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74-635: The Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act (1978) is a United States environmental law that amended the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 and authorized the Environmental Protection Agency to establish health and environmental standards for the stabilization, restoration , and disposal of uranium mill waste . Title 1 of the Act required the EPA to set environmental protection standards consistent with

148-534: A 1962 book by Rachel Carson , is frequently credited as launching the environmental movement in the United States. The book documented the effects of pesticides , especially DDT , on birds and other wildlife. Among the most significant environmental disasters of the 1960s was the 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill , which generated considerable public outrage as Congress was considering several major pieces of environmental legislation. ( See Environmental movement in

222-464: A 9% increase . The association was stronger in those over 75 than in the population aged 65–74. This example is a small reflection of residents of the United States remain at risk of waterborne gastrointestinal illness under current water treatment practices. Reproductive problems refer to any illness of the reproductive system . New research by Brunel University and the University of Exeter strengthens

296-419: A budgetary procedure known as " earmarking ." Section 301 of the Act prohibits discharges to waters of the U.S. except with a permit. ( See Title IV for discussion of permit programs.) Recreational vessels are exempt from the permit requirements, but vessel operators must implement Best Management Practices to control their discharges. ( See Regulation of ship pollution in the United States .) Under

370-786: A complete inquiry of social and economic costs and benefits of achieving goals of the Act. Under section 309, EPA can issue administrative orders against violators, and seek civil or criminal penalties when necessary: States that are authorized by EPA to administer the NPDES program must have authority to enforce permit requirements under their respective state laws. Military bases, national parks and other federal facilities must comply with CWA provisions. Section 316 requires standards for thermal pollution discharges, as well as standards for cooling water intake structures (e.g., fish screens ). These standards are applicable to power plants and other industrial facilities. The 1987 amendments created

444-460: A demonstration grant program at the EPA to expand the research and development of non-point controls and management practices. Congress created a major public works financing program for municipal sewage treatment in the 1972 CWA. A system of grants for construction of municipal sewage treatment plants was authorized and funded in Title II . In the initial program, the federal portion of each grant

518-791: A higher rate of Parkinson's. The risk was 90 percent higher for those who had private wells near fields sprayed with widely used insecticides. Unlike water supplies in large cities, private wells are mostly unregulated and are not monitored for contaminants. Many of them exist at shallow depths of less than 20 yards, and some of the crop chemicals used to kill pests and weeds can flow into ground water. Therefore, private wells are likely to contain pesticides, which can attack developing brains (womb or infancy), leading to neurological diseases later in life. A study led by UCLA epidemiology professor Beate Ritz suggests that "people with Parkinson's were more likely to have consumed private well water, and had consumed it on average 4.3 years longer than those who did not have

592-548: A leading role in American water law , in the doctrines of riparian rights and prior appropriation . In the United States, responsibilities for the administration of environmental laws are divided between numerous federal and state agencies with varying, overlapping, and sometimes conflicting missions. EPA is the most well-known federal agency, with jurisdiction over many of the country's national air, water and waste and hazardous substance programs. Other federal agencies, such as

666-462: A number of landmark environmental regulatory regimes, but many other federal laws are equally important, if less comprehensive. Concurrently, the legislatures of the fifty states have passed innumerable comparable sets of laws. These state and federal systems are foliated with layer upon layer of administrative regulation. Meanwhile, the US judicial system reviews not only the legislative enactments, but also

740-539: A permit to fill non-federal wetlands might require a permit from a single state agency, larger and more complex endeavors—for example, the construction of a coal-fired power plant —might require approvals from numerous federal and state agencies. In the United States, violations of environmental laws are generally civil offenses , resulting in monetary penalties and, perhaps, civil sanctions such as injunction . Many environmental laws also provide for criminal penalties for egregious violations. Some federal laws, such as

