Water Pollution Dampens Summer Fun
Published August 19, 2009 @ 08:19AM PT
August: the month where every spare moment is spent around water-swimming, fishing, boating, beachcombing.
As summer wanes you might consider how much clean streams, lakes and beaches mean to you and your loved ones.
Sadly this moment of reflection is also being forced on many of us: according to a recent Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) report, beach closings due to pollution are on the rise, climbing above 20,000 for the last four years in a row.
Across the country,746 communities in 32 states face water contamination, fish consumption warnings, and beach closings from the release of raw sewage into nearby water bodies.
Without restoring Clean Water Act protections, the releases that occur in smaller streams, creeks, tributaries, and canals-which are vulnerable to Clean Water Act protection loss-may no longer be regulated, polluting life's vital resource
America's waters are degraded, endangered and sorely need protection -in part due to two recent Supreme Court cases that have limited the effectiveness of the historic Clean Water Act. These decisions have left many of America's streams and waterways at risk once more.
Luckily, the U.S. House of Representatives is getting ready to consider restoring Clean Water Act protections when they return to Washington DC next month. And with everything else on Congress' plate right now, it wouldn't be good to let them forget how important our waters are.
By Caroline Wick and Jan Goldman-Carter, National Wildlife Federation
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