Advances In Environmental Law
The environmental protection initiatives started around 1970s and over the years, the issues that the laws address have changed with time. The initial emphasis was primarily on pollution of air and water.
These were very obvious and could be measured and controlled easily. However, as time passed by, more and more environmental problems have been envisioned in the long term which is not very clearly addressed. Moreover, many of them have been caught in a web of controversy.Some of the issues and the laws associated with it are listed below.
Acid Deposition
This occurred in the form of dry deposition or acid rain and was caused due to the air pollution by two chemicals -- nitrogen dioxide and sulfur. This primarily occurred due to the burning of coal and the emission from motor vehicles. The Clean Air Act was passed to address this problem and the coal power plants were forced to use smoke stacks that were taller which could release these chemicals farther in the air.
Ozone Depletion
The ozone concentration in the atmosphere depleted due to the use of Chlorofluorocarbons, popularly called CFCs. The FDA and EPA banned the use of these harmful components. During the 1980s, three international agreements were put in place. With the amendment of Clean Air Act, the production of the CFCs was phased out and the products were recycled to be free of this harmful chemical.
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
This act was established in 1976 to govern the generation, deposition and disposal of harmful wastes.
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
The TSCA was passed to research on the possible harms that could be caused by some hazardous substances in the environment.
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Advances In Environmental Law
