As Earth Day approaches on Thursday, April 22, it’s important to look back on the incredible legislations that the American government has passed to strengthen environmental law and, in turn, increase the health and safety of the American people. Let us tell you about three acts that have substantially changed our Earth, and how we can help if big corporations are not abiding by the rules.
The Clean Air Act of 1963
According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), “The Clean Air Act is the law that defines EPA’s responsibilities for protecting and improving the nation’s air quality and the stratospheric ozone layer.” This law originally passed in December 1963, and it has been amended four times since then – the latest amendment occurring in 1990.
America’s air was polluted and heavily under attack, and it was the American people who were suffering the most. Citizens across the country were suffering health issues and in severe cases – death – due to the pollution that was blanketing their sky. They would breathe in this polluted air and it would wreak havoc on their lungs and other vital organs. The Clean Air Act of 1963 continues to be a gift to the American people, providing a law that companies must abide by to ensure pollution does not negatively affect a person’s health-related quality of life.
The Clean Water Act
Before the Clean Water Act passed in 1972, the freshwater systems throughout America were being used to dump contaminated material, causing serious health risks to the American people, and killing animals that lived in the waters. The Clean Water Act has been amended many times since its origination in 1972, but its goals remain the same: “to prevent, reduce, and eliminate pollution in the nation’s water in order to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the Nation’s waters,” according to the EPA.
When the Clean Water Act was passed, it demanded that companies find a safer place and way to discard of their contaminants. Polluted water was finding its way into the surrounding soil, killing life that used to thrive in these systems, and compromising the water that companies treated in order to sell drinking water.
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970
Before the Reorganization Plan No. 3 was signed in July 1970, there were several government organizations trying to tackle the environmental crisis that was plaguing America. This was not an efficient use of time or money! The Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970 made it a reality that the government’s attempts to address the environmental issues needed to fall under one organization. Thus, the Environmental Protection Agency was born. In the decades since, the EPA has drastically affected the health of our nation’s environment and our people.
Brian Adams is Your Premier Environmental Law Attorney
Whether a corporation is tiptoeing across the figurative environmental law line or blatantly disregarding it altogether, it is a serious issue that must be met with fierce legal proceedings. If a company’s pollution and contamination is causing sickness within your household, Brian Adams can pursue justice to demand compensation and legal compliance. Call us today with your questions: (478) 845-1961.
