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Environmental Laws Project - Chris Sultan

Terms in this set (45)

Clean Air Act
(CAA; 1970) Regulates emission standards for cars and limits for release of air pollutants
National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA; 1969) Mandates and environmental assessment of all projects involving federal money or federal permits
Environmental Impact Statement
(EIS; 1970) Document required by NEPA for actions "significantly affecting the quality of the human environment"
Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA;1970) An independent federal agency established to coordinate programs aimed at reducing pollution and protecting the environment
Clean Water Act
(CWA; 1972) Maximum amount of water pollutants that can be discharged into waterways; Focus is to make surface waters swimmable and fishable
Endangered Species Act
(ESA; 1973) Promotes protection of endangered plants and animals
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna
(CITES; 1973) Species that can't be commercially traded as live specimens or wildlife products
Safe Drinking Water Act
(SDWA; 1974) Maximum contaminant levels for pollutants in drinking water that have adverse effects on our health
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
(RCRA; 1976) Controls hazardous waste disposal in the US
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act
(Superfund; 1980) Designed to identify and clean up abandoned hazardous waste dump sites
Montreal Protocol
(1989) Banned production of aerosols and initiated the phase out of all CFC's
Kyoto Protocol
(2005) Controlling global warming by setting greenhouse gas emissions targets for developed countries
Soil - Soil Conservation Act
Established the Soil Conservation Service (SCS) to address soil erosion issues and preserve natural resources. This law is administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Soil - Soil Erosion Act
Established U.S. Soil Conservation Service. Mandates the protection of the nation's soil reserves. Deals with soil erosion problems, carries out soil surveys, and does research on soil salinity.
Soil - Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
Management of non-hazardous and hazardous solid waste including landfills and storage tanks. Set minimal standards for all waste disposal facilities and for hazardous wastes.
Air - Clean Air Act
Lessened air pollution by limiting the emissions from factories and automobiles
Air - Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act
Protects communities from the harmful effects of hazardous chemicals. It requires companies to disclose information about toxic substances that they are emitting into water, air, and land sources. This act also mandates that each state establish a State Emergency Response Commission (SERC).
Air - Air Pollution Control Act
First federal legislation regarding air pollution. Identified air pollution to be a problem and made the nation more aware of this hazard.
Protect Specific Organisms - Fish and Wildlife Act
Establishes a comprehensive fish, shellfish, and wildlife resource policy with an emphasis on the commercial fishing industry. This is administered by the Department of the Interior.
Protect Specific Organisms - Fur Seal Act
Prohibits the taking of fur seals on U.S. lands except by indigenous peoples who live in the Pacific Northwest. It is administered by the Department of the Interior.
Protect Specific Organisms - Lacey Act
A conservation law prohibiting the transportation of illegally captured or prohibited animals across state lines. It was the first federal law protecting wildlife, and is still in effect, though it has been revised several times. Today the law is primarily used to prevent the importation or spread of potentially dangerous non-native species
Public Lands - Yellowstone National Park Act
Established in 1872 by Congress, Yellowstone was the United States's first national park
Public Lands - Wilderness Act
Established a national wilderness preservation system and officially defined wilderness
Public Lands - National Trails System Act
Established a national system of recreational, scenic, and historic trails.
Land - Taylor Grazing Act
Regulates grazing on federal public land; gave the Secretary of the Interior authority to establish grazing districts and enforce grazing regulations.
Land - Public Rangelands Improvement Act
Requires US Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management to develop management guidelines for public lands
Land - Forest Reserve Act
First national forest conservation policy, authorized the president to set aside areas of land for national forests.
Ocean - Marine Mammal Protection Act
Established a federal responsibility to conserve marine mammals. This act protected marine mammals from falling below their optimum sustainable population levels.
Ocean - Endangered Species Act
intended to protect endangered wildlife habitats from human encroachment.
Ocean - Coastal Zone Management Act
Establishes marine sanctuaries in US to protect habitat of marine animals and plants form pollution and development
Water Quality - Federal Water Pollution Control Act
Controls discharge of pollutants with rule compliance (need a grant). State CAN adopt more stringent policies than feds require.
Water Quality - Water Quality Act
the federal law passed in 1965 that had goals of eliminating releases of high amounts of toxic substances into water
Water Quality - Water Resources Planning Act
Provided plans to formulate & evaluate water related land resource projects & to maintain a continuing assessment of adequacy of water supplies in US
Mining - Mineral Leasing Act
Permitted the Bureau of Land Management to grant leases for development of deposits of coal, phosphate, etc. and other leasable minerals on public domain lands
Mining - Mining Act
Governed prospecting and mining of minerals on publicly owned lands.
Mining - Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act
Requires coal strip mines to reclaim the land
Solid and Hazardous Waste - Solid Waste Disposal Act
To find better and more efficient ways to dispose of solid waste; promotes shredding and separation of waste and burning of remaining materials to produce stream or generate electricity; promotes recycling.
Solid and Hazardous Waste - Federal Hazardous Substances Act
Hazardous substance is one that my cause injury or illness and potential danger, esp to children. Covers items besides drugs such as cleaners, antifreeze, etc. May only be sold in original containters.
Solid and Hazardous Waste - Toxic Substances Control Act
Allows EPA screen existing & new chemicals for toxicit
Major US Environmental Policy - Pollution Prevention Act
this 1990 law was the first US environmental law to focus on the reduced generation of pollutants at their point of origin.
Major US Environmental Policy - International Environmental Protection Act
Interaction between domestic and foreign environmental forces or between sets of foreign environmental forces
Major US Environmental Policy - National Environmental Policy Act
(1969) Environmental Impact Statements must be done before any project affecting federal lands can be started
Federal Environmental Pesticides Control Act
Required registration of all pesticides in the US
Noise Control Act
Establishes a national policy to promote an environment for all Americans free from noise that jeopardizes their health and welfare. To accomplish this, the act establishes a means for the core establishment of federal noise emissions standards for products distributed in commerce, and provides information to the public respecting the noise emission and noise reduction characteristics of such products.
Federal Aid Highway Act
The act passed by the US Congress in 1956 that planned and funded 90% the construction of the nation's interstate highway system
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