Chesapeake Bay Program
A Watershed Partnership
Backgrounder
410 Severn Avenue, Suite 109
Annapolis, Maryland 21403
voice 410-267-5700 • toll free 800-YOUR-BAY' www.chesapeakebay.net
A Brief History of the Clean Water Act
Growing public awareness and concern for controlling water pollution led to enactment of the Federal Water
Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972 - more commonly known as the Clean Water Act. There have been
dramatic improvements in the health of our nation's waters since then, with the majority of our waterways now
safe for fishing and swimming. The specter of Cleveland's Cuyahoga River catching fire and burning, a
Potomac River too dirty for swimming, or Lake Erie devoid of life are now fading in our memories. The Clean
Water Act is what made this a reality. But despite this great progress there are still many challenges left unmet.
Many of the nation's waters currently do not meet water quality goals.
The Clean Water Act established the basic structure for regulating water pollution in the United States. It gave
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency the authority to implement pollution control programs such as setting
wastewater standards for industry. The Clean Water Act continued requirements to set water quality standards
for all contaminants in surface waters, and made it unlawful for anyone to discharge any pollutant from a point
source into the water without a highly restrictive permit.
The Clean Water Act also funded the construction and upgrading of wastewater treatment plants, more than
doubling the number of Americans served by these facilities. The vast majority of the 305 largest wastewater
treatment plants in the Chesapeake Bay's 64,000-square-mile watershed were either constructed or upgraded
with money authorized by the Clean Water Act. And Section 404 of the Act has been the primary tool to help
stem the loss of wetlands nationwide and in the Bay region. The Act also recognized the need for planning to
address the critical problems posed by nonpoint source pollution.
Subsequent enactments modified some of the earlier Clean Water Act provisions. Revisions in 1981
streamlined the municipal construction grants process, improving the capabilities of treatment plants built under
the program. Changes in 1987 phased out the construction grants program, replacing it with the State Water
Pollution Control Revolving Fund, more commonly known as the Clean Water State Revolving Fund. This new
funding strategy addressed water quality needs by building on EPA-State partnerships. The 1987 amendments
added a new Section 117, which authorized the Chesapeake Bay Program, and was further updated in 2000 by
the Chesapeake Bay Restoration Act amendment. Based on the Chesapeake Bay Program model, the 1987
amendments also created and authorized the National Estuary Program, which now includes 28 estuaries
targeted for restoration and protection throughout the United States.
Anniversaries provide a good opportunity to reflect on progress made and to renew
commitments to future improvement. As we look back at the important work done under the
authority of the Clean Water Act, we can take pride in all that has been accomplished
throughout the nation and in the Chesapeake Bay. Yet we know that much remains to be
done. Nonpoint pollution from runoff from our streets, lawns, and farms must be further
reduced. Those waters that are still impaired must be restored. The Chesapeake Bay
Program has pledged, through the signing and implementation of its landmark Chesapeake
2000 agreement, to take on this challenge and to work cooperatively to meet its many goals
to restore this nation's largest and most productive estuary.
if 2002 *
THE YEAR OF
CLEAN WATER
The Chesapeake Bay Program is restoring the Bay through a partnership among the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency representing the federal
government, the State of Maryland, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the Commonwealth of Virginia, the District of Columbia,
the Chesapeake Bay Commission, and participating citizen advisory groups.
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