814-621: A surface area basis), and a little more than 70 percent of the nation's coastlines, and 90 percent of the surveyed ocean and near coastal areas were also impaired. The primary mode of informing the quality of water of rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, estuaries, coastal waters and wetlands of the U.S. is through the National Water Quality Inventory Report. Water quality assessments are conducted pursuant to water quality standards adopted by states and other jurisdictions (territories, interstate commissions and tribes). The report

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888-562: A system of construction grants. The 1972 CWA provided that federal funds would support 75% of project costs, with state and local funds providing the remaining 25%. In 1981 Congress reduced the federal funding proportion for most grants to 55%. The construction grant program was replaced by the Clean Water State Revolving Fund in the 1987 WQA ( see Title VI ), although some local utilities continued to receive "special purpose project grants" directly from Congress, through

962-771: A three-tiered anti-degradation program. Anti-degradation procedures identify steps and questions that need to be addressed when specific activities affect water quality. "Tier 1" requirements are applicable to all surface waters. These requirements maintain and protect current uses and the water quality conditions to support existing uses. Current uses are identified by showing that fishing, swimming, and other water uses have occurred and are suitable since November 28, 1975. "Tier 2" requirements maintains and protects water bodies with existing conditions that are better to support "fishable/swimmable" uses pursuant to CWA section 101(a)(2). "Tier 3" requirements maintain and protect water quality in "outstanding national resource waters" (ONRWs), which are

1036-450: Is conveyed to Congress as a means to inform Congress and the public of compliance with quality standards established by states, territories and tribes. The assessments identify water quality problems within the states and jurisdictions, list the impaired and threatened water bodies, and identify non-point sources that contribute to poor water quality. Every two years states must submit reports that describe water quality conditions to EPA with

1110-671: Is diluted by water. Methodology of mixing zone procedure determines the location, size, shape and quality of mixing zones. Variance policy temporarily relax water quality standard and are alternatives to removing a designated use. States and tribes may include variance as part of their water quality standard. Variance is subject to public review every three years and warrant development towards improvement of water quality. The "Low Flow" policy pertains to states and tribes water quality standards that identify procedures applied to determining critical low flow conditions. Most NPDES permittees are required to collect samples of their wastewater and analyze

1184-521: Is limited to " waters of the United States ". In many cases federal laws allow for more stringent regulation by states, and of transfer of certain federally mandated responsibilities from federal to state control. US state governments, therefore, administering state law adopted under state police powers or federal law by delegation, uniformly include environmental agencies. The extent to which state environmental laws are based on or depart from federal law varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Thus, while

1258-510: Is one such agency. Others, such as the United States Park Police , carry out more traditional law enforcement activities. Adjudicatory proceedings for environmental violations are often handled by the agencies themselves under the structures of administrative law . In some cases, appeals are also handled internally (for example, EPA's Environmental Appeals Board). Generally, final agency determinations may subsequently be appealed to

1332-524: Is to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation's waters; recognizing the responsibilities of the states in addressing pollution and providing assistance to states to do so, including funding for publicly owned treatment works for the improvement of wastewater treatment ; and maintaining the integrity of wetlands . The Clean Water Act was one of the United States' first and most influential modern environmental laws . Its laws and regulations are primarily administered by

1406-542: Is water quality criteria which serves as a basis for limiting the toxicity of waste discharges to aquatic species. A biological criterion is based on the aquatic community which describes the number and types of species in a water body. A nutrient criterion solely protects against nutrient over enrichment, and a sediment criterion describes conditions of contaminated and uncontaminated sediments to avoid undesirable effects. The water quality regulations include an anti-degradation policy that requires states and tribes to establish

1480-566: The Endangered Species Act ), and, much more recently, Massachusetts v. EPA (requiring EPA to reconsider regulation of greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act ) have had policy impacts far beyond the facts of the particular case. The common law of tort is an important tool for the resolution of environmental disputes that fall beyond the confines of regulated activity. Prior to the modern proliferation of environmental regulation,

