Number: 1986-15
WHEREAS, the Great Lakes and many other ecosystems are contaminated with many different toxic substances from a wide variety of sources including wastewater discharges, agricultural and urban runoff, groundwater, the atmosphere, and contaminated sediments; and
WHEREAS, combinations of toxic substances contaminating the environment may act in additive, synergistic, antagonistic or other ways on the health of aquatic life, wildlife and humans, and on the environment; and
WHEREAS, government agencies presently consider the effects of toxic substances on the health of aquatic life, wildlife and humans, and on the environment only on an individual chemical basis; and
WHEREAS, existing toxics control programs generally develop controls on a source-by-source basis and do not consider the total impact of all sources on ecosystems; and
WHEREAS, the Toxic Substances Control Act, which authorizes the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to consider the combined impacts of many sources of toxic substances contaminating the Great Lakes and other ecosystems, has not been used by EPA to address these problems; and
WHEREAS, reauthorization of the Toxic Substances Control Act is currently pending in the U.S. Congress;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the National Wildlife Federation in annual meeting assembled March 20-23, 1986, in Seattle, Washington, urges the U.S. Congress promptly to reauthorize the Toxic Substances Control Act and to clarify EPA’s authority and responsibility to use this Act to control the combined impacts of toxic substances and their many sources contaminating the Great Lakes and other ecosystems; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the National Wildlife Federation urges the EPA to use its authority under the Toxic Substances Control Act to develop creative programs to control the combined impacts of toxic substances and their many sources contaminating the Great Lakes and other ecosystems; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that NWF urges all international, federal, state and local pollution control agencies to develop and implement creative programs to evaluate and control the combined impacts of toxic substances and their many sources contaminating the Great Lakes and other ecosystems.