United States Environmental Protection Agency

"EPA" and "Environmental Protection Agency" redirect here. For other uses, seeEPA (disambiguation).

TheEnvironmental Protection Agency(EPA) is anindependent agency of the United States governmenttasked withenvironmental protectionmatters.PresidentRichard Nixonproposed the establishment of EPA on July 9, 1970; it began operation on December 2, 1970, after Nixon signed anexecutive order.Theorder establishing the EPAwas ratified by committee hearings in the House and Senate.

Environmental Protection Agency

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Agency overview
Formed	December 2, 1970(1970-12-02)
Jurisdiction	United States federal government
Headquarters	William Jefferson Clinton Federal Building Washington, D.C.,U.S. 38.8939°N 77.0289°W/38.8939; -77.0289
Employees	14,581
Annual budget	$9,559,485,000
Agency executives	Michael S. Regan,Administrator Janet McCabe,Deputy Administrator
Website	epa.gov

The agency is led by itsadministrator,who is appointed by thepresidentand approved by theSenate.The current administrator isMichael S. Regan.The EPA is not aCabinetdepartment, but the administrator is normally givencabinet rank.The EPA has its headquarters inWashington, D.C..There are regional offices for each of the agency's ten regions, as well as 27 laboratories around the country.

The agency conductsenvironmental assessment,research, and education. It has the responsibility of maintaining and enforcing national standards under a variety ofenvironmental laws,in consultation with state, tribal, and local governments. EPA enforcement powers include fines,sanctions,and other measures.

It delegates some permitting, monitoring, and enforcement responsibility toU.S. statesand thefederally recognized tribes.The agency also works with industries and all levels of government in a wide variety of voluntary pollution prevention programs and energy conservation efforts.

The agency's budgeted employee level in 2023 is 16,204.1full-time equivalent(FTE).More than half of EPA's employees are engineers, scientists, and environmental protection specialists; other employees include legal, public affairs, financial, and information technologists.

History

Background

Stacks emitting smoke from burning discarded automobile batteries, photo taken in Houston in 1972 byMarc St. Gil,official photographer of recently founded EPA

Same smokestacks in 1975 after the plant was closed in a push for greater environmental protection

Beginning in the late 1950s and through the 1960s,Congressreacted to increasing public concern about the impact that human activity could have on the environment.SenatorJames E. Murrayintroduced a bill, the Resources and Conservation Act (RCA) of 1959, in the86th Congress.The bill would have established a Council on Environmental Quality in theExecutive Office of the President,declared a national environmental policy, and required the preparation of an annual environmental report. The conservation movement was weak at the time and the bill did not pass Congress, but some of its ideas were used in the NEPA law of 1969 discussed below.

The 1962 publication ofSilent Spring,a best-selling book byRachel Carson,alerted the public about the detrimental effects on animals and humans of the indiscriminate use ofpesticidechemicals.

In the years following, Congress discussed possible solutions. In 1968, a joint House–Senate colloquium was convened by the chairmen of the Senate Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs, SenatorHenry M. Jackson,and the House Committee on Science and Astronautics, RepresentativeGeorge P. Miller,to discuss the need for and means of implementing a national environmental policy.

Finallythe Nixon administrationmade the environment a priority in 1969-1971 and set up a series of major agencies headed by the new EPA. TheNational Environmental Policy Act of 1969(NEPA)President Nixon signed NEPA into law on January 1, 1970. The law created theCouncil on Environmental Quality(CEQ) in the Executive Office of the President.NEPA required that a detailed statement of environmental impacts be prepared for all major federal actions significantly affecting the environment. The "detailed statement" would ultimately be referred to as anenvironmental impact statement(EIS).

Establishment

Ruckelshaus sworn in as first EPA Administrator

On July 9, 1970, Nixon proposed anexecutive reorganizationthat consolidated many environmental responsibilities of the federal government under one agency, a new Environmental Protection Agency.This proposal included mergingpollution controlprograms from a number of departments, such as the combination of pesticide programs from theUnited States Department of Agricultureand theUnited States Department of the Interior.After conducting hearings during that summer, the House and Senate approved the proposal. The EPA was created 90 days before it had to operate,and officially opened its doors on December 2, 1970. The agency's first administrator,William Ruckelshaus,took the oath of office on December 4, 1970.

EPA's primary predecessor was the formerEnvironmental Health Divisionsof theU.S. Public Health Service(PHS), and its creation caused one ofa series of reorganizations of PHSthat occurred during 1966–1973. From PHS, EPA absorbed the entire National Air Pollution Control Administration, as well as the Environmental Control Administration's Bureau of Solid Waste Management, Bureau of Water Hygiene, and part of its Bureau of Radiological Health. It also absorbed the Federal Water Quality Administration, which had previously been transferred from PHS to the Department of the Interior in 1966. A few functions from other agencies were also incorporated into EPA: the formerly independent Federal Radiation Council was merged into it; pesticides programs were transferred from the Department of the Interior,Food and Drug Administration,andAgricultural Research Service;and some functions were transferred from theCouncil on Environmental QualityandAtomic Energy Commission.

Upon its creation, EPA inherited 84 sites spread across 26 states, of which 42 sites were laboratories. The EPA consolidated these laboratories into 22 sites.

1970s

In its first year, the EPA had a budget of $1.4 billion and 5,800 employees.At its start, the EPA was primarily a technical assistance agency that set goals and standards. Soon, new acts and amendments passed by Congress gave the agency its regulatory authority.A major expansion of theClean Air Actwas approved in December 1970.

EPA staff recall that in the early days there was "an enormous sense of purpose and excitement" and the expectation that "there was this agency which was going to do something about a problem that clearly was on the minds of a lot of people in this country," leading to tens of thousands of resumes from those eager to participate in the mighty effort to clean up America's environment.

When EPA first began operation, members of the private sector felt strongly that the environmental protection movement was a passing fad. Ruckelshaus stated that he felt pressure to show a public which was deeply skeptical about government's effectiveness, that EPA could respond effectively to widespread concerns about pollution.

The burningCuyahoga Riverin Cleveland, Ohio, in 1969 led to a national outcry and criminal charges against major steel companies. The US Justice Department in late 1970 began pollution control litigation in cooperation with the new EPA. Congress enacted the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972, better known as theClean Water Act(CWA).The CWA established a national framework for addressing water quality, including mandatory pollution control standards, to be implemented by the agency in partnership with the states.Congress amended theFederal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act(FIFRA) in 1972, requiring EPA to measure every pesticide's risks against its potential benefits.

