Clean Water Issues in the 107th Congress: An Overview


 

Publication Date: January 2001

Publisher: Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service

Author(s):

Research Area: Environment

Type:

Abstract:

Key water quality issues that may face the 107th Congress include: actions to implement existing provisions of the Clean Water Act, whether additional steps are necessary to achieve overall goals of the Act, and the appropriate federal rule in guiding and paying for clean water activities. This Act is the principal law that deals with polluting activity in the nation's lakes, rivers, and coastal waters and authorizes funds to aid construction of municipal wastewater treatment plants. Legislative prospects for comprehensively amending it have been stalled over whether and exactly how to change the law.

If clean water issues receive attention in the 107th Congress, attention could focus on water infrastructure funding, implementation of current programs for developing total maximum daily loads (TMDLs) to restore pollution-impaired waters, and impacts of agricultural activities on water quality. The Act's wetlands permit program, a contentious issue in the past, also remains on the legislative agenda for some Members. Consideration of specific issues will depend in part on the CWA policy agenda of the new Bush Administration and on priorities of the key committees that have major jurisdiction over the Act. This report will be updated as developments warrant.