmental activities of the federal government into one agency. Air pollution control , solid waste management , radiation control, and the drinking water program were transferred from the U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare (currently known as the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services ). The water pollution control and pesticides research programs were acquired from the U.S. Department of the Interior . Registration and regulation of pesticides was transferred from the U.S. Department of Agriculture , and the responsibility for setting tolerance levels for pesticides in food was acquired from the Food and Drug Administration . The EPA also took over from the Atomic Energy Commission the responsibility for setting some environmental radiation protection standards and assumed some of the duties of the Federal Radiation Council. For some environmental programs, the EPA works with other agencies: for example, the United States Coast Guard and the EPA work together on flood control, shoreline protection, and dredging and filling activities. And, since most state governments in the United States have their own environmental protection departments, the EPA delegates the implementation and enforcement of many federal programs to the states.

The EPA's headquarters is in Washington DC, and there are ten EPA regional offices and field laboratories. The main office develops national environmental policy and programs, oversees the regional offices and laboratories, requests an annual budget from Congress, and conducts research. The regional offices implement national policies, oversee the environmental programs that have been delegated to the states, and review Environmental Impact Statements for federal actions. The field laboratories conduct research, the data from which are used to develop policies and provide analytical support for monitoring and enforcement of EPA regulations, and for the administration of permit programs.

The administrator of the EPA is appointed by the President, subject to approval by the Senate. The same procedure is used to appoint a deputy administrator, who assists the administrator, and nine assistant administrators, who oversee programs and support functions. Other posts include the chief financial officer, who manages the EPA' budget and funding operations, the inspector general, who is responsible for investigating environmental crimes, and a general counsel, who provides legal support.

In addition to the administrative offices, the EPA is organized into the following program offices: The Office of Air and Radiation, the American Indian Environmental Office , the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, the Office of Environmental Justice, the Office of Environmental Information, the History Office, the Office of International Affairs, the Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances, the Office of Research and Development, the Science Policy Council, the office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response, and the Office of Water.

The current EPA Administrator, elected by President George W. Bush, is Christie Whitman, formerly Governor of New Jersey, who was sworn in on January 31, 2001. Whitman's official administrative philosophy is that environmental goals are compatible with and are connected to economic goals, and that relationships between citizens, policy makers, and private sector must be strengthened. The nomination of Linda J. Fisher to the post of EPA Deputy Administrator was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on May 24, 2001. Fisher, who formerly practiced law in Washington DC and has served as Vice President and Corporate Officer at the Monsanto Co. in St. Louis MO, is Whitman' top managerial and policy assistant.

One of the major activities of the EPA is the management of Superfund sites. For many years, uncontrolled dumping of hazardous chemical and industrial wastes in abandoned warehouses and landfills continued without concern for the potential impact on public health and the environment. Concern over the extent of the hazardous-waste-site problem led Congress to establish the Superfund Program in 1980 to locate, investigate, and clean up the worst such sites. The EPA' Office of Emergency and Remedial Response (OERR) oversees management of the program in cooperation with individual states. When a hazardous-waste site is discovered, the EPA is notified. The EPA makes a preliminary assessment of the site and gives a numerical score according to Hazard Ranking System (HRS), which determines whether the site is placed on the National Priorities List (NPL). As of May 29, 2002, 1221 sites were listed on the final NPL, with 74 new sites proposed, 812 sites were reported to have completed construction, and 258 sites had been deleted from the list. The final NPL lists Superfund sites in which the clean-up plan is under construction or ongoing. NPL proposed sites include sites for which the HRS indicates that placement on the final NPL is appropriate. Among currently proposed NPL sites are Air Force Plant 85 near Columbus OH (coal deposits leaching sulfuric acid , ammonia, and heavy metals ), Blackbird Mine in Lemhi ID (high levels of arsenic , copper , cobalt, and nickel in surface water and sediments of Meadow and Blackbird Creeks downstream from mining tunnels and waste-rock piles), the Omaha Lead site in Omaha, NE (lead contaminated soil near populated areas and wetlands ) and the Libby Asbestos site in Libby, MT (heavy asbestos exposures and chromium, copper, and nickel deposits near wetlands and fisheries). A final NPL site is deleted from the list when it is determined that no further clean up is needed to protect human health or the environment Finally, under Superfund's redevelopment program, former hazardous-waste sites have been remade into office buildings, parking lots, or even golf courses to be re-integrated as productive parts of the community.

The offices and programs of the EPA recognize a set of main objectives, or "core functions." These core functions help define the agency's mission and provide a common focus for all agency activities. The core functions are:

• Pollution Prevention—taking measures to prevent pollution from being created rather than only cleaning up what has already been released, also known as source reduction
• Risk Assessment and Risk Reduction—identifying problems that pose the greatest risk to human health and the environment and taking measures to reduce those risks
• Science, Research and Technology—conducting research that will help in developing environmental policies and promoting innovative technologies to solve environmental problems
• Regulatory Development—developing requirements such as operating procedures for facilities and standards for emissions of pollutants
• Enforcement—assuring compliance with established regulations
• Environmental Education—developing educational materials, serving as an information clearinghouse, and providing grant assistance to local educational institutions

Many EPA programs are established by legislation enacted by Congress. For example, many of the activities carried out by the Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response originated in the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). Among other laws that form the legal basis for the programs of the EPA are the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, which represents the basic national charter of the EPA, the Clean Air Act (CAA) of 1970, the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) of 1970, the Endangered Species Act (ESA) of 1973, the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) of 1974, the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) of 1976, the Clean Water Act (CWA) of 1977, the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA) of 1986, and the Pollution Prevention Act (PPA) of 1990. It is through such legislation that the EPA obtains authority to develop and enforce regulations. Environmental regulations drafted by the agency are subjected to intense review before being finalized. This process includes approval by the President's Office of Management and Budget and input from the private sector and from other government agencies.

Public concern over the environmental changes with time, and the EPA alters its policy priorities in response. For example, in answer to growing concern regarding environmental impact to children's health, the Office of Chil dren's Health Protection (OCHP) was created in May 1997. On February 14, 2002, President George W. Bush announced the Clear Skies Initiative, which contain the farthest reaching legislative changes to the Clean Air Act since 1990.

Growing public concern about water pollution led to a landmark piece of legislation, the Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1972, amended in 1977 and commonly known as the Clean Water Act. The Clean Water Act gives the EPA the authority to administer pollution control programs and to set water quality standards for contaminants of surface waters. October 18, 2002, marks the thirtieth Anniversary of the enactment of the Clean Water Act. In continuing support of the goals of this Act, Congress has proclaimed 2002 as the "Year of Clean Water."

As part of its mission as an information clearing house, the EPA maintains an excellent web site at <http://www.epa.gov> with countless links to supporting information of all kinds. The web site also includes Spanish translations of many documents, and links to children's activities.

[Teresa C. Donkin ]

RESOURCES

BOOKS

Environmental Management. Washington, DC: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, October 1991.

Keating, B., and D. Russell. "Inside the EPA: Yesterday and Today...Still Hazy After All These Years." E Magazine 3 (August 1992): 30–37.

OTHER

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Laws and Regulations. Clean Water Act. March 26, 2002 [cited July 10, 2002]. <http://www.epa.gov/region5/water/cwa.htm>.

U.S. Environmental Protection Web Site. [cited July 10, 2002]. <http://www.epa.gov>.