In 1973 President Nixon appointedRussell E. Train,to be the next EPA Administrator.In 1974 Congress passed theSafe Drinking Water Act,requiring EPA to develop mandatory federal standards for allpublic water systems,which serve 90% of the US population. The law required EPA to enforce the standards with the cooperation of state agencies.

In October 1976, Congress passed theToxic Substances Control Act(TSCA) which, like FIFRA, related to the manufacture, labeling and usage of commercial products rather than pollution.This act gave the EPA the authority to gather information on chemicals and require producers to test them, gave it the ability to regulate chemical production and use (with specific mention ofPCBs), and required the agency to create the National Inventory listing of chemicals.

Congress also enacted theResource Conservation and Recovery Act(RCRA) in 1976, significantly amending theSolid Waste Disposal Act of 1965.It tasked the EPA with setting national goals for waste disposal, conserving energy and natural resources, reducing waste, and ensuring environmentally sound management of waste. Accordingly, the agency developedregulationsforsolidandhazardous wastethat were to be implemented in collaboration with states.

PresidentJimmy CarterappointedDouglas M. Costleas EPA administrator in 1977.To manage the agency's expanding legal mandates and workload, by the end of 1979 the budget grew to $5.4 billion and the workforce size increased to 13,000.

1980s

In 1980, following the discovery of many abandoned or mismanaged hazardous waste sites such asLove Canal,Congress passed theComprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act,nicknamed "Superfund." The new law authorized EPA to cast a wider net for parties responsible for sites contaminated by previous hazardous waste disposal and established a funding mechanism for assessment and cleanup.

In a dramatic move to the right, PresidentRonald Reaganin 1981 appointedAnne Gorsuchas EPA administrator.Gorsuch based her administration of EPA on theNew Federalismapproach of downsizing federal agencies by delegating their functions and services to the individual states.She believed that EPA was over-regulating business and that the agency was too large and not cost-effective. During her 22 months as agency head, she cut the budget of the EPA by 22%, reduced the number of cases filed against polluters, relaxed Clean Air Act regulations, and facilitated the spraying of restricted-use pesticides. She cut the total number of agency employees, and hired staff from the industries they were supposed to be regulating.Environmentalistscontended that her policies were designed to placate polluters, and accused her of trying to dismantle the agency.

Assistant AdministratorRita Lavellewas fired by Reagan in February 1983 because of her mismanagement of theSuperfundprogram.Gorsuch had increasing confrontations with Congress over Superfund and other programs, including her refusal to submit subpoenaed documents. Gorsuch was cited forcontempt of Congressand the White House directed EPA to submit the documents to Congress. Gorsuch and most of her senior staff resigned in March 1983.Reagan then appointed William Ruckelshaus as EPA Administrator for a second term. As a condition for accepting his appointment, Ruckleshaus obtained autonomy from the White House in appointing his senior management team. He then appointed experienced competent professionals to the top management positions, and worked to restore public confidence in the agency.

Lee M. Thomassucceeded Ruckelshaus as administrator in 1985.In 1986 Congress passed theEmergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act,which authorized the EPA to gather data on toxic chemicals and share this information with the public.EPA also researched the implications of stratospheric ozone depletion. Under Administrator Thomas, EPA joined with several international organizations to perform arisk assessmentof stratospheric ozone, which helped provide motivation for the Montreal Protocol, which was agreed to in August 1987.

In 1988, during his first presidential campaign,George H. W. Bushwas vocal about environmental issues. Following his election victory, he appointedWilliam K. Reilly,an environmentalist, as EPA Administrator in 1989.Under Reilly's leadership, the EPA implemented voluntary programs and initiated the development of a "cluster rule" for multimedia regulation of the pulp and paper industry.At the time, there was increasing awareness that some environmental issues were regional or localized in nature, and were more appropriately addressed with sub-national approaches and solutions. This understanding was reflected in the 1990 amendments to theClean Air Actand in new approaches by the agency, such as a greater emphasis onwatershed-based approaches in Clean Water Act programs.

1990s

In 1992 EPA and the Department of Energy launched theEnergy Starprogram, a voluntary program that fosters energy efficiency.

Carol Brownerwas appointed EPA administrator by PresidentBill Clintonand served from 1993 to 2001.Major projects during Browner's term included:

• Initiation of theBrownfieldspilot program in 1995
• Initial hazardous air pollution standards forpetroleum refineriesin 1995
• Initiallead paintabatement regulations under TSCA in 1996
• Update of theNational Ambient Air Quality Standardsforparticulate matterandozonein 1997.

Since the passage of the Superfund law in 1980, anexcise taxhad been levied on the chemical and petroleum industries, to support the cleanup trust fund. Congressional authorization of the tax was due to expire in 1995. Although Browner and theClinton Administrationsupported continuation of the tax, Congress declined to reauthorize it. Subsequently, the Superfund program has been supported only by annual appropriations, greatly reducing the number of waste sites that are remediated in a given year.(In 2021 Congress reauthorized an excise tax on chemical manufacturers.)

Major legislative updates during the Clinton Administration were theFood Quality Protection Actand the 1996 amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act.

2000s

PresidentGeorge W. BushappointedChristine Todd Whitmanas EPA administrator in 2001. Whitman was succeeded byMike Leavittin 2003 andStephen L. Johnsonin 2005.

In March 2005 nine states (California, New York, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Maine, Connecticut, New Mexico and Vermont) sued the EPA. The EPA'sinspector generalhad determined that the EPA's regulation ofmercuryemissions did not follow the Clean Air Act, and that the regulations were influenced by top political appointees.The EPA had suppressed a study it commissioned byHarvard Universitywhich contradicted its position on mercury controls.The suit alleged that the EPA's rule exempting coal-fired power plants from "maximum available control technology" was illegal, and additionally charged that the EPA's system ofcap-and-tradeto lower average mercury levels would allow power plants to forego reducing mercury emissions, which they objected would lead to dangerous local hotspots of mercury contamination even if average levels declined.Several states also began to enact their own mercury emission regulations. Illinois's proposed rule would have reduced mercury emissions from power plants by an average of 90% by 2009.In 2008—by which point a total of fourteen states had joined the suit—the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled that the EPA regulations violated the Clean Air Act.In response, EPA announced plans to propose such standards to replace the vacated Clean Air Mercury Rule, and did so on March 16, 2011.

