The Environmental Protection Agency ( Epa ) - 1690 Words

Abstract Power plants are the largest source of U.S. mercury emissions to the air. Once mercury from the air reaches water, microorganisms can change it into methyl mercury, a highly toxic form that builds up in fish which is how people are primarily exposed to mercury by eating the contaminated fish. In the year 2011, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) signed a rule to reduce emissions of toxic air pollutants, specifically Mercury, from coal fired power plants. The resulting Mercury and Air Toxic Standards (MATS) are used to reduce the emissions of Mercury and other hazardous toxic substances resulting from coal fired power plants. The three control measures that the EPA recommends to reduce the emission of Mercury are selective catalytic reduction (SCR), selective noncatalytic reduction (SNCR), and ammonia (NH3). The EPA claims that once these emission reduction controls are in place, Mercury emissions will be reduced 70 percent to fifteen tons per year by the year 2018 and the EPA estimates that mercury deposition would be reduced 8 percent on average in the Eastern United States. However, I believe that with new EPA mandated emission reduction controls in place on coal fired power plants, Mercury levels will be slightly reduced but still higher than in those areas without a coal fired power plant. The emission reduction controls will assist in lowering mercury removal but not to an acceptable level within the environment. The only way to trulyShow MoreRelatedThe Environmental Protection Agency ( Epa )1548 Words   |  7 PagesThe Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that there are over one thousand sites in the United States contaminated with radionuclides. Many of these contaminated sites have been thoroughly cleaned in a process to decontaminate the site to meet certain standards. These locations vary in size ranging from a small laboratory to a decommissioned nuclear power plant and even a large scale nuclear weapons facility. The Department of Energy (DOE) along with many other government agencies understandsRead MoreThe Environmental Protecti on Agency ( Epa ) Essay1747 Words   |  7 Pagesthe manufacturing and processing of products. These hazards were often left abandoned and no one really paid attention to their effect on our environment. In the 1980s Congress established a Superfund Program. It was left for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to administer the superfund program, to find these hazardous sites, investigate and determine the worst ones, and then clean up those sites across the United States. Over 15,000 sites were identified and 1,400 were named to the NationalRead MoreThe Environmental Protection Agency ( Epa )1470 Words   |  6 Pagesof modern life. As more research emerges correlations are made, chemicals are tested, and toxicants are identified, reengineered, and replaced with others equal in cause but unequal in effect. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is the national authority tasked with this dynamic approach. The EPA defines hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) as â€Å"pollutants that are known or suspected to cause cancer or other serious health effects, such as†¦ damage to the immune system, as well as neurological, reproductive†¦Read MoreEnvironmental Protection Agency ( Epa ) Federal Agents2679 Words   |  11 Pages Should Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) federal agents be able to carry firearms? Roberto Pastrana CRJU 4930 Wednesdays 4.30 P.M.-9.00 P.M. Georgia State University Abstract While interning at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) at Criminal Investigation Division (CID) many of the EPA agents are faced with decisions/ life threatening situations that are affected due to firearms. The central point for this essay is whether EPA federal agents should be able to carry firearmsRead MoreThe Environmental Protection Agency ( Epa ) Should Limit And Regulate Carbon Dioxide996 Words   |  4 PagesThe government should limit and regulate carbon dioxide, CO2, emission because it is causing devastating changes to earth, the only planet known to sustain life. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) should provide stricter regulation of carbon emission in such a way to reduce the affects it has on the earth. If we cannot reduce carbon dioxide emissions or begin regulating carbon dioxide emissions, we will cause irreversible changes to the earth. The government needs to start regulating carbonRead MoreThe History Of The Enviornmental Protection Agency926 Words   |  4 Pagesthere is not one greater than the other. However, the departments under the environmental category have accomplished many fantastic projects that have created a healthier living space for the United States. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the environmental category will be dissected into two main sections: the history of the department and the major responsibilities of the department. The Enviornmental Protection Agencys vast history reflects their accomplishments and what they haveRead MoreLocal Drinking Water Case Study995 Words   |  4 Pagesnot. The Environmental Protection Agency does water quality testing in most regions of the United States and come up with rules and regulations that they update every few years. The agency looks at different containments such as iron and copper and rates how significant it is to watch the contaminant and deduce whether or not they need to step in to help sustain high water quality. When a state, territory, or another group come up with water quality standards they must include EPA recommendedRead MoreEPA Protecting the Planet Essay697 Words   |  3 PagesThe Environmental Protection Agency takes on this ever so important mission of protecting them both. The mission statement of the EPA states, â€Å"The U.S. Environmental Protection Agencys Office of Small Business Programs is to support the protection of human health and the environment by advocating and advancing the business, regulatory, and environmental compliance concerns of small and socio-economically disadvantaged businesses , and minority academic institutions (US Enviromental Protection AgencyRead MoreQuestions On Environmental Education781 Words   |  4 Pageslearn from it. I took Environmental Science because the topic is integrated throughout my business studies. This has created a hunger for a deeper, foundational knowledge of the concepts in order to improve business and personal environmental decisions. I desire to teach others as well. 3. Please describe, in detail, some major environmental issues in your village/community/town/region or nation. 4. What are they? Three issues have captured my attention: Wetland Protection, Brownfield Programs andRead MoreThe Clean Air Act ( Caa )1640 Words   |  7 Pagesthat authorize the U.S Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) establish National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) to protect people’s health and welfare and to regulate emissions of hazardous air pollutants (The United States Environmental Protection Agency EPA, 2015). The title I of the Clean Air Act (CAA) states the general requirements for states to submit Strategic Investment Programs to achieve and maintain the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) and the EPA s actions regarding