However, the real estate industry has lumped environmental hazards into the following general categories. Her book, which questioned the use of chemical pesticides, awakened worldwide concern for environmental protection. Congress created the following acts and agencies, which are some of over 40 pieces of environmental legislation enacted since the 1960s. In 1979 at Love Canal near Niagara Falls, New York, the EPA declared a residential neighborhood uninhabitable because it was built on a chemical dump site. These federal laws, which began by protecting rivers and air, have become much more sophisticated and far-reaching.
Many state laws are now even stricter than federal laws.
Buyers who unknowingly purchase contaminated property may be just as liable for cleaning up as the party who caused the contamination. Cleaning up environmental hazards can cost thousands and even millions of dollars. In some cases, the clean-up costs exceed the market value of the property. Private individuals can also order these inspections. Environmental inspections are relatively new and they have their own terminology.