In July 2005 an EPA report showing that auto companies were using loopholes to produce less fuel-efficient cars was delayed. The report was supposed to be released the day before a controversial energy bill was passed and would have provided backup for those opposed to it, but the EPA delayed its release at the last minute.

EPA initiated its voluntaryWaterSenseprogram in 2006 to encouragewater efficiencythrough the use of a special label on consumer products.

In 2007 the state of California sued the EPA for its refusal to allow California and 16 other states to raise fuel economy standards for new cars.EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson claimed that the EPA was working on its own standards, but the move has been widely considered an attempt to shield the auto industry from environmental regulation by setting lower standards at the federal level, which would then preempt state laws.California governorArnold Schwarzenegger,along with governors from 13 other states, stated that the EPA's actions ignored federal law, and that existing California standards (adopted by many states in addition to California) were almost twice as effective as the proposed federal standards.It was reported that Johnson ignored his own staff in making this decision.

In 2007 it was reported that EPA research was suppressed by career managers.Supervisors at EPA's National Center for Environmental Assessment required several paragraphs to be deleted from a peer-reviewed journal article about EPA'sintegrated risk information system,which led two co-authors to have their names removed from the publication, and the corresponding author, Ching-Hung Hsu, to leave EPA "because of the draconian restrictions placed on publishing".The 2007 report stated that EPA subjected employees who author scientific papers toprior restraint,even if those papers are written on personal time.

In December 2007 EPA administrator Johnson approved a draft of a document that declared that climate change imperiled the public welfare—a decision that would trigger the first national mandatory global-warming regulations. Associate Deputy Administrator Jason Burnett e-mailed the draft to the White House. White House aides—who had long resisted mandatory regulations as a way to address climate change—knew the gist of what Johnson's finding would be, Burnett said. They also knew that once they opened the attachment, it would become a public record, making it controversial and difficult to rescind. So they did not open it; rather, they called Johnson and asked him to take back the draft. Johnson rescinded the draft; in July 2008, he issued a new version which did not state thatglobal warmingwas danger to public welfare. Burnett resigned in protest.

Further information:Regulation of greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act

In April 2008, theUnion of Concerned Scientistssaid that more than half of the nearly 1,600 EPA staff scientists who responded online to a detailed questionnaire reported they had experienced incidents of political interference in their work. The survey included chemists, toxicologists, engineers, geologists and experts in other fields of science. About 40% of the scientists reported that the interference had been more prevalent in the last five years than in previous years.

PresidentBarack ObamaappointedLisa P. Jacksonas EPA administrator in 2009.

2010s

In 2010 it was reported that a $3 million mapping study onsea level risewas suppressed by EPA management during both the Bush and Obama administrations, and managers changed a key interagency report to reflect the removal of the maps.

Between 2011 and 2012, some EPA employees reported difficulty in conducting and reporting the results of studies onhydraulic fracturingdue to industry and governmental pressure, and were concerned about the censorship ofenvironmental reports.

President Obama appointedGina McCarthyas EPA administrator in 2013.

In 2014, the EPA published its "Tier 3" standards for cars, trucks and other motor vehicles, which tightened air pollution emission requirements and lowered the sulfur content in gasoline.

In 2015, the EPA discoveredextensive violationsbyVolkswagen Groupin its manufacture ofVolkswagenandAudidiesel engine cars, for the 2009 through 2016 model years. Following notice of violations and potential criminal sanctions, Volkswagen later agreed to a legal settlement and paid billions of US dollars in criminal penalties, and was required to initiate a vehicle buyback program and modify the engines of the vehicles to reduce illegal air emissions.

In August 2015, the EPA finalized theClean Power Planto regulate emissions from power plants, projecting a 15-year cut of 32%, or 789 million metric tons of carbon dioxide.In 2019 it was voided and replaced by the Affordable Clean Energy rule under the Trump administration,and in 2022 its constitutionality was ruled out by the Supreme Court.

In August 2015, the2015 Gold King Mine waste water spilloccurred when EPA contractors examined the level of pollutants such asleadandarsenicin aColoradomine,and accidentally released over three million gallons of waste water into Cement Creek and theAnimas River. In 2015, theInternational Agency for Research on Cancer(IARC), a branch of theWorld Health Organization,cited research linkingglyphosate,an ingredient of the weed killer Roundup manufactured by the chemical companyMonsanto,tonon-Hodgkin's lymphoma.In March 2017, the presiding judge in a litigation brought about by people who claim to have developed glyphosate-related non-Hodgkin's lymphoma opened Monsanto emails and other documents related to the case, including email exchanges between the company and federal regulators. According toThe New York Times,the "records suggested that Monsanto had ghostwritten research that was later attributed to academics and indicated that a senior official at the Environmental Protection Agency had worked to quash a review of Roundup's main ingredient, glyphosate, that was to have been conducted by theUnited States Department of Health and Human Services."The records show that Monsanto was able to prepare" a public relations assault "on the finding after they were alerted to the determination byJess Rowland,the head of the EPA's cancer assessment review committee at that time, months in advance. Emails also showed that Rowland "had promised to beat back an effort by the Department of Health and Human Services to conduct its own review."

On February 17, 2017, PresidentDonald TrumpappointedScott Pruittas EPA administrator.The Democratic Party saw the appointment as a controversial move, as Pruitt had spent most of his career challenging environmental regulations and policies. He did not have previous experience in the environmental protection field and had received financial support from the fossil fuel industry.In 2017, theTrump administrationproposed a 31% cut to the EPA's budget to $5.7 billion from $8.1 billion and to eliminate a quarter of the agency jobs.However, this cut was not approved by Congress. Pruitt resigned from the position on July 5, 2018, citing "unrelenting attacks" due to ongoing ethics controversies.

President Trump appointedAndrew R. Wheeleras EPA Administrator in 2019.

On July 17, 2019, EPA management prohibited the agency's Scientific Integrity Official,Francesca Grifo,from testifying at a House committee hearing. EPA offered to send a different representative in place of Grifo and accused the committee of "dictating to the agency who they believe was qualified to speak." The hearing was to discuss the importance of allowing federal scientists and other employees to speak freely when and to whom they want to about their research without having to worry about any political consequences.

In September 2019 air pollution standards in California were once again under attack, as the Trump administration attempted to revoke a waiver issued to the state which allowed more stringent standards for auto and truck emissions than the federal standards.

2020s

PresidentJoe BidenappointedMichael S. Reganto be administrator in 2021. Regan began serving on March 11, 2021.

