Editors' Summary: This Comment surveys the environmental activity of the first session of the 98th Congress. Congress' oversight of the executive branch contributed to headline-grabbing changes in the administration of federal programs. But while busy checking the initiatives of the Reagan Administration, Congress enacted no major new environmental laws, despite proposals before it in the areas of air quality, water quality, hazardous waste, toxics, nuclear energy, public lands, and natural resources. Several of the proposals, notably the bills to reauthorize the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, made real progress and await further action in the second session.