During photosynthesis, a chemical called chlorophyll absorbs the light energy and encourages a reaction between carbon dioxide and water that results in glucose and oxygen. Oxygen is expelled as a waste product from the plant, and it enters the atmosphere.
The EPA was proposed by President Richard Nixon and began operation on December 2, 1970, after Nixon signed an executive order. The order establishing the EPA was ratified by committee hearings in the House and Senate. The agency is led by its Administrator, who is appointed by the president and approved by Congress.
In 1970, President Richard Nixon proposed an executive reorganization that would consolidate many of the federal government's environmental responsibilities under one agency, a new Environmental Protection Agency. That reorganization proposal was reviewed and passed by the House and Senate.