Overview of Federal Water Pollution Legislation
1886	Rivers and Harbors Act Until the late 1800s, there is no federal authority to regulate activities associated with the nation’s river systems, so individuals and businesses are free to build bridges and establish tolls that obstruct navigation. As a result, Congress passes the Rivers and Harbors Act in 1886 that gives the federal government authority to take action to improve navigation on the nation’s rivers. However, federal action regarding flood control or water quality is not allowed because of Constitutional questions.
1899	Recodified the Rivers & Harbors Act This Act authorizes the Secretary of the Army to maintain freedom of navigation and prevent obstructions in waters of the U.S. It authorizes the Corps of Engineers to issue permits for the construction of structures or for dredge and fill actions in navigable waters. A Supreme Court ruling in 1959 (U.S. v. Republic Steel Corp.) interprets “obstruction” to include water pollution.
1948	Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA). This is the first legislation to establish the legal authority for Federal regulation of water quality. The goal of the FWPCA is to “enhance the quality and value of our water and our resources and to establish a national policy for the prevention, control, and abatement of water pollution.” It requires the federal government to work cooperatively with the states in developing plans to address water pollution. It also gives the authority to the Surgeon General of the Public Health Service to prepare plans and programs to eliminate or reduce the pollution of interstate waters and improve sanitary conditions of surface and ground waters.
1956	1956 Water Pollution Control Act broadens the federal government’s authority to regulate water pollution. It grants greater authority to the federal government; no longer is the states’ consensus required for the federal government to take action.
1961	With amendments to the FWPCA, authority is provided to the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare to undertake research programs related to determining effects of pollutants and treatment methods and to assess water quality in the Great Lakes. Measures are also specified which could be taken by the Secretary, at the request of a state, to ward against pollution of interstate or navigable waters.
1965	Passage of the Water Quality Act of 1965 expands the federal role further by authorizing the establishment of water quality standards.
1966	Clean Water Restoration Act of 1966 also expands the federal government’s role and power through the establishment of fines for polluters not filing required reports; it also authorizes the Secretary of Interior, in cooperation with the Secretary of Agriculture and the Water Resources Council, to conduct a comprehensive study of the effects of pollution, including sedimentation, in the estuaries and estuarine zones of the U.S. on fish and wildlife, sport and commercial fishing, recreation, water supply and power, and other specified uses
1970	Water Quality Improvement Act of 1970 further expands the federal role, and establishes a State certification process to prevent degradation of water below applicable standards. All states must implement this certification process as the federal government assumes more authority over and responsibility for the nation’s rivers and streams.
1970	The Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970 creates the Environmental Protection Agency, abolished the Federal Water Quality Administration in the Department of Interior, and transfers to EPA all functions formerly assigned to the Secretary of Interior and the Department of Interior which had been administered through the Federal Water Quality Administration.
1972	Amendments to the FWPCA establish broad objective to “restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation’s waters.” The two goals are to 1. Eliminate the discharge of all pollutants into the navigable waters of the U.S. by 1985, and 2. Provide an interim level of water quality to protect fish, shellfish, and wildlife and recreation by July 1, 1983. Among the other provisions is a requirement to develop guidelines to identify and evaluate the extent of non-point source pollution. The National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program is created, and gives the Corps of Engineers authority to issue permits for dredge and fill activities.
1977	The FWPCA becomes known as the Clean Water Act with these amendments.
1987	Water Quality Act of 1987 requires the establishment of a $400 million program for States to develop and implement, on a watershed basis, non-point source management and control programs with EPA responsibility for grant administration.