Nonpoint source water pollution regulations in the United States on:
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Nonpoint source (NPS) water pollution regulations are environmental regulations that restrict or limit
water pollution
Water pollution (or aquatic pollution) is the contamination of water bodies, usually as a result of human activities, so that it negatively affects its uses. Water bodies include lakes, rivers, oceans, aquifers, reservoirs and groundwater. Water ...
from diffuse or nonpoint
effluent
Effluent is wastewater from sewers or industrial outfalls that flows directly into surface waters either untreated or after being treated at a facility. The term has slightly different meanings in certain contexts, and may contain various pollut ...
sources such as polluted
runoff
Runoff, run-off or RUNOFF may refer to:
* RUNOFF, the first computer text-formatting program
* Runoff or run-off, another name for bleed, printing that lies beyond the edges to which a printed sheet is trimmed
* Runoff or run-off, a stock market ...
from agricultural areas in a river catchments or wind-borne debris blowing out to sea. In the United States, governments have taken a number of legal and regulatory approaches to controlling NPS effluent.
Nonpoint water pollution sources include, for example, leakage from underground storage tanks, storm water runoff, atmospheric deposition of contaminants, and golf course, agricultural, and forestry runoff.
Nonpoint sources are the most significant single source of
water pollution in the United States, accounting for almost half of all water pollution, and agricultural runoff is the single largest source of nonpoint source water pollution. This water pollution has a number of detrimental effects on human health and the environment. Unlike
point source
A point source is a single identifiable ''localised'' source of something. A point source has negligible extent, distinguishing it from other source geometries. Sources are called point sources because in mathematical modeling, these sources can ...
pollution, nonpoint source pollution arises from numerous and diverse sources, making identification, monitoring, and regulation more complex.
Basis for controls and regulations
The basis for nonpoint source pollution regulation is the negative direct and indirect effects on both human health and the environment caused by the pollutants in NPS effluent.
Human health
Human health is most directly affected when polluted water is ingested into the body. Nonpoint source pollution can often have
toxic
Toxicity is the degree to which a chemical substance or a particular mixture of substances can damage an organism. Toxicity can refer to the effect on a whole organism, such as an animal, bacterium, or plant, as well as the effect on a subst ...
contaminants and chemicals present in the water. Additionally, there can be both bacteria and viruses (aka pathogens) found in the water.
Toxic contaminants and chemicals
Effluent from nonpoint sources may include toxic contaminates and chemical compounds including heavy metals like
lead
Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...
,
mercury
Mercury commonly refers to:
* Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun
* Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg
* Mercury (mythology), a Roman god
Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to:
Companies
* Merc ...
,
zinc
Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodi ...
, and
cadmium
Cadmium is a chemical element with the symbol Cd and atomic number 48. This soft, silvery-white metal is chemically similar to the two other stable metals in group 12, zinc and mercury. Like zinc, it demonstrates oxidation state +2 in most of ...
, organics like
polychlorinated biphenyls
Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are highly carcinogenic chemical compounds, formerly used in industrial and consumer products, whose production was banned in the United States by the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976, Toxic Substances Contro ...
(PCBs) and
polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and other substances resistant to breakdown.
[Penn State University. Pennsylvania Lake Erie NEMO]
"Nonpoint Source Pollution."
. There are many health effects associated with many of these toxic substances.
*
Lead
Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...
– can cause damage to the nervous connections as well as blood and brain disorders. Specific diseases include
nephropathy
Kidney disease, or renal disease, technically referred to as nephropathy, is damage to or disease of a kidney. Nephritis is an inflammatory kidney disease and has several types according to the location of the inflammation. Inflammation can ...
, colic-like abdominal pains, and
anemia
Anemia or anaemia (British English) is a blood disorder in which the blood has a reduced ability to carry oxygen due to a lower than normal number of red blood cells, or a reduction in the amount of hemoglobin. When anemia comes on slowly, th ...
.
*
Mercury
Mercury commonly refers to:
* Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun
* Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg
* Mercury (mythology), a Roman god
Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to:
Companies
* Merc ...