1554-533: The Endangered Species Act , National Forest Management Act , and Coastal Zone Management Act . The National Environmental Policy Act , governing environmental impact review in actions undertaken or approved by the U.S. federal government, may implicate all of these areas. Federalism in the United States has played a role in the shape of national environmental legislation. Many federal environmental laws employ cooperative federalism mechanisms - many federal regulatory programs are administered in coordination with

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1628-501: The Nonpoint Source Management Program under CWA section 319. This program provides grants to states, territories and Indian tribes to support demonstration projects, technology transfer , education, training, technical assistance and related activities designed to reduce nonpoint source pollution. Grant funding for the program averaged $ 210 million annually for Fiscal Years 2004 through 2008. Congress amended

1702-639: The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act , including groundwater protection limits; the Department of Energy to implement EPA standards and provide perpetual care for some sites; and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to review cleanups and license sites to states or the DOE for perpetual care. Title 1 established a uranium mill remedial action program jointly funded by the federal government and

1776-781: The Safe Drinking Water Act , Resource Conservation and Recovery Act , and the Superfund act. Contamination of drinking water supplies can not only occur in the source water but also in the distribution system. Sources of water contamination include naturally occurring chemicals and minerals (arsenic, radon, uranium), local land use practices (fertilizers, pesticides, concentrated feeding operations), manufacturing processes, and sewer overflows or wastewater releases. Some examples of health implications of water contamination are gastrointestinal illness, reproductive problems, and neurological disorders. Infants, young children, pregnant women,

1850-516: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in coordination with state governments, though some of its provisions, such as those involving filling or dredging, are administered by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers . Its implementing regulations are codified at 40 C.F.R. Subchapters D, N, and O (Parts 100–140, 401–471, and 501–503). Technically, the name of the law is the Federal Water Pollution Control Act . The first FWPCA

1924-573: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Park Service pursue primarily conservation missions, while still others, such as the United States Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management , tend to focus more on beneficial use of natural resources. Federal agencies operate within the limits of federal jurisdiction . For example, EPA's jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act

1998-472: The U.S. states . Furthermore, the states generally have enacted their own laws to cover areas not preempted by federal law. This includes areas where Congress had acted in limited fashion (e.g., state site cleanup laws to handle sites outside Superfund ) and where Congress has left regulation primarily to the states (e.g., water resources law ). The history of environmental law in the US can be traced back to early roots in common law doctrines, for example,

2072-559: The Vermont Law School (tie) in the top five for environmental law programs. Several law schools host legal clinics that focus on environmental law, providing students with an opportunity to learn about environmental law in the context of real world disputes involving actual clients. Clean Water Act The Clean Water Act ( CWA ) is the primary federal law in the United States governing water pollution . Its objective

2146-576: The Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014 (WIFIA) to provide an expanded credit program for water and wastewater infrastructure projects, with broader eligibility criteria than the previously authorized revolving fund unter CWA Title VI. Pursuant to WIFIA, EPA established its Water Infrastructure and Resiliency Finance Center in 2015 to help local governments and municipal utilities design innovative financing mechanisms, including public–private partnerships . Congress amended

2220-512: The "Agreement State" program, established in 1959, in which the Atomic Energy Commission gave regulatory authority of certain nuclear materials to states. It was unclear how much regulatory power Agreement states had, and as a result these states took little regulatory action. Sites that were owned by the federal government, the NRC, or Agreement states were ineligible for remedial action under

2294-455: The "functional equivalent of a direct discharge" to navigable waters, such as in this case, the injection of wastewater into groundwater injection wells . As of the time of the case's decision, this was not an area the EPA has established regulations for, and the Court instructed the EPA to work with the courts to define such functional equivalents. The Court wrote that this would likely depend most on

Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act - Misplaced Pages Continue

2368-436: The 1972 act EPA began to issue technology-based standards for municipal and industrial sources: As of 2023 the effluent guidelines and categorical pretreatment standards regulations have been published for 59 categories and apply to between 35,000 and 45,000 facilities that discharge directly to the nation's waters,129,000 facilities that discharge to POTWs, and construction sites. These regulations are responsible for preventing

