Application of Environmental Laws and Regulations (APES)

My dad has asthma. Some days are more troublesome for him than others. I notice he has more trouble breathing when the air looks hazy and yellow. I suspect there is a lot of soot, ground level ozone, and photochemical smog from all the cars in the nearby city on those days.

• Montreal Protocol

• Kyoto Protocol

• CERCLA

• Clean Air Act

I can no longer find my favorite hairspray at the local CVS! Too many CFC’s (chlorofluorocarbons) in the propellant. And I need to stock up on some extra sunscreen before I take my annual beach trip. UV radiation has increased with the degrading of the ozone layer.

• Kyoto Protocol

• Montreal Protocol

• CITES

• Clean Air Act

A poacher in Kenya tries to sell an illegally hunted Bengal tiger skin to a collector in the US.

• Delaney Clause of Food Drug and Cosmetic Act

• CERCLA

• Kyoto Protocol

• CITES

In Green Bay, Wisconsin, dairy farmers are being pressured to “corral their cows” to prevent manure from washing into Lake Michigan, home to many aquatic species as well as a drinking water plant for the city.

• CERCLA

• CITES

• Clean Air Act

• Safe Drinking Water Act

Allied Chemical Corp was accused of dumping PCBs into the Shenandoah River back in the late 1970s. PCBs are hazardous persistent pollutants, and are toxic to many aquatic species. They remain in the environment for a long time, and have special requirements for hazmat clean-up. It’s also very expensive, and companies don’t like to accept the liability.

• CERCLA

• Endangered Species Act

• Kyoto Protocol

• CITES

. Westfield High School generates a tremendous amount of waste each year. Some of it gets buried in a landfill, some of it gets incinerated, and a small portion of it gets recycled. Some of the incinerated waste creates a portion of the electricity that powers FCPS. Chemistry teachers here have to follow certain rules about chemical disposal.

• Resource Recovery and Conservation Act

• CERCLA

• Clean Air Act

• CITES

Last year in Charleston, West Virginia, a chemical spill on the Elk River contaminated the water supply for thousands of local residents. People were required to drink from bottled water and advised not to bathe or shower in the local water for nearly two weeks.

• Resource Recovery and Conservation Act

• Clean Water Act

• CERCLA

• Delaney Clause of the Food Drug and Cosmetic Act

In 1976, Mars, the candy company that makes M&M's, eliminated the red version of the candies from their mix. This decision came as a result of public controversy surrounding a synthetic dye called FD&C Red No. 2, also known as amaranth. The dye was used in red food coloring and was linked to cancer in a 1971 Russian study.

• Resource Recovery and Conservation Act

• Delaney Clause of the Food Drug and Cosmetic Act

• Clean Water Act

• CERCLA

This federal piece of legislation was the focus of several controversies in the late 80s and 90s surrounding the protection of the northern spotted owl on national forest lands in Washington and Oregon.

• CITES

• CERCLA

• Resource Recovery and Conservation Act

• Endangered Species Act

In 2001 President George W. Bush withdrew from this agreement, objecting that developing countries were not subject to reduction of CO2 emissions because it would decrease their economic growth.

• Montreal Protocol

• Clean Air Act

• CITES

• Kyoto Protocol