PROTECT RIVERS OF ALL SIZES—The Clean Water Restoration Act would ensure protections for water bodies of all sizes, including small streams and rivers such as Oak Creek, in the Coconino National Forest in Sedona, Arizona.

Under the Clean Water Act, we’ve made great progress in protecting and preserving our waters from pollution and contamination. But new threats, including reckless development and toxic chemicals, call for renewed vigilance and action.

U.S. PIRG supports efforts at the local, state and federal level to ensure clean, safe water for all.

Muddying The Waters
In June, nearly one year after the U.S. Supreme Court issued a murky split decision on federal clean water protections, the Bush administration issued a new policy in response that further weakens Clean Water Act safeguards for many waters.

U.S. PIRG’s analysis reveals that the policy puts more streams and wetlands at risk of unlimited pollution and adds to the confusion over which waters are covered by the Clean Water Act.

As a result, it is more important than ever for Congress to take action to protect our rivers, lakes, streams and wetlands.

Since the administration’s announcement, Clean Water Advocate Christy Leavitt and our allies have met with members of the 110th Congress to encourage them to be clean water champions, and to support the bipartisan Clean Water Restoration Act of 2007. Introduced by House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chair Jim Oberstar (Minn.) with 157 original co-sponsors, the bill ensures that the Clean Water Act continues to protect all waters in the United States from pollution and unregulated development. We expect the House of Representative to vote on the bill this fall.

Oregon: Clean Water Leader
In June, Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski helped take a significant step toward cleaner waterways and reduced toxic pollution by signing a state clean water bill into law. The law, passed with the support of Environment Oregon, requires a statewide assessment of toxic pollution and pollution prevention planning by some of the state’s largest polluters.

The law requires the state Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to conduct a statewide assessment of the most dangerous pollution—chemicals that persist for a long time in the environment or accumulate in people’s bodies.

The department would prioritize pollutants, isolate sources and identify available pollution prevention and reduction strategies.

Rhode Island Takes Action
This summer, Rhode Island Gov. Donald Carcieri signed the Smart Development for a Cleaner Bay Act of 2007 into law.

The law will raise Rhode Island’s runoff standards for new development and redevelopment projects to better protect Narragansett Bay and Rhode Island’s lakes, rivers and streams from pollution.

Runoff from development, also called stormwater runoff, is a source of bacteria, nitrogen and phosphorous in Narragansett Bay and other waterways throughout the state. Stormwater runoff also carries harmful chemicals and other toxins into Rhode Island’s rivers and streams.

“Encouraging, but not requiring, smarter development practices is no longer enough to protect the Bay and other waterways,” said Advocate Matt Auten. “It’s time to require smarter development in Rhode Island; this bill takes a big step in the right direction.”