– Studies have shown effects such as chronic effects including tremors, impaired cognitive skills, and sleep disturbances.
Acute exposure has shown to cause chest pain,
dyspnea, cough,
hemoptysis, impairment of pulmonary function, and evidence of damage to the lung tissue.
*
Zinc
Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodi ...
– The U.S.
Food and Drug Administration
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respon ...
(FDA) has stated that zinc damages nerve receptors in the nose, which can cause loss of the sense of smell. Additionally, zinc toxicosis can occur in high doses of zinc.
*
Cadmium
Cadmium is a chemical element with the symbol Cd and atomic number 48. This soft, silvery-white metal is chemically similar to the two other stable metals in group 12, zinc and mercury. Like zinc, it demonstrates oxidation state +2 in most of ...
– Exposure to cadmium-containing substances can result initially in
metal fume fever
Metal fume fever, also known as brass founders' ague, brass shakes, zinc shakes, galvie flu, galvo poisoning, metal dust fever, welding shivers, or Monday morning fever, is an illness primarily caused by exposure to chemicals such as zinc oxide (Zn ...
but can progress to chemical lung damage,
pulmonary edema
Pulmonary edema, also known as pulmonary congestion, is excessive edema, liquid accumulation in the parenchyma, tissue and pulmonary alveolus, air spaces (usually alveoli) of the lungs. It leads to impaired gas exchange and may cause hypoxemia an ...
, and even
death
Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...
.
*
PCBs – People exposed to high levels of PCBs can exhibit skin conditions, such as
rash
A rash is a change of the human skin which affects its color, appearance, or texture.
A rash may be localized in one part of the body, or affect all the skin. Rashes may cause the skin to change color, itch, become warm, bumpy, chapped, dry, cr ...
es and
liver
The liver is a major Organ (anatomy), organ only found in vertebrates which performs many essential biological functions such as detoxification of the organism, and the Protein biosynthesis, synthesis of proteins and biochemicals necessary for ...
damage. Common symptoms include dermal and ocular
lesion
A lesion is any damage or abnormal change in the tissue of an organism, usually caused by disease or trauma. ''Lesion'' is derived from the Latin "injury". Lesions may occur in plants as well as animals.
Types
There is no designated classifi ...
s, irregular
menstrual cycle
The menstrual cycle is a series of natural changes in hormone production and the structures of the uterus and ovaries of the female reproductive system that make pregnancy possible. The ovarian cycle controls the production and release of eggs a ...
s and lowered
immune response
An immune response is a reaction which occurs within an organism for the purpose of defending against foreign invaders. These invaders include a wide variety of different microorganisms including viruses, bacteria, parasites, and fungi which could ...
s.
[Polychlorinated biphenyls, polychlorinated dibenzo...[Environ Res. 2001] - PubMed Result]
/ref>
– The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) classified seven PAH compounds as probable human carcinogens: benz(a)anthracene, benz[''a'']anthracene, benzo(a)pyrene, benzo[''a'']pyrene, benzo(b)fluoranthene, benzo[''b'']fluoranthene,
benzo benzo(k)fluoranthene">benzo 'k''luoranthene, chrysene, dibenz(a,h)anthracene, and indeno(1,2,3-cd)pyrene.
Pathogens
Pathogens are bacteria and viruses that can be found in water and cause diseases in humans.
Pathogens found in contaminated runoff may include:
* ''Cryptosporidium parvum'' – Primary symptoms of ''C. parvum'' infection are
diarrhoea
Diarrhea, also spelled diarrhoea, is the condition of having at least three loose, liquid, or watery bowel movements each day. It often lasts for a few days and can result in dehydration due to fluid loss. Signs of dehydration often begin wi ...
. Other symptoms can include
anorexia,
nausea
Nausea is a diffuse sensation of unease and discomfort, sometimes perceived as an urge to vomit. While not painful, it can be a debilitating symptom if prolonged and has been described as placing discomfort on the chest, abdomen, or back of the ...
