The tools of prevention: Opportunities for promoting pollution prevention under federal environmental legislation

Journal Article · Thu Dec 31 04:00:00 EST 1992 · Virginia Environmental Law Journal

OSTI ID:241219

Bobertz, B C ^[1]

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1. State Univ. of New York, Buffalo, NY (United States)

The Pollution Prevention Act of 1990 established a clear national policy that pollution should be prevented or reduced at the source whenever possible. Recently, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has shown increasing interest in implementing this policy through a pollution prevention program that moves beyond the Agency`s initial attempts to encourage voluntary actions by industry. Yet the EPA has only begun to explore its options for encouraging pollution prevention in the industrial sector. This article undertakes a fresh consideration of the EPA`s statutory authority and identifies numerous opportunities for promoting industrial pollution prevention. The article focuses principally on the Clean Water Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (RCRA), two statutes currently under consideration for congressional reauthorization. Analysis of these laws reveals that the major barriers to pollution prevention are not statutory in origin. Both the Clean Water Act and RCRA-without significant revision-provide substantial authority for promoting pollution prevention using a variety of regulatory approaches.

• OSTI ID: 241219
• Journal Information: Virginia Environmental Law Journal, Journal Name: Virginia Environmental Law Journal Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 12; ISSN XZ490W
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
CLEAN WATER ACTS
ENFORCEMENT
ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY
EVALUATION
INDUSTRIAL PLANTS
PERFORMANCE
POLLUTION REGULATIONS
US EPA
USA