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EPA History

Milestones in EPA and Environmental History

Read more about Agency accomplishments, including reports, speeches and articles about EPA's achievements and anniversary celebrations.

 
 

Rachel Carson's Silent Spring Published

Fire on the Cuyahoga River

President Nixon Signs NEPA

First Earth Day

Official Formation of EPA

Administrator William D. Ruckelshaus

Clean Air Act of 1970

Lead-Based Paint Restrictions

EPA Takes National Action on Air Quality

EPA Defines Air Pollution Danger Levels

Vehicle Fuel Economy Testing

Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement

EPA and Russian Scientists Join Forces

EPA Bans DDT

Clean Water Act

Ocean Dumping Act

First Wastewater Permits Issued

Auto Maintenance Regulations

Oil Embargo

Administrator Russell E. Train

Transportation Controls

Leaded Gasoline Phase-Out

EPA Book In Children's Cereal Boxes

Safe Drinking Water Act

Jet-Plane Noise Control

Cutting Aid to Polluters

Cancer-Causing Pesticides Banned

Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)

Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)

Administrator Douglas M. Costle

Safer Drinking Water

Clean Air Act Amendments

Clean Water Act of 1977

Love Canal Disaster

EPA Sets New National Air Pollution Standard for Lead

Phaseout of Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)

Three Mile Island Nuclear Accident

PCB Phase-out Begins

Antelope Launches

Bubble Policy

Love Canal Lawsuit

Congress Creates the Superfund Program

Administrator Anne M. Gorsuch (Burford)

Valley of the Drums

Nuclear Waste Policy Act

Asbestos Testing in Schools

Environmental Justice Movement Begins

Dioxin Contamination in Times Beach, Missouri

Olin Corporation Pays for DDT Damage

Administrator William D. Ruckelshaus

'Fishbowl' Policy

Emergency EDB Pesticide Ban

Chesapeake Bay Pollution Cleanup

Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments of 1984 Passed

Bhopal Disaster

Administrator Lee M. Thomas

90 Percent Reduction of Lead in Gasoline

Hole in the Ozone Layer Discovered

First Use of Gene-Altered Bacteria

The Chernobyl Accident

Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) Amendments

Wetlands Protection

'Right to Know' Laws for Chemical Safety

Medical Waste Tracking Act

Montreal Protocol Signed by U.S.

Standards for Underground Storage Tanks

Launch of EPA Radon Program

Sewage Ocean-Dumping Ban

Administrator William K. Reilly

Exxon Valdez Spill

Alar (Daminozide) Pesticide Banned for Use on Foods

Toxic Release Inventory (TRI)

Toxic Waste Control

Pollution Prevention Act

Acid Rain Controls Enacted

National Environmental Education Act

Eco-Terrorism Against Kuwait

Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Energy Star Program

New York City Stops Dumping Sewage in the Ocean

Administrator Carol M. Browner

Acid Rain for Sale

Cryptosporidium Outbreak in Milwaukee

Passive Smoking Health Effects

Environmentally Preferable Purchasing (EPP)

Schedule to End Manufacture of CFCs and Other Chemicals that Thin the Ozone Layer

Environmental Justice

New Standards for Chemical Plants

Brownfields Program

Hello, World! EPA Goes Online

Monitoring the Environment with the Help of Space Satellites

First Refinery Regulation

Municipal Waste Combustors (MWCs)

Leaded Gasoline Phased Out

Lead Paint Requirements

Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA)

Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) Amendments

Great Lakes Cleanup

Protection for Children Against Environmental Risks

New Air Quality Standards

Data by ZIP Code

Regional Haze Rule

New Emissions Standards for Cars

Pesticides Ban

Administrator Christine Todd Whitman

Global POPs Treaty

EPA Responds to the 9/11 Terrorist Attacks

Hudson River Cleanup

Largest Clean Air Act Settlement with Utility

Administrator Michael O. Leavitt

Clean School Bus USA Reduces Children's Exposure to Diesel Emissions from Buses

Reduced Emissions for Off-Road Vehicles with Diesel Engines

EPA Launches Methane to Markets International Partnership

Administrator Stephen L. Johnson

EPA Responds to Hurricane Katrina

Clean Diesel

EPA's WaterSense Program Created

EPA Offsets Electricity

EPA Strengthens National Air Quality Standards

EPA Issues Ground Water Rule

EPA Embraces Social Media

EPA Employees Share Nobel Peace Prize for Work on Climate Change

BP Pays Largest Criminal Fine Ever for Air Violations

Yucca Mountain Standards

Stronger Lead Standards

TVA Kingston Fossil Plant Release

Administrator Lisa P. Jackson

Stimulus Plan

Initiative to Monitor Levels of Toxic Air Pollutants Near Schools

Clean Cars Program

Chesapeake Bay Executive Order

California Tackles Greenhouse Gases

Greenhouse Gases Endangerment Finding

Stronger Smog Standard

BP Oil Spill

National Lead-Safe Renovation Program to Protect Children and Pregnant Women

EPA Contributes Millions to Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves

Obama Signs Executive Order Forming Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force

Nation's First Greenhouse Gas Fuel Efficiency Standards for Trucks and Buses

EPA to Expand Chemicals Testing for Endocrine Disruption

Greenhouse Gas Reporting

Aspen Institute issues 10 Ways EPA has Strengthened America

EPA Establishes Landmark Chesapeake Bay 'Pollution Diet'

Japanese Earthquake, Tsunami Damage Nuclear Reactor

Next Generation of Fuel Economy Labels Unveiled

Smokestack Pollution Reduced,Protecting Americans' Health from Soot and Smog

Fuel Efficiency and Greenhouse Gas Pollution Standards for Heavy-Duty Vehicles Save $50 Billion in Fuel Costs

First National Standards for Mercury Pollution from Power Plants

20 Years of Progress through the Energy Star Program

EPA Proposes First Carbon Pollution Standard for New Power Plants

EPA Updates Air Pollution Standards for Oil and Natural Gas

Obama Administration Finalizes Historic 54.5 mpg Fuel Efficiency Standards

Responding to Environmental Issues after Hurricane Sandy

EPA Strengthens Air Standards for Fine Particles, Reducing Harmful Soot Pollution

New Clean Air Standards for Industrial Boilers, Incinerators, and Cement Kilns

Comprehensive Plan for Climate Change

Administrator Gina McCarthy

New Rules for Cleaner Fuels and Cars

First Guidelines Proposed to Cut Carbon Pollution from Existing Power Plants

Clean Water Rule Protects Critical Streams and Wetlands

Paris Climate Accord

President Obama Signs Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act

EPA Outlines Actions to Improve Safety, Reliability of Nation's Drinking Water

Administrator Scott Pruitt

EPA Announces Superfund Task Force

U.S. Withdraws from the Paris Climate Accord

EPA, Army Move to Rescind 2015 'Waters of the US' Rule

EPA Proposes Repeal of the Clean Power Plan

EPA Launches Broad Effort to Address PFAS

Administrator Andrew Wheeler

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