(499e) Over Half a Century of Protecting the Environment through Various Policies, Administrations, Successes, & Failures; An Overview of 50+ Years of EPA Regulations and Standards

Since the establishment of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on December 2nd, 1970, the Agency has implemented a vast number of regulations to benefit the American people and the environment. Over the last 51 years, the EPA and its dedicated workers have endeavored to fulfil its mission to protect human health and the environment; the Agency has sustained its critical function through 51 years and 10 different administrations (6 Republican and 4 Democratic presidents). The change of administration leads to change and priorities, and at times new or rolled back regulations. One such case is the Bush-era fuel standard increasing the fuel standards (established in 1975) to a corporate average of 35 miles per gallon by 2020, further increased by the Obama-era fuel efficiency standard of 54.5 mpg by 2025, then replaced by the Trump-era standard requiring a small 1.5% increase in average fuel economy compared to the pre-Obama standards, and then upon the inauguration of the Biden-era, auto makers themselves began to support higher fuel efficiency standards as the Administration foreshadowed increasing the standards akin to the Obama-era. This presentation aims to provide an overview of current U.S. environmental regulations, where we currently are, where we have come from, and where we are likely to go in the future.