Fifty Years at the US Environmental Protection Agency

Reviews / Votes

A fabulous book. Fifty Years at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency offers even more than the definitive history of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. It provides an immensely valuable account of pollution control law in the United States during the past five decades. The book is a deserved tribute to all that EPA has accomplished and clear-eyed warning of how much the nation would lose if current efforts to undermine the agency were successful. -- Richard Lazarus, Professor of Law, Harvard University Part history, part drama, and part public policy manual, Fifty Years at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is sweeping in scope, extraordinary in depth, and a "must read" for anyone who cares about America's environmental policy framework and the journey to a sustainable future. -- Dan Esty, Yale professor; Former Commissioner, Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection; and EPA official (1989-93) This compilation of articles by 15 experts interweaves a history of the Environmental Protection Agency with currents in US politics and environmental science.... Chapters cover establishment of the EPA (1970) and laws and regulations regarding clean air, clean water, climate change, hazardous waste disposal/cleanup, and chemicals (including pesticides and genetically modified organisms). Later chapters address the role of science and the impact of economics and politics on EPA's agenda and priorities. A final chapter looks ahead with guarded optimism: so much was done, but more remains to be done on lead in water (old issue) and climate (new issue). As shown, the EPA has mostly sustained its mission despite legislative gridlock and partisan politics, with a narrative climax of sorts in systematic dismantling during the Trump years. Recommended. * Choice Reviews *