Introduction
A law regarding labor finds its approval from the state legislature or congress. At the local level, this law is usually termed as an ordinance. Such laws are either based on the chronological facts relating to period passed or according to topic. This paper serves to explain the more on the Clean Air Act enacted and reinforced by the Federal government.
Select one labor statute or regulation at the federal, state or local level, which you find, of interest
The Clean Air Act came into being following a legislation passed by the American congress in 1970. This Act was tailored to ensure that all American citizens have breathing air that is pollutant-free. Despite its concern to keep the environment from air pollution effects, this law majorly focused on Public health protection. Several amendment have been passed on this Act, with the first taking effect in 1977 and another which sought to specify new strategies for cleaning up the air and extend deadlines for legal actions in 1990.in the face of all this, the laws original framework and its attached public health objectives have never changed (Lipton, 2006).
Describe the objective of the statute or regulation including the number of the particular law or regulation; provide at least one example of how an organization has implemented the statute
The clean air Act was passed with the major objective of protecting the American citizens from pollutants that include Ozone (smog), sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, lead, nitrogen dioxide and particulate soot. The state government sought to work out a clean-up strategy that will meet the health standards outlined. In addition, this law sought to empower the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which sets standards regarding new sources of air pollution such as power plants, automobiles and trucks.
In this respect, section 109 of Clean Air acts provides that the EPA shall publish National Ambient Quality Standards paying attention on specific pollutants. Here, the health and welfare forms the basis of criterion used to decide on the kind of pollutants to control and the level at which it is regulated. The pollutants considered at that time included sulfur oxide, carbon monoxide, ozone, particulate matter, sulfur oxide and lead.
Another section of the act is the 112 section, which directs EPA to set up the limits for the emissions of toxic pollutants. This is more concern as a precaution put in place to mitigate increased mortality or any serious incapacitating illness (Belden, 2001).
Hussey Seating Company (Hussey) is an example of a company, which made a deliberate move towards the implementation of the Clean Air act. This implementation served as an effort to improve the working surroundings by cutting down the air emissions from their wood finishing process. In addition, this was a measure adopted in preparation for the imminent Clean Air Act.
This company deals in bleacher seating that majorly comprise long, flat and comparatively narrow boards. Initially, polyurethane varnish was used to finish the two coats on both sides. Following a suggestion posed by an employee in 1993, the company decided to undertake a research on the viability of UV cured coating. In 1994, the results of the analysis led to a move that saw the company switch to automated UV coating. Consequently, the emission from the UV covering system became a problem of the past. In the same line, hazardous air pollutant (HAP) and volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions were cut down from nearly 50 tons to only 219 pounds yearly.
Secondly, Hussey Company replaced the nitrocellulose solvent-based covering for making wood chair back and arms with coating from aqueous polyester. This switch to aqueous –based coating worked to reduce the VOC emission to less than two pounds for every gallon. This is a big contrast to the six pounds in every gallon when using nitrocellulose coating (Air & Waste Management Association, 1999).
Discuss how an organization should or has measured and monitored for compliance with the statute
NAAQS are special air quality standards in America that serve to regulate the air quality. These standards are divided into primary NAAQS, which are set at a level that serves to protect the general public health and secondary NAAQs established to guard the environment. The standards units are in microgram per cubic meter or pert per million over a known time. These standards referred to as “criteria pollutants” measure the six categories of pollutants.
Conclusion
Organizations monitor the compliance with the Clean Air Act by analyzing the concentration of the criteria pollutants in the working environment. This is compared with the threshold or regulated level for one or more National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). Following this, the area is classified as nonattainment if it is found to exceed certain level.On the other hand, if the levels are lower than those established by NAAQS it is classified as attainment. Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) owns the ambient air monitors, which serve to monitor these levels. These monitors are located in the different states across the country. EPA (Belden, 2001) publishes the analyzed results.
References
Air & Waste Management Association. (1999).EM: Air & Waste Management Association’s magazine for environmental. London: The Association.
Belden, R. (2001).Clean Air Act. New York, NY: American Bar Association, 2001
Lipton, J. (2006).Clean Air Act: Interpretation. Detroit: Nova Publishers.