Government & Regulation

Req 7 — Government Agencies

7.
Identify three government agencies that oversee or provide guidance on the use of chemicals for personal, pharmaceutical, commercial, or industrial use, and discuss the agencies’ history and responsibilities with your counselor.

Chemicals are everywhere — in your food, medicine, cleaning products, and the air you breathe. Without oversight, companies and individuals could use chemicals in ways that harm people and the environment. That is why the United States has several government agencies dedicated to chemical safety. Here are the three most important ones.

1. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

Founded: 1970, by President Richard Nixon

History: In the 1960s, Americans began noticing that pollution was devastating the environment. Rivers were catching fire (the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland literally burned), smog choked cities, and pesticides like DDT were killing wildlife. Rachel Carson’s 1962 book Silent Spring helped spark a national environmental movement. In response, President Nixon created the EPA to consolidate all federal pollution-control activities under one agency.

Responsibilities:

How it affects you: The EPA ensures your drinking water is safe, the air in your community meets quality standards, and hazardous chemicals are properly disposed of. When you learned about chemical storage and disposal in Requirement 1d, those guidelines exist because of EPA regulations.

An environmental scientist collecting water samples from a river, wearing protective equipment, with testing equipment visible

2. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

Founded: 1906 (as the Bureau of Chemistry), reorganized as the FDA in 1930

History: In the early 1900s, there were no rules about what could go into food or medicine. Companies sold “patent medicines” containing alcohol, cocaine, and heroin — marketed as cures for everything from headaches to cancer. Upton Sinclair’s novel The Jungle (1906) exposed horrific conditions in the meatpacking industry. Public outrage led to the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, which created the agency that would become the FDA.

Responsibilities:

How it affects you: Every medicine you have ever taken was reviewed by the FDA for safety and effectiveness. The ingredient list and nutrition facts on food labels exist because of FDA requirements. When you read about PPE and SDS documents in Requirements 1a–1b, you saw how chemicals are classified — the FDA does similar classification work for drugs and food additives.

3. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

Founded: 1971, under the Occupational Safety and Health Act signed by President Nixon

History: Before OSHA, workplace safety was largely left to individual companies. Workers in factories, mines, and chemical plants were routinely exposed to toxic substances, dangerous machinery, and hazardous conditions with little legal protection. An estimated 14,000 workers died on the job each year in the late 1960s. OSHA was created to ensure every worker has a safe and healthy workplace.

Responsibilities:

How it affects you: The Safety Data Sheets you studied in Requirement 1a exist because OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard requires them. The GHS pictograms you learned about in Requirement 1c are part of OSHA’s labeling requirements. Every time you see a “hard hat area” sign or a chemical warning label at a job site, that is OSHA’s work.

Other Agencies Worth Mentioning

While you only need three, here are additional agencies involved in chemical regulation:

How These Agencies Work Together

These agencies often collaborate:

Why Does the FDA Exist?
EPA — About EPA Learn about the Environmental Protection Agency's mission, history, and current priorities. OSHA — About OSHA Occupational Safety and Health Administration's overview of its role in workplace chemical safety.