March 1992
          Strategic Direction
             for the
      U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
            200/F-92/001
"EPA...
      Preserving Our
      Future Today"
                     Prinlod On Recycled Paper


            •tril.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: l»»2 - 650-225

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 MISSION
The people who work at the Environmental Protection Agency are
dedicated  to  improving  and  preserving   the  quality  of the
environment, both national and global. We work to protect human
health and the productivity of natural resources on which all human
activity  depends. Highly skilled and  culturally diverse, we are
committed to using quality management processes that encourage
teamwork and promote innovative  and  effective  solutions  to
environmental problems. In  particular,  we are committed  to
ensuring that:


   H  Federal environmental  laws   are  Implemented and
       enforced effectively.


   g|  U.S.  policy,  both foreign  and  domestic,  fosters the
       Integration of economic development and environmental
       protection so that economic growth can be sustained
       over the long term.


   p|  Public   and  private   decisions  affecting   energy,
       transportation, agriculture,  industry, International trade,
       and natural resources fully integrate considerations of
       environmental quality.


   £3  National efforts to reduce environmental risk are based
       on   the   best   available   scientific   Information
       communicated clearly to the public.


   13  Everyone  in our society  recognizes the  value  of
       preventing pollution before  it is created.


   UP  People have the Information and incentives they need to
       make environmentally responsible choices in their dally
       lives.
       Schools   and   community   institutions   promote
       environmental stewardship as a national ethic.

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   Effectively cafrylflS 6ut 6Ur ^tern's and policies.
We are committed to:
    —  Meeting Federal  statutory  obligations  while  retaining sufficient
        flexibility to address priority risks in different parts of'the country;

    —  Maintaining a vigorous  and credible enforcement  program, with
        emphasis on multi-media and criminal violations;
                                               initiatives,   such  as
Promoting  cross-media  and  interstate
multi-media permitting and enforcement;

Enabling  state and local governments, as partners, to implement
and enforce environmental programs;

Conveying clear, accurate, and timely information to the public, and
incorporating information from the public in EPA activities; and

Involving  other government  agencies, public interest groups, the
regulated community, and the general public in  achieving national
and global environmental goals.
We are committed to:
    —  Maintaining and  strengthening  U.S.  leadership to protect  and
        improve the global commons;

    —  Working with other government agencies and nations,  the private
        sector,  and  public  interest  groups  to  identify  and  solve
        transboundary pollution problems;

    —  Ensuring  that environmental  concerns  are integrated  into U.S.
        foreign policy, including  trade, economic development, and other
        policies; and

    —  Providing  technical  assistance,  new technology,  and  scientific
        expertise Jo other nations.
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GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
EPA's unique role in protecting the environment includes:
   Providing  leadership  In the nation's  environmental science,
   research, and assessment efforts.
We are committed to:
    — Gathering and analyzing the data needed to evaluate environmental
       risks  and trends,  measure environmental results, and inform  the
       choices of institutions and individuals throughout society;

    — Promoting  and supporting innovative technological  solutions  to
       environmental problems;

    — Encouraging   and  conducting   research  that  improves   our
       understanding of health and ecological risks;

    — Providing objective, reliable, and  understandable  information that
       helps build trust in EPA's judgment and actions; and

    — Sharing  research  findings and innovative technologies with other
       nations.
   Making sound -ftgulatoly.dfiti pfogteinldecisions,
We are committed to:
    —  Implementing current environmental laws effectively, and helping to
        improve those laws as they are reauthorized in the future;

    —  Evaluating  health  and  ecological   risks,  and  targeting   our
        environmental  protection resources   at the  problems  and  the
        geographical areas posing the greatest risks;

    —  Promoting public  and private actions that prevent pollution at the
        source before it becomes a problem;

    —  Protecting the environment as a whole by developing programs that
        control the movement of pollutants across environmental media;

    —  Devising innovative, integrated solutions to environmental problems,
        especially when they are concentrated in specific geographic areas
        or industries;

    —  Improving the  economic analyses that promote  efficiency and
        cost-effectiveness in our decisions;

    —  Applying  market mechanisms  and economic incentives when they
        are appropriate and effective; and

    —  Working with other government agencies to ensure they consider
        the environmental implications of their actions.

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