2442-513: The Clean Water Act, also allow a U.S. citizen to file a lawsuit against a violator, if the government has failed to take enforcement action. Environmental agencies often include separate enforcement offices, with duties including monitoring permitted activities, performing compliance inspections, issuing citations and prosecuting wrongdoing (civilly or criminally, depending on the violation). EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance

2516-705: The Supreme Court rejected the "significant nexus" test in Sackett v. EPA and established the current definition. The CWA introduced the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES), a permit system for regulating point sources of pollution. Point sources include: Point sources may not discharge pollutants to surface waters without an NPDES permit. The system is managed by EPA in partnership with state environmental agencies. EPA has authorized 47 states to issue permits directly to

2590-480: The TMDL determines load based on a Waste Load Allocation (WLA), Load Allocation (LA), and Margin of Safety (MOS) Once the TMDL assessment is completed and the maximum pollutant loading capacity defined, an implementation plan is developed that outlines the measures needed to reduce pollutant loading to the non-compliant water body, and bring it into compliance. Over 60,000 TMDLs are proposed or in development for U.S. waters in

2664-424: The U.S. Department of Agriculture to improve runoff management practices on farms. See Natural Resources Conservation Service . Stormwater runoff from industrial sources, municipal storm drains , and other sources were not specifically addressed in the 1972 law. EPA had declined to include urban runoff and industrial stormwater discharges in its initial implementation of the NPDES program, and subsequently

2738-825: The UMTRCA, as they were instead the responsibility of the government agencies or states who owned them. United States environmental law The United States Congress has enacted federal statutes intended to address pollution control and remediation, including for example the Clean Air Act ( air pollution ), the Clean Water Act ( water pollution ), and the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA, or Superfund) (contaminated site cleanup). There are also federal laws governing natural resources use and biodiversity which are strongly influenced by environmental principles, including

2812-616: The United States .) One lawsuit that has been widely recognized as one of the earliest environmental cases is Scenic Hudson Preservation Conference v. Federal Power Commission , decided in 1965 by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals , prior to passage of the major federal environmental statutes. The case helped halt the construction of a power plant on Storm King Mountain in New York State. The case has been described as giving birth to environmental litigation and helping create

2886-621: The United States." In 2006, in Rapanos v. United States , a plurality of the US Supreme Court authored by Justice Antonin Scalia held that the term "waters of the United States" "includes only those relatively permanent, standing or continuously flowing bodies of water 'forming geographic features' that are described in ordinary parlance as 'streams[,]... oceans, rivers, [and] lakes.'" The concurrent written opinion of Justice Anthony Kennedy defined

2960-677: The WIFIA program in 2015, 2016 and 2018. This Act has six titles. Title I includes a Declaration of Goals and Policy and various grant authorizations for research programs and pollution control programs. Some of the programs authorized by the 1972 law are ongoing (e.g. section 104 research programs, section 106 pollution control programs, section 117 Chesapeake Bay Program ) while other programs no longer receive funds from Congress and have been discontinued. To assist municipalities in building or expanding sewage treatment plants, also known as publicly owned treatment works (POTW), Title II established

3034-519: The administrative decisions of the many agencies dealing with environmental issues. Where the statutes and regulations end, the common law begins. Consistent with the federal statutes that they administer, US federal agencies promulgate regulations in the Code of Federal Regulations that fill out the broad programs enacted by Congress. Primary among these is Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations , containing

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3108-502: The agency was sued by an environmental group . In 1977, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that stormwater discharges must be covered by the permit program. Research conducted starting in the late 1970s and 1980s indicated that stormwater runoff was a significant cause of water quality impairment in many parts of the US. In the early 1980s, the EPA conducted the Nationwide Urban Runoff Program (NURP) to document

