In the United States, the Clean Water Act (1972) represented a milestone in environmental law. Its enactment resulted in a vast improvement in the quality and quantity of our waterways. Twenty seven years later, a lack of funding, initiative and foresight has resulted in a serious erosion of the acts initial achievements. One study estimates over 30 percent of our waterways exceed acceptable pollution levels, whilst approximately 6.5 percent of the population fall prey to contaminated water. The offenders that pollute the water are well aware that the act is lightly patrolled, rarely enforced and the consequences for getting caught are fairly light. Both the Clean Water Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act are overseen by the Environmental Protection Agency. A review of the Agency has commenced as ordered by its Administrator Lisa Jackson. The Obama administration has ordered the EPA to ramp up its enforcement of the two acts, its first action was to increase a list of contaminants that will come under scrutiny and bare fines. The legislation has to straddle our multi tiered government, with Capitol Hill dictating the health standards, the state governments then drafting and enforcing their permits. In a perfect world, state codes and enforcement would be equal and standardized; unfortunately this is not the case. Areas of concern are the large confined live stock facilities, Electricity Utilities and farm runoffs. When the Clean Water Act ascended in 1972 there were approximately one hundred thousand elements for the EPA to police. In 2010 there will be over one million areas of interest. This means money, money to monitor, enforce, review and update. It will probably take considerable financial backing from the White House to save our waterways.

In the United States, the Clean Water Act (1972) represented a milestone in environmental law. Its enactment resulted in a vast improvement in the quality and quantity of our waterways. Twenty seven years later, a lack of funding, initiative and foresight has resulted in a serious erosion of the acts initial achievements. One study estimates over 30 percent of our waterways exceed acceptable pollution levels, whilst approximately 6.5 percent of the population fall prey to contaminated water. The offenders that pollute the water are well aware that the act is lightly patrolled, rarely enforced and the consequences for getting caught are fairly light. Both the Clean Water Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act are overseen by the Environmental Protection Agency. A review of the Agency has commenced as ordered by its Administrator Lisa Jackson. The Obama administration has ordered the EPA to ramp up its enforcement of the two acts, its first action was to increase a list of contaminants that will come under scrutiny and bare fines. The legislation has to straddle our multi tiered government, with Capitol Hill dictating the health standards, the state governments then drafting and enforcing their permits. In a perfect world, state codes and enforcement would be equal and standardized; unfortunately this is not the case. Areas of concern are the large confined live stock facilities, Electricity Utilities and farm runoffs. When the Clean Water Act ascended in 1972 there were approximately one hundred thousand elements for the EPA to police. In 2010 there will be over one million areas of interest. This means money, money to monitor, enforce, review and update. It will probably take considerable financial backing from the White House to save our waterways.