Environmental Legislation in the United States and Some Impacts upon the Goal of National Environmental Improvement

Abstract

The Congress of the United States of America enacted legislation to control the environmental effects of the wastes generated by the various activities of American society upon the air, water and land resources of the nation. These laws involved the best thinking of the Congress and of the publics it consulted in their development; but not of other important publics including those involved in collecting, treating and disposing of waste materials. In additional the legislation appeared as a series of separaxe acts directed towards control of a single medium and were phrased and administered so that an overall review of the net impact upon all mediums (the total environment) was not readily possible. Furthermore the concept of a single national standard rather than individual evaluation of each waste problem was introduced as well as an adversary approach by the Federal government. The results do not appear to have substantially advanced the nation towards the goal of environmental improvement and may in fact have introduced substantial impediments. Examples of problems which have arisen because of this approach are given.

Disposal of Industrial and Domestic Wastes: Land and Sea Alternatives

“…The problem of complex and possibly conflicting laws and of differing court interpretations of portions of these laws has been covered in the literature (Garber 1982a).…”