# Presentation: 886350

## The Environmental Protection Agency’s Use of Voluntary Consensus Standards

**Mary C. McKiel**
**Standards Executive**
**U.S. Environmental Protection Agency**

**Notes:**
GOOD AFTERNOON. 

## EPA Activities

- Regulatory
- Based on legal mandates
- Enforceable by Federal and State Authorities
- Incorporate voluntary consensus standards whenever possible
- Voluntary Programs
- Partnerships with stakeholders
- Incentive programs
- Use voluntary consensus standards as applicable

##  Regulatory Actions 

- Laws for Environment, Health, Safety
- Toxic Control Substances Act
- Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
- Clean Air Act;  Clean Water Act
- Law on Standards and Conformity Assessment
- National Technology Transfer & Advancement Act
- Trade Agreements
- World Trade Organization
- TBT – Technical Barriers to Trade
- SPS – Sanitary and Phytosanitary

**Notes:**
1) NATIONAL LAW FOLLOWS THE PREAMBLE OF THE US CONSTITUTION.  THAT IS, IT ENVISIONS LAWS THAT ARE “BY THE PEOPLE.”  THE PEOPLE’S REPRESENTATIVES (MEMBERS OF CONGRESS) DEVELOP, PROPOSE AND PASS LEGISLATION THAT THE PRESIDENT SIGNS INTO LAW.

TREATIES CARRY THE SAME FORCE OF LAW SINCE THEY MUST BE RATIFIED BY THE SENATE
BETWEEN NATIONAL LAW AND TREATIES, THE LAST IN TIME GOVERNS.

2) IN ITS LAWS, CONGRESS FREQUENTLY DELEGATES TO REGULATORY AGENCIES, WHICH HOUSE THE TECHNICAL  EXPERTISE, THE POWER TO TRANSCRIBE LEGISLATIVE STANDARDS INTO SPECIFIC REGULATIONS.

FOR INSTANCE, A LEGISLATIVE STANDARD MAY CALL FOR THE EPA TO SET TOLERANCE LEVELS FOR PESTICIDE CHEMICAL RESIDUES AND TO USE A 10-FOLD SAFETY FACTOR TO ACCOUNT FOR POSSIBLE DIFFERENCES WITH CHILDREN IN ITS RISK ASSESSMENT AND HELATH-BASED DETERMINATIONS.

OTHER LEGISLATION MAY CALL FOR ECONOMIC CONSIDERATIONS AS AGENCIES SET LEVELS OF PROTECTION IN REGULATION, e.g., 

CONGRESS HAS ALSO MANDATED EXACTLY HOW REGULATION OCCURS PROCEDURALLY (VIA THE ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES ACT), THE PRESIDENT HAS ADDED ADDITIONAL MEASURES (E.O. 12866 -- Title) AND THE COURTS HAVE ADDED ADDITIONAL TESTS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF REGULATION IN THEIR COMMON LAW DECISIONS.

3) NATIONAL LAW AND REGULATIONS WHICH CARRY THE FORCE OF LAW ACT AS A FEDERAL FLOOR TO STATE LAWS AND REGULATIONS.  STATES MUST ACT AS STRINGENTLY AS FEDERAL LAW MANDATES AND MAY ACT MORE STRINGENTLY SO LONG AS NATIONAL LAW DOES NOT STATE OTHERWISE.

GUARDS VS. POLLUTION HAVENS AND ENSURES CONSISTENCY

Regulated sources are also usually required to test, monitor and report their emissions of HAPs to a designated State or local authority.

## Considerations in the Development 

**Timely**

**Legally Defensible**

**Simple**

**Flexible**

**Sound Analysis**

**Clear & Concise**

**Comprehensive**

**Easy to Implement & Enforce**

**Voluntary **
**Standards, i.e., **
**NTTAA &**
**OMB Circular **

**Trade-related Obligations**

**Transparency**

- Considerations in the Development
- of Technical Regulations

## Voluntary Standards Used in Regulations: Examples

- Regulatory Use of Voluntary standards for:
- Refrigerant recovery equipment
- Methods for examination of water and wastewater for E. coli
- Permeation of liners for underground storage tanks
- Measurement of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide content of exhaust gas from chemical recovery combustion sources

## Voluntary and Incentive Programs at US EPA: Examples

- Energy Star – product oriented
- Environmental Management Systems – help Federal agencies implement EMS
- Pollution Prevention
- Mercury reduction
- Green purchasing
- Recycling of Electronic Products

## Using Voluntary Standards in Voluntary and Incentive Programs

- Voluntary and incentive programs use voluntary standards for:
- Best practice guides in the Federal Energy Challenge – standards for green buildings, product manuafacturing and use, etc.
- Environmentally Preferable Products – ASTM product testing standards
- Energy Star – various standards
- Environmental Management  -- ISO 14001
- Recycling of Electronic Products – IEEE 1680

## Regulatory Resources

- _Introduction to Laws & Regulations_
- 	http://www.epa.gov/epahome/lawintro.htm
- _Current Laws & Regulations_
- 	http://www.epa.gov/epahome/rules.html
- _EPA Test Methods_
- 	http://www.epa.gov/epahome/index/
- _U.S. Govt.-wide Regulations_
- 	http://www.reginfo.gov

## Standards Resources

- American National Standards Institute
- 	http://www.ansi.org
- Standards In Government
- http://www.standards.gov
- Conformity Assessment
- http://www.nist.gov
- 	  http://web.ansi.org/public/ca_act.html
- Search Engine
- 	http://www.nssn.org