All News Releases By Date

 

LOCAL ACTIVITIES TO COMMEMORATE 30TH ANNIVERSARY OF CLEAN WATER ACT

Release Date: 10/18/2002
Contact Information:





Environmental News

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Deputy Administrator Linda Fisher today celebrated the 30th anniversary of the Clean Water Act and the establishment of National Water Monitoring Day. Fisher celebrated Potomac River cleanup progress with national and local officials in Old Town Alexandria, Va., at the Alexandria Seaport Foundation. The celebration included a boat trip from the Seaport Foundation with Marymount University students and included water quality testing and discussions of non-point source pollution impacts on the water, aquatic vegetation and wildlife.

Fisher said, “Many of our waterways are much cleaner today because of the strong financial and regulatory tools created by this landmark legislation. For example, we can say with pride that the National Capital’s most famous river, the Potomac, once called a “national disgrace,” is now rated as one of the top bass fisheries in the United States.”

Nationally, Oct. 18 marks a milestone in the nation’s efforts to protect and restore valuable water resources. Among the accomplishments under the Clean Water Act:

- the federal government has provided more than $80 billion in wastewater treatment assistance to the states and localities. In 1968, only 86 million people were served by modern sewage treatment. Today of the 207 million people served by wastewater treatment facilities, more than 97 percent (201 million people) are served by secondary or better treatment. These important advances in wastewater treatment constitute one of the major achievements in modern American public health;

- the Clean Water Act permit program has resulted in the reduction of 700 billions of pounds of pollutants no longer discharged into waterways;

- the nation is close to achieving its goal of halting overall wetlands loss;

- in the past decade, the United States has preserved, restored and/or created hundreds of thousands of acres of habitat nationwide as part of the National Estuary Program;

- the nation is using the 30th anniversary as an opportunity to recommit to making all waters fishable and swimmable.

Today also has been designated National Water Monitoring Day to acknowledge the contributions of more than half a million volunteers who regularly monitor water quality. Today, thousands of citizens, students volunteer water monitoring organizations and water professionals from around the country will be monitoring their local rivers, streams, lakes, bays and wetlands.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Christie Whitman, Fisher, regional EPA officials and staffs and their state, local and environmental partners today celebrated the 30th anniversary of the Clean Water Act and the establishment of National Water Monitoring Day at events held all over the country. At the same time, Whitman announced that President George W. Bush today declared Oct. 18, 2002 as the start of the observance of the Year of Clean Water, through a Presidential Proclamation.

Additional information on 30th Anniversary events, National Water Monitoring Day and the Year of Clean Water is available at: https://www.epa.gov/water/yearofcleanwater .


R-202 ###