B) Clean Water Act By: Dr. Armand Yazdani P.2 4/30/09

Summary of CWA The Clean Water Act (CWA) establishes the basic structure for regulating discharges of pollutants into the waters of the United States and modifiable quality standards for surface waters. The foundation of the CWA was brought up in 1948 and was named the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, but the Act was drastically rationalized and prolonged in "Clean Water Act" became the Act's ordinary name with amendments in Pollutants regulated under the CWA include "priority" pollutants, including various toxic pollutants; "conventional" pollutants, such as biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), total suspended solids (TSS), fecal coli form, oil and grease, and pH; and "non-conventional" pollutants, including any pollutant not identified as either conventional or priority. The CWA regulates both direct and indirect discharges.

Summary continued… Evolution of CWA programs over the last decade has also included something of a shift from a program-by-program, source-by-source, pollutant-by-pollutant approach to more holistic watershed-based strategies. Under the watershed approach equal emphasis is placed on protecting healthy waters and restoring impaired ones. A full array of issues are addressed, not just those subject to CWA regulatory authority. Involvement of stakeholder groups in the development and completion of strategies for achieving and maintaining state water quality and other environmental goals is another hallmark of this approach.

But…there's more hehe The Clean Water Action Plan was given a high priority in the FY1999 budget with an allotment of $2.5 billion. The protection and restoration of wetlands was a part of the Plan with a goal of acquiring 100,000 acres of wetlands by the year Section 404 in the Clean Water Act calls for regulatory permits, administered by the Corps of Engineers, to be obtained before any work or construction involving wetlands can be performed. This includes real estate development where the property may include a wetland area. The regulation of wetlands is difficult and has caused many conflicts between the regulatory agencies and the property owners.