Environmental Regulation And The Development Of Electric Power Industry In The United States From 1970s To 1990s

Since the Second World War,the electric power industry in the United States has developed rapidly,and the electric power companies have made huge profits.However,as one of the pillar industries in the United States,the electric power industry has brought huge economic benefits to the United States while causing serious pollution to the environment,in particular,coal-fired power plants produce sulfur dioxide,nitrogen oxide,and other pollutants such as suspended particulates,which cause serious environmental pollution.And since the1960 s,the American government and people have realized that the rapid economic development has caused great damage to the environment.As a result,the clean air act of1963 was amended three times by Congress in 1970,1977,and 1990,and the United States Environmental Protection Agency was established on December 2,1970.The article takes the period of 70-90 of the 20 th century,the Environmental Report of the Council on Environmental Quality and the three clean air laws enacted by Congress as the starting point,based on the development of American Electric Power Industry and the pressure of double environmental regulation,this paper analyzes the environmental regulation made by American Federal Government in this period.This paper analyzes how to balance the conflict between the development of electric power industry and environmental regulation under environmental regulation,and how to pay the cost and gain the benefit for electric power company to comply with environmental regulation.Especially in the 1990 s,acid rain became one of the major environmental problems in the United States Congress,the Clean Air Act amendment of 1990 Chapter IV “acid deposition control” is the U.S.Congress set up specifically for the control of acid rain.The Act requires that the pollutants that cause acid rain(sulphur dioxide,nitrogen oxide)be treated in two phases,the first of which is between1995 and 2000,a period when every power plant has a clear mandate to reduce emissions,during this period,the electric power industry in the United States was facing the most stringent environmental regulation,and the development of electric power companies was also the most difficult.Secondly,the paper takes the Tennessee Valley Authority(TVA)as an example to analyze the game and reflection of the power companies in the United States in the face of strict environmental regulation,to maximize the company’s profits.Therefore,what this paper mainly studies is from the 1970 s to the 1990 s,under the double pressure of self-interest development and strict environmental control,the American Electric Power Industry,how to coordinate the contradictions and conflicts between self-interest and environmental control,and thus provide experiences and lessons for the management of coal-fired power plants in China.