In October 2021 EPA announced its "PFAS Strategic Roadmap."PFASsareorganofluorinechemical compoundsreferred to as "forever chemicals".The roadmap is a" whole-of-EPA "strategy and the agency will consider the fulllife cycleof PFAS, including preventing PFAS from entering the environment, holding polluters accountable, and remediation of contaminated sites. It also will include drinking water monitoring and risk assessment forPFOAandPFOSinbiosolids(processedsewage sludgeused as fertilizer).

In December 2021 EPA issued newgreenhouse gasstandards for passenger cars and light trucks. The standards, which will reduce climate pollution and improve public health, became effective for the 2023 vehicle model year.

In March 2022 theBiden administrationallowed California to again set stricter auto emissions standards.

In August 2022 the EPA was allotted a listed ~$53.216 billion in funding pursuant to theInflation Reduction Act(IRA). The EPA listed 24 total initiatives, the most notable among them beinggreenhouse gasreduction and monitoring, a superfund petroleum tax, replacing current heavy-duty vehicles withzero-emission vehicles,and a methane incentive program.

On February 3, 2023, more than 100 train cars were derailed inEast Palestine,and around half of those cars containing chemicals likebutyl acrylate,vinyl chloride,andethylhexyl acrylate.Subsequently, the chemicals combusted into a flame being seen from miles around and the fumes filled the air with residents reporting animals falling ill and a burning sensation in their eyes and nose. The EPA is monitoring the situation and experts recommend that local residents take part in the EPA's at-home air screening.

On April 12, 2023, EPA proposed new federal vehicletailpipe emissions standardsthat would accelerate the transition toelectric vehicles(EVs). The standards would require at least two-thirds of all new cars sold in the United States to be zero-emissions vehicles by 2032. The rules seek to reduce air pollution and climate change. The EPA sought public comment by July 25, 2023.If the rules were approved it would have a significant impact on the transportation sector and public health.In March 2024, EPA finalized the new rules and projected they would cut emissions by 7 billion metric tons, or 56% of 2026 levels, by 2032.

In April 2024, EPA finalized new standards for power plant carbon emissions, projecting cuts of 65,000 tons by 2028 and 1.38 billion tons by 2047.The agency also issued final drinking water standards for six PFAS compounds.

Organization

Headquarters of the EPA at theWilliam Jefferson Clinton Federal Building

The EPA is led by the administrator, appointed following nomination by the president and approval from Congress.

Offices

• Office of the Administrator (OA). As of October 2020,the office consisted of 12 divisions:
  • Office of Administrative and Executive Services
  • Office of Children's Health Protection
    • Children's Health Protection Advisory Committee
  • Office of Civil Rights
  • Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Relations
  • Office of Continuous Improvement
  • Office of the Executive Secretariat
  • Office of Homeland Security
  • Office of Policy
  • Office of Public Affairs
  • Office of Public Engagement and Environmental Education
  • Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization
  • Science Advisory Board
• Office of Air and Radiation (OAR)
• Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP)
• Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO)
• Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights
• Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance(OECA)
• Office of General Counsel (OGC)
• Office ofInspector General(OIG)
• Office of International and Tribal Affairs (OITA)
• Office of Mission Support (OMS)
  • Office of Resources and Business Operations (ORBO)
  • Environmental Appeals Board
  • Office of Federal Sustainability
  • Office of Administrative Law Judges
  • Office of Acquisition Solutions (OAS)
  • Office of Administration (OA)
  • Office of Human Resources (OHR)
  • Office of Grants and Debarment (OGD)
  • Office of Customer Advocacy, Policy and Portfolio Management (OCAPPM)
  • Office of Digital Services and Technical Architecture (ODSTA)
  • Office of Information Management (OIM)Office of Information Security and Privacy (OISP)
  • Office of Enterprise Information Programs (OEIP)
  • Office of IT Operations (OITO)

TheAndrew W. Breidenbach Environmental Research CenterinCincinnatiis EPA's second-largest R&D center.

• Office of Research and Development (ORD), which as of November 2021,consisted of:
  • Immediate Office of the Assistant Administrator
  • Office of Science Advisor, Policy, and Engagement (OSAPE)
  • Office of Science Information Management (OSIM)
  • Office of Resource Management
  • Center for Computational Toxicology and Exposure (CCTE)
  • Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling(CEMM)
  • Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment (CPHEA)
  • Center for Environmental Solutions and Emergency Response (CESER)
• Office of Land and Emergency Management (OLEM), which as of March 2017,consisted of:
  • Office of Superfund Remediation and Technology Innovation
  • Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery
  • Office of Underground Storage Tanks
  • Office of Brownfields and Land Revitalization
  • Office of Emergency Management
  • Federal Facilities Restoration and Reuse Office
• Office of Water (OW)which, as of March 2017,consisted of:
  • Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water (OGWDW)
  • Office of Science and Technology (OST)
  • Office of Wastewater Management (OWM)
  • Office of Wetlands, Oceans and Watersheds (OWOW)

Regions

The administrative regions of the United States Environmental Protection Agency

Creating 10 EPA regions was an initiative that came from President Richard Nixon.SeeStandard Federal Regions. Each EPA regional office is responsible within its states for implementing the agency's programs, except those programs that have been specifically delegated to states.

• Region 1: responsible within the states ofConnecticut,Maine,Massachusetts,New Hampshire,Rhode Island,andVermont(New England).
• Region 2: responsible within the states ofNew JerseyandNew York.It is also responsible for the US territories ofPuerto Rico,and theU.S. Virgin Islands.
• Region 3: responsible within the states ofDelaware,Maryland,Pennsylvania,Virginia,West Virginia,and theDistrict of Columbia.
• Region 4: responsible within the states ofAlabama,Florida,Georgia,Kentucky,Mississippi,North Carolina,South Carolina,andTennessee.
• Region 5: responsible within the states ofIllinois,Indiana,Michigan,Minnesota,Ohio,andWisconsin.
• Region 6: responsible within the states ofArkansas,Louisiana,New Mexico,Oklahoma,andTexas.
• Region 7: responsible within the states ofIowa,Kansas,Missouri,andNebraska.
• Region 8: responsible within the states ofColorado,Montana,North Dakota,South Dakota,Utah,andWyoming.
• Region 9: responsible within the states ofArizona,California,Hawaii,Nevada,the territories ofGuamandAmerican Samoa,and theNavajo Nation.
• Region 10: responsible within the states ofAlaska,Idaho,Oregon,andWashington.

