Regulatory Side
Clean
Water
Act
Origins
- The basis of the CWA was enacted in 1948 and was called the
Federal Water Pollution Control Act, but the Act was significantly
reorganized and expanded in 1972. "Clean Water Act" became
the Act's common name with amendments in 1977.
- Under the CWA, EPA has implemented pollution control programs
such as setting wastewater standards for industry. We have also
set water quality standards for all contaminants in surface waters.
- The CWA made it unlawful to discharge any pollutant from a
point source into navigable waters, unless a permit was obtained.
EPA's National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES)
permit program controls discharges. Point sources are discrete
conveyances such as pipes or man-made ditches.
Cuyahoga River Fire
- On June 22, 1969, an oil slick and
debris in the Cuyahoga River caught
fire in Cleveland, Ohio, drawing
national attention to environmental
problems in Ohio and elsewhere
in the United States.
What specifically does the law of the language say?
- The objective of the Clean Water Act, as stated in Section 101,
is to "restore and maintain the chemical, physical and biological
integrity of the Nation's waters." Restoration is a tool for
meeting some CWA requirements. The CWA provides the
broad and flexible authority needed to realize the nation's water
resource goals. Most importantly, the CWA recognizes that
water resource quality is defined by all its components—the
chemical, physical, and biological, and that water resource
integrity depends on complex interactions among all three
components.
- It is important to note that Section 101 of the CWA places equal
emphasis on each of these components (i.e., chemical, physical,
and biological). Water quality standards (level three of the
pyramid) define specific objectives for restoring aquatic
ecosystem integrity and are comprised of designated uses,
numeric or narrative water quality criteria to protect these uses,
and an antidegradation provision.
Sections of the CWA
- Title III - Standards and Enforcement
- Section 302 - Water Quality-Related Effluent Limitations
- Section 303 - Water Quality Standards and Implementation Plans
- Section 305 - Water Quality Inventory
- Title IV - Permits and Licenses
- Section 402 - National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System
- Title V - General Provisions
- Section 510 - State Authority
Major Goal and Definitions
Major goal of the Clean Water Act:
- Prohibits discharge of any pollution by any person into
navigable waters from a point source, except as allowed by
permit
- What is a “pollutant?”
- Broadly defined
- What is the definition of a “person?”
- Broadly defined
- What constitutes a “point source” of pollution?
- If you can see exactly where polluted water is entering U.S.
waters, its point source pollution.
Goals of CWA
- 7: Control non-point sources of pollution.
- There has been least success in attempting to accomplish
this goal. Non-point is a major source of pollution in the
United States. According to the Clean Water Act, states
should control the discharge of non-point pollution, but
Federal government does not have to take responsibility
for controlling non-point pollution
Non-Point Source Pollution
- Non-point Source: If you can’t see exactly where polluted water
is infiltrating navigable waters, then the pollution is non-point
source pollution.
- Storm-water is considered a type of non-point pollution.
- Agriculture is one of the biggest sources of non-point pollution
today.
Why has controlling
Non-point source
pollution been
unsuccessful
Public
Education
Money
Common- sense
steps