Carrin Williams

 Purity of Waters Act  To assure supplies of clean drinking water  Clean Streams Law  To protect the streams from pollution and the effects of surface coal mining  Pennsylvania Water Rights Act  Providing for allocation at surface water supplies

 Adoption of the Environmental Rights Amendment to the Pennsylvania Constitution  Guaranteeing the right of all citizens to clean air and pure water  Banning the practice of hauling food in vehicles that contain waste or hazardous chemicals  Establishing a Small Water Systems Technical Management Assisting Program  Authorizing the placement of a question on the ballot to issue $350 million in state bonds of waste water, drinking water and storm water management projects

 Clean Water Act ( Federal Water Pollution Control Act)  To restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation’s waters by preventing point and nonpoint pollution sources  Providing assistants to publicly owned treatment works for the improvement of waste water treatment, and maintaining the integrity of wetlands

 Safe Drinking Water Act  The main federal law the ensures the quality of Americans drinking water  Under the (SDWA) Environmental Protection Agency ( EPA) sets standards for drinking water quality, oversees the states, localities, and water suppliers who implement those standards  SDWA applies to all public water systems  There are currently more than 160,000 public water systems providing water to almost all Americans at some time in their lives  This does not apply to private wells

 Rivers and Harbors Appropriation Act  Prohibits the construction of any bridge, dam, dike, or causeway over or in navigable waterways of the U.S. without Congressional approval  Structures authorized by state legislatures may be built if the affected navigable waters are totally within one state  Provided that the plan is approved by the Chief of Engineers and the Secretary of Army

 National Environmental Policy Act  Requires federal agencies to integrate environmental values into their decision making process by considering by considering the environmental impacts of their proposed action and reasonable alternatives to those actions  To meet the NEPA requirements federal agencies prepare a detailed statement known as the Environmental Impact Statement  EPA reviews and comments on the EIS prepared by other federal agencies

 Marine Protection, Research & Sanctuaries Act ( Ocean Dumping Act)  Prohibits the dumping of material into the ocean that would unreasonably degrade or endanger human health or marine environment  Ocean dumping can not occur unless a permit is issued under the MPRSA

 Oil Pollution Act  Signed into law August 1990 because of the concern after of the Exxon Valdez incident  Exxon oil tanker struck Bligh Reef in Prince William Sound, Alaska, spilling more than 11 million gallons of crude oil  The OPA also created the national Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund  which is available to provide up to one billion dollars per spill incident.

 Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection  responsible for protecting and preserving the land, air, water, and energy resources through enforcement of the State's environmental laws  Environmental Crimes Section  investigating and prosecuting violations of crimes against the environment.

 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)  to protect human health and to safeguard the natural environment--air, water, and land--upon which life depends  United States Army Corps of Engineer  The Corps of Engineers is made up of military and civilian engineers, scientists, and professionals of other fields to work on engineering and environmental matters.  The Corps is responsible for providing quality, responsive engineering services to the nation through planning, designing, building and operating water resources and other civil works projects

 In most cases the EPA enforces the Laws  There has been in some cases where the Clean Water Act was not enforced  An article in the NY Times describes how the Clean Water Act Laws were not enforced  This was a serious situation that went on for some years

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