Each regional office also implements programs onIndian Tribal lands,except those programs delegated to tribal authorities.

Legal authority

The Environmental Protection Agency can only act pursuant tostatutes—the laws passed by Congress.Appropriations statutesauthorize how much money the agency can spend each year to carry out the approved statutes. The agency has the power to issueregulations.A regulation interprets a statute, and EPA applies its regulations to various environmental situations and enforces the requirements. The agency must include a rationale of why a regulation is needed. (SeeAdministrative Procedure Act.) Regulations can be challenged in federal courts, eitherdistrict courtorappellate court,depending on the particular statutory provision.

Related legislation

EPA has principal implementation authority for the following federal environmental laws:

• Clean Air Act
• Clean Water Act
• Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act( "Superfund" )
• Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act
• Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act
• Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
• Safe Drinking Water Act
• Toxic Substances Control Act
• Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act

There are additional laws where EPA has a contributing role or provides assistance to other agencies. Among these laws are:

• Endangered Species Act
• Energy Independence and Security Act
• Energy Policy Act
• Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act
• Food Quality Protection Act
• National Environmental Policy Act
• Oil Pollution Act
• Pollution Prevention Act

Programs

EPA scientists conducting a stream survey on theMerrimack Riverin Massachusetts

EPA established its major programs pursuant to the primary missions originally articulated in the laws passed by Congress. Additional programs have been developed to interpret the primary missions. Some of the newer programs have been specifically authorized by Congress.Former administrator William Ruckelshaus observed in 2016 that a danger for EPA was that air, water, waste and other programs would be unconnected, placed in "silos", a problem that persists more than 50 years later, albeit less so than at the start.

Core programs

Air quality and radiation protection

The Office of Air and Radiation (OAR) describes itself as the official authority in charge of "developing national programs, policies, and regulations for controlling air pollution and radiation exposure." The OAR is responsible for enforcing theClean Air Act,theAtomic Energy Act,theWaste Isolation Pilot PlantLand Withdrawal Act, and other applicable laws. The OAR is in charge of the Offices of Air Quality Planning and Standards, Atmospheric Protection, Transportation and Air Quality, and the Office of Radiation and Indoor Air.

Ambient standards

• National Ambient Air Quality Standards(NAAQS)
• State Implementation Plans(SIPs)

Stationary air pollution source standards

• New Source Performance Standards
• National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants(NESHAPs)
• Permits for industrial and commercial sources

Mobile source standards

Testing automobile emissions at an EPA laboratory inAnn Arbor, Michigan

• On-road vehicles regulation
• Non-road vehicle regulation(including aircraft, locomotives, marine transport, stationary engines)
• Transportation fuel controls
• National Vehicle Fuel and Emissions Laboratory (NVFEL)

Radiation protection

TheRadiation Protection Programcomprises seven project groups.

1. Radioactive Waste
2. Emergency Preparedness and Response ProgramsProtective Action Guides And Planning Guidance for Radiological Incidents: EPA developed a manual as guideline for local and state governments to protect the public from anuclear accident,the 2017 version being a 15-year update.
3. EPA's Role in Emergency Response – Special Teams
4. Technologically Enhanced Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials (TENORM) Program
5. Radiation Standards for Air and Drinking Water Programs
6. Federal Guidance for Radiation Protection

Water quality

Science and regulatory standards

• TheNational Pollutant Discharge Elimination System(NPDES) permit program addresseswater pollutionby regulatingpoint sourceswhich discharge to US waters. Created in 1972 by the Clean Water Act, the NPDES permit program authorizes state governments to perform its many permitting, administrative, and enforcement aspects.As of 2021,the EPA has approved 47 states to administer all or portions of the permit program.EPA regional offices manage the program in the remaining areas of the country.The Water Quality Act of 1987 extended NPDES permit coverage toindustrial stormwaterdischargers and municipal separate storm sewer systems.In 2016, there were 6,700 major point source NPDES permits in place and 109,000 municipal and industrial point sources with general or individual permits.

See also:United States regulation of point source water pollution

• Effluent guidelines(technology based standards) for industrial point sourcesandWater quality standards(risk-based standards) for water bodies,under Title III of the CWA
• Nonpoint source pollutionprograms
• The CWASection 404 Programregulates the discharge of dredged or fill material into waters of the United States. Permits are issued by theU.S. Army Corps of Engineersand reviewed by EPA, and may be denied if they would cause unacceptable degradation or if an alternative does not exist that does not also have adverse impacts on waters.Permit holders are typically required to restore or create wetlands or other waters to offset losses that cannot be avoided.
• EPA ensures safedrinking waterfor the public, by setting standards for more than 148,000public water systemsnationwide.EPA oversees states, local governments and water suppliers to enforce the standards under theSafe Drinking Water Act.The program includesregulation of injection wellsin order to protect underground sources of drinking water.

Infrastructure financing

• TheClean Water State Revolving Fundprovides grants to states which, along with matching state funds, are loaned to municipalities for wastewater and "green" infrastructure at below-market interest rates.These loans are expected to be paid back, creating revolving loan funds. Cumulative assistance from the revolving fund has surpassed US$153.6 billion As of 2021.The revolving fund replaced the Construction Grants Program, which was phased out in 1990.
• TheDrinking Water State Revolving Fundprovides financial assistance to local drinking water utilities.

