ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES AND REGULATIONS 



Dr. Thomas A. Lynch 

 Chief Economist, Office of Economic Analysis 

 Florida Department of Environmental Regulations 

 Tallahassee, FL 32301 



INTRODUCTION 



Not too many years ago America was a land of boundless energy, fresh air, 

 and clean water. The steadily increasing population, technological develop- 

 ment, and consumer demands have changed all that. The greatest issues have 

 been the decline in the quality of our air and water, and the loss of fish and 

 wildlife habitats, problems of universal scope and ones that are causing con- 

 cern in Southwest Florida. Our major defense is environmental concern, which 

 if properly focused and implemented, will stimulate action directed toward 

 environmental protection and wiser use of natural resources. 



Environmental issues must be considered in terms of their economic rami- 

 fication. Environmental decisions have wide-ranging impacts, and the wrong 

 decisions can result in millions of dollars lost to State and local economies. 

 In 1980 tourists contributed $17 billion dollars to the Florida economy. The 

 large number of tourists and retirees in Florida is evidence of an abundance 

 of clean air and water. It is also a reminder that any substantial increase 

 in pollution must be checked if the tourist/retiree economy is to be main- 

 tained and enhanced. 



Man's existence demands that he employ the resources of the ecosystem and 

 be allowed in some form to alter its natural state. This alteration involves 

 some negative environmental consequences. A balance between resource use and 

 protection requires information on the value of environmental resources, mon- 

 ies generated by their use, and the ultimate cost to the environment resulting 

 from their use. 



Air pollution usually comes from industrial areas in or near cities — 

 prime sources that often can be identified and sometimes resolved. More 

 insidious is air pollution from the exhausts of automobiles, which sometimes 

 is more dangerous and difficult to control. Air pollution can be a public 

 health problem, especially to the elderly, the very young, and those with 

 respiratory ailments. It reduces the outdoor enjoyment, sometimes forms un- 

 sightly and dismal smog, corrodes metal surfaces on buildings, and at its 

 worst it causes respiratory problems. In some areas of the United States, 

 particularly in the Northeast, sulfur particulates discharged from fossil - 

 fueled steam plants enter the upper atmosphere and cause acid rain, a rela- 

 tively new but apparently devastating phenomenon that acidifies lakes and 

 ponds, and can alter the growth of vegetation and aquatic life (Brezonik 

 et al. 1980). 



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