76
Environmental and Health
an abatement order requiring a facility to take any action necessary to
cease any action responsible for posing an imminent hazard. Failure to
comply may result in a fine of $5000 per day per violation.
Clean Water Act (Federal Water Pollution Control Act)
In 1972, Congress enacted Pub. L. No. 92-500,
86 Stat.
816 (1972),
entitled the Federal Water Pollution Control Act. This legislation was
referred to as the Clean Water Act (CWA) after the addition of the 1977
amendments; it is the government's principal statute for regulating water
pollution. Public Law No. 95-217, 91 Stat. 1566 (1977) addresses the
problem of toxic water pollutants and Pub. L. No.
100-4,
100 Stat.
7
(1986) refines enforcement priorities and increases EPA's enforcement
authority. EPA was granted authority to implement CWA, but states can
administer certain tenets of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination
System (NPDES) program.
The objective of CWA is to "restore and maintain the chemical,
physical, and biological integrity of the Nation's waters." "The CWA
can be divided into five policy areas:
1.
National water quality standards.
2.
Industry specific minimum national effluent standards.
3.
A permit program to regulate point source discharges, and to
otherwise enforce water quality standards.
4.
Special problems including toxic chemical releases and oil spills.
5.
Grants for construction of publicly owned treatment works
(POTWs). "
Each state is required to divide water bodies into segments for CWA
planning and implementation purposes. CWA requires states to submit
plans to EPA defining water quality standards to be achieved for each
segment identified.
33 U.S.C. § 1313. Water quality standards measure
the attributes of a given body of water and address all discharges into it.
Water quality standards serve a dual role. They establish goals for
the quality of water in a specific water body; and, they serve as the
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