Land, waste and cleanup

• Regulation of solid waste (non-hazardous) and hazardous waste under RCRA.To implement the 1976 law, EPA published standards in 1979 for "sanitary"landfillsthat receivemunicipal solid waste.The agency published nationalhazardous waste regulationsand established a nationwide permit and tracking system for managing hazardous waste. The system is largely managed by state agencies under EPA authorization. Standards were issued forwaste treatment, storage and disposal facilities(TSDFs), and ocean dumping of waste was prohibited.In 1984 Congress passed the Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments (HSWA) which expanded several aspects of the RCRA program:
  • TheLand Disposal Restrictions Programsets treatment requirements for hazardous waste before it may be disposed on land.EPA began issuing treatment methods and levels of requirements in 1986 and these are continually adapted to new hazardous wastes and treatment technologies. The stringent requirements it sets and its emphasis on waste minimization practices encourage businesses to plan to minimize waste generation and prioritize reuse andrecycling.From the start of the program in 1984 to 2004, the volume of hazardous waste disposed in landfills had decreased 94% and the volume of hazardous waste disposed of by underground injection had decreased 70%.
  • TheRCRA Corrective Action Programrequires TSDFs to investigate and clean up hazardous releases at their own expense.In the 1980s, EPA estimated that the number of sites needing cleanup was three times more than the number of sites on the national Superfund list.The program is largely implemented through permits and orders.As of 2016,the program has led to the cleanup of 18 million acres of land, of which facilities were primarily responsible for cleanup costs. The goal of EPA and states is to complete final remedies by 2020 at 3,779 priority facilities out of 6,000 that need to be cleaned up, according to EPA.
  • Beginning in the mid-1980s EPA developed standards for small quantity generators of hazardous waste, pursuant to HSWA.
  • EPA was mandated to conduct a review of landfill conditions nationwide. The agency reported in 1988 that the effectiveness of environmental controls at landfills varied nationwide, which could lead to serious contamination of groundwater and surface waters. EPA published a national plan in 1989 calling for state and local governments to better integrate their municipal solid waste management practices withsource reductionand recycling programs.
  • Regulation of Underground Storage Tanks.TheUnderground Storage Tank (UST) Programwas launched in 1985 and covers about 553,000 active USTs containing petroleum and hazardous chemicals. Since 1984, 1.8 million USTs have been closed in compliance with regulations.38 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico manage UST programs with EPA authorization.When the program began, EPA had only 90 staff to develop a system to regulate more than 2 million tanks and work with 750,000 owners and operators. The program relies more on local operations and enforcement than other EPA programs.Today, the program supports the inspection of all federally regulated tanks, cleans up old and new leaks, minimizes potential leaks, and encourages sustainable reuse of abandoned gas stations.
• Hazardous site cleanup.In the late 1970s, the need to clean up sites such asLove Canalthat had been highly contaminated by previous hazardous waste disposal became apparent. However the existing regulatory environment depended on owners or operators to perform environmental control. While the EPA attempted to use RCRA's section 7003 to perform this cleanup, it was clear a new law was needed. In 1980, Congress passed the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), commonly known as "Superfund".This law enabled the EPA to cast a wider net for responsible parties, including past or present generators and transporters as well as current and past owners of the site to find funding. The act also established some funding and a tax mechanism on certain industries to help fund such cleanup. Congress did not renew the Superfund tax in the 1990s, and subsequently funding for cleanup actions was supported only by general appropriations. Congress restored an excise tax on chemical manufacturers in 2021, which will eventually increase the available budget for site cleanups.Today, due to restricted funding, most cleanup activities are performed by responsible parties under the oversight of the EPA and states. As of 2016,more than 1,700 sites had been put on the cleanup list since the creation of the program. Of these, 370 sites have been cleaned up and removed from the list, cleanup is underway at 535, cleanup facilities have been constructed at 790 but need to be operated in the future, and 54 are not yet in cleanup stage.
• EPA'soil spill prevention programincludes the Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) and the Facility Response Plan (FRP) rules. The SPCC Rule applies to all facilities that store, handle, process, gather, transfer, refine, distribute, use or consume oil or oil products. Oil products includes petroleum and non-petroleum oils as well as: animal fats, oils and greases; fish and marine mammal oils; and vegetable oils. It mandates a written plan for facilities that store more than 1,320 gallons of fuel above ground or more than 42,000 gallons below-ground, and which might discharge to navigable waters (as defined in the Clean Water Act) or adjoining shorelines.Secondary spill containmentis mandated at oil storage facilities and oil release containment is required at oil development sites.

Chemical manufacture and usage

• EPA regulatespesticidesunder theFederal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act(FIFRA) and theFood Quality Protection Act.The agency assesses, registers, regulates, and regularly reevaluates allpesticideslegally sold in the United States. A few challenges this program faces are transforming toxicity testing, screening pesticides for endocrine disruptors, and regulating biotechnology and nanotechnology.
• TSCA required EPA to create and maintain anational inventory of all existing chemicalsin U.S. commerce. When the act was passed in 1976, there were more than 60,000 chemicals on the market that had never been comprehensively cataloged. To do so, the EPA developed and implemented procedures that have served as a model for Canada, Japan, and the European Union. For the inventory, the EPA also established a baseline for new chemicals that the agency should be notified about before being commercially manufactured. Today, this rule keeps the EPA updated on volumes, uses, and exposures of around 7,000 of the highest-volume chemicals via industry reporting.
• TheToxics Release Inventory(TRI) is a resource established by theEmergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Actspecifically for the public to learn about toxic chemical releases and pollution prevention activities reported by industrial and federal facilities.TRI data support informed decision-making by communities, government agencies, companies, and others.Annually, the agency collects data from more than 20,000 facilities.The EPA has generated a range of tools to support the use of this inventory, including interactive maps and online databases such as ChemView.

Enforcement

• Civil enforcementandcriminal enforcementprograms. EPA develops and prosecutes administrative civil and judicial cases and provides legal support for cases and investigations initiated in its regional offices. Federal judicial actions (formal lawsuits) are filed by theU.S. Department of Justiceon behalf of EPA.
• Compliance assistance.EPA identifies, prevents, and reduces noncompliance and environmental risks by establishing enforcement initiatives and ensuring effective monitoring and assessment of compliance.
• Federal facilities enforcement
• Environmental Justice program

In 2019 the Environmental Data & Governance Initiative, "a network of academics, developers, and non-profit professionals", published a report which compared EPA enforcement statistics over time.The number of civil cases filed by EPA have gradually decreased, and in 2018 the criminal and civil penalties from EPA claims dropped over four times their amounts in 2013, 2016, and 2017.In 2016 EPA issued $6,307,833,117 in penalties due to violations of agency requirements,and in 2018 the agency issued $184,768,000 in penalties.EPA's inspections and evaluations have steadily decreased from 2015 to 2018.Enforcement activity has decreased partially due to budget cuts within the agency.

