"Environmental Quality" is a set of properties and characteristics of the environment, either generalized or local, as they impinge on human beings and other organisms. It is a measure of the condition of an environment relative to the requirements of one or more species, any human need or purpose. Environmental quality includes the

natural environment The natural environment or natural world encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally, meaning in this case not artificial. The term is most often applied to the Earth or some parts of Earth. This environment encompasses ...

as well as the

built environment The term built environment refers to human-made conditions and is often used in architecture, landscape architecture, urban planning, public health, sociology, and anthropology, among others. These curated spaces provide the setting for human ...

, such as air, water purity or

pollution Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause adverse change. Pollution can take the form of any substance (solid, liquid, or gas) or energy (such as radioactivity, heat, sound, or light). Pollutants, the ...

noise Noise is unwanted sound considered unpleasant, loud or disruptive to hearing. From a physics standpoint, there is no distinction between noise and desired sound, as both are vibrations through a medium, such as air or water. The difference aris ...

and the potential effects which such characteristics may have on physical and mental health.

United States

In the United States, the term is applied with a body of federal and state standards and regulations that are monitored by regulatory agencies. All states in the U.S. have some form of a department or commission that is responsible for a variety of activities such as monitoring quality, responding to citizen complaints, and enforcing environmental regulations. The agency with the lead implementation responsibility for most major federal environmental laws (e.g. Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act) is the US

Environmental Protection Agency A biophysical environment is a biotic and abiotic surrounding of an organism or population, and consequently includes the factors that have an influence in their survival, development, and evolution. A biophysical environment can vary in scale f ...

(EPA).EPA (2012)
"Laws & Regulations."
/ref> Other federal agencies with significant oversight roles include the Council on Environmental Quality,

Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government headquartered at the Main Interior Building, located at 1849 C Street NW in Washington, D.C. It is responsible for the m ...

and the Army Corps of Engineers.

United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom, the environment has been the primary responsibility of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). Predecessor bodies were merged in 2001 to create this department with a broader remit to link rural activities to the natural environment. Some responsibilities are devolved to the Scottish Government and are exercised by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) and the

National Assembly for Wales The Senedd (; ), officially known as the Welsh Parliament in English language, English and () in Welsh language, Welsh, is the Devolution in the United Kingdom, devolved, unicameral legislature of Wales. A democratically elected body, it makes ...

, while delivery of environmental initiatives often use partners, including: British Waterways, Environment Agency,

Forestry Commission The Forestry Commission is a non-ministerial government department responsible for the management of publicly owned forests and the regulation of both public and private forestry in England. The Forestry Commission was previously also respo ...

, and

Natural England Natural England is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. It is responsible for ensuring that England's natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna ...

. DEFRA also has a remit to oversee impacts of activities within the built environment and the United Kingdom Climate Change Programme.

United States

United Kingdom

See also

References

External links