Industrial processes damage the environment and cause serious local and global deterioration. The response in the United States and in most of the developed world has been to adopt a series of fairly rigid and expensive regulatory programs. In the United States, this is now the largest and most expensive area of regulation. Environmental rules occupy 46 volumes of the Code of Federal Regulations, more than any subject and its costs have been estimated as high as $220 billion a year. Uneven progress has been made in the attack on air, water and land pollution. Protection for human health and ecosystems has advanced, but there has been too little money, time, and political will to prevent widespread pollution-caused disease and damage to ecosystems. Do you think it was a good idea for the U.S. to enact such a large body of regulations to protect the environment? Do you think more money, time and political energy should be devoted to improving our nation's ecosystems?

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The passage lays out both the pros and cons of the US environmental regulations Pros Significant pro... View the full answer