Latest Clean Water Act Stories

Strong Rules Could Keep Millions of Pounds of Toxic Metals Out of Waterways WASHINGTON, Nov. 9, 2010 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In response to action by leading U.S. environmental groups, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking action to keep pollution from coal plant smokestacks out of America's waterways. EPA will issue these new rules, which would protect Americans from millions of pounds of heavy metals and other toxic pollutants, by July 23, 2012, with final rules due...

SACRAMENTO, Calif., Oct. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- The Delta Stewardship Council, charged with ensuring all levels of government help meet the state's coequal goals of a reliable water supply and a restored Delta ecosystem, voted Thursday to support a proposal to require more thorough treatment of Sacramento-area wastewater. "If we're serious about the Delta and its future, we have to start doing things differently - upstream, downstream, and in the Delta itself," said Council Chairman Phil...

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., Sept. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- A federal judge ruled against an attempt by the federal government's U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to summarily extend and expand their federal powers under the Clean Water Act (CWA). U.S. District Judge K. Michael Moore on Tuesday sided with New Hope Power Company and Okeelanta Corporation who argued the Army Corps had improperly extended their powers by attempting to enact new legislative rules without following proper procedure, including...

HARRISBURG, Pa., Aug. 20 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Department of Environmental Protection is providing municipal drainage system operators a nine-month extension of their existing general permit to better coordinate implementation of new permitting requirements. The extension applies to general permit PAG-13, which governs how municipal separate storm sewer systems handle stormwater runoff in urban areas. These systems, commonly referred to as MS4s, are publicly owned networks of...

HARRISBURG, Pa., Aug. 6 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Department of Environmental Protection has published information and guidance on the new law granting automatic permit extensions for certain land development activities. The law, created as part of the 2010-11 budget, allows for the automatic extension of certain water and waste permits and approvals issued after Dec. 31, 2008. The law allows approvals for these activities to be automatically extended until July 1, 2013. The law was...

SAN ANTONIO, July 27 /PRNewswire/ -- The world's foremost experts on storm and surface-water quality will convene in San Antonio, TX August 2 - 5 to explore the newest water pollution prevention and mitigation technologies, share their recent experiences and discuss which strategies are most effective in minimizing surface water pollution. Returning to the Lone Star State for the first time in 7 years, StormCon is packed with Texas and Southwest-specific content and courses, including an...

More accurate precipitation data leads to improved water quality modeling in the Chesapeake BayNASA scientists improved watershed pollution monitoring models by incorporating satellite and ground-based observations of precipitation. The NASA data replaces weather station observations, and will allow states to monitor non-point pollution and improve water quality.The research team, led by Joseph Nigro of Science Systems and Applications, Inc., incorporated two NASA products into a computer...

SANTA BARBARA, Calif., June 30 /PRNewswire/ -- Surface water pollution is the subject--how to prevent it, how it travels once it has occurred, and how to filter it. Public Works officials, engineers, commercial property executives, universities, construction, and industry professionals will be looking at leading edge methods for addressing stormwater pollution challenges at StormCon, the world's largest stormwater conference, held August 1-5, 2010, at the JW Marriott San Antonio Hill...

WASHINGTON, June 22 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Williamsport, Pa., Sanitary Authority (WSA) has agreed to make significant improvements to its combined sewer system at an estimated cost of approximately $10 million, in order to resolve long-standing problems with combined sewer overflows to the Susquehanna River, which flows to the Chesapeake Bay, the Justice Department and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today. Under the settlement agreement, filed today in federal...

CHARLESTON, W.Va., June 17 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced today it has suspended the use of Nationwide Permit 21 (NWP 21) in the Appalachian Region of six states. NWP 21 is used to authorize discharges of dredged or fill material into water for surface coal mining activities. The suspension is effective immediately and applies to the Appalachian Region of Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia. NWP 21 permits continue to be...