Additional programs

• TheEPA Safer Choicelabel, previously known as the "Design for the Environment" (DfE) label, helps consumers and commercial buyers identify and select products with safer chemical ingredients, without sacrificing quality or performance. When a product has the Safer Choice label, it means that every intentionally-added ingredient in the product has been evaluated by EPA scientists. Only the safest possible functional ingredients are allowed in products with the Safer Choice label.
• Through theSafer Detergents Stewardship Initiative,EPA's Design for the Environment (DfE) recognizes environmental leaders who voluntarily commit to the use of safersurfactants.Safer surfactants are the ones that break down quickly to non-polluting compounds and help protect aquatic life in both fresh and salt water.Nonylphenol ethoxylates,commonly referred to as NPEs, are an example of a surfactant class that does not meet the definition of a safer surfactant. The Safer Choice program identified safer alternative surfactants through partnerships with industry and environmental advocates. These alternatives are comparable in cost and are readily available. The CleanGredients websiteis an information source about safer surfactants.
• TheEnergy Starprogram, initiated in 1992, motivated major companies to retrofit millions of square feet of building space with more efficient lighting.As of 2006,more than 40,000 Energy Star products were available including major appliances, office equipment, lighting, home electronics, and more. In addition, the label can also be found on new homes and commercial and industrial buildings. In 2006, about 12 percent of new housing in the US displayed an Energy Star label.EPA estimates that the program saved about $14 billion in energy costs in 2006 alone. The program has helped spread the use ofLEDtraffic lights,efficientfluorescent lighting,power managementsystems for office equipment, and lowstandbyenergy use.
• EPA'sSmart Growth Programbegan in 1998 and was created to help communities improve their land development practices and get the type of development they want. Together with local, state, and national experts, EPA encourages development strategies that protect human health and the environment, create economic opportunities, and provide attractive and affordable neighborhoods for people of all income levels.
• TheBrownfields Programstarted as a pilot program in the 1990s and was authorized by law in 2002. The program provides grants and tools to local governments for the assessment, cleanup, and revitalization ofbrownfields.As of September 2015,the EPA estimates that program grants have resulted in 56,442 acres of land readied for reuse and leveraged 116,963 jobs and $24.2 billion to do so. Agency studies also found that property values around assessed or cleaned-up brownfields have increased 5.1 to 12.8 percent.
• EPA'sIndoor air qualityTools for SchoolsProgram helps schools to maintain a healthy environment and reduce exposures to indoor environmental contaminants. It helps school personnel identify, solve, and prevent indoor air quality problems in the school environment. Through the use of a multi-step management plan and checklists for the entire building, schools can lower their students' and staff's risk of exposure toasthma triggers.
• TheNationalEnvironmental EducationActof 1990 requires EPA to provide national leadership to increase environmental literacy. EPA established the Office of Environmental Education to implement this program.
• Clean School Bus USAis a national partnership to reduce children's exposure to diesel exhaust by eliminating unnecessary school bus idling, installing effective emission control systems on newer buses and replacing the oldest buses in the fleet with newer ones. Its goal is to reduce both children's exposure to diesel exhaust and the amount of air pollution created by diesel school buses.
• TheGreen Chemistry Programencourages the development of products and processes that follow green chemistry principles.It has recognized more than 100 winning technologies.These reduce the use or creation of hazardous chemicals, save water, and reduce greenhouse gas release.
• TheBeachesEnvironmental Assessment and Coastal Health (BEACH) Act, was authorized in a 2000 amendment to the Clean Water Act. The program focus is on coastal recreational waters, and requires EPA to develop criteria to test and monitor waters and notify public users of any concerns.The program involves states, local beach resource managers, and the agency in assessing risks of stormwater and wastewater overflows and enables better sampling, analytical methods, and communication with the public.
• The EPA has also established specificgeographic programsfor particular water resources such as theChesapeake Bay Program,theNational Estuary Program,and the Gulf of Mexico Program.
• Advance identification,or ADID, is a planning process used by the EPA to identify wetlands and other bodies of water and their respective suitability for the discharge of dredged and fill material. The EPA conducts the process in cooperation with the U.S.Army Corps of Engineersand local states orNative American Tribes.As of February 1993,38 ADID projects had been completed, and 33 were ongoing.
• EPA's "One Cleanup Program" initiative was designed to improve coordination across different agency programs that have a role in cleanup at a particular site. The coordination efforts apply to the brownfields, federal facilities, USTs, RCRA and Superfund programs.
• EPA reviews environmental impact statements prepared by other agencies and maintains a national EIS filing system.

Past programs

• The formerConstruction Grants Programdistributed federal grants for the construction of municipal wastewater treatment works from 1972 to 1990. While such grants existed before the 1972, the 1972 CWA expanded these grants dramatically. They were distributed through 1990, when the program and funding were replaced with the State Revolving Loan Fund Program.
• In 1991 under Administrator William Reilly, the EPA implemented its voluntary33/50 program.This was designed to encourage, recognize, and celebrate companies that voluntarily found ways to prevent and reduce pollution in their operations.Specifically, it challenged industry to reduce Toxic Release Inventory emissions of 17 priority chemicals by 33% in one year and 50% in four years.These results were achieved before the commitment deadlines.
• Launched in 2006, the voluntary2010/2015 PFOA Stewardship Programworked with eight major companies to voluntarily reduce their global emissions of certain types of perfluorinated chemicals by 95% by 2010 and eliminate these emissions by 2015.

OSVBolddocked atPort Canaveral, Florida

• In March 2004, the U.S. Navy transferredUSNS Bold (T-AGOS-12),aStalwartclass ocean surveillance ship,to the EPA. The ship had been used in anti-submarine operations during theCold War,was equipped with sidescan sonar, underwater video, water and sediment sampling instruments used in study of ocean and coastline. One of the major missions of theBoldwas to monitor for ecological impact sites where materials were dumped from dredging operations in U.S. ports.In 2013, theGeneral Services Administrationsold theBoldtoSeattle Central Community College(SCCC), which demonstrated in a competition that they would put it to the highest and best purpose, at a nominal cost of $5,000.

Controversies

Scope and fulfillment of agency's authority

Congress enacted laws such as the Clean Air Act, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, and CERCLA with the intent of preventing and reconciling environmental damages. Beginning in 2018 under AdministratorAndrew Wheeler,EPA revised some pollution standards that resulted in less overall regulation. Furthermore, the CAA's discretionary applicationhas caused a varied application of the law among states. In 1970, Louisiana deployed its Comprehensive Toxic Air Pollutant Emission Control Program to comply with federal law.This program does not require pollution monitoring that is equivalent to programs in other states.

