Early legislation

According to Senate Report No. 95-181 (1977), As early as 1865, a bill was introduced in the Congress to create a Federal Mining Bureau. It further states that little was done until a series of serious mine disasters occurred after the turn of the century, causing pubhc demand for Federal action to stop excessive loss of life.  

In 1870, the first legislation on mine health and safety was passed in Pennsylvania (Pennsylvania Public Law 3) in response to outrage about the extent of death and injury. As shown in Table 1.1 (Anon. 1997), mine disasters were just beginning to become visible in the United States before 1875, and Pennsylvania took early action to stem the tide. The Pennsylvania Act was an act providing for the health and safety of persons employed in coal mines. It also formed the basis for eventual legislation in other states, as well as for federal legislative actions. 

Before tlie 1970s, there was little legislation regarding Uie prevention of air and water pollution. Although some of the early laws approached the issue of pollution prc cntion, none of tliis legislation provided for emergency plaiming and response in the event of an accident. 

The Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899, also known as the Refuse Act, was the first piece of legislation directed toward the prevention of water pollution. It stated that  

Violators of the Refuse Act were subject to a fine of not more titan 2,500 and/or imprisonment for not more than one year. Althougli not drafted to curb oil pollution, the Refuse Act has been w idcly used to prosecute those who discharge oil into navigable waters. 

The Oil Pollution Act. wliich prohibits the discluirge of oil from any vessel into navigtible waters, was pttssed in 1924. The penalties for violators were the same as those for the Refuse Act of 1899 with one addition tlie Coast Guard had the authority to suspend or revoke licenses held by the officers of vessels found to be in violation of the act. 

The Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1948 was enacted to enliancc the qimlity and alue of our natural resources and to establish a national 

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Our main disagreement with our colleagues lies in the answer to this question. They favour a voluntary system until time can be foimd for legislation. We believe that any voluntary system must have so many loopholes that it can offer no real additional safeguards to the public. In consequence, we consider that there is no satisfactory alternative to early legislation. ... 

Although these arguments were often made from the perspectives of those profiting from labour, the workforce were also brought into the production debates of the early legislation, positioned by some on the same side as their employers. For example, the argument was made that people wanted to work for as long as they could (irrespective of safety concerns), simply so they could... 

Early legislation tried to increase employer responsibility by removing some of the common law defenses assumption of risk and the fellow servant rule. Some liability laws also changed contributory negligence to comparative negligence and allowed juries to determine whether the employer or employee was more negligent. Under Employer Liability Acts, the injured worker had to take his claim to court. The worker had to find fellow workers who would risk... 

Automotive Catalytic Converter Catalysts. California environmental legislation in the early 1960s stimulated the development of automobile engines with reduced emissions by the mid-1960s, led to enactment of the Federal Clean Air Act of 1970, and resulted in a new industry, the design and manufacture of the automotive catalytic converter (50). Between 1974 and 1989, exhaust hydrocarbons were reduced by 87% and nitrogen oxides by 24%. 

At the time of writing photodegradants are in an early stage of development and have not yet been fully evaluated. It is a moot point whether or not manufacturers will put such materials into polymer compounds and thus increase the price about 5% without legal necessity. However, if such legislation, considered socially desirable by many, took place one might expect polyethylene... 

All the early water legislation addressed Ute issue of pollution, but Ute issue of emergency plamting and response was overlooked. The OH Pollution Act of 1961 and the Clean Water Restoration Act of 1966 leaned toward prevention and response, but Uic efforts fell short of providing meaningful legislation. 

All the early water legislation addressed the issue of pollution, but tlie issue of emergency plaiuiing and response was overlooked. 

Chemical contaminants are usually not reduced or removed by processing steps. Chemical risks must preferably be controlled as early as possible in the agri-food chain. Food color additives (Section 7.1.3) are chemical compounds and are considered potential risks. Therefore a safety evaluation is part of the approval of a food colorant before its use is acknowledged by legislation (see also Section 7.1.6). This section explains the principles of risk assessment and includes an example of such an assessment of a specific food colorant. 

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