Number: 1984-09
WHEREAS, over half the pollution entering the nation’s waterways comes from diffuse, nonpoint sources such as runoff from farms, city streets, construction sites and logging operations; and
WHEREAS, nonpoint sources of water pollution are contaminating drinking water supplies, accelerating the sedimentation of lakes, reservoirs, and harbors and destroying fish and wildlife habitat; and
WHEREAS, it costs the nation $3 billion annually to correct the problems caused by nonpoint pollution; and
WHEREAS, simple, cost-effective best management practices such as conservation tillage and strip cropping, hay bales around construction sites, and more frequent street sweeping, have been developed to reduce nonpoint pollution; and
WHEREAS, federal funding for state and territorial nonpoint pollution activities under the Clean Water Act has been eliminated; and
WHEREAS, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has found that the lack of progress in cleaning up nonpoint pollution is due to the voluntary nature of the programs; and
WHEREAS, nonpoint source pollution remains the major uncontrolled source of water pollution and is unaddressed in the Clean Water Act;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the National Wildlife Federation, in annual meeting assembled March 15-18, 1984, in Atlanta, Georgia, urges Congress to amend the Clean Water Act:
- to require states and territories to develop and implement programs to control nonpoint pollution;
- to set a reasonable deadline by which states and territories must achieve implementation of best management practices;
- to establish an enforcement mechanism, such as citizen suits or EPA implementation of a plan if a state or territory fails to act, to ensure implementation of such a program; and
- to establish federal incentives, including grants to states and territories to promote implementation of such programs.