Laws, Regulations, Guidance and Dockets

EPA develops and enforces regulations that span many environmental categories, from acid rain reduction to wetlands restoration. We may not have Web pages for every regulatory requirement, but we have listed here those Web pages that we do offer. These pages may provide a regulation’s text, history, statutory authority, supporting analyses, compliance information, or related guidance.

If you cannot find what you are looking for in the links below, you might want to browse the regulatory information provided by our program offices:

• Office of Air and Radiation (OAR)
• Office of Prevention, Pesticides, and Toxic Substances (OPPTS)
• Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response (OSWER)
• Office of Water (OW)

Please contact us if you think a topic or link is missing from this page.

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Acid Rain

• Clean Air Markets: Guidance and Fact Sheets - Guidance on permitting, emissions monitoring, reporting, and other activities under the Acid Rain Program.
• The Plain English Guide to the Clean Air Act: Reducing Acid Rain

Agriculture

• See the Agriculture Business Sector page.

Air

• Air and Radiation: Regulations and Statutes
• Clean Air Act - Links to the sections of the Clean Air Act as amended in 1990, legislative analyses, and related documents.
• Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR) - Background, legislative, and technical information on CAIR, which will permanently cap emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) in the eastern United States by 2015.
• Clean Air Markets: Rules, Policy, and Instructions
  • Agreement Between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of Canada on Air Quality
• Clean Air Mercury Rule (CAMR) - Background, legislative, and technical information on CAMR. which permanently caps and reduces mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants.
• Clear Skies - General, legislative and technical information relating to the Clear Skies Program.
• Mobile Sources Air Toxics: Regulations - EPA is finalizing new standards that would establish stringent new controls on gasoline, passenger vehicles, and gas cans to further reduce emissions of benzene and other mobile source air toxics.
• Ozone
  • Ground-Level Ozone: Regulatory Actions
  • Stratospheric Ozone: Regulatory Programs
• Plain English Guide to the Clean Air Act
• Technology Transfer Network Air Toxics Web Site
  • List of Hazardous Air Pollutants, as defined by the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990
  • Rules and Implementation - Access to regulations (also known as rules or standards) for all industries that emit one or more of toxic air pollutants in significant quantities.
• Technology Transfer Network OAR Policy and Guidance Information - Rules, policy, and guidance documents produced by EPA's Office of Air and Radiation (OAR).
  • Recent Actions - Quick and easy access to recent regulatory, policy, and guidance documents issued by OAR in the last six months.

Asbestos

• Asbestos and Vermiculite: Laws and Regulations

Automotive Industry

• See the Automotive Sector page.

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Beaches

• BEACH Act (a.k.a., Beaches Environmental Assessment and Coastal Health Act of 2000)
• Clean Beaches Plan

Brownfields

• Brownfields and Land Revitalization: Laws and Statutes - Laws impacting brownfield cleanup and reuse.

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Cars, Trucks, and Other Motorized Equipment

• See the Transportation Business Sector page.

Chemicals

• See the Chemicals Business Sector page.

Children

• Children's Health Protection: Regulations
• EPA Policy on Evaluating Risk to Children

China

• EPA's China Environmental Law Initiative

Cleanup

• Cleanup Regulations and Standards - Regulations and standards for cleaning hazardous materials and wastes.
• Corrective Action: Rules and Regulations - The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Corrective Action Program, run by EPA and 41 authorized states and territories, compels responsible parties to investigate and cleanup hazardous releases. This page links to the rules and regulations related to the Corrective Action Program.

Climate Change

• U.S. Climate Policy and Actions - Climate change policy of the U.S. federal government.

Computers/ Electronics

• See the Computers/ Electronics Business Sector page.

Construction

• See the Construction Business Sector page.

Cooperative Conservation

• Cooperative Conservation - Get Involved - This page enables users to learn about ways the public is involved with regulatory and non-regulatory activities to promote environmental protection and natural resource conservation. The content was developed by staff from EPA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the Departments of Agriculture, Defense and Interior.
• EPA's Legal Framework Supports Collaboration (PDF) (20 pp, 872K, About PDF) - This August 2007 document demonstrates that EPA's enabling statutes and cross-agency laws provide a strong framework for collaborative approaches with partners, stakeholders and the public to protect human health and the environment.

Coral Reef Protection

• Memorandum for Field: Special Emphasis Given to Coral Reef Protection under the Clean Water Act, Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act, Rivers and Harbors Act, and Federal Project Authorities

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Drinking Water

• Drinking Water Contaminants - National primary and secondary drinking water regulations, and lists of both regulated and unregulated contaminants.
• Drinking Water Standards - Priority rulemakings, regulatory infrastructure, and additional information related to drinking water standards.
• Public Notification Rule - The Public Notification Rule requires faster notice in water system emergencies and fewer notices overall.
• Radionuclides in Drinking Water Rule - Information about the radionuclides regulation and related analytical methods.
• Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA): Regulations and Guidance

Dry Cleaning

• See the Dry Cleaning Sector page.

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Energy

• See the Energy/ Power Generator Business Sector page.

