The Clean Air Act

The Clean Air Act
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The Clean Air Act is a legislative law passed by the US government in 1963 in a bid to rein air pollution. Though originally set on that date, the law has seen changes a majority of which took place between 1970 and 1990. The act aims at pollution reduction through of pollutants present in the air and control of those sources that traceable. In the US Code, it is incorporated as the 42nd Title, chapter 85. As it was writ, it availed research to aid in the filed while at the same time encouraging the creation of state agencies as a means for control. This law also included provisions in which the government (federal) was involved in interstate incidences. However, it is the 1970 amendment that formed the platform of the air pollution control policy. The last amendments were done in 1990 create a means to address areas that had previously been without regulation such as the ozone layer depletion. States were required to be the enforcers of the act.
In this Act, there was created an Environment Protection Agency (EPA) tasked with the improvement of the country’s air quality on to of monitoring it. This body had a legal mandate to establish programs dealing with research related to air pollution, the setting of standards, extensive technical assistance and enforcement of any and all regulations. Additionally, this agency had a directive to create National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS), a body dealing with control from the human perspective.

NAAQS was to deal with primary pollutants which had a direct effect on health and secondary ones that affected human welfare. On top of these revisions, the 1990 reforms targeted a reduction by half on sulfur and nitrogen compounds emission in the atmosphere. The standards therein resulted in the creation of regional categories as a way of tracking progress. Also, these reforms were inclusive of a program leading to a phasing out of chlorofluorocarbons.
Just as it was intended to, the Act has resulted in a cutting of pollution with both a direct and indirect effect on the economy. First, a healthy populace is an essential component of economic growth. Reduction in air pollutants, especially fine particles, has resulted in a decrease in respiratory diseases such as bronchitis and asthmatic attacks. Besides this, about 100000 (Samet, 2011) cases of acute myocardial infarction and more than 150000 incidences of premature deaths have been avoided. Due to this, the Act has enabled the industries to bypass loss in workdays by about thirteen million thus improving productivity. Also, this is the health benefit to the younger generation in school that has utilized about 3.2 million days. These would have been lost otherwise. On the manufacturing scale, the constraints created by the act have resulted in innovative measures by companies to maintain production while at the same time sticking to the standards (Portney, 1990). This in itself is a job creation avenue in the fields of engineering, material science and related maintenance and operational technologies.
Programs initiated by the Clean Air Act have resulted in decreasing common pollutants amongst them being lead, carbon, and nitrogen and sulfur compounds. Between the creation of the act and the year 2015, the decrease averaged about 70%. At the national level, there was a significant improvement in the reducing the atmospheric concentration. For Lead, this improvement was by 85% alongside 84% and 3% for Carbon Monoxide Ozone respectively. The Lead compounds reduction was chiefly due to the phasing out of Lead in gasoline. This in itself has led to cleaner cities across the country. Besides, in the year 1990, about two hundred thousand deaths were avoided (Portney, 1990). These were deaths brought about by exposure to lead.
Global warming is a phenomenon that happens as a result of heat being trapped in the atmosphere. Among the gases responsible is carbon (IV) Oxide which mainly results from combustive functions. Scientifically, global warming can be tracked by checking changes in the earth’s temperatures. During the last century, there has been an increase of 1.5 degrees Fahrenheit mostly during the last 40 years. Presently, the level of carbon (IV) Oxide is 25% higher than in the year 1957. An increase in this gas is the core of global warming. Scientists and their allied societies have in consensus; therefore, prove the reality of global warming. Their investigations have shown that on average, earth’s sea levels have increased by 8” during the last century. This is a causal factor in coastal flooding. High summer temperatures in themselves have resulted in longer wildfire seasons. This is because the high global temperatures have been a primer to their ignition and spread. This in itself is proof that science is cognizant of the threat of global warming.
The United States should ensure that more control measures are put in place to curb the negativity of global warming. Though there has been evident progress in the nation, more focus should be directed towards an international collaborative effort. This is because global warming is a planetary occurrence and regardless of how efficient the US government is in controlling it within its borders, there will be overflow effects from other nations. Policies and laws about greenhouse gas emissions should take on a regional perspective. This is in order to enhance active participation from all and also ensure effective control. In addition, the US should create policies whose overall effect is a replication- to other nations- of environmental programs that have seen significant success. On top of this, there should be a regulation on the transport industry. This could in one way be through the use of hybrid vehicles. Mass transport systems such as train are also a major influence in the reduction of greenhouse gases. Finally, the policies should encourage the planting of trees and regulate deforestation. This is in a bid to make the ecosystem more balanced.
References
Portney, Paul R. “Policy watch: economics and the Clean Air Act.” The Journal of Economic Perspectives 4.4 (1990): 173-181.
Samet, Jonathan M. “The Clean Air Act and health—a clearer view from 2011.” New England Journal of Medicine 365.3 (2011): 198-201.