The Pollution Prevention Act of 1990 is a piece of legislation intended to limit the creation of pollution. As part of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990, the Pollution Prevention Act differed from previous legislation, which had generally treated pollution after it had been created. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator William K. Reilly strongly supported the act, believing that much hazardous or toxic pollution can be more effectively and economically controlled, and the environment protected more fully, if the pollution never occurs.

The impetus for this act lies in a 1986 EPA report to Congress entitled "Minimization of Hazardous Wastes." Based on this report, the agency began to take actions designed to reduce pollution. According to a subsequent report by the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA), however, the EPA needed to do more. The two reports identified four main approaches to prevent pollution: (1) manufacturing changes, (2) equipment...