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Statutory and Regulatory Enforcement
A broad range of of federal environmental statutes have been enacted into
law by the U.S. Congress and, in accordance with these statutes, EPA has
developed corresponding enforcement programs. Additional information is
available at Introduction
to Laws and Regulations and Major
Environmental Laws.
The Statutory and Regulatory Enforcement Programs described here are
applicable to the noncompliance, violations, and the activities in the
private and public sectors as related to:
- private industry and business,
- public utilities and other publically-owned entities,
- private and public organizations, and individuals.
Other EPA programs also include forcement of certain of the environmental
statutes and regulations as their basis. Where federally-owned facilities
and businesses are involved, Federal Facilities
Enforcement has the enforcement responsibility, and when remediation
or cleanup of private facilities, federal facilities, or abandoned sites
is necessary, Clean Up Enforcement
takes over. In addition, when intentional or deliberate acts of noncompliance
are found, enforcement is referred to Criminal
Enforcement.
Statutory and Regulatory Enforcement Programs
In EPA's Statutory and Regulatory Enforcement, the programs are broken
down by media, which encompass Air Enforcement, Water Enforcement, Solid/Hazardous
Waste Enforcement, Toxic Substances and Pesticides Enforcement, and programs
relating to Emergency Preparedness and Community Protection. From the
links associated with these, there is access to the information on EPA's
enforcement of each of the identified statutes.
Air Enforcement
Clean Air Act (CAA) -- Enforcement relating
to sources of air pollution, including both stationary and mobile sources
Water Enforcement
Clean Water Act (CWA) [Federal Water Pollution
Control Act (FWPCA)] -- Enforcement relating to the chemical, physical
and biological integrity of the waters of the United States
Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) [Public
Health Service Act (PHSA)] -- Enforcement relating to potential drinking
water sources to protect drinking water quality from above ground sources
and from the groundwater
Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries
Act (MPRSA) (Ocean Dumping Ban Act) -- Enforcement relating to dumping
of all types of materials into the marine environment to protect human
health, welfare and the amenities of that environment
Solid/Hazardous Waste Enforcement
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
(RCRA) [Solid Waste Disposal Act] (SWDA)] -- Enforcement relating to
the generation, transportation, treatment, disposal and other handling
of solid and hazardous wastes
Mercury-Containing and Rechargeable Battery
Management Act (Battery Act) -- Enforcement relating to the labeling,
sale, handling, and disposal certain batteries along with products having
removable batteries
Toxic Substances & Pesticides Enforcement
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) --
Enforcement relating to the manufacture, processing, distribution in
commerce, use or disposal of chemicals that may present unreasonable
risks to the public
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide
Act (FIFRA) -- Enforcement relating to pesticide registration and
sale, distribution, and use except for those exempted.
Emergency Preparedness and Community Protection
Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know
Act (EPCRA) -- Enforcement protecting the public from chemical emergencies
requiring disclosure of chemicals used by businesses and through the
reporting of emissions.
Chemical Accident Prevention/Emergency Preparedness
(Clean Air Act Section 112(r)) -- Enforcement protecting the public
from industrial chemical emergencies requiring identification of hazards,
minimization of releases, and having risk management plans.
Multimedia Enforcement
In addition to the programs where individual statutes and their regulations
are covered, the Multimedia Enforcement Program
constitutes a comprehensive approach to case development that can be employed
against single facilities, against entire companies, and in a geographic
context when, in most cases, there is violation of more than one statute.
Similarily, several environmental statutes have the same general enforcement
requirements in individual sections of the statutes for certain areas,
such as Import/Export,
involved with EPA's International Activities, that are addressed separately
as if consitituting a distinct program.
While pursuing enforcement activities, EPA is required to comply with
several statutes, including the Occupational
Safety and Health Act (OSHA) and the Small
Business Regulatory Fairness Act (SBREFA). EPA also is subject to
compliance with other statutes regulating legal administrative procedures
and processes, which are not covered here.
In carrying out enforcement activities, the U.S. Department of Justice
and the state and tribal governments act as our partners. Of major importance
are the state and tribal roles, a part of EPA's
Enforcement and Compliance Partnerships, with the states carrying
out many of the enforcement actions when they have state enforcement programs
that are similar to the federal programs and they have been authorized
by EPA to carry out the enforcement actions.
Enforcement Activities
 The
types of enforcement actions carried out at the federal level and the
enforcement tools used are described in EPA's
Enforcement Actions and Tools. Enforcement actions are designed to
penalize facilities for not complying with the environmental requirements
and to act as a deterrent to nonconpliance, as well as to bring facilities
into compliance so as to protect public health and the environment. In
connection with this, EPA publishes "Enforcement
Alert" Newsletters to inform the regulated community of specific
areas where EPA is finding significant noncompliance. Often, as a part
of the settlements with EPA for violations and noncompliance, the facilities
will carry out voluntary projects that are beneficial to the environment,
known as Supplemental Environmental Projects
(SEPs).
In order to facilitate EPA's enforcement activities, EPA makes extensive
use of its Compliance Incentives
and Auditing programs which allow facilities to self-assess and disclose
their compliance status under programs which place limits on liability.
EPA's Economic Enforcement Models
are a tools for use in the self-assessments.
Additional information on EPA's enforcement activities can be found in
Significant Cases and Settlements
and Significant Consent Decrees
and Consent Agreements.
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