ABSTRACT
Two forces motivate research on air toxics: regulatory “push” and planning “pull”. The immediate push in the US is the Clean Air Act Amendments that may impose numerous requirements in both the short and long term. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is faced with an enormous task in implementing all parts of the Clean Air Act and especially in implementing the provisions dealing with toxic air pollutants under Title III of the amendments. EPA has had a program for regulating toxic air pollutants since the passage of the 1970 Clean Air Act. The Clean Air Act (CAA) also incorporates an important provision for modifications. The toxics amendments set up a separate program for reviewing modifications, reconstructions, or new facilities that are built under the Maximum Achievable Control Technology provisions. The CAA includes provisions for slight delays in implementation based on either the unavailability of controls or the difficulty of installing controls.
