July 18th, 2012
Zoom Clean Water Act falls short The Clean Water Act, passed by Congress 40 years ago, was intended to eliminate water pollution by 1985. But according to a new investigation by EarthFix and InvestigateWest, that goal has proven elusive. From their findings: Whole categories of polluters are effectively exempt from penalties when they dump pollutants illegally. This affects thousands of facilities.  Violations of the Clean Water Act in the Northwest occur routinely, yet citations and financial penalties are relatively rare.   Government bodies are among the most prolific violators, especially those that manage aging sewage-treatment plants and stormwater pipes that dump polluted rainwater runoff directly into waterways.  The screenshot comes from an interactive map plotting Clean Water Act violations in the Northwest from 2009-2012. See the full map and read the investigation here.

Clean Water Act falls short

The Clean Water Act, passed by Congress 40 years ago, was intended to eliminate water pollution by 1985. But according to a new investigation by EarthFix and InvestigateWest, that goal has proven elusive. From their findings:

  • Whole categories of polluters are effectively exempt from penalties when they dump pollutants illegally. This affects thousands of facilities. 
  • Violations of the Clean Water Act in the Northwest occur routinely, yet citations and financial penalties are relatively rare.  
  • Government bodies are among the most prolific violators, especially those that manage aging sewage-treatment plants and stormwater pipes that dump polluted rainwater runoff directly into waterways. 

The screenshot comes from an interactive map plotting Clean Water Act violations in the Northwest from 2009-2012. See the full map and read the investigation here.

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