| To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to clarify the jurisdiction of the United States over waters of the United States. The Clean Water Act is one of our nation's most successful environmental laws. Passed in 1972, three years after the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland caught fire, it has dramatically improved the quality of our rivers, lakes and coastal waters. This has pleased almost everyone but the Bush administration, which is doing all it can to kill the Clean Water Act. In 2003 the EPA stopped enforcing the act. In June Bush-appointed judges on the Supreme Court further weakened it. The Clean Water Authority Restoration Act, would reestablish the act's vital safeguards for our coastlines, lakes and rivers. |
