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University at Buffalo Libraries

Environment

Consult the following for additional technical information:

The Law Library prepared three guides to environmental law.

Consult UB GREEN: Campus Environmental Stewardship ( http://wings.buffalo.edu/services/recycling ) for a description of the University at Buffalo's environmental policy.

Domestic Policy Issues

Community Planning and Development: Environment (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Office of Community Viability)
http://www.hud.gov/offices/cpd/environment/index.cfm
Provides data about Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) programs that promote the urban environment. Topics include compliance, laws, and regulations; links to environmental resources; a nationwide directory of HUD's environmental staff; and selected environmental subjects. These cover flood and wetland areas; sustainable development; brown fields; historic preservation; toxins; and environmental justice.

Congressional Research Service Reports (National Council for Science and the Environment (NCSE))
http://ncseonline.org/programs/science-policy/crs-reports
Reproduces reports prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) about policy issues that effect the environment. CRS is a section of the Library of Congress that prepares background reports for Congress and its committees. Most topics are timely and newsworthy. This site is part of the larger National Council for Science and the Environment.

Environmental Protection Agency
http://www.epa.gov
Provides links to popular environmental topics in the news; press releases; environmental tips; educational and information resources; and programs dealing with air, pesticide, chemical, and water pollution, and wastes and recycling.  Enter your address, city or place name, or your zip code in the MyEnvironment section to retrieve information about local conditions.

Specific sections of this large Web site deserve special mention.

  • A-Z Index
    http://www.epa.gov/epahome/quickfinder.htm
    Locate basic information for over 1,000 environmental topics.
  • Business and Industry
    http://www.epa.gov/epahome/business.htm
    Provides basic data for business people. Separate sections cover programs and initiatives; small business; regulations and compliance; doing business with EPA; and links to related sites.
  • Concerned Citizens
    http://www.epa.gov/epahome/Citizen.html
    Reproduces documents concerned citizens are likely to view. Data covers the community's right to know about environmental hazards; protecting children; safety tips about the home; transportation; the workplace; global concerns; and environmental emergencies.
  • Federal Register - Environmental Documents and the Unified Agenda
    http://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/search.htm
    Search environmental documents in the Federal Register and the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulations , sometimes called the Regulatory Agenda . The Federal Register is a newspaper published Monday through Friday that includes rules, proposed rules, and notices of Federal executive branch agencies. See also the semiannual Unified Agenda or Regulatory Agenda that summarizes agency plans for issuing future regulations. ( http://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/unified.htm )
  • Small Business
    http://www.epa.gov/smallbusiness
    Separate sections cover general information; environmental assistance and technical help; contacts; laws and regulations; saving money; and frequently answered questions.

Global Change Research Program (Sponsored by multiple U.S. government agencies).
http://globalchange.gov/
Reproduces the Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States report that summarizes the science of climate change and its impacts.  Additional features include other reports, educational materials, and an image library.

Internet Law Library: Environmental, Natural Resources and Energy Law
http://www.lawguru.com/ilawlib/101.htm
Links connect to international conventions and treaties; federal laws; state laws; and related documentation, such as articles and materials prepared by interest groups. The House of Representatives maintained the Internet Law Library through 1999. Since then, several commercial concerns assumed responsibility for it, but currency cannot be guaranteed.

National Council for Science and the Environment
http://ncseonline.org/
A non-profit group that promotes the application of science to environmental decision making, and collaboration among interest groups. The site includes in-depth discussions about environmental issues; links to population and environment sites; and copies of related laws and treaties. Congressional Research Service reports are among the items covered.

Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Home Page
http://www.nrc.gov
Separate sections describe the agency and what it does; nuclear reactors; nuclear materials; radioactive waste; public involvement; and the Electronic Reading Room. Use the Site Map at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/site-map.html to navigate through this large site.

Key NRC pages are:

  • Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS)
    http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html
    Provides access to all documents made public by the NRC since November 1, 1999 and to bibliographic records (some with abstracts and full text) issued prior to that date. System administrators add several hundred new documents daily. ADAMS permits full text searching and the ability to view document images, download files, and print.
  • Citizen's Guide to U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Information
    http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/brochures/br0010/br0010v4.pdf
    Sci/Engr Documents US Y 3.N 88: 8 C 49/ 2003
    Describes types of materials published by the Commission and provides tips about acquiring them.
  • Document Collections
    http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/
    Provides access to full-text document collections. Topics cover nuclear wastes; Commission memoranda and other documentation; Congressional materials; enforcement; reports of events; fact sheets; regulations; and news releases.
  • Index to All Frequently Asked Questions Pages
    http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/faqlist.html
    Topics pertain to the Agency Document Access and Management System (ADAMS); emergency responses; nuclear material controls; licenses; maintenance; NRC careers; the environment; NRC's 9/11 response; public meetings; reactor decommissioning; and transportation.
  • Occupational Radiation Exposure Information
    http://www.reirs.com/
    Presents data and related regulations about reporting occupational exposure to radiation at facilities licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
  • ROP List of Assessment Reports/Inspection Plans
    http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/listofasmrpt.html
    Lists Assessment Reports and Inspection Plans for specific power generating plants.

USGS Fact Sheets (U.S. Geological Survey).
http://h2o.usgs.gov/public/wid/indexlist.html
Fact sheets summarize USGS research, investigations, and activities in each state. Selected topics relate to the environment; natural hazards; and information management.

International Policy Issues

Environment Canada
http://www.ec.gc.ca/default.asp?lang=En&n=FD9B0E51-1
Links cover a wide array of topics that affect the Canadian and international environments. Topics cover air; climate change; enforcement; environmental emergencies; nature; pollution and waste; science and technology; sustainable development; water; and weather and meteorology.

