Clean Water Act and Nonpoint Source Pollution
The Clean Water Act's primary objective is to restore and maintain the integrity of the nation's waters. This objective translates into two fundamental national goals:
The Clean Water Act provides a comprehensive framework of standards, technical tools and financial assistance to address the many causes of pollution and poor water quality, including municipal and industrial wastewater discharges, polluted runoff from urban and rural areas, and habitat destruction. Water pollution comes from two sources, point source pollution and nonpoint source pollution. Point source pollution refers to pollution from a specific point of discharge (e.g. from an industrial or municipal wastewater plant). Nonpoint source pollution is runoff caused by stormwater (rainfall or snowmelt) or irrigation water moving over and through the ground. Nonpoint source pollution is the major reason why water quality remains impaired in the State of Maryland. Return to NPS
Home Last Updated: 04/15/02 |
In 1972, Congress enacted the Federal Water Pollution Control Act in
response to growing public concern for serious and widespread water pollution.
The 1972 law built upon previous federal water pollution statutes. In 1977 the
act was amended and renamed the Clean Water Act. Congress amended the Clean
Water Act in 1987 to establish the section 319 Nonpoint Source Management
Program. The Clean Water Act was reauthorized in 1991. The Clean Water Act is
the primary federal law that protects our nation’s waters, including lakes,
rivers, aquifers and coastal areas.