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What is the role of government in protecting the environment
Clean Air Act of 1970
Importance of protecting nature
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As a nation, it is vital that the United States of America begins to move toward a process of environmental sustainability in order to protect the prosperity of this country and the planet as a whole for generations to come. In the past, environmental legislation has been put into place in order to start to encourage a transition toward a mindset of preserving the overall well being of the planet. An example of this is the clean air act, which was implemented in 1963, and then amended in 1966, 1970, 1977, and 1990. While this has been considered a successful piece of legislation that has reduced air pollution by up to 70%, it is still not enough, as harmful emissions into the atmosphere continue to mass pollute the planet(McCarthy and Burke, 650). One of the main issues …show more content…
If real progress is to be made with this issue, then laws need to be put into place that will limit the polluting of everyone, not just major companies. One way to do this without taking away individual rights, is to tighten emissions standards on motorized vehicles. In the United States, these vehicles account for just about 20% of all emissions. This emits around 24 pounds of carbon dioxide for every gallon of gas(Union of Concerned Scientists, 1). By tightening these standards so that these numbers go down significantly, great progress can be made toward a much more environmentally friendly nation. If progress is made toward making cars and trucks continuously more and more environmentally friendly, then the biggest source of harmful emission into the atmosphere will be put to a stop. On average, for each mile driven in a standard vehicle, 411 grams of carbon dioxide are emitted into the atmosphere, this equates to roughly 4.7 metric tons of carbon dioxide per year, whereas a car that operates fully on electricity releases no tailpipe emissions into the atmosphere(EPA, 1). As this staggering
Increasing environmental awareness, coupled with a responsible American government and improved technology, have all contributed to the comeback of low-and zero-emissions vehicles in the US. It remains to be seen whether the automakers and oil companies will once again work to halt this progress, or embrace it as the technology of a more responsible future.
The issue presented in this paper is how one can aim to reduce the amounts released, and what the best ways to solve this problem are. This has been long debated amongst scientists, businessmen, Industry-owners, and politicians amongst many other eminent figures in society. The four major approaches to reducing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere include: subsidies of alternative energy, cap and trade, carbon taxes, and command and control regulation. We will examine and compare the effectiveness of two of these methods: The carb...
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulates air pollution through various policies passed through the Supreme Court. The scope of this paper is to investigate the Clean Air Act of 1970, and to analyze the impact it has on businesses and society. It provides a rationale for the policy, and contains a brief overview of governmental involvement in regulating air pollution. Further investigation identifies key stakeholders in business, government, and society, and assesses the pros and cons of regulating air pollution. Finally, the paper concludes with limitations of this analysis and recommendations for future action.
The quality of air we intake on a daily basis is essential to our health, therefore, the EPA’s Clean Air Act provides the groundwork to support the quality of the air which we breathe. One of the goals of the Act was to set and achieve NAAQS in every state by 1975 to address the public health and welfare risks posed by certain air pollutants. The setting of these pollutant standards was coupled with directing the states to develop state implementation plans (SIPs), applicable to appropriate industrial sources in the stat...
Pollution is a major problem for all of us. People need to recognize this situation so we can start making a difference to this problem. In order to start making a difference, the federal government should increase gasoline tax by one dollar a gallon. Fifty percent of this dollar will go towards public transportation, since passenger cars and trucks are a major contribution towards air pollution, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, E.P.A (10/4, http://www.epa.gov/autoemissions/emsns.html). Due to the expected increase after this is put forth, the remaining fifty percent of the dollar will go towards safety on these transits. When public transportation increases, air pollution will decrease, which will lessen the harmful health risks towards the environment.
According to George Bernard Shaw, “Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything” (Shaw, p. 330). In order to truly make a change, one must change the minds of the people. America’s automobile industry has done a stellar job at this. In recent years fuel economy has surpassed make, body style, and “beeps and whistles” to become the number one factor people considered when purchasing a new car or truck (Choi). This shows that not only are vehicle manufacturers working to reduce vehicular pollution by improving how our cars are built, but even those that aren't directly involved with the manufacturing process are aiding the cause by choosing to purchase vehicles they know will produce fewer pollutants and consume less gas per miles driven. This discredits Jackson’s claims that Americans don’t care about the
In order to first convince a wide majority of people that something needs to be done to stop the destruction of our environment, people first need to know exactly what is harmful about gasoline vehicles. In the United States, approximately 6.6 tons of greenhouse gases are emitted per person every year. Most of the greenhouse gas emi...
Imagine that you’re driving on an open highway in the middle of summer. All you see in front of you is asphalt for miles and miles. The windows are down and your favorite song comes on the radio. You’re behind the wheel of a Tesla Model S, the newest electric car that can go from zero to sixty miles per hour in 2.4 seconds. This will soon be the future of all motor vehicles. Electric cars are beginning to have colossal impacts on our society because of their energy efficiency, performance benefits, and the fact that they are less harmful to the environment. In the near future, electric cars will dominate the road and eventually the planet’s overall need for oil will decrease immensely.