/
vomiting
Vomiting (also known as emesis and throwing up) is the involuntary, forceful expulsion of the contents of one's stomach through the mouth and sometimes the Human nose, nose.
Vomiting can be the result of ailments like Food-poisoning, foo ...
and
abdominal
The abdomen (colloquially called the belly, tummy, midriff, tucky or stomach) is the part of the body between the thorax (chest) and pelvis, in humans and in other vertebrates. The abdomen is the front part of the abdominal segment of the torso. ...
pain.
* ''
Giardia lamblia'' – Symptoms of infection include diarrhea,
malaise
As a medical term, malaise is a feeling of general discomfort, uneasiness or lack of wellbeing and often the first sign of an infection or other disease. The word has existed in French since at least the 12th century.
The term is often used ...
, excessive gas,
steatorrhoea
Steatorrhea (or steatorrhoea) is the presence of excess fat in feces. Stools may be bulky and difficult to flush, have a pale and oily appearance, and can be especially foul-smelling. An oily anal leakage or some level of fecal incontinence may o ...
, epigastric pain, bloating, nausea, vomiting, diminished interest in food, and weight loss.
* ''
Salmonella
''Salmonella'' is a genus of rod-shaped (bacillus) Gram-negative bacteria of the family Enterobacteriaceae. The two species of ''Salmonella'' are ''Salmonella enterica'' and ''Salmonella bongori''. ''S. enterica'' is the type species and is fur ...
'' – Symptoms are usually
gastrointestinal. This can include
nausea
Nausea is a diffuse sensation of unease and discomfort, sometimes perceived as an urge to vomit. While not painful, it can be a debilitating symptom if prolonged and has been described as placing discomfort on the chest, abdomen, or back of the ...
,
vomiting
Vomiting (also known as emesis and throwing up) is the involuntary, forceful expulsion of the contents of one's stomach through the mouth and sometimes the Human nose, nose.
Vomiting can be the result of ailments like Food-poisoning, foo ...
, abdominal cramps and bloody
diarrhea
Diarrhea, also spelled diarrhoea, is the condition of having at least three loose, liquid, or watery bowel movements each day. It often lasts for a few days and can result in dehydration due to fluid loss. Signs of dehydration often begin wi ...
with
mucus
Mucus ( ) is a slippery aqueous secretion produced by, and covering, mucous membranes. It is typically produced from cells found in mucous glands, although it may also originate from mixed glands, which contain both serous and mucous cells. It is ...
,
headache
Headache is the symptom of pain in the face, head, or neck. It can occur as a migraine, tension-type headache, or cluster headache. There is an increased risk of depression in those with severe headaches.
Headaches can occur as a result ...
, and
fatigue
Fatigue describes a state of tiredness that does not resolve with rest or sleep. In general usage, fatigue is synonymous with extreme tiredness or exhaustion that normally follows prolonged physical or mental activity. When it does not resolve ...
.
*
Parasitic worms (helminths) – Conditions associated with intestinal helminth infection include intestinal obstruction,
insomnia
Insomnia, also known as sleeplessness, is a sleep disorder in which people have trouble sleeping. They may have difficulty falling asleep, or staying asleep as long as desired. Insomnia is typically followed by daytime sleepiness, low energy, ...
,
vomiting
Vomiting (also known as emesis and throwing up) is the involuntary, forceful expulsion of the contents of one's stomach through the mouth and sometimes the Human nose, nose.
Vomiting can be the result of ailments like Food-poisoning, foo ...
, weakness, and stomach pains.
Environment
The environment is impacted by nonpoint source pollution through the input of sediment and nutrients from multiple sources directly into the water system.
Toxic contaminants and chemicals
Toxic chemicals and contaminants, like
motor oil
Motor oil, engine oil, or engine lubricant is any one of various substances used for the lubrication of internal combustion engines. They typically consist of base oils enhanced with various additives, particularly antiwear additives, deterg ...