3182-765: The appropriate court. As environmental law becomes more widespread in the United States, another form of enforcement is emerging. Economic sanctions and incentives are the next wave of enforcement techniques. However, other researchers believe that the best way to enforce environmental regulation is to enforce non-environmental laws that can also have positive results for the environment. Some researchers have found that this leads to better environmental performance with bipartisan support In 2023, U.S. News & World Report ranked The Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University , Northwestern School of Law of Lewis and Clark College , UC Berkeley School of Law , New York University School of Law (tie), UCLA School of Law (tie), and

3256-493: The development of environmental law in the United States, in many cases resolving significant controversy regarding the application of federal environmental laws in favor of environmental interests. The decisions of the Supreme Court in cases such as Calvert Cliffs Coordinating Committee v. U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (broadly reading the procedural requirements of NEPA), Tennessee Valley Authority v. Hill (broadly reading

3330-762: The discharge of almost 700 billion pounds of pollutants each year. EPA has updated some categories since their initial promulgation and has added new categories. The secondary treatment standards for POTWs and the effluent guidelines are implemented through NPDES permits. (See Title IV .) The categorical pretreatment standards are typically implemented by POTWs through permits that they issue to their industrial users. The CWA requires states to monitor their water bodies and establish Water Quality Standards for them. Water Quality Standards (WQS) are risk-based requirements which set site-specific allowable pollutant levels for individual water bodies, such as rivers, lakes, streams and wetlands. States set WQS by designating uses for

3404-521: The discharging facilities. The CWA also allows tribes to issue permits, but no tribes have been authorized by EPA. In the remaining states and territories , the permits are issued by an EPA regional office. (See Titles III and IV .) In legislation prior to 1972, Congress had authorized states to develop water quality standards, which would limit discharges from facilities based on the characteristics of individual water bodies. However, those standards were to be developed only for interstate waters, and

3478-591: The disease." Under the current Supreme Court rule issued in 2023, all waters (such as streams, oceans, rivers and lakes) with "a continuous surface connection" to "navigable waters" are covered under the CWA. The 1972 statute frequently uses the term "navigable waters" but also defines the term as "waters of the United States, including the territorial seas." Regulations interpreting the 1972 law have included water features such as intermittent streams , playa lakes , prairie potholes , sloughs and wetlands as "waters of

3552-582: The distance the pollutants traveled and time to reach navigable waters, with consideration for the material that the pollutants traveled through, any physical or chemical interaction of the pollutants with components in the ground, and how much of the pollutant makes it to the navigable water. In July 2021, following the Supreme Court decision, the Hawaii District Court determined that the Maui County sewage treatment plant's groundwater injection of sewage

3626-434: The doctrines of nuisance (public or private), trespass , negligence , and strict liability apportioned harm and assigned liability for activities that today would be considered pollution and likely governed by regulatory regimes. These doctrines remain relevant, and most recently have been used by plaintiffs seeking to impose liability for the consequences of global climate change. The common law also continues to play

3700-410: The elderly are at highest risk for gastrointestinal disease. In a study investigating the association between drinking water quality and gastrointestinal illness in the elderly of Philadelphia, scientists found water quality 9 to 11 days before the visit was negatively associated with hospital admissions for gastrointestinal illness, with an interquartile range increase in turbidity being associated with

3774-449: The elderly, and people whose immune systems are compromised because of AIDS, chemotherapy, or transplant medications, may be especially susceptible to illness from some contaminants. Gastrointestinal disorders include such conditions as constipation, irritable bowel syndrome, hemorrhoids, anal fissures, perianal abscesses, anal fistulas, perianal infections, diverticular diseases, colitis, colon polyps and cancer. In general, children and

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3848-774: The extent of the urban stormwater problem. The agency began to develop regulations for stormwater permit coverage but encountered resistance from industry and municipalities, and there were additional rounds of litigation. The litigation was pending when Congress considered further amendments to the CWA in 1986. In the Water Quality Act of 1987, Congress responded to the stormwater problem by defining industrial stormwater dischargers and municipal separate storm sewer systems (often called "MS4") as point sources, and requiring them to obtain NPDES permits, by specific deadlines. The permit exemption for agricultural discharges continued, but Congress created several programs and grants, including

