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On June 22, 1969, a stray spark ignited oil and
debris on Ohio's Cuyahoga River, engulfing the river in flames. The burning of
the Cuyahoga came to symbolize for this country a century of industrialization
with little or no regard for environmental consequences. It also was one of the
seminal events that gave rise to the environmental movement, the creation of
EPA, and the passage of a series of laws designed to safeguard our environment,
including the enactment of the Clean Water Act in 1972.
In the 30 years since the Cuyahoga blaze, citizens,
industries, states, and local governments, along with the federal government,
have banded together to improve the quality of the nation's waters. Over a
trillion dollars, much of it authorized under the Clean Water Act, has been
spent to upgrade and expand wastewater treatment facilities. This commitment to
clean water continues as industrial facilities and state and local governments
make investments to improve treatment and reduce water quality problems. EPA
and the states have written and enforced more than 70,000 permits limiting
pollutants. These efforts to control "point source" discharges from
municipalities, industry, and sewage plants have yielded tremendous results.
The number of Americans served by adequate sewage treatment has more than
doubled. Toxic releases from industry continue to decline. Due to this national
commitment, the Cuyahoga and other once severely polluted waters are now
thriving centers of healthy communities.
Despite tremendous progress, we still have much
work to do. Nearly 40 percent of the nation's assessed waters are not meeting
the standards states have set for them. Many of these problems will require
expanded treatment of sewage or industrial discharges. But the majority of
pollution problems are caused by runoff from city streets, rural areas, and
other diffuse sources. As you will see in the pages that follow, polluted
runoff poses a serious threat to the nation's liquid assets, including highly
valued drinking water sources, beaches, recreational fisheries, coastal seafood
nurseries, and popular vacation areas.
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