, fuel, and industrial facility waste can enter the water system by storm water runoff. These chemicals, many of which can contain
heavy metals
upright=1.2, Crystals of osmium, a heavy metal nearly twice as dense as lead">lead.html" ;"title="osmium, a heavy metal nearly twice as dense as lead">osmium, a heavy metal nearly twice as dense as lead
Heavy metals are generally defined as ...
, can enter the water system and coat the species present in the water.
[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA). Washington D.C]
"Nonpoint Source Pollution"
September 2007. This can lead to death of the aquatic organisms which can cause increases in the amount of nutrients in the system from the decaying animals.
Sediment
Sediment
Sediment is a naturally occurring material that is broken down by processes of weathering and erosion, and is subsequently transported by the action of wind, water, or ice or by the force of gravity acting on the particles. For example, sand an ...
or suspended sediment in the water is soil that would not normally be present in the water column. When the sediment is suspended up in the water column, it blocks out the sunlight which is needed by bottom dwelling plants. If these plants, called
submerged aquatic vegetation
Aquatic plants are plants that have adapted to living in aquatic environments (seawater, saltwater or freshwater). They are also referred to as hydrophytes or macrophytes to distinguish them from algae and other microphytes. A macrophyte is a pl ...
, are deprived of sunlight for a significant amount of time, they will die. These plants are a significant source of food for many aquatic organisms as well as trap oxygen and sediment.
[ When there is an excess of dying plants in an aquatic ecosystem, it can lead to eutophic or ]hypoxic
Hypoxia means a lower than normal level of oxygen, and may refer to:
Reduced or insufficient oxygen
* Hypoxia (environmental), abnormally low oxygen content of the specific environment
* Hypoxia (medical), abnormally low level of oxygen in the tis ...
conditions in the water body.
Nutrients
The primary nutrients found in water due to nonpoint source pollution are nitrogen
Nitrogen is the chemical element with the symbol N and atomic number 7. Nitrogen is a nonmetal and the lightest member of group 15 of the periodic table, often called the pnictogens. It is a common element in the universe, estimated at se ...
and phosphorus
Phosphorus is a chemical element with the symbol P and atomic number 15. Elemental phosphorus exists in two major forms, white phosphorus and red phosphorus, but because it is highly reactive, phosphorus is never found as a free element on Ear ...
from fertilizers. An influx of these nutrients can lead to eutrophication
Eutrophication is the process by which an entire body of water, or parts of it, becomes progressively enriched with minerals and nutrients, particularly nitrogen and phosphorus. It has also been defined as "nutrient-induced increase in phytopla ...
within the water. This is when there is an excess of nutrients in water, thus leading to an explosion in the growth of algae
Algae (; singular alga ) is an informal term for a large and diverse group of photosynthetic eukaryotic organisms. It is a polyphyletic grouping that includes species from multiple distinct clades. Included organisms range from unicellular mic ...
. The algae can cover the lake and block sunlight from reaching the organisms below, typically killing them.[
]
Legal framework
Some aspects of NPS water pollution are regulated at the federal, state, and local level, but to a lesser extent than point sources. The pollution persists and remains a significant problem in many watersheds. NPS water pollution comes from numerous and diverse sources, and control measures are expensive to implement. State and local governments are generally responsible for implementing NPS regulations. Coordination among localities can be difficult, and, furthermore, localities often lack the incentive to rigorously enforce NPS regulations because their NPS pollution is exported downriver, where other towns and cities must deal with the consequences.
Federal laws
There are two principal federal laws effecting NPS water pollution: the Clean Water Act and the Coastal Zone Management Act. In addition, EPA's "Clean Water Action Plan" (2009) outlines a strategy for enforcing CWA requirements, some of which are applicable to nonpoint sources.
Clean Water Act
The Clean Water Act
The Clean Water Act (CWA) is the primary federal law in the United States governing water pollution. Its objective is to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation's waters; recognizing the responsibiliti ...