Enforcement

• Compliance and Enforcement Home - Extensive information on how to comply with EPA's regulations and on EPA's enforcement activities.
• Report an Environmental Violation

Environmental Justice

• Federal Action to Address Environmental Justice in Minority and Low-Income Populations: Executive Order 12898 - Presents the text to Executive Order 12898.
• Environmental Justice: Policies and Guidance

Extraction

• See the Extraction Business Sector page.

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Federal Facilities

• See the Federal Facilities Business Sector page.

Fishing

• See the Fishing Business Sector page.

Food Quality

• See the Food Business Sector page.

Forest

• See the Forest Business Sector page.

Furniture

• See the Furniture Sector page.

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Garment/ Textiles

• See the Garment/ Textiles Sector page.
• See the Leather Business Sector page.

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Healthcare/ Hospitals

• See the Healthcare Business Sector page.

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Import/ Export

• International Import and Export - A variety of laws and regulations govern import and export requirements of materials which may pose a risk to human health and the environment. Information on these legal requirments and other information on imports and exports may be found on here.

International Affairs

• Countries and Regions - Bilateral cooperative programs that the U.S. holds with foreign countries, by continent.
• Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement - Rights and obligations of Canada and the United States under the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement.
• International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL 73/78) - International treaty regulating the disposal of wastes generated by normal operation of vessels.
• International Waste Agreements - Waste agreements between the U.S. and foreign countries.
• MARPOL 73/78 - International treaty regulating the disposal of wastes generated by normal operation of vessels.
• Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, 20th Anniversary - International treaties, international organizations, national and local ozone protection programs, and other information pertaining to ozone protection.
• North American Commission on Environmental Cooperation (NACEC)
• North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) Technical Working Group (TWG) on Pesticides
• Regulating Pesticides: International Issues

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Lead

• Lead in Paint, Dust, and Soil: Rules and Regulations

Leather

• See the Leather Business Sector page.

Low-Income Populations

• Environmental Justice: Policies and Guidance
• Federal Action to Address Environmental Justice in Minority and Low-Income Populations: Executive Order 12898 - Presents the text to Executive Order 12898.

Lumber

• See the Pulp/ Paper/ Lumber Business Sector page.

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Mercury

• Mercury: Laws and Regulations - Mercury-specific laws, regulations, standards, guidance, technical assistance resources, and support documents. Thie portal includes information on the Clean Air Mercury Rule (CAMR) and the Battery Act.

Metals

• See the Metals Business Sector page.

Minerals/ Mines

• See the Minerals/ Mining Business Sector page.

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Ocean

• Marine and Ocean Discharges - Regulations governing marine and ocean discharges under the Clean Water Act.

Oil Spills

• See the Petroleum Business Sector page.

Ozone

• Ozone
  • Ground-Level Ozone: Regulatory Actions
  • Stratospheric Ozone: Regulatory Programs

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Paper

• See the Pulp/ Paper/ Lumber Business Sector page.

Particulate Matter

• Particulate Matter: Regulatory Actions

Pesticides

• See the Pesticides Business Sector page.

Petroleum

• See the Petroleum Business Sector page.

Pharmaceuticals

• See the Pharmaceuticals Business Sector page.

Plastics

• See the Rubber/ Plastics Business Sector page.

Pulp

• See the Pulp/ Paper/ Lumber Business Sector page.

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Radiation

• Mixed Waste: Laws, Regulations, and Guidance
• Radiation Protection: Laws and Regulations - Laws, executive orders, Presidential decision directives, Federal emergency response plans and regulations relating to radiation protection.
• Radiological Emergency Planning and Preparedness Regulation
• Yucca Mountain Standards - Yucca Mountain regulatory documents and public hearing transcripts.

Rubber

• See the Rubber/ Plastics Business Sector page.

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Shipbuilding

• See the Shipbuilding Business Sector page.

Solid Waste

• See the Solid Waste Business Sector page.

Stormwater

• National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Stormwater Regulations

Superfund

• Superfund: Laws, Policy, and Guidance

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Tires

• Management of Scrap Tires: Laws/ Statutes

Toxic Release Inventory (TRI)

• Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) Laws, Regulations, and Executive Orders

Toxic Substances

• Emergency Management: Laws and Regulations
• Existing Chemicals:
  • TSCA Information Collection and Data Development (testing)
  • High Production Volume Challenge Program
  • Chemical Assessment and Management Program (ChAMP)
• Drinking Water Standards
• New Chemicals
• Polychlorinated Biphenyls: Laws and Regulations
• Substance Registry System - Information on substances and how they are represented in EPA regulations and information systems.

Transportation

• See the Transportation Business Sector page.

Tribes

• See the Tribes Sector page.

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Underground Storage Tanks

• Regulations and Standards Related to Underground Storage Tanks

Universal Waste

• Universal Waste: Laws and Regulations

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Waste

• Waste: Laws and Regulations

Wetlands

• Wetlands: Laws, Regulations, Treaties - Key federal statutes governing wetlands in the United States.

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