The First Five Years United States Environmental Protection Agency RM« . "L, m • ------- The First Five Years The U S Environmental Protection Agency celebrates its fifth anniversary on December 2, 1975 The decision to create a Federal Environmental Protection Agency. with responsibility for protecting the environment as a single, interrelated system, was one of the major responses to the environmental challenge Today all levels of government have environmental programs Industry now considers environmental safeguards a necessary part of doing business Environmental education is taught in schools Environmental law and environmental engineering are growing specialities In five short years environmental protection has been woven into the fabric of our society It has become an'integral part of the way we think and the way we live There is mounting evidence that the quality of the environment is improving significantly Salmon and trout are returning to many rivers. public beaches are reopening, the persistent smog over our cities is beginning to abate There is still a tremendous job ahead if the Nation is to realize its hopes of a clean environment But these first five years have planted us firmly on the road to that goal Russell E Tram Administrator U S Environmental Protection Agency History may well record that the beginning of the decade of the Seventies marked the turning point in the misuse of our living environment Governments at all levels geared up for an attack on environmental problems Citizens from every walk of life mobilized to enhance the environment both for themselves and for posterity Industries, great and small, began to embrace a new view of corporate responsibility for protecting the environment International bodies began planning in earnest for global pollution control THE UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY was formed in December 1970, by order of the President with the consent of the Congress, as an independent agency by bringing together various Federal pollution control activities that had been scattered among a number of departments and agencies EPA sets standards, determines how much pollution is tolerable, establishes timetables to bring polluters into line with the standards, and enforces environmental laws EPA conducts an extensive environmental research program, provides technical, financial, and managerial help to State, regional and municipal pollution control agencies and allocates funds for constructing sewage treatment facilities During THE FIRST FIVE YEARS of the integrated, coordinated Federal attack on pollution. Congress enacted increasingly stringent laws, and put more money into laws These laws, combined with strict enforcement by EPA have led to a significant improvement in environmental quality This improvement could not have been achieved without the deep and continuing support of the public In tvery walk of life. Americans have shown that they care about the environment EPA encourages active citizen participation in the planning and execution of its environmental programs It encourages citizen groups to make a case for the environment at public hearings on new laws and regulations. Federal. State or local Indeed, citizen care, concern and participation are central to improvement in the quality of life t As long as individual Americans understand that air and water are public gifts, not private property, and are willing to work to protect and preserve their natural environmental heritage, the cause will persevere For the environment belongs to everybody, and it is everybody's business ------- Things Are Looking Up More than 97 percent of all municipalities and industries discharging into our lakes and streams are either complying with pollution control standards or are on definite water clean-up schedules backed by strong penalties for violations Of 20.000 major stationary sources of air pollution (industries, powerplants, municipal incinerators, etc ) 16.190. or 84 percent, are complying with air pollution regulations or are meeting an abatement schedule. The amount of hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide in the exhausts of 1976 automobiles is 85 percent less than the pre-1968 uncontrolled cars and with gasoline mileage as good as the uncontrolled cars. A decade ago Lake Erie was waiting at death's door. Florida's Escambia Bay wasn't far behind- Today, thanks to Federal. State and local efforts. fish life not only survives but is thriving. Sulfur dioxide concentrations have been reduced by roughly 25 percent nationally since 1970 This improvement is particularly evident in major metropolitan areas Salmon are being caught in Michigan's Grand River more than 30 miles upstream from Lake Michigan, an area where only sucker and carp survived before Trout, perch, coho and chinook salmon abound in the lake Demonstration projects are underway in several cities to test the feasibility of converting trash to fuel for heating and electric power The national average for particulate matter (dust, smoke, soot) dropped 14 percent between 1970-71 and this trend continued into 1974. EPA has registered 1.200 compounds for pesticide use It has banned, as hazardous to human health, only three — DDT, aldrin and dieldrin — and is in the process of banning two others — chlordane and heptachlor The oil slicks, scum and chemical odors which plagued the Kanawha River near Charleston, West Virginia, are gone In areas where there is sufficient data to define a trend, concentrations of photochemical oxidants (smog) have significantly diminished; the Los Angeles and San Francisco areas are cases in point. For the first time in 100 years Atlantic salmon appear to be returning to the Connecticut River. By 1980 at least 25 major American cities will be involved in some form of resource recovery from municipal trash. Lake County beaches near Chicago. closed by pollution in 1969. were reopened in the summer of 1975 Noise standards have been set for big trucks and standards are being developed for airports, locomotives and other noise sources From its establishment through the end of 1974 EPA has brought more than 6,200 enforcement actions against violators of air, water and pesticide pollution laws. Fines and penalties imposed totalled more than $9 million. Denver's South Platte River is no longer the polluted, trash strewn eyesore it was a decade ago. Nationwide, the number of measurements of excessive carbon monoxide in community air has dropped 50 percent And at the old Grist Mill on Hop Brook in Marlborough, Massachusetts, the miller can see through the water to the bottom of his wheel for the first time in his 23 years at the site ------- A Look Ahead These are just a few examples of the tangible returns on the Nation's investment in pollution abatement, and the number of returns is growing daily. More and more Americans will feel, smell, see, hear and experience environmental improvement But the Nation has only just begun the task. It has taken decades to reach the level of pollution we face today, and it will take many years to restore the environment to an acceptable level of quality. In many ways the road will be more difficult as more is learned about the complex reactions and interactions of pollutants and their impact on public health and welfare What can be expected over the next few years, as the result of present efforts, is that most of the Nation's waters will be cleaned up for recreation, and that the air in most areas will be better than the national standards EPA has established Specifically, these are the developments we can anticipate: • Stronger bonds of cooperation among Federal. State and local governments in jointly attacking and solving environmental problems • Achievement of the goal written into the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972. that water wherever possible shall be clean enough by 1983 for swimming and other recreational uses, and clean enough for the protection and propagation of fish, shellfish and wildlife. • Attainment of the national ambient air quality standards in many air quality control regions that now fall short of these goals • A more pronounced trend away from environmental clean-up to prevention of environmental degradation. Already industry is cooperating by producing cleaner- running and smaller cars, less wasteful of fuel Industry is also making process changes in manufacturing that conserve more energy and eliminate waste, rather than relying solely on end-of-the- pipe cleanup devices There will be more recycling of materials and fewer throwaway products • Finally, the Nation can expect a continuation of the strong public participation that has marked environmental improvement in the past half-decade of EPA's history. All the opinion polls confirm that the public's support of environmenta1 programs remains very high, despite the fuel and economic difficulties of recent times. The Agency's concern now is to encourage interested citizens to continue to rally behind the great laws enacted over the past five years, and to make sure these laws achieve their goals. Environmental control came into being as a grass-roots movement That is where its strength still lies. With the support and cooperation of private citizens who care about the quality of their own lives and those of their children and grandchildren, EPA can and will fulfill its mission of enhancing and protecting the Nation s environment. GPO 896-822 ------- j?rf>.r ••f*fettiv3» r " K ••• *• ------- OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS (A-107) U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY WASHINGTON. D.C. 20460 OFFICIAL BUSINESS PENALTY FOR PRIVATE USE $300 POSTAGE AND FEES PAID ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY EPA-335 THIRD CLASS BULK RATE ------- |