Legal Definitions - environmental law

Environmental law is the comprehensive body of rules, regulations, and legal principles designed to protect the natural environment and human health from environmental hazards. It encompasses a wide range of measures, including those aimed at preventing pollution and environmental degradation, regulating activities that could impact ecosystems, conserving natural resources, and assigning responsibility for the cleanup and restoration of areas already damaged.

Here are some examples of how environmental law applies:

• Developing a New Industrial Facility: Imagine a company planning to build a large new factory that will emit certain pollutants into the air and discharge treated wastewater into a nearby river. Before construction can begin, environmental law requires the company to obtain various permits. These permits, issued by agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or state environmental departments, would set strict limits on the amount and type of pollutants the factory can release. The company might also be required to install specific pollution control technology and regularly monitor its emissions.

  This illustrates environmental law's role in prevention and regulation, ensuring that new projects meet specific environmental standards to minimize their impact on air and water quality.

• Cleaning Up a Contaminated Site: A former dry-cleaning business operated for decades, and over time, chemicals used in its operations seeped into the soil and groundwater, contaminating the property and potentially affecting neighboring areas. Years later, the contamination is discovered. Environmental law, particularly statutes like the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), often referred to as "Superfund," would be invoked. This law allows government agencies to identify the responsible parties (even if the business no longer exists) and compel them to pay for or conduct the extensive cleanup required to remove the hazardous substances and restore the site to a safe condition.

  This demonstrates environmental law's function in remediation and liability, holding polluters accountable for past damage and ensuring the cleanup of hazardous waste sites.

• Protecting a Rare Wildlife Habitat: A unique species of salamander, found only in a specific forest wetland, is discovered to be critically endangered due to habitat loss from encroaching development. Environmental law, through statutes such as the Endangered Species Act, can provide legal protections for this salamander and its habitat. This might involve designating the wetland as a critical habitat, restricting certain development activities within or near the area, or requiring developers to create alternative habitats or mitigation plans to ensure the species' survival.

  This highlights environmental law's commitment to conservation and biodiversity protection, safeguarding vulnerable species and their ecosystems from human activities.