3922-405: The highest quality waters in the US with ecological significance. States and Native American tribes also adopt general policies pertaining to water quality standards that are subject to review and approval by the EPA. Those provisions on water quality standards include mixing zones, variance, and low flow policies. Mixing zone policy is defined area surrounding a point source discharge where sewage

3996-537: The law of nuisance and the public trust doctrine . The first environmental statute was the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 , which has been largely superseded by the Clean Water Act (CWA). However, most current major environmental statutes, such as the federal statutes listed above, were passed in the time spanning the late 1960s through the early 1980s. Prior to the passage of these statutes, most federal environmental laws were not nearly as comprehensive. Silent Spring ,

4070-550: The legal doctrine of standing to bring environmental claims. The Scenic Hudson case also is said to have helped inspire the passage of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and the creation of such environmental advocacy groups as the Natural Resources Defense Council . Laws from every stratum of the laws of the United States pertain to environmental issues. Congress has passed

4144-644: The next decade and a half. Following the issuance of a TMDL for a water body, implementation of the requirements involves modification to NPDES permits for facilities discharging to the water body to meet the WLA allocated to the water body (see Title IV ). The development of WQS and TMDL is a complex process, both scientifically and legally, and it is a resource-intensive process for state agencies. More than half of U.S. stream and river miles continue to violate water quality standards. Surveys of lakes, ponds and reservoirs indicated that about 70 percent were impaired (measured on

4218-412: The permit. The 1972 act authorized continued use of the water quality-based approach, but in coordination with the technology-based standards. After application of technology-based standards to a permit, if water quality is still impaired for the particular water body, then the permit agency may add water quality-based limitations to that permit. The additional limitations are to be more stringent than

4292-423: The point source definition in the 1972 CWA and was unclear on the status of some other sources. Such sources were therefore considered to be nonpoint sources that were not subject to the permit program. Agricultural stormwater discharges and irrigation return flows were specifically exempted from permit requirements. Congress, however, provided support for research, technical and financial assistance programs at

4366-418: The regulations of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Other important CFR sections include Title 10 (energy), Title 18 (Conservation of Power and Water Resources), Title 21 (Food and Drugs), Title 33 (Navigable Waters), Title 36 (Parks, Forests and Public Property), Title 43 (Public Lands: Interior) and Title 50 (Wildlife and Fisheries). The federal and state judiciaries have played an important role in

4440-538: The relationship between water pollution and rising male fertility problems. Study identified a group of chemicals that act as anti-androgens in polluted water, which inhibits the function of the male hormone, testosterone, reducing male fertility. Neurological disorders are diseases of the brain, spine and the nerves that connect them. The new study of more than 700 people in California's Central Valley found that those who likely consumed contaminated private well water had

4514-620: The samples using test methods specified in their permits. EPA publishes analytical methods that are used by the permittees. The procedures identify chemical compounds and microbiological components of wastewater, as required by the act. Some of the chemical compound test procedures include the chemical detection of trace elements such as cancer-causing metals. Some microbiological test procedures use microbial source tracking (MST) techniques to calculate and identify biological and chemical trends that may support new regulatory limits on pollutants. Congress exempted some water pollution sources from

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4588-469: The science to support that process (i.e. data, methodology) was in the early stages of development. That system was not effective, and there was no permit system in place to enforce the requirements. In the 1972 CWA, Congress added the permit system and a requirement for technology-based effluent limitations. In the 2020 Supreme Court case County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund , the Court also validated that some discharges may not be point sources, but are

4662-428: The section 303(d) list of water bodies not meeting standards. Water bodies on the 303(d) list require development of a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL). A TMDL is a calculation of the maximum amount of a pollutant that a water body can receive and still meet WQS. The TMDL is determined after study of the specific properties of the water body and the pollutant sources that contribute to the non-compliant status. Generally,

