The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an agency of the United States government. It works to protect human health and the environment. The EPA does this job by writing rules and making sure that they are followed. The idea for the EPA was first thought of by President Richard Nixon. The EPA was started on December 2, 1970, after Nixon signed a presidential order. The order starting the EPA was approved through discussions in the Senate and the House. The agency is led by an administrator, who is appointed by the President, and accepted by the Senate. The EPA is not a cabinet department, but the administrator is usually cabinet rank.

The EPA is headquartered in Washington D.C.. It has regional offices for 10 different regions. It has 27 laboratories. The agency does environmental testing, research, and education. The role of the EPA is to enforce and maintain national standards with different kinds of laws. The agency also works with industries
and all levels of government in many kinds of ways to stop polluting Earth. They also try to save energy.

The EPA has about 17,000 employees working full-time. They may hire more people with more contracts. More than half of the people working at the EPA are scientists, engineers, or environmental protection specialists. The other groups work in law, money, information, and public actions.

EPA offices
 Office of the Administrator (OA)
 Office of Administration and Resources Management (OARM)
 Office of Air and Radiation (OAR)
 Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP)
 Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO)
 Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA)
 Office of Environmental Information (OEI)
 Office of General Counsel (OGC)
 Office of Inspector General (OIG)
 Office of International and Tribal Affairs (OITA)
 Office of Research and Development (ORD)
 Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response (OSWER)
 Office of Water (OW)

EPA regions

Each EPA regional office is responsible within its states for putting into use the Agency's programs, except those programs that have been chosen only for that state.

 Region 1: responsible within the states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
 Region 2: responsible within the states of New Jersey and New York.  It is also responsible for the US territories of Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
 Region 3: responsible within the states of Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia.
 Region 4: responsible within the states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.
 Region 5: responsible within the states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin.
 Region 6: responsible within the states of Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas.
 Region 7: responsible within the states of Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska.
 Region 8: responsible within the states of Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming.
 Region 9: responsible within the states of Arizona, California, Hawai'i, Nevada, and the territories of Guam and American Samoa.
 Region 10: responsible within the states of Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington.

Each regional office also puts into use of programs on Native American land, except those programs for Tribal authorities.

References 

United States government agencies
Environmental organizations
1970 establishments in the United States