Laws, Regulations, Guidance and Dockets

Sometimes EPA finds that a regulation is not needed after all. While developing a new regulation, we periodically assess the latest information to reaffirm our approach. If the evidence suggests that a proposed regulation is unnecessary or inappropriate, we may abandon the issue or choose an alternative course of action.

For example, we worked with stakeholders to develop the National Vehicle Mercury Switch Recovery Program and thus avoid regulation. In August 2006, we successfully concluded a two-year negotiation with a number of stakeholders, including automakers, auto dismantlers, scrap recyclers, and steelmakers. The resulting program provides incentives for dismantlers and scrap recyclers to remove mercury-containing switches from retired or scrap vehicles.

Mercury-containing switches were used in the anti-lock braking systems and hood and trunk lights of many vehicles manufactured prior to 2003. If not properly disposed of, mercury from these switches can be released into the environment and harm the brain, heart, kidneys, lungs, and immune system. (Learn more about the health effects of mercury.) The National Vehicle Mercury Switch Recovery Program complements existing state-level mercury switch reduction efforts and will reduce mercury emissions by up to 75 tons over the next 15 years.

Although EPA believes that regulations play an irreplaceable role in environmental and public health protection, there are some circumstances where we can achieve superior environmental results using alternatives. Some of these alternatives are described below:

Voluntary Partnership Programs

EPA often works with other organizations to share ideas and leverage resources, achieving more environmental protection than we could ever achieve through individual effort or regulation alone. These partnerships involve other agencies and levels of government, universities, non-profit and community groups, and private companies. From scientific research to information sharing, environmental partnerships can be a powerful tool for accomplishing specific goals.

Today, EPA has more than 30 voluntary national programs to help companies and other organizations improve specific aspects of environmental management. For example:

• ENERGY STAR promotes energy efficient products and practices.
• Performance Track drives environmental excellence by encouraging facilities to go above and beyond their legal requirements.
• Design for the Environment helps companies find more environmentally sound alternatives to existing processes or technologies.
• Best Workplaces for Commuters works with employers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by offering commuter benefits to employees.

Plus, EPA has many other partnership programs that address regional priorities.

Economic Incentives

Economic incentives are used to link environmental and economic goals. They can take many different forms; for example, pollution fees charged by volume create an incentive for companies to reduce waste. Market-based trading programs, such as those used successfully to control acid rain, give companies the option to buy or sell pollution credits, depending upon their circumstances. Subsidies offer financial aid for environmental investments that might otherwise prove too expensive. And liability rules, such as those used in the federal Superfund program, create an incentive for businesses and communities to address environmental management issues before they become a problem.

Technical assistance

EPA offers businesses and other organizations tools to improve their environmental performance. We offer assistance on the Internet, during onsite visits, via telephone hotlines, and through training efforts. For example, EPA provides grants for assessment and cleanup of brownfields sites and related job training programs. The training allows communities to speed up cleanup and redevelopment efforts and, as a bonus, helps prepare local residents for future employment in the environmental field.

As EPA looks beyond traditional "command and control" regulations and toward creative approaches to environmental problem-solving, we benefit from the diverse skills of our staff. As you would expect, we have many employees with science, engineering, and law degrees. But you will also find staff with degrees in business, statistics, sociology, education, and public policy. This diversity of knowledge and experience is useful in our problem-solving, whether it involves regulation or not.

 

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