Acid rain was an emblematic issue in environmental politics in the 1970s and in particular in the 1980s. Being an “emblem” meant that people understood the broader environmental problematique through the lens of the particular issue of acid rain. Consequently, the acid rain controversy was not simply about finding solutions to the physical problem of acidification; it was also very much about renegotiating the rules and practices of environmental policy-making. As such, the acid rain controversy fulfilled a pivotal role in environmental politics.