and local ordinances, thousands of federal and state regulations and even more federal and state court cases and administrative adjustments, etc. that deal with environmental issues. Taken together, they make up the field of environmental law, which has seen remarkable growth in the last 30 some years, as shown in Figure 2.6 (Allen and Shonnard 2002).
All engineers, particularly in the branches of chemical, civil, environmental, mechanical, metallurgy, mining, and nuclear should be familiar with environmental laws and regulations because they affect the operations of many processes and professional responsibilities involved in their respective fields. Environmental regulations and the common law system of environmental law require actions by affected entities. For examples, the CAA (an environmental statute) requires facilities which emit pollutants from a stack (point source) into an air‐shed to apply for a Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) permit; and the CWA requires facilities that discharge pollutants from a pipe or an outfall (point source) into navigable waters to apply for a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit. In many companies, engineers are responsible for applying and obtaining these permits. The common law created by judicial decision also encourages engineers to act responsibly when permitting their professional duties because environmental laws and regulations do not cover every conceivable environmental wrong. Engineers need to be aware of potential legal liability resulting from violation of environmental laws and regulations to protect their companies and themselves from legal and administrative actions.
2.17.1 Nine Prominent Federal Environmental Statues
This section provides some of the key provisions of nine federal environmental statutes that all engineers, in particular chemical engineers, should know. Taken together, these laws regulate chemicals throughout their life cycle, from creation and production to use and disposal.
The nine laws are as follows:
1 The Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), 1976 (regulating testing and necessary use restrictions on chemical substances)
2 The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), 1972 (the manufacture and use of pesticides)
3 The Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA), 1970 (to protect health and safety in the workplace)
4 The Clean Air Act (CAA), 1970 (to protect and enhance the quality of the Nation's air resources)
5 The Clean Water Act (CWA), 1972 (to restore and maintain the physical, chemical, and biological integrity of the Nation's water resources)
6 The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), 1976 (primarily the regulation of hazardous and nonhazardous waste treatment, storage, and safe disposal)
7 The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA, also known as Superfund), 1980 (the cleanup of abandoned and inactive hazardous waste sites)
8 The Emergency Planning and Community Right‐to‐Know Act (EPCRA), 1986 (responding to chemical emergencies and reporting of toxic chemical usage)
9 The Pollution Prevention Act (PPA), 1990 (a proactive approach to reducing environmental impact using pollution prevention hierarchy: minimize generation, minimize introduction, segregation, reuse, and recycle, recover energy value in waste, treat for discharge, and safe disposal)
A summary of these prominent federal environmental statues is provided in Table 2.1. The most important regulatory backgrounds for each statute are slated along with a listing of some key provisions for chemical processing facilities.
Table 2.1 Summary table for selected environmental laws.
Source: From https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/⋯/ch3‐green‐engineering‐textbook_508.pdf and USEPA (2000).
| Environmental statute | Date enacted | Background | Key provisions |
| Regulation of Chemical Manufacturing The Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) | 1976 | Highly toxic substances, such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), began appearing in the environment and in food supplies. This prompted the federal government to create a program to assess the risks of chemicals before they are introduced into commerce. | Chemical manufacturers, importers, or processors, must submit a report detailing chemical and processing information for each chemical. Extensive testing by companies may be required for chemicals of concern. For newly created chemicals, a Premanufacturing Notice must be submitted. |
| The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) | Enacted, 1947 Amended, 1972 | Because all pesticides are toxic to plants and animals, they may pose an unacceptable risk to human health and the environment. FIFRA is a federal regulatory program whose purpose is to assess the risks of pesticides and to control their usage so that any exposure that may result poses an acceptable level of risk. | Before any pesticide can be distributed or sold in the United States, it must be registered with the EPA. The data is difficult and expensive to develop and must prove that the chemical is effective and safe to humans and the environment. Labels must be placed on pesticide products that indicate approved uses and restrictions. |
| The Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act) | 1970 | The agency that oversees the implementation of the OSH Act is the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). All private facilities having more than 10 employees must comply with the OSH Act requirements. | Companies must adhere to all OSHA health standards (exposure limits to chemicals) and safety standards (physical hazards from equipment). The OSH Act's Hazard Communication Standard requires companies to develop hazard assessment data (material safety data sheet), label chemical substances, and inform and train employees in the safe use of chemicals. |
| Regulation of Discharges to the Air, Water, and Soil Clean Air Act (CAA) | 1970 | The CAA is intended to control the discharge of air pollution by establishing uniform ambient air quality standards that are in some instances health based and in others technology based. The CAA also addresses specific air pollution problems such as hazardous air pollutants, stratospheric ozone depletion, and acid rain. | The CAA established the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for maximum concentrations in ambient air of CO, Pb, NO2, O3, particulate matter, and SO2. States must develop source‐specific emission limits to achieve the NAAQS. States issue air emission permits to facilities. Stricter requirements established for hazardous air pollutants and for new sources. |
| Clean Water Act (CWA) | 1972 | The CWA is the first comprehensive federal program designed to reduce pollutant discharges into the nation's waterways (“zero discharge” goal). Another goal of the CWA is to make water bodies safe for swimming, fishing, and other forms of recreation (“swimmable” goal). This act is considered largely successful because significant improvements have been made in the quality of the nation's waterways since its enactment. |
