Much More Clean Water Act Enforcement Threatened, But EPA Role Remains Murky | Mintz

Yesterday the Government Accountability Office released a detailed report on the enforcement of NPDES provisions of the federal clean water law that allows discharges into United States water bodies. As many of you know, all but three states, and not the EPA, have primary responsibility for enforcing these licensing requirements. GAO reports that many states are not providing the EPA with the information it needs to get an idea of ​​whether states are doing this vitally important role.

The EPA says it will respond by making a list of 1,600 of the 300,000+ NPDES-approved entities that require the most immediate enforcement attention, and then “working with states” to ensure “timely and appropriate” Ensure enforcement.

The report does not provide information on when, how or with what financial means these enforcement measures will be taken.

In the meantime, I recommend a flowchart, which is Figure 2 of the report, which says Congress makes laws, EPA enforces those laws through ordinances, and if the regulated community fails to comply with those laws and regulations, enforcement actions are in place.

Do you notice something is missing? There is no mention of civil lawsuits against members of the regulated community established by the EPA and states are in accordance with the law. Nor is there any mention of our government’s Justice Department developing its own standards based on the laws passed by Congress. In order for the EPA to regain the original role that Congress intended it to play, as shown in this figure, Congress must address this phenomenon and provide the resources necessary for the EPA and states to carry out their duties.

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