(CWA) was the first federal law designed to directly address water pollution. The CWA has been amended many times, but the 1972 amendments provide the core statutory basis for the regulation of point source water pollution and created the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program. The 1972 amendments were also the first instance where Congress
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
acknowledged the problem of NPS water pollution by requiring the states to prepare area-wide water quality management plans under Section 208.
=Defining NPS water pollution in the CWA
=
The definition of NPS water pollution is open to interpretation. However, federal regulation under the CWA provides a specific legal definition for the term. A "nonpoint source" is defined as any source of water pollution that is not a "point source" as defined in CWA section 502(14).
=Section 208
=
Section 208 was Congress' first attempt to address NPS water pollution, and it directed states and local governments to create management plans that identified future waste treatment needs and identify and control NPS water pollution.[ The section notes that any areawide management plan must discuss how to identify "agriculturally and silviculturally related nonpoint sources of pollution," and "runoff from manure disposal areas, and from land used for livestock and crop production." Section 208 is in essence a federal funding mechanism for state programs that attempt to control NPS pollution, but its meager funding was completely used up by 1980.][ Section 208 was widely considered a failure because it did little to actually reduce NPS pollution. It created a voluntary provision that directs states to study whether regulatory controls are needed. The law left decisions to the states about whether to regulate NPS water pollution. There was no process or mechanism to develop standards or enforce them.][
]
=Section 319
=
After section 208's failure to control NPS water pollution, in 1987 Congress passed the Water Quality Act which included a new section 319 to address the problem of nonpoint sources.[CWA section 319. Nonpoint source management programs. ] This provision, also non-regulatory, authorizes EPA to fund demonstration programs and provide technical assistance to state and local governments. Some critics have argued that section 319 provides little improvement over section 208.[ The section requires states to identify water bodies that cannot meet water-quality standards without control of nonpoint sources. The states must then identify ]best management practices
Best or The Best may refer to:
People
* Best (surname), people with the surname Best
* Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer
Companies and organizations
* Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain
* Best Lock Corporation, ...
(BMPs) and measures for those impaired sources, along with an implementation plan. The EPA approves these plans, and if a state fails to develop a plan, the EPA must do so for the state. However, there are a number of problems with these provisions. Funding to develop the plans has been scarce. The section does not actually place limits on NPS pollution, and states are not even required implement the plans they create.[ Another problem with 319 (and 208) is that there is no enforcement mechanism In ''Natural Resources Defense Council v. EPA'' (1990), the ]United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in the following federal judicial districts:
* District ...
held that "Section 319 does not require states to penalize nonpoint source polluters who fail to adopt best management practices; rather it provides for grants to encourage the adoption of such practices."
=Section 404
=
Section 404 of the CWA requires that a permit be obtained from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
, colors =
, anniversaries = 16 June (Organization Day)
, battles =
, battles_label = Wars
, website =
, commander1 = ...
for the "discharge of dredged and fill material into the navigable waters at specified disposal sites." The 404 permit process is frequently used to protect wetlands, which are essential to the control of nonpoint pollution because they slow the rate of surface water runoff and remove sediment and other pollutants before they reach lakes and streams. While these permitting procedures may result in decreased NPS water pollution to wetlands, a land developer may be able to choose to build a project at an alternate location and still cause the release of NPS water pollution.[
]
=Total maximum daily loads
=
CWA section 303(d)(1)(C) requires states to identify waterbodies that do not meet water quality standards after application of the technology-based standards for point source pollution. States must then establish a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for those water bodies to bring them into compliance with water quality standards. The standards are submitted to EPA for approval. As TMDLs are looking at the ''total'' amount of loading, this by definition includes nonpoint sources, so if nonpoint sources are impairing a body of water, the TMDL would have to address a way to reduce those nonpoint sources. TMDLs are required even if a body of water fails to meet quality standards entirely due to nonpoint sources.
=Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations
=
Depending on the number of animals at a particular site, Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) may generate significant amounts of manure. One method to remove the manure is to apply it to land for fertilization. However, in an effort to dispose of manure at a reduced costs, some CAFOs have applied excess amounts of manure to land areas. The excess amounts of manure may then be washed away by rain into surface waters. This practice was a key feature in ''Waterkeeper Alliance et al. v. EPA'' (2005). Based on that case, decided by the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (in case citations, 2d Cir.) is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. Its territory comprises the states of Connecticut, New York and Vermont. The court has appellate juri ...
, the EPA created its 2008 CAFO Rule. The rule states that the CWA specifically exempts agricultural storm water runoff from being considered a point source, but based on the court's decision in the ''Waterkeeper'' case, EPA may treat land applications of excessive amounts of manure as a point source. While in general agricultural storm water runoff from CAFOs is a nonpoint source, CAFOs may end up requiring an NPDES permit.
Clean Water Action Plans
There have been two "Clean Water Action Plans" offered by federal authorities that would affect NPS water pollution. They are both executive orders, not legislation from Congress. The first was issued by President Bill Clinton in 1998. The second, and more recent strategy was issued by Obama Administration
Barack Obama's tenure as the 44th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2009, and ended on January 20, 2017. A Democrat from Illinois, Obama took office following a decisive victory over Republican ...
in 2009.
Coastal Zone Management Act
The Coastal Zone Management Act
The Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 (CZMA; , , Chapter 33) is an Act of Congress passed in 1972 to encourage coastal states to develop and implement coastal zone management plans (CZMPs). This act was established as a United States National p ...
(CZMA) was passed in 1972 and provides for the management of the nation's coast lands and the Great Lakes. When Congress reauthorized the CZMA in 1990, it identified NPS water pollution as a significant factor in the degradation of coastal waters. To address NPS water pollution in coastal areas, the 1990 amendments to the CZMA created the Coastal Zone Enhancement Grants (CZEG) Program. The states must submit information on their programs to the Secretary of Commerce and the EPA Administrator, who are in charge of approving the plan. The plan is to be implemented in conjunction with the states NPS water pollution plan under section 319 of the CWA and through changes in the overall coastal zone management program. If a state does not submit an approved program, the state may lose a percentage of the grant money provided under the CZMA and under section 319 of the CWA. The EPA is also to provide some guidance to states in developing their NPS coastal management plans through the publication of national guidelines on management measures. These management measures must be economically achievable for new and existing NPS water pollution and must reduce pollution to the greatest extent achievable through current BMPs.
State & local laws
States have primary responsibility for implementing NPS water pollution regulations. Both the CZMA and the CWA direct the states to draft and implement NPS plans, and the federal government plays a limited role. As noted in the previous section on federal regulations, the CWA and CZMA provide financing for states to implement NPS programs, and those NPS programs have taken a variety of forms. The majority of state plans rely on education and technical assistance, including the development of BMPs, to reduce NPS water pollution.water conservation
Water conservation includes all the policies, strategies and activities to sustainably manage the natural resource of fresh water, to protect the hydrosphere, and to meet the current and future human demand (thus avoiding water scarcity). Populati ...
districts and other entities with land management responsibility provide planning, zoning, and technical and informational assistance to control NPS pollution.[ While the approaches states and local governments have taken to regulating NPS water pollution are perhaps too numerous to count, a survey of a few state approaches can provide insight on common NPS implementation plans.
]
Indiana
Indiana uses a common approach to address NPS pollution known as the watershed
Watershed is a hydrological term, which has been adopted in other fields in a more or less figurative sense. It may refer to:
Hydrology
* Drainage divide, the line that separates neighbouring drainage basins
* Drainage basin, called a "watershe ...
approach.[ Implementation of TMDLs is managed by local watershed organizations, and NPS pollution controls are only voluntary.][ Funding sources for NPS pollution regulation in Indiana include CWA 319(h) grants; CWA 205(j) grants; grants from the Environmental Quality Incentives Program of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008; and a wide variety of foundations and individual fundraising. Zoning ordinances may also be structured in a way that limits NPS water pollution.
]
California
California's NPS plan requires coordination from 28 different state agencies,California State Water Resources Control Board
The California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) is one of six branches of the California Environmental Protection Agency.