4736-499: The state. Title 1 of the Act also designated 22 inactive uranium mill sites for remediation , resulting in the containment of 40 million cubic yards of low-level radioactive material in UMTRCA Title 1 holding cells. The act was written in the "hectic final days" of the 95th U.S. Congress and contained multiple errors that made it "a nightmare of statutory construction ," and required remedial legislation to fix. The act perpetuated

4810-482: The technology-based limitations and would require the permittee to install additional controls. Water quality standards consist of four basic elements: 1) Designated uses; 2) Water quality criteria; 3) Antidegradation policy and 4) General policies. The water quality standards regulations require states and federally recognized tribes/nations to specify appropriate uses for water bodies in their jurisdiction. Identification of appropriate water uses takes into consideration

4884-497: The term more broadly, including wetlands with a "significant nexus" to traditionally-defined navigable waters. Since Rapanos , the EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have attempted to define protected waters in the context of Rapanos through the 2015 Clean Water Rule , but this has been highly controversial. The agencies considered the CWA to cover bodies of water with a "significant nexus" with traditional navigable waters, according with Justice Kennedy's definition. In 2023,

4958-597: The usage and value of public water supply, protection of fish, wildlife, recreational waters, agricultural, industrial and navigational water ways. Suitability of a water body is examined by states and tribes/nations usages based on physical, chemical, and biological characteristics. States and tribes/nations also examine geographical settings, scenic qualities and economic considerations to determine fitness of designated uses for water bodies. If those standards indicate designated uses to be less than those currently attained, states or tribes are required to revise standards to reflect

5032-463: The use must be designated. States and federally recognized Indigenous Nations protect their designated areas by adopting water quality criteria that the EPA publishes under CWA section 304(a), modifying the criteria to reflect site-specific conditions or adopting criteria based on other scientifically defensible methods. Water quality criteria can be numeric criteria that toxicity causes are known for protection against pollutants. A narrative criterion

5106-465: The uses that are actually being attained. For any body of water with designated uses that do not include "fishable/swimmable" target use that is identified in section 101(a)(2) of CWA, a "Use Attainability Analysis" must be conducted. Every three years, such bodies of water must be re-examined to verify if new information is available that demand a revision of the standard. If new information is available that specify "fishable/swimmable" uses can be attained,

5180-526: The water body (e.g., recreation, water supply, aquatic life, agriculture) and applying water quality criteria (numeric pollutant concentrations and narrative requirements) to protect the designated uses. An antidegradation policy is also issued by each state to maintain and protect existing uses and high quality waters. If a state fails to issue WQS, EPA is required to issue standards for that state. Water bodies that do not meet applicable water quality standards with technology-based controls alone are placed on

5254-601: Was enacted in 1948, but took on its modern form when completely rewritten in 1972 in an act entitled the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972 . Major changes have subsequently been introduced via amendatory legislation including the Clean Water Act of 1977 and the Water Quality Act (WQA) of 1987. The Clean Water Act does not directly address groundwater contamination . Groundwater protection provisions are included in

5328-422: Was the "functional equivalent of a direct discharge" and required the plant to obtain an NPDES permit. The 1972 CWA created a new requirement for technology-based standards for point source discharges. EPA develops those standards for categories of dischargers, based on the performance of pollution control technologies without regard to the conditions of a particular receiving water body . The intent of Congress

5402-460: Was to create a "level playing field" by establishing a basic national discharge standard for all facilities within a category, using a " Best Available Technology ." The standard becomes the minimum regulatory requirement in a permit. If the national standard is not sufficiently protective at a particular location, then water quality standards may be employed, and the permit authority (state or EPA) will include water quality-based effluent limitations in

5476-454: Was up to 75 percent of a facility's capital cost , with the remainder financed by the state. In subsequent amendments Congress reduced the federal proportion of the grants and in the 1987 WQA transitioned to a revolving loan program in Title VI . Industrial and other private facilities are required to finance their own treatment improvements based on the polluter pays principle . Congress passed

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