1. Chapter 13 Industrial Pollution and Environmental Regulation

2. The Majestic Hudson River
In 1609 Henry Hudson, an English navigator sailing for a Dutch corporation, journeyed far up its course, seeking a new trade route to China
It was not there, but he explored the river, which took his name
Over time, the Hudson River acquired a rich history

3. Pollution
Pollution: The presence of substances in the environment that inconvenience or endanger humans
Much of it comes from natural sources
Human activity adds more contaminants
Industrial activity both harms human health and disturbs natural ecology

4. Table 13.1 - Percentages of Deaths and DALYs Attributable to Four Environmental Pollution Risks

5. The Biosphere
It is the slender margin atop the earth’s surface that supports life
The biosphere is home to multiple ecosystems
Ecosystem: An animated, interactive realm of plants, animals, and microorganisms inhabiting an area of the nonliving environment

6. The Biosphere
Ecosystems provide services that support human well-being
Ecosystem services: The productivity of natural ecosystems in creating food and fiber and in regulating climate, water, soil, nutrients, and other forms of natural capital
The causes of ecosystem strain center on accelerating economic activity

7. Industrial Activity and Sustainability
Much interest today is focused on the notion of sustainable development
Sustainable development: Nonpolluting economic growth that raises standards of living without depleting the net resources of the earth
There is evidence that environmental quality in growing economies does not follow a path of long-term deterioration as in the old industrial revolution model.
Environmental Kuznets curve

8. Industrial Activity and Sustainability
Much interest today is focused on the notion of sustainable development
Sustainable development: Nonpolluting economic growth that raises standards of living without depleting the net resources of the earth

9. Industrial Activity and Sustainability
There is evidence that environmental quality in growing economies does not follow a path of long-term deterioration as in the old industrial revolution model
Environmental Kuznets curve: An inverted U-shaped curve illustrating that as gross domestic product rises in emerging economies pollution goes through stages of rapid increase, leveling off, and decline

10. Figure 13.1 – The Environmental Kuznets Curve

11. Ideas Shape Attitudes Toward the Environment
Dualism
Progress
Capitalism
Utilitarianism

12. New Ideas Challenge the Old
Naturalist Aldo Leopold – inspired others to rethink traditional ideas about the man-nature relationship
Norwegian philosopher Arne Naess – Deep ecology
Inspired anti-corporate government groups
Philosopher Peter Singer – Speciesism

13. Environmental Regulation in the United States
The dominant approach to industrial pollution control in the United States has been to pass laws that strictly regulate:
Emissions
Effluents
Waste
In the 1970s, Congress passed a remarkable string of new laws, creating a broad statutory base for regulating industry

14. Environmental Regulation in the United States
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
It is an executive branch regulatory agency
Its mission is to protect human health and to preserve the natural environment

15. Principal Areas of Environmental Policy: Air
The Clean Air Act
National air quality – Criteria pollutants
Carbon monoxide (CO)
Nitrogen dioxide (NO2)
Sulfur dioxide (SO2)
Ozone (O3)
Particulate matter
Lead (Pb)

16. Figure 13.2 – Declining Emissions of Criteria Pollutants: 1970–2008

17. Table Estimated National Emissions of Criteria Pollutants by Source: 2008 (in thousands of short tons)

18. Principal Areas of Environmental Policy: Air
Hazardous air pollutants: Chemical emissions that pose a health risk of serious illness such as cancer or birth defects with small inhalation exposures
The clean air act requires the EPA to set emission standards for 187 air toxics at levels that prevent disease and requires industry to use the maximum achievable control technology to comply

19. Principal Areas of Environmental Policy: Air
Acid rain is caused primarily by releases of two criteria pollutants:
Sulfur dioxide
Nitrogen oxides
Indoor air pollution
Ozone-destroying chemicals
Chlorofluorocarbons

20. Figure 13.3 – Emission Trends for Electric Power- Generating Plants in the Acid Rain Program

21. Principal Areas of Environmental Policy: Air
Greenhouse gases: Atmospheric gases that absorb energy radiated from the earth, preventing it from being released into space

22. Figure 13.4 - Atmospheric Concentrations of Greenhouse Gases: 1750–2010

23. Principal Areas of Environmental Policy: Water
Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972 (Clean Water Act)
National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) requires each industrial facility to get a permit specifying the volume of one or more substances it can pour into a water body
Runoff is largely uncontrolled
Agricultural
Urban

24. Principal Areas of Environmental Policy: Land
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
Firms must label, handle, store, treat, and discard hazardous waste under strict guidelines, keeping meticulous records
Difficult to administer
Difficult to comply

25. Figure 13.5 - RCRA Landfill Groundwater Monitoring Requirements

26. Principal Areas of Environmental Policy: Land
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980
Better known as Superfund so-named after the large trust fund it set up to pay for cleanups
Created to clean up abandoned toxic waste sites

27. Principal Areas of Environmental Policy: Land
The number of sites is higher than predicted and the cleaning process more difficult and expensive than envisioned
Cleanup work started at 1,030 sites, however, only 325 have been fully restored and deleted from the list

28. Figure 13.6 - Typical Rotary Kiln Incinerator at a Superfund Site

29. Concluding Observations
Industrial processes damage the environment and cause serious local and global deterioration
The response has been to adopt a series of fairly rigid and expensive regulatory programs
In the U.S. it is now the largest and most expensive area of regulation
Uneven progress has been made in the attack on air, water, and land pollution