WATER CONSERVATION &
IMPORTANT LAWS
Agricultural Conservation
*
agriculture is biggest user & polluter of water
 No-till farming: Retain crop residue- slows
water
 Minimize plowing & forest cutting on steep
slopes- use terracing
 Conserve wetlands- reduces flooding &
retains aquifer recharge zones
 Genetic engineering- drought resistant crops
Domestic Conservation
 Largest domestic use is
toilet flushing.
– Before 1982: 5-7 gal/flush
– 1982-1993: 3.5 gal/flush
– After 1993: 1.6 gal/flush
 Some people say… If it’s
yellow let it mellow, if it’s
brown flush it down.
 What the heck is a
waterless toilet?
– Toilet & kitchen waste drop
into a digester with bacteria
that compost wastes to be
used as yard fertilizer
Clivus Multrum model of
waterless toilet
Domestic Conservation
(inside)
 Check for leaks around
pipes
 Low flow showerheads;
take shorter showers
 Turn water off when
washing hands, dishes, or
brushing teeth
 Efficient dishwashers &
washing machines
 Wash full loads
 Collect grey water from
bathtub to flush toilets or
fill washing machine.
Domestic Conservation
(outside)
 Use gray water (recycled water)
for watering lawns, washing
cars, etc.
 Use rain barrels to catch rain
runoff to use in gardens in times
of drought
 Native plant landscaping- native
plants are better able to handle
their natural environment
 Xerophyte Landscaping- plants
that don’t require much water
(cacti, aloe, prairie grasses)
Industrial Conservation
 RECYCLE
 Recycling things like paper
& aluminum consumes
less water than primary
manufacturing process.
 Don’t buy or use materials
that contain harmful
chemicals.
 Support companies that
reuse water (car washes
that recycle water)
 Reduce energy
consumption
WATER LAWS
All laws in yellow are most
important for you to know…
Water Rights Laws
Historically…
 Water policies worked against conservation…
 Riparian rights- those who lived along a river bank had right to use
as much water as they wanted as long as it didn’t interfere with
quality or supply to neighbors downstream
– Mostly Eastern U.S.
– Assumed water was endless
 Prior appropriation rights- “1st come, 1st served”; people
downstream have more rights to the water if they have been there
longer.
– Mostly Western U.S.
– Water had to be put to beneficial use or they would lose it. Many water
owners were reluctant to conserve water for fear of losing rights.
Federal Water Pollution Control Act
(1948)
 Created comprehensive programs for
eliminating or reducing the pollution of
interstate water and improving the sanitary
condition of surface and underground water
supplies
 Reauthorized & amended in 1972 and
became known as Clean Water Act
 General law that indicated something should
be done to protect water
Water Quality Act (1965)
 Established water purity standards with
states retaining initial responsibility for water
purity.
 Amended in 1987
Clean Water Act (1972)
 Determined to “restore & maintain the chemical, physical,
and biological integrity of the Nation’s waters”
 Gave EPA authority to implement pollution control
programs like setting wastewater discharge standards for
industry
 Continued water quality standards (see previous law)
 Est. National Pollution Discharge Elimination System
(NPDES) which made it unlawful to discharge from a point
source unless had a permit from EPA
– Must disclose what they are dumping
 Grant programs to identify & clean up nonpoint source
pollution
 Grant programs to fund sewage treatment plants.
Clean Water Act (1972)
 Section 404
– Regulates draining or filling
of wetland
– Farmers and land
developers especially do not
like this part of the law b/c it
dictates how they use their
land.
– Mitigation- if wetland must
be destroyed, a new one
must be re-created
somewhere else
Clean Water Act (1972)
 Est. Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDL’s)
– Set for each pollutant
– Amount of a particular pollutant that a water
body can receive from point and non-point
sources.
– Takes into account seasonal variation
– Of the 3.5 million miles of rivers, only 300,000
fail to meet their clean water goals.
Clean Water Act (1972)
 Goal was to make US surface waters “fishable &
swimmable”
 Have not reached that goal but have made most
waters “boatable”- water quality doesn’t have to be
that high to be boatable.
 Many fish in surface waters are making a come
back but many are still contaminated with heavy
metals; heavy metal contaminants are still in
sediment in soil so are still a problem. Don’t
dissolve in water
 Most people live within 10 miles of an impaired
body of water.
Great Lakes Water Quality
Agreement (1972)
 Most important
international agreement on
water quality
 Expresses the
commitment of Canada
and the U.S. to restore and
maintain the chemical,
physical and biological
integrity of the Great Lakes
Basin Ecosystem
Lake Erie Success Story
 Labeled as “dead” in
1960’s
 Now, bacteria counts &
algal blooms are down by
90%
 Murky brown water now
clear thanks to introduced
zebra mussels which filter
water.
 96% of shoreline safe for
swimming
 In 1970’s only 100 pairs of
nesting cormorants- now
400,000 pairs
Safe Drinking Water Act (1974)
 Est. standards for safe
drinking water in the U.S.
 Est. Maximum
Contaminant Levels
(MCL’s) for chemicals in
drinking water
 Among contaminants
regulated:
– Bacteria, nitrates, arsenic,
barium, cadmium,
chromium, fluoride, lead,
mercury, silver, pesticides,
radioactivity, turbidity
Marine Protection Research &
Sanctuaries Act (1972)
 Regulates ocean dumping and established
sanctuaries for protection of endangered
marine species
Ports of Waterways Safety Act
(1972)
 Regulates oil transport
and the operation of oil
handling facilities.
Ocean Dumping Ban Act (1988)
 Unlawful for any person to dump or
transport for the purpose of dumping
sewage, sludge, or industrial waste into the
ocean.
Oil Spill Prevention and Liability Act
(1990)
 Strengthened the EPA’s ability to prevent
and respond to catastrophic oil spills.
 The Oil Pollution Act (OPA) of 1990 strengthened EPA's ability to
prevent and respond to catastrophic oil spills.
 A trust fund financed by a tax on oil is available to clean up spills
 The OPA requires oil storage facilities and vessels to submit oil spill
response plans.
 EPA has published regulations for aboveground storage facilities;
Coast Guard has done so for oil tankers.
 All oil tankers will be double hulled by 2020.
Law of the Sea Treaty (1990)
Also referred to as London Dumping
Convention of 1990
 Signed by 64 nations
 Phasing out of all
ocean dumping of
industrial wastes, tankwashing effluent, and
plastic trash by 1995.
Hazardous Waste Laws
 Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
1976- Regulates the storage, shipping, processing, and
disposal of hazardous wastes and sets limits on the
sewering of toxic chemicals.
 Toxic Substances Control Act (TOSCA) 1976categorizes toxic substances, est. research programs &
regulates use & disposal of poisonous chemicals.
 Comprehensive Environmental Response,
Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) 1980 &
Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act
(SARA) 1984- Provide for sealing, excavation, or
remediation of toxic & hazardous waste dumps. Also
called Superfund Act
LAWS ARE ONLY AS GOOD AS…
 The degree to which they are not weakened
by later amendments and exceptions
 The degree to which they are funded for
research and enforcement