EPA History
Born in the wake of elevated concern about environmental pollution, EPA was established on December 2, 1970 to consolidate in one agency a variety of federal research, monitoring, standard-setting and enforcement activities to ensure environmental protection. Since its inception, EPA has been working for a cleaner, healthier environment for the American people.
Learn more about EPA's accomplishments over its close-to-50-year history on the Agency Accomplishments page and on the EPA History timeline.
Historical Photos
and Images
EPA Administrators
- Review chronologies of EPA administrators, deputy administrators, and general counsels.
- EPA's archive also includes biographies, photos and other information about each administrator. Search EPA Archive
- Watch a 2006 video about EPA's administrators (runtime: 10:26).
Milestones in EPA and Environmental History
You can also read reports, speeches and articles about EPA's achievements and anniversary celebrations on the EPA accomplishments page.