Ambient air and water quality standards are levels of pollutants that are officially permitted in the receiving air or water. In the United States, national ambient air quality standards are set by the US Environmental Protection Agency under the Clean Air Act (CAA) for the entire country. Primary standards are based on what EPA administrators believe can be dispersed in the air resource without endangering the health of the public. Secondary standards are based on effects on crops, other species, and building materials and are more severe. Specific limits for one-hour and 24-hour concentrations have been set for carbon monoxide, particulates, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, and lead. Emissions standards created by states in their state implementation plans (SIPS) depend on how polluted the air is in the region. It is possible for a region to be in attainment (meeting the ambient standards) for one pollutant and out of compliance for another pollutant.
Ambient water quality...
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Finley, R. W., and Farber, D. A., 1995. Environmental Law in a Nutshell (3rd edn). St Paul, Minn.: West Publications.
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© 1999 Kluwer Academic Publishers
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McSpadden, L.M. (1999). Ambient air and water standards. In: Environmental Geology. Encyclopedia of Earth Science. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-4494-1_13
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-4494-1_13
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