Environmental justice

The EPA has been criticized for its lack of progress towardsenvironmental justice.AdministratorChristine Todd Whitmanwas criticized for her changes to President Bill Clinton'sExecutive Order12898 during 2001, removing the requirements for government agencies to take the poor and minority populations into special consideration when making changes to environmental legislation, and therefore defeating the spirit of the Executive Order.In a March 2004 report, theinspector generalof the agency concluded that the EPA "has not developed a clear vision or a comprehensive strategic plan, and has not established values, goals, expectations, and performance measurements" for environmental justice in its daily operations. Another report in September 2006 found the agency still had failed to review the success of its programs, policies, and activities toward environmental justice.Studies have also found that poor and minority populations were underserved by the EPA'sSuperfundprogram, and that this situation was worsening. In August 2022 the EPA was allotted a listed ~42.8 billion in funding from theInflation Reduction Act(IRA) towards what the EPA classifies as "Advancing Environmental Justice", and published the statement "Through the Inflation Reduction Act, EPA will improve the lives of millions of Americans by reducing pollution in neighborhoods where people live, work, play, and go to school; accelerating environmental justice efforts in communities overburdened by pollution for far too long; and tackling our biggest climate challenges while creating jobs and delivering energy security." In September 2022 EPA announced the creation of a new Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights that reports directly to the EPA administrator.The new office has an expanded budget and staff with broader responsibilities than under the previous organizational arrangement.

Freedom of Information Act processing performance

In the latestCenter for Effective Governmentanalysis of 15 federal agencies which receive the mostFreedom of Information Act(FOIA) requests, published in 2015 (using 2012 and 2013 data, the most recent years available), the EPA earned a D by scoring 67 out of a possible 100 points, i.e. did not earn a satisfactory overall grade.

Pebble Mine

Pebble Mineis a copper and gold mining project located in the southwest region of Alaska in theBristol Bayregion organized by Northern Dynasty Minerals.In 2014 the EPA released its statement on the impacts that mining would have on Bristol Bay and its tributaries. Among many things, the statement assessesgeological,topographic,ecological,hydrological,and economic data and determined that mining could negatively impact the salmon population.Seeing as Bristol Bay and itswatershedprovides around 46% of the world's sockeye salmon, the EPA did not want to risk an ecological disaster.In July 2014, before Northern Dynasty Minerals had submitted its EIS, EPA's Region 10 office proposed restrictions pursuant to section 404(c) of the Clean Water Act, restrictions that would effectively prohibit the project.Northern Dynasty Minerals protested this decision and on July 18, 2014, in a published statement, Pebble Partnership CEO Tom Collier said that the project would continue its litigation against EPA; noted that the EPA's action was under investigation by the EPA inspector general and by theHouse Committee on Oversight and Government Reform;and noted that two bills were pending in Congress seeking to clarify that EPA did not have the authority to preemptively veto or otherwise restrict development projects prior to the onset of federal and state permitting. Collier's statement also said that EPA's proposal was based on outdated mining scenarios that were not part of the project's approach.Multiple journalists and organizations have reported on the controversy including theNatural Resources Defense Councilin support of the cancelation of the project andJohn Stosselin support of the development of the mine. As of 2023,the mine remains a controversial topic. On January 30, 2023, the EPA vetoed the mine.

Water quality in East Palestine, Ohio

Ohio governor Mike DeWine and administrator of the EPAMichael Regandrank tap water inEast Palestine,Ohio, on February 3, 2023, after atrain derailmentto show that the water was safe.The derailment caused a fire and the release of toxic chemicals into the air and water making locals and environmental groups concerned for the quality of water in the area. Despite the EPA's assurance that the water is safe some residents do not trust the quality of the water and question its long-term effects.

See also

• Environmental history of the United States
• Environmental policy of the United States
  • Environmental policy of the Donald Trump administration
• List of EPA whistleblowers

Further reading

• Balint, Peter J., and James K. Conant.The life cycles of the Council on Environmental Quality and the Environmental Protection Agency: 1970-2035(Oxford Univ Press, 2016)
• Bosso, Christopher.Environment, Inc.: From Grassroots to Beltway.Lawrence, KS: University of Kansas Press, 2005
• Bosso, Christopher, and Deborah Guber. "Maintaining Presence: Environmental Advocacy and the Permanent Campaign." pp. 78–99 inEnvironmental Policy: New Directions for the Twenty First Century,6th ed., eds. Norman Vig and Michael Kraft. Washington, DC: CQ Press, 2006
• Brooks, Karl Boyd, ed.The Environmental Legacy of Harry S. Truman(Truman State University Press, 2009).
• Carter, Neil.The Politics of the Environment: Ideas, Activism, Policy,2nd ed. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2007
• Davies, Kate.The Rise of the U.S. Environmental Health MovementArchivedNovember 18, 2022, at theWayback Machine(2013). Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield
• Demortain, David,The Science of Bureaucracy: Risk Decision-Making and the US Environmental Protection Agency.The MIT Press, 2020doi:10.7551/mitpress/12248.001.0001.
• Freedman, Jeri.The Establishment of the Environmental Protection Agency(Cavendish Square. 2017)
• Gottlieb, Robert (August 1, 1993).Forcing the spring: the transformation of the American environmental movement.Island Press.ISBN1-55963-123-6.
• Hays, Samuel P.A history of environmental politics since 1945(2000)
• Hays, Samuel P.Beauty, Health, and Permanence: Environmental Politics in the United States, 1955-1985(1989)online
• Mintz, Joel A.Enforcement at the EPA: High Stakes and Hard Choices(2nd ed. U of Texas Press, 2012).
• Portney, Paul R. "EPA and the Evolution of Federal Regulation." inPublic policies for environmental protection(Routledge, 2010) pp. 11–30.online
• Richardson, Elmo.Dams, Parks and Politics: Resource Development and Preservation the Truman-Eisenhower Era(1973).
• Ruckelshaus, William D. "Environmental Regulation: The Early Days at EPA"EPA Journal(March 1988)online
• Strong, Douglas Hillman (1988).Dreamers & Defenders: American Conservationists.University of Nebraska Press.ISBN978-0-8032-9156-0.
• Suter, Glenn W. "Ecological risk assessment in the United States Environmental Protection Agency: A historical overview."Integrated environmental assessment and management4.3 (2008): 285–289.online
• EPA Alumni Association, "Protecting the Environment, A Half Century of Progress"ArchivedOctober 6, 2016, at theWayback Machine– an overview of EPA's environmental protection efforts over 50 years
• EPA Alumni Association individual Half Century of Progress reports for air, water, pesticides, drinking water, waste management, Superfund, and toxic substancesArchivedMarch 11, 2022, at theWayback Machine

External links

• Official website
• Historical Planning, Budget, and Results Reportsof EPA
• Environmental Protection Agencyin theFederal Register
• Environmental Protection AgencyonUSAspending.gov