Environmental Laws

Question 0

Clean Water Act (1972)

Answer 0

Establishes and maintains goals and standards for U.S. water quality and purity. It has been amended several times, most prominently in 1987 to increase controls on toxic pollutants, and in 1990, to more effectively address the hazard of oil spills

Question 1

Clean Air Act (1970)

Answer 1

Sets goals and standards for the quality and purity of air in the United States. By law, it is periodically reviewed. A significant set of amendments in 1990 toughened air quality standards and placed new emphasis on market forces to control air pollution

Question 2

Endangered Species Act (1973)

Answer 2

Is designed to protect and recover endangered and threatened species of fish, wildlife and plants in the United States and beyond. The law works in part by protecting species habitats

Question 3

Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (1938)

Answer 3

Is the nation’s major law regulating contaminants in food, including pesticides. The Food and Drug Administration implements most of this law; the Environmental Protection Agency carries out its pesticide standard setting provisions (with FDA enforcement). See also Food Quality Protection Act

Question 4

Safe Drinking Water Act (1974)

Answer 4

Establishes drinking water standards for tap water safety, and requires rules for groundwater protection from underground injection; amended in 1986 and 1996. The 1996 amendments added a fund to pay for water system upgrades, revised standard: setting requirements, required new standards for common contaminants, and included public “right to know” requirements to inform consumers about their tap water

Question 5

Marine Mammal Protection Act (1972)

Answer 5

Seeks to protect whales, dolphins, sea lions, seals, manatees and other species of marine mammals, many of which remain threatened or endangered. The law requires wildlife agencies to review any activity – for example, the use of underwater explosives or high-intensity active sonar – that has the potential to “harass” or kill these animals in the wild. The law is our nation’s leading instrument for the conservation of these species, and is an international model for such laws

Question 6

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

Answer 6

The “Superfund Act,” designed to ID and clean up abandoned hazardous waste dumpsites
Provides broad federal authority to clean up releases or threatened releases of hazardous substances that may endanger public health or the environment
Was created to protect people, families, communities and others from heavily contaminated toxic waste sites that have been abandoned
Goal: Clean up abandoned hazardous waste site

Question 7

Kyoto Protocol

Answer 7

(1997) International agreement with binding targets for industrialized countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
Goal: Control global warming
Requires actual emissions to be monitored & recorded in log & places more significant burden on developed nations

Question 8

Montreal Protocol

Answer 8

International agreement to reduce production and consumption of ozone-depleting substances
Goal: Phase out ozone-depleting substances

Question 9

Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (1986)

Answer 9

Federal legislation that requires information to be shared about chemical facilities and uses of chemicals
Goal: to encourage and support emergency planning efforts at the state/local levels and to provide the public and local governments with information concerning potential chemical hazards present in their communities

Question 10

Energy Policy Act (1992)

Answer 10

Provides federal support for renewable energy technology and introduced radiation protection standards for Yucca Mountain
Establishes commercial building codes for energy use
Establishes efficiency standards for heating and air-conditioning equipment and lamps

Question 11

Food Quality Protection Act (1996)

Answer 11

Set pesticide limits in food & all active/inactive ingredients must be screened for estrogenic/endocrine effects
Act amended FIFRA and FFDCA by changing way EPA regulates pesticides
Some of the major requirements include stricter safety standards, especially for infants and children, and a complete reassessment of all existing pesticide tolerances

Question 12

Lacey Act of 1900

Answer 12

Prohibits interstate transport of wild animals, dead or alive, without federal permit

Question 13

Ocean Dumping Ban Act of 1988

Answer 13

Bans ocean dumping of sewage sludge and industrial waste

Question 14

National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) 1970

Answer 14

Environmental Assessments (EAs) and Environmental Impact Statements (EISs), which are assessments of the likelihood of impacts from alternative courses of action, must be done before any project affecting federal lands can be started

Question 15

Surface Mining & Reclamation Act (1977)

Answer 15

Requires coal strip mines to reclaim the land

Regulates the environmental effects of coal mining in US

Question 16

Resource Conservation & Recovery Act (1976)

Answer 16

Primary law in the United States governing disposal of solid waste
Controls hazardous waste with a “cradle to the grave” system
Goals: Protect public from harm caused by waste disposal, encourage reduce, reuse, recycle, and clean up spilled/improperly stored wastes

Question 17

Oil Pollution Act (1990)

Answer 17

To prevent further oil spills form occurring in the US, company required to make a plan to prevent spills that may occur (must also have containment and cleanup plan in case of emergency)

Question 18

Toxic Substances Control Act (1976)

Answer 18

Allows EPA screen existing & new chemicals for toxicity
Gives EPA ability to track industrial chemicals currently produced/imported into the US
Screens chemicals and can require reporting/testing of those that may pose hazard

Question 19

Coastal Zone Management Act (1972)

Answer 19

Establishes marine sanctuaries in US to protect habitat of marine animals and plants from pollution and development

Question 20

Atomic Energy Act (1954)

Answer 20

Provides for the development and regulation of the uses of nuclear materials and facilities in the US.

Question 21

Energy Policy and Conservation Act (1975)

Answer 21

Authorizes the president to draw from the petroleum reserve as well as established a permanent home-heating oil reserve in the Northeast. Clarifies when the president can draw from these resources.

Question 22

Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (1947)

Answer 22

Requires that all pesticides are registered and approved by the FDA and creates a pesticide registry

Question 23

Marine Plastic Pollution Research and Control Act (1987)

Answer 23

Regulates the dumping of wastes into oceans and coastal waters

Question 24

Pollution Prevention Act (1990)

Answer 24

Requires facilities to reduce pollution at its source. Reduction can be in volume or toxicity.

Question 25

Nuclear Waste Policy Act (1982)

Answer 25

Established a site to identify for, and construct, an underground repository for spent nuclear reactor fuel and high-level radioactive waste from federal defense programs.

Question 26

Taylor Grazing Act (1934)

Answer 26

A United States federal law that regulates grazing on federal public land. The Secretary of the Interior has the authority to handle all of the regulations, and he became responsible for establishing grazing districts. Before these districts are created there must be a hearing held by the state.

Question 27

Federal Land Policy and Management Act (1976)

Answer 27

Establish a unified, comprehensive, and systematic approach to managing and preserving public lands in a way that protects “the quality of scientific, scenic, historical, ecological, environmental, air and atmospheric, water resource, and archeological values.”

Question 28

Fishery Conservation and Management Act

Answer 28

Known as Magnuson–Stevens Act
promote the U.S. fishing industry’s optimal exploitation of coastal fisheries by “consolidating control over territorial waters” and establishing eight regional councils to manage fish stocks.
has been amended multiple times

Question 29

Homestead Act (1862)

Answer 29

Give free land to people in order to promote exploration of wild land

Question 30

Proposition 65 (1986)

Answer 30

requires businesses to notify Californians about significant amounts of chemicals in the products they purchase, in their homes or workplaces, or that are released into the environment.

Question 31

Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty

Answer 31

A proposed treaty to prohibit all testing of nuclear weapons in all environments.
Rejected by US senate in 1999

Question 32

Non-proliferation treaty

Answer 32

multinational treaty signed in 1968 to control the spread of nuclear weapons and extended in May 1995.

Question 33

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

Answer 33

international agreement for dealing with climate change adopted in 1992