The Coastal Barriers Resources Act

The Coastal Barriers Resources Act (CBRA) was the result of the realization by Congress that coastal barrier land masses were a tremendously valuable natural resource and that because of their inherent vulnerability to erosion and storms, they were not well-suited to development. In order to both protect coastal barrier habitats and minimize the wasteful expenditure of federal funds, the CBRA was passed in 1982 to identify undeveloped coastal barrier land masses and restrict federal funding for such areas.

The Atomic Energy Act and State Regulation of Nuclear Materials

In 1959, reflecting the states' traditional roles in protecting the health and safety of their citizens, amendments to the Atomic Energy Act (AEA) provided for the entry of the individual states into the area of nuclear regulation. Under the amendments, states could license and regulate radioactive waste, source materials such as uranium ores, and small quantities of special nuclear materials such as enriched uranium. In order for a state to assert regulatory authority under the AEA, the state must make an agreement with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), and the NRC must ascertain that the state's regulatory scheme for controlling radioactive materials meets NRC requirements and will safeguard public health and the environment.

The Radon Gas and Indoor Air Quality Research Act of 1986

In recognition of the potential hazard posed by radon gas in particular as well as the overall importance of indoor air quality, Congress passed the Radon Gas and Indoor Air Quality Research Act (Air Quality Research Act) in 1986. Among other things, the Air Quality Research Act directed the Environmental Protection Agency to establish a research program with respect to indoor air quality in order to add to the understanding of health problems associated with indoor air pollutants.

The Global Change Research Act of 1990

Congress recognized that developing effective policies to minimize and accommodate global climatic change would require better scientific understanding of the global environment and the ability to determine what global changes were natural and what changes could be attributed to human activities. Congress determined that, although significant research was being conducted by the federal government in the field of climate change, better interagency coordination as well as coordination with the research activities of states, other countries, and non-governmental organizations were necessary. Accordingly, Congress passed the Global Change Research Act, which provided congressional authority for the United States Global Change Research Program (USGCRP).

Volatile Organic Compounds

One problematic aspect of controlling ozone levels is that ozone is generally not directly emitted by polluters. Ozone is produced in the atmosphere when one of the criteria pollutants, nitrogen oxides, combine with volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the presence of sunlight and heat. Although nitrogen oxides are classified as a criteria pollutant while VOCs are not, much effort is directed towards reducing the emission of VOCs because of their contribution to the production of ground-level ozone.