EPA

For this blog I chose to write about the United States Environmental Protection Agency. The main mission of the EPA is to protect the environment and human health.  Although the title of this organization may make it sound like they would handle all environmental concerns of the United States, it does not. Some issues are primary concerns of other federal, tribal, state, or local agencies. ”Many environmental programs have been delegated to the states and they have primary responsibility for them. Often, it is most appropriate to contact your local city, county, or state environmental agency (or health department) rather than EPA.”  http://publicaccess.supportportal.com/link/portal/23002/23012/Article/15450/Does-EPA-handle-all-environmental-concerns

The EPA was created on December 2^nd 1970. The first Earth Day brought the idea of environmentalism to the front of the public’s mind and contributed to the creation of the EPA. 1970 was a year of tremendous environmental action by President Nixon and Congress. The main branch is located in Washington DC.

http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2010/12/gallery-why-nixon-created-the-epa/67351/

EPA was created for the purpose of making sure all Americans are protected from risks to their health and the environment where they live and work. To accomplish this, the EPA develops and enforces regulations to environmental laws that Congress writes. They also set national standards that states enforce with their own regulations. The EPA gives grants to state environmental programs, non-profits, educational institutions, that use the money for different projects. The overall purpose of these projects is to protect the environment and human health. Almost half of the EPA’s budget is used for giving grants. The EPA not only gives out grants for other companies to do projects, but they also have many laboratories of their own across the United States that are used to identify and try and solve environmental problems. To attain a solution to many problems faster the EPA shares information with other countries, private sector organizations, and academic institutions. Another instance of sharing information is shown in the EPA’s sponsor partnerships that are used to help address even more environmental issues. “There are more than 13,000 firms and other organizations participating in EPA Partnership Programs.” http://www.epa.gov/partners/   It is not only the EPA and their partners responsibility to know and alleviate environmental issues, but it also the general public’s responsibility. This is why the EPA teaches people about the environment and things that they can do to help, even down to the basics of reducing energy use and reusing or recycling materials before you end up throwing them away. To make information accessible to the public, the EPA publishes information on their website about current environmental issues and what they are doing to fix or prevent the problem. The website also lists ways that you can volunteer to help save the environment.  

http://www2.epa.gov/aboutepa/our-mission-and-what-we-do

Some current issues on the EPA’s home page are the Clean Power Plan, Proposed Clean Water Rule and Sustainability. The Clean Power Plan proposes to cut carbon pollution from existing power plants, the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. The Proposed Clean Water Rule will clarify the protections that are under the Clean Water Act for streams and wetlands that form the foundation of the nation’s water resource. The EPA has made great strides in the last five years for progress towards sustainability by providing communities with affordable housing, efficient transportation and economic growth. The EPA deals with many environmental issues and will continue to solve and prevent many issues in the future.