California Environmental Protection Agency
Encyclopedia
The California Environmental Protection Agency (Cal/EPA) is a state cabinet
Cabinet (government)
A Cabinet is a body of high ranking government officials, typically representing the executive branch. It can also sometimes be referred to as the Council of Ministers, an Executive Council, or an Executive Committee.- Overview :...

-level agency within the government of California
Government of California
The government of California operates in the context of a democratic republic with three branches of government: the executive branch consisting of the Governor of California and the other elected constitutional officers; the legislative branch consisting of the California State Legislature which...

. Cal/EPA is composed of six departments, boards and offices responsible for environmental
Natural environment
The natural environment encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally on Earth or some region thereof. It is an environment that encompasses the interaction of all living species....

 research, regulating and administering the state's environmental protection programs, and fulfilling hazardous waste
Hazardous waste
A hazardous waste is waste that poses substantial or potential threats to public health or the environment. According to the U.S. environmental laws hazardous wastes fall into two major categories: characteristic wastes and listed wastes.Characteristic hazardous wastes are materials that are known...

 cleanup.

The current Secretary for Environmental Protection is Matt Rodriquez, and is a member of Governor Jerry Brown's
Jerry Brown
Edmund Gerald "Jerry" Brown, Jr. is an American politician. Brown served as the 34th Governor of California , and is currently serving as the 39th California Governor...

 cabinet.

Cal/EPA should not be confused with the similarly named federal Environmental Protection Agency
United States Environmental Protection Agency
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is an agency of the federal government of the United States charged with protecting human health and the environment, by writing and enforcing regulations based on laws passed by Congress...

.

History

Cal/EPA was created by Governor Pete Wilson
Pete Wilson
Peter Barton "Pete" Wilson is an American politician from California. Wilson, a Republican, served as the 36th Governor of California , the culmination of more than three decades in the public arena that included eight years as a United States Senator , eleven years as Mayor of San Diego and...

 by Executive Order W-5-91 in 1991, following on a "Big Green" initiative Wilson proposed during the 1990 state gubernatorial elections
California gubernatorial election, 1990
The 1990 California gubernatorial election was held on November 6, 1990. The Republican nominee, Senator Pete Wilson, narrowly defeated the Democratic nominee, former San Francisco Mayor Dianne Feinstein, who would later go on to win Wilson's Senate seat....

, promising a cabinet-level agency to oversee state environmental regulations and research. Following inter-agency reorganizations led by the governor with review by both houses of the California State Legislature
California State Legislature
The California State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of California. It is a bicameral body consisting of the lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members, and the upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members...

, the agency became a cabinet department on July 17, 1991.

Cal/EPA, and its departmental California Air Resources Board
California Air Resources Board
The California Air Resources Board, also known as CARB or ARB, is the "clean air agency" in the government of California. Established in 1967 in the Mulford-Carrell Act, combining the Bureau of Air Sanitation and the Motor Vehicle Pollution Control Board, CARB is a department within the...

, were one of the key supporters of the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006
Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006
The Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, or Assembly Bill 32, is a California State Law that fights climate change by establishing a comprehensive program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from all sources throughout the state...

, making the state the first in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 to cap all greenhouse gas
Greenhouse gas
A greenhouse gas is a gas in an atmosphere that absorbs and emits radiation within the thermal infrared range. This process is the fundamental cause of the greenhouse effect. The primary greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere are water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone...

 emissions from major industries.

In June 2008, Cal/EPA announced that new global warming
Global warming
Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its projected continuation. In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about with about two thirds of the increase occurring over just the last three decades...

 performance labels would be placed on all new cars effective on January 1, 2009. The stickers will provide two scores: a smog score and a global warming score with a grade from 1 to 10 assigned. The higher the grade, the more environmentally friendly the vehicle is.

Departments, boards, and offices

The following departments, boards and offices fall under Cal/EPA:
  • California Air Resources Board
    California Air Resources Board
    The California Air Resources Board, also known as CARB or ARB, is the "clean air agency" in the government of California. Established in 1967 in the Mulford-Carrell Act, combining the Bureau of Air Sanitation and the Motor Vehicle Pollution Control Board, CARB is a department within the...

  • Department of Pesticide Regulation
    California Department of Pesticide Regulation
    The California Department of Pesticide Regulation is one of six branches of the California Environmental Protection Agency. This regulatory program has had the status of an official government department since 1991 but has been in operation since the early 1920s as part of the California Department...

  • Department of Toxic Substances Control
    California Department of Toxic Substances Control
    The California Department of Toxic Substances Control is an agency of the government of the state of California. The Mission of the California Department of Toxic Substances Control is to provide the highest level of safety, and to protect public health and the environment from toxic harm...

  • Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment
    California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment
    The Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, commonly referred to as OEHHA , is a specialized department within the cabinet-level California Environmental Protection Agency with responsibility for evaluating health risks from environmental chemical contaminants.OEHHA is the scientific...

  • State Water Resources Control Board
    California State Water Resources Control Board
    The California State Water Resources Control Board is one of five branches of the California Environmental Protection Agency.-History:...


See also

  • Climate change in California
    Climate change in California
    California has taken legislative steps towards reducing the possible effects climate change by incentives and plans for clean cars, renewable energy and stringent caps on big polluting industries.- Scoping Plan :...

  • Environmentalism
    Environmentalism
    Environmentalism is a broad philosophy, ideology and social movement regarding concerns for environmental conservation and improvement of the health of the environment, particularly as the measure for this health seeks to incorporate the concerns of non-human elements...

  • Kyoto Protocol
    Kyoto Protocol
    The Kyoto Protocol is a protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change , aimed at fighting global warming...

  • Pollution in California
    Pollution in California
    Pollution in California is the amount of harmful substances in California. Studies show that pollution links to cancer and birth complications. In 2008 Bakersfield, California had the worst level of pollution in the nation. - Causes :...

  • United States Environmental Protection Agency
    United States Environmental Protection Agency
    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is an agency of the federal government of the United States charged with protecting human health and the environment, by writing and enforcing regulations based on laws passed by Congress...

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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