Car usage is a global concern that needs to be solved soon because it is significantly harming our planet. Limiting car usage can affect our society in many different ways. Over the years, the usage of cars has helped us in multiple manners, but it has also harmed us in many ways. Elisabeth Rosenthal wrote on her article titled “The End of Car Culture” that “recent studies suggest that Americans are buying fewer cars, driving less and getting fewer licenses as each year goes by” (source 4). While this might be true, our planet still has a long way to go in order to reduce pollution and many other problems that are being caused as a result of car usage. The use of automobiles is greatly impacting our environment in negative ways. It also impacts
People all around the world use cars and trucks to transport themselves and their goods from place to place, so analyzing the auto industry gives insight into hundreds of millions consumers worldwide. Since there are cars in nearly every country, the supply and demand of automobiles greatly increases each year, as people want a faster, more convenient way of travelling. At the same time, emissions from automobiles add to the growing pollution in the environment, which also affects people around the world. Since environmental change and automobile use are directly linked, the environment and climate change, as well as ideas to pursue new regulations, have a strong impact on the auto industry.
Today, people use their own personal vehicles to travel more than ever before. Personal transportation is no longer considered a luxury; it is now considered a necessity. The number of cars in the United States has been growing steadily since the 1970s. The number of miles traveled by cars has risen nearly 150 percent, yet the United States population has only grown roughly 40 percent during that time (hybridcars.com, Driving Trends). Although it may seem like we are advancing into the future, in reality, we are moving backwards from the effects these vehicles have on our bodies and the environment. The pollution produced by these vehicles has brought us to the day where we must find other modes of transportation that cause less harm to the world in which we live. Advances in technology have developed hybrid vehicles to try and slow down the amount of pollution. Driving a hybrid vehicle, instead of a conventional gas powered vehicle, can reduce the amount of pollution that affects our lives and the environment around us.
The advent of industrialized civilization has brought to us many remarkable feats that enhance our everyday lives. Such things as automobiles, airplanes, tractors, mainframe computers, and even relatively simple machines like lawnmowers have intertwined themselves into the everyday culture of modern day industrialized countries.. These products have provided us enormous benefits compared to the types of lives our ancestors used to live. In the eyes of some, the consequences of industrial activities that have evolved around the world will not pose any problems in the future, however as most have realized, this is not true. Contemporary production processes use fossil fuels such as oil, which release dangerous amounts of greenhouse gases into our atmosphere. In addition, certain products such as vehicles are notorious for their inefficient combustion cycles that also release comparable amounts of certain greenhouse gases into the air. Moreover, emissions from agricultural practices, land use change and forestry, and other industrial activities have led to dramatic increases in atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide, methane and other gases since pre-industrial times. (Fig. 1) The world was quick to act upon this realization by negotiating the Kyoto Protocol in December of 1997, the result of a process that began by a United Nations led conference in the early 90's. Since then, the debate for ratification among the negotiating countries has been ongoing, for the simple fact that this policy has many advantages along with a reasonable amount of disadvantages.
The modern day environmental movement in the United States has been a significant social movement for decades. It is quite possibly one of the longest running and more complex social movements the US has seen. The fight for a clean and safe environment has been an ongoing struggle. It encompasses multiple layers including the sustainability movement, environmental justice, and conservation movement. It is not just only a social movement but also a scientific and political movement as well. While my focus is on the United States this is a movement on an international scale with support on all levels from large organizations to private citizens.
The automobile has come a long way from the day of the first car in 1886. It has gone through many improvements regarding its power, comfort, safety and the way it looks. From a certain point of time people have also started to worry about its impact on the environment. All sorts of vehicles emit greenhouse gases into the air in various amounts. Many regulations have been introduced stating the allowed amount of these gases a vehicle can produce and therefore, compelling car manufacturers to make their vehicles friendlier towards the environment. Along with lowering the amount of greenhouse gases, the U.S. has been trying to lower its dependency on foreign oil. In the past the most common way to approach both of these problems was to make cars more fuel efficient. However, lately electric vehicles or EVs have been getting the most attention. Although EVs have improved and become more available to the consumer, we should not rely solely on them and should research, improve and finance other technologies, such as internal combustion engines or hydrogen powered vehicles.
Motor vehicles are accountable for almost 50 percent of smog-forming volatile organic compounds, more than 50 percent of nitrogen oxide emissions, and about 50 percent of the toxic air pollutant emissions in the United States (EPA, 2014) . In the United States, there are more than 210 million cars and light-duty trucks on the road resulting in carbon monoxide emissions at a whopping 75 percent (EPA, 2014) . Between 1970 and 2005, the increase in the use of travel by Americans rose to 178 percent and continues to increase at a rate of two to three percent each year (EPA, 2014) . Beginning in the late 1980s, America’s love affair for large vehicles began as there was a significant increase in vans, SUVs, and pickup trucks on the road. By the year 2000, these "light-duty trucks" accounted for about half of the new passenger car sales, which on average consume more gasoline per mile and contribute three to five times more pollution than cars (EPA, 2014)