Chapter 20 Protecting the Environment

1. Chapter 20 Protecting the Environment

2. Common Law Actions Businesses/people responsible for operations that created dirt, smoke, noxious odors, noise, or toxic substances were sometimes held liable under common law theories of nuisance or negligence.

3. Nuisance • A common law doctrine under which actions against pollution-causing activities may be brought. • An action is permissible only if an individual suffers a harm separate and distinct from that of the general public.

4. Negligence and Strict Liability • Parties may recover damages for injuries sustained as a result of pollution-causing activities of a firm if it can be demonstrated that: • the harm was a foreseeable result of the firm’s failure to exercise reasonable care (negligence). • businesses engaging in ultra hazardous activities are liable for whatever injuries the activities cause, regardless of whether the firms exercise reasonable care.

5. Federal Regulation • The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 imposes environmental responsibilities on all federal agencies and requires for every major federal action the preparation of an environmental impact statement (EIS). • An EIS must analyze the action’s impact on the environment, its adverse effects and possible alternatives, and its irreversible effects on environmental quality.

6. Federal Regulation • The Environmental Protection Agency was created in 1970 to coordinate federal environmental programs; it administers most federal environmental policies and statutes. • Important areas regulated by the federal government include the following: air pollution, water pollution, noise pollution, toxic chemicals, and radiation. • Case 20.1 Public Citizen v. Department of Transportation (2003).

7. Federal Regulation

8. Federal Regulation

9. Air Pollution Regulated under the authority of the Clean Air Act of 1963 and its amendments, particularly those of 1970, 1977, and 1990.

10. Mobile Sources • Regulations governing air pollution from automobiles and other mobile sources specify pollution standards and time schedules for meeting the standards. • Under the 1990 amendments, automobile manufacturers must cut new automobiles’ exhaust emission of nitrogen oxide by 60% and emission of other pollutants by 35%.

11. Stationary Sources • The Clean Air Act authorizes the EPA to establish air-quality standards for stationary sources but recognizes that the primary responsibility for preventing and controlling air pollution rests with state and local governments. • Under the 1990 amendments to the Clean Air Act, 110 of the oldest coal-burning power plants in the US must cut their emissions by 40% by the year 2001 to reduce acid rain. • Case 20.2 Clean Air Markets Group v. Pataki (2002).

12. Hazardous Air Pollutants • There are 189 hazardous air pollutants, including asbestos, benzene, beryllium, cadmium, mercury, and vinyl chloride. • Instead of establishing specific emissions standards for each hazardous air pollutant, the 1990 amendments to the Clean Air Act require industry to use pollution-control equipment that represents the maximum achievable control technology to limit emissions.

13. Violations of the Clean Air Act • For violations of emission limits under the Clean Air Act, the EPA can assess civil penalties of up to $25,000 per day. • Additional fines of up to $5,000 per day can be assessed for other violations, such as failing to maintain the required records. • Those who knowingly violate the act may be subject to criminal penalties, including fines of up to $1 million and imprisonment for up to two years.

14. Water Pollution Regulated by the: • Rivers and Harbors Appropriations Act of 1899, as amended. • the Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1948, as amended by the Clean Water Act of 1972.

15. Navigable Waters In 1972, amendments to the FWPCA established the following goals: • Make water safe for swimming. • Protect fish and wildlife. • Eliminate the discharge of pollutants into the water.

16. Wetlands • Clean Water Act prohibits filling/dredging of wetlands unless a permit is obtained from the Army Corps of Engineers. • “Wetlands”: those areas inundated or saturated by surface or ground water that supports vegetation adapted.

17. Drinking Water • Passed in 1974, this act requires the EPA to set maximum levels for pollutants in public water systems. • The act was amended in 1996 to give the EPA greater flexibility in setting regulatory standard governing drinking water.

18. Ocean Dumping • The Ocean Dumping Act regulates the transportation and dumping of material into ocean waters. • Each violation of any provision or permit may result in a civil penalty of not more than $50,000 or revocation or suspension of the permit. • A knowing violation is a criminal offense that may result in a $50,000 fine, imprisonment for not more than a year, or both. An injunction may also be imposed.

19. Noise Pollution Regulated by the Noise Control Act of 1972.

20. Toxic Chemicals • Pesticides and herbicides, toxic substances, and hazardous waste are regulated under the authority of • Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act of 1947. • Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976. • Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976. • The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980, as amended, regulates the clean-up of hazardous waste-disposal sites.

21. Hazardous Waste Disposal • Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. • Authorizes the EPA to issue regulations for the monitoring, transporting, storage, treatment, and disposal of hazardous substances. • Case 20.3 U.S. v. Elias (2001).

22. Hazardous Waste Disposal • CERCLA (Superfund). • Designed to ensure the clean-up of hazardous waste sites and to assign liability for the costs of the cleanup operations. • Joint and Several Liability for cleanup costs can be assigned to any potentially responsible party (PRP). • Case 20.4 Carson Harbor Village, Ltd. v Unocal Corp (2001).

23. Global Environmental Issues • Cross-Border Pollution. • Global Warming. • What is the Answer? Economic Development?

24. Radiation • The private nuclear industry is regulated under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954. • Low-level radioactive waste generated by private facilities is the responsibility of each state under the Low Level Radioactive Waste Policy Act of 1980. • Under the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, the government is looking for a permanent disposal site for nuclear materials and radioactive waste.

25. State and Local Regulation • Many states regulate the degree to which the environment may be polluted. • City, county, and other local governments control some aspects of the environment.