Environment (Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada) http://www.canadainternational.gc.ca/eu-ue/policies-politiques/environment-environnement.aspx?lang=eng
Summarized selected Canadian multilateral environmental agreements.

Environment: United Nations System Pathfinder (U.N. Dag Hammarskjöld Library)
http://www.un.org/Depts/dhl/pathfind/frame/start.htm
Select the Environment option along the left column to view citations to key United Nations documents. Although most titles are not online, many are still available in the Law Library and in the IIS Microfiche Library (Capen Multimedia Center MicFiche HA 154 I542) . Use the ProQuest Statistical Insight database or the Index to International Statistics printed index to locate materials in the IIS Microfiche Library.

GEO Data Portal (United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP))
http://geodata.grid.unep.ch/
An online database provides access to statistics measuring water; population; forests; emissions; climate; disasters; health; and gross domestic product for countries and regions throughout the world. Display data on statistical tables, maps, or graphs.

Linkages: A Multimedia Resource For Environment and Development Policy Makers (International Institute for Sustainable Development: IISD).
http://www.iisd.ca
Links connect to major UN documentation. Data include references to sustainable development; climate; biodiversity; chemical management; and forests and deserts. Special features include updates on international environmental negotiations and a link to a search engine for the Earth Negotiations Bulletin ( http://www.iisd.ca/linkages/voltoc.html ), a newsletter that provides daily coverage of UN environmental issues.

World Bank
http://www.worldbank.org/environment/
Menu options link to World Bank strategies to combat environmental hazards; key topics; publications and data; regional information; brief project descriptions; and educational resources.

World Resources Institute
http://www.wri.org/
An environmental think tank that hopes to create practical ways to protect the planet. Its goals are to increase access to information; reverse damages to the ecosystems; expand participation in environmental decision making; and avert global warming. Links lead to research topics; earth trends--an online compilation of data about environmental and socioeconomic trends; press releases; and publications. Its key annual publication is:

  • World Resources
    Lockwood HC10 W827 (1986+ with gaps; most recent in reference)
    Capen Multimedia Center MicFiche Z7554 .U5 S8 no. R9455-1 (1986+ with gaps)
    An annual publication about the environment and world development. Data cover large amounts of text and statistical tables. The editors include charts and graphs; photographs; and footnotes.

New York State

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Home Page 
http://www.dec.ny.gov/
Provides an overview of Departmental of Environmental Conservation services and programs. Key parts of the Web site include the:

West Valley Site Management Program (U.S. Department of Energy. Ohio Field Office and New York State Energy Research Development Authority)
http://www.wv.doe.gov/
The U.S. Department of Energy in cooperation with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority operate the West Valley Demonstration Project (WVDP). Data include background information, plus information about environmental projects; safety; waste management; and technology.

Specific Environmental Sites

Envirofacts Data Warehouse (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency).
http://www.epa.gov/enviro
Offers single point access to data from multiple EPA databases. Use the Quick Start option to retrieve data by zip codes; cities; counties; and states. Topics cover wastes; water; toxic substances; air; land; radiation; and compliance. An additional option enables users to create maps.

Selected EPA databases include:

A chart located at http://www.epa.gov/enviro/html/efovw.html illustrates relationships among the databases.

MyEnvironment

Right to Know Network (OMB Watch)
http://www.rtknet.org/
RTK is a free network supported by foundations and contributions.  It offers access to environmental databases dealing with toxic and hazardous substances and risk management.  Additional information covers policy issues, such as pollution, health, and emergencies; legislation; and current news.  Select the Access Policies & Tools option to search the Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) by names of organizations, places, and zip codes.

Scorecard (Environmental Defense Fund)
http://www.scorecard.org
Enter a zip code to retrieve data about toxic chemical releases from manufacturing plants; air quality information; and agricultural pollution, plus related health affects of the pollutants.

Where You Live (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency)
http://www.epa.gov/epahome/whereyoulive.htm
A compilation of databases and other resources that examine the environment throughout the nation.

Kids' Stuff / Teacher Materials

Environmental Kids Club (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency).
http://www.epa.gov/students/index.html
Provides games, word puzzles, and coloring books designed for use by younger children.

EPA Kids, Students and Teachers (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency).
http://www.epa.gov/epahome/students.htm
Separate sections cover resources for teachers and different age groups from pre-school through high school.

Indexes and Guides to Further Information

ProQuest Congressional
http://library.buffalo.edu/e-resources/cis.html
An index to current and historical Congressional committee publications. Many items are available in the University Libraries. Consult the Libraries Catalog or speak to a reference librarian.

ProQuest Statistical Insight (ProQuest)
http://libweb.lib.buffalo.edu/pdp/index.asp?ID=247
Indexes statistical publications of the U.S. government, American non-government sources, such as trade associations and professional groups, and international organizations, such as the United Nations and the World Bank. The full texts of most documents are in the IIS Microfiche Library (MicFiche HA 154 I542). Two printed sources index the same information:

  • American Statistics Index (ASI )
    Lockwood Reference Z1223 .A22
    Indexes U.S. documents. Most are cited in the Libraries Catalog or are reproduced in the American Statistics Index Microfiche Library (Capen Multimedia Center HA195 .A8, 1978-2008)
  • Index to International Statistics (IIS )
    Lockwood Reference HA 154 .I544
    Indexes publications of intergovernmental organizations, such as the United Nations or the World Health Organization. Microfiche copies of these items are at Capen Multimedia Center MicFiche HA154 I542 (1983-2010).

WWW Virtual Library - Environment - The Archive Site (earthsystems.org).
http://www.earthsystems.org/virtuallibrary/
Links connect to government and non-government servers that deal with all aspects of the environment. Options include viewing information by subjects; viewing all the information; and viewing other selected environmental groups.