California Public Policy - Essay Example

Introduction California, like any other state, is currently plagued with various problems and issues in relation to business regulation, taxation, public services, criminal justice, the environment, education, and other issues in relation to public policy and governance. These issues are all crucial to the development and the progress of the state. The issues on California’s environment are considered major problems because they contribute to the major and global issues on the environment. There are different reasons which can be attributed to this problem. This paper shall compare and contrast the reasons California has a major problem in the policy field of its environment. It shall provide evidence to support and challenge the thesis. It shall also propose possible solutions to the current issue. Discussion California has a major problem in its environmental policies. These problems are concerns which are considered under the concerns of the California Environmental Policy Agency (CEPA) which integrates the different environmental programs of the state managed by agencies like Air Resources Board, Integrated Waste Management Board, State Water Resources Control Board, and other responsibilities which used to be part of other agencies (Weblocator, n.d). First area in the environmental issue in California is its water pollution problem. Policies implemented in California in relation to the management of water pollution include among others, the Clean Water Act which focuses on mandates for water pollution and water quality of surface waters. This act includes provisions for point and non-point sources, including the establishment of useful uses of water (University of California, 2003). The Coastal Zone Management Act is another policy which was implemented in order to manage water pollution. It formulated a plan for the efficient management, protection, development, and use of the coastal zone (University of California, 2003). The California Porter-Cologne Act is the main act governing water quality in California and it covers surface water and ground water (University of California, 2003). Despite these policies in effect over California, the state is still having great difficulty in managing its water pollution problem. The problem in water pollution relates to the identification of point sources – those coming from the pipes, from the various industries, and those coming from sewage plants (California Environment, 2006). Water pollution from point sources is relatively easy to manage and regulate because the source of pollution is identified. Non-point sources are harder to identify. Non-point sources include: runoff from streets, runoff silt from construction, farms, and logging operations (California Environment, 2006). Without the ability to identify the source of the pollution, it is also difficult to implement solutions and preventive measures for water pollution. In relation to air pollution, California’s policies have manifested major problems. California’s policies on the management of air pollution are under Federal and State Clean Air laws (State of California, 2007). The California Air Resources Board provides updates on state air quality; manages air quality regulatory programs; and submits the State Implementation Plan under the Federal Clean Air Act to the US EPA (State of California, 2007). The California policies on air pollution basically include provisions on mobile emissions and air pollution control and management programs. Despite these policies, California is one of the states with the worse air qualities in the country (US Congress, 2003). For one, the problem of photochemical smog has been largely associated to the state for many decades (California Environment, 2006). This smog has been prevalent in California due to the type of pollutants from automobiles and the sunlight. Main pollutants include a mixture of nitrogen and hydrocarbons from automobiles and oil-run machineries. With the exposure to sunlight, reactions take place and these reactions have very harmful and corrosive effects on the ozone (California Environment, 2006). With millions of automobiles and a largely sunny weather, the formation of smog is highly likely and highly dangerous. The smog problem in the state are aggravated by: the 1 and ½ million gallons of raw unburned two-stroke fuel pumped into the air; forty eight thousand tons of carbon dioxide pumped into the air; and the ninety thousand tons of dust boosted into the air (McGilton, 2008). A major source of the hazards to the air quality is attributed to leaf blowers which release the unburned stroke fuel into the air. Without any remedies, the amount of unburned fuel being released into the air would increase to one billion tons per year by 2016 (McGilton, 2008). These air pollution problems are a major cause for concern for the state because they cause various incidents of asthma, allergies, and different respiratory problems (McGilton, 2008). California’s solid waste problem is another monumental problem because of the amount of waste which the state has managed to produce throughout the years. Its policies in relation to solid waste management include the Solid Waste Management and Resource Recovery Act which set forth that the state is establishing a solid waste management program to protect the public health and safety, to protect the environment, and to place the responsibility of solid waste management to the local government units (CalRecycle, 2009). Other policies on solid waste management have also been implemented throughout the years, and these policies have been designed mostly to “prevent or reduce the discharge of pollutants to storm water from solid or construction waste by providing designated waste collection areas and containers, arranging for regular disposal, and training employees and subcontractors” (California Stormwater Association, 2003, p. 1). These policies have faced barriers in implementation which have also reduced their efficiency. Instead, this issue on California’s solid waste management has managed to escalate gradually to the major problem it is today. In 1990 alone, the state generated over 40 million tons of solid waste (CalRecycle, 2003). In the 1980s solid waste disposal became a big issue with the limited landfill capacity of the state. The state set forth legislation (AB 939) in order to implement measures for solid waste management, including source reduction, recycling and composting, transformation, and land filling (CalRecycle, 2003). For the most part, the problems in solid waste management are still persistent and with limited landfill areas available, many counties have been prompted to control their daily waste generation. Conclusion The situation as presented above presents a grim picture of the environmental policies and pollution management in California. The policies involving the Clean Air and the Clean Water Act, as well as policies on solid waste management were set in place in California in order to manage pollution and prevent damage to the environment. These policies however have not been effective in managing the environmental problems in California. The air pollution levels have increased and even worsened in the past decades despite the remedies implemented by the government. Water pollution levels have also worsened because of the failure of these policies. The solid waste management of the state has also been deemed ineffective as seen in the amount of solid waste generated by the state and the limited areas available for landfills. Based on the above problems, recommendations for solutions to these environmental problems should include the tougher implementation of waste management and environmental laws. This includes the implementation of tougher punishment for violators of the environmental laws. Moreover, the management of the environment must be made from a global standpoint. No expense must be spared in order to ensure that the environment can be protected. Works Cited CalRecycle (2009) History of California Solid Waste Law, 1970-1974. Retrieved 14 August 2010 from http://www.calrecycle.ca.gov/Laws/Legislation/calhist/1970to1974.htm California Stormwater Quality Association (2003) Solid Waste Management. Retrieved 14 August 2010 from http://www.cabmphandbooks.com/Documents/Construction/WM-5.pdf California Environment (2006) General Pollution Information. Retrieved 14 August 2010 from http://daphne.palomar.edu/calenvironment/pollution.htm CalRecycle (2003) Keeping Green Landscapers Guide: An Overview of Solid Waste Issues. Retrieved 14 August 2010 from http://www.calrecycle.ca.gov/organics/landscaping/keepgreen/Overview.htm McGilton, H. (2008) California Air Quality: Clean Air, Filthy Air, Californians Can Choose. Retrieved 14 August 2010 from http://cleanair.trilithon.com/download/Clean.Air.California.pdf State of California (2007) Air Quality Analysis and Coordination. Retrieved 14 August 2010 from http://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/env/air/index.htm University of California (2003) Water Pollution Control Legislation. Retrieved 14 August 2010 from http://groundwater.ucdavis.edu/Publications/Harter_FWQFS_8088.pdf United States Congress (2003) Congressional Record: 108th Congress First Session. Web Locator (n.d) California Environmental Law. Retrieved 14 August 2010 from http://www.weblocator.com/attorney/ca/law/b23.html Read More