Number: 1984-14
WHEREAS, groundwater is one of our most valuable natural resources, supplying almost half of the Nation’s drinking water and 40% of its irrigation water; and
WHEREAS, the waters of many streams, rivers and other valuable habitats, such as the New Jersey Pine Barrens, are fed by groundwater aquifers; and
WHEREAS, the groundwaters of the U.S. and its territories harbor a spectacular and diverse assemblage of subterranean wildlife, including blind fish, salamanders and shrimp, some of which are adapted to single aquifers; and
WHEREAS, these species are an important scientific resource, being the object of studies in biogeography, evolution, ecology; and
WHEREAS, groundwater contamination by a variety of man-made pollution sources — including toxic waste dumps, waste injection wells, oil and gas wells, the leaching of agricultural chemicals through soils, leaking underground storage tanks, and non-point pollution sources — threatens aquifers in virtually every state in the Nation; and
WHEREAS, many hazardous chemicals thought not to migrate through the soil such as EDB, TCP, atrazine, and DBCP are now appearing in significant amounts in groundwaters of the U.S.; and
WHEREAS, these examples are only the tip of the iceberg for a major problem that is largely out-of-sight and out-of-mind for administrators and the public; and
WHEREAS, once groundwater becomes contaminated it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to clean up;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the National Wildlife Federation, in annual meeting assembled March 15-18, 1984, in Atlanta, Georgia, urges Federal, State, and territorial government agencies to utilize their existing statutory authorities to the maximum extent possible to identify and control the major sources of groundwater pollution; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Federal, State, and territorial governments act immediately to identify for special protection those major groundwater aquifers that are now, or may eventually be, utilized for drinking water; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Congress and State legislatures act immediately to fill gaps in existing laws that allow the unregulated contamination of groundwater from such sources as surface impoundments, leaking underground storage tanks, small hazardous waste facilities, and septic systems; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Federal and State governments establish a nationwide groundwater monitoring system and assure that the results of such monitoring are made immediately and freely available to the public.