History
This regulatory program has had the status of an official government department since the 1950s. The Sta ...
's Division of Water Quality and the California Coastal Commission
The California Coastal Commission (CCC) is a state agency within the California Natural Resources Agency with quasi-judicial control of land and public access along the state's coastline. Its mission as defined in the California Coastal Act is " ...
(CCC) designed California's NPS plan pursuant to the CWA and the Federal Coastal Zone Act Reauthorization Amendments of 1990. California's NPS plan for 1998–2013 states that California, like Indiana, uses a watershed management approach to controlling NPS pollution. The plan began by identifying roughly 1,500 water body-pollutant combinations that would require a TMDL under the CWA section 303(d).[
The plan takes a three tiered approach to implement management measures for NPS pollution. The first tier considers "self-determined implementation of best management practices." This essentially considers voluntary programs, grants, and education. California has a number of educational programs designed to help alert local policymakers to the problems associated with NPS pollution, including the California Water and Land Use Partnership and the Model Urban Runoff Program.][ Incentive programs under this tier include measure like financial assistance for local watershed stewardship projects through grants from the CWA section 319 and environmental quality incentives programs for implementation cost-sharing. The first tier is less stringent than tiers two or three. The second tier of the plan is called the "regulatory-based encouragement of management practices." The second tier essentially works by allowing polluters to adopt certain managements measures that discourage NPS pollution rather than go through various permitting procedures. Regional water quality control boards may work with landowners and resource managers to waive the adoption of waste discharge requirements (WDRs), a type of effluent limitation, if a polluter adopts certain BMPs. The third tier is called "effluent limitations and enforcement." The effluent limitations may be set at a level where the only realistic manner of compliance is the adoption of BMPs. These limitations are command and control requirements for some activities, including for example WDRs for commercial nurseries, WDRs for selenium for the San Joaquin River, permitted storm water programs, erosion control for ]Lake Tahoe
Lake Tahoe (; was, Dáʔaw, meaning "the lake") is a Fresh water, freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada of the United States. Lying at , it straddles the state line between California and Nevada, west of Carson City, Nevad ...
, and WDRs for dairies.[
A number of these regulations are derived from California's ''Porter-Cologne Act'', which established the State Water Resources Control Board, along with nine regional boards that are tasked with implementing the Porter Cologne Act. The Act created state water quality standards that the boards must enforce. WDRs are one direct regulation California government agencies use under the Act to regulate NPS pollution. California has a number of other pieces of legislation that address NPS pollution, like the California Coastal Act and the California Environmental Quality Act.][
]
Policy instruments and regulatory approaches
There are five primary stakeholders involved in NPS water pollution regulation: government agencies, environmental advocacy group
Advocacy groups, also known as interest groups, special interest groups, lobbying groups or pressure groups use various forms of advocacy in order to influence public opinion and ultimately policy. They play an important role in the developm ...
s, potentially regulated entities, and the public. Government stakeholders are government agencies responsible for regulating NPS pollution. In addition to scientific results, agencies are concerned with how new regulations may influence their funding. Environmental advocacy stakeholders are organizations that aim to solve environmental problems, such as the Natural Resources Defense Council. These groups focus on the involvement of concerned citizens. The potentially regulated entities are the industries that will be regulated under new regulation. The public is a key stakeholder group, and various measures have been taken to engage the public on NPS water pollution, including the publication of citizen handbooks on NPS water pollution and online information. Environmental regulations for nonpoint sources must be expressed in directives that are specifically understandable by the regulatory target and enforceable by subsequent government intervention. The legal section above noted a number of policy options that have been used for regulating NPS water pollution. Some of the options include: volunteerism, command and control regulations, incentive based instruments, design standards, emissions limits, product bans, trading systems, subsidies, liability rules, and other options.
Volunteerism
Volunteerism mainly depends on polluters' moral constraints and social pressure. Public education and information about nonpoint pollution provide control mechanism. This is a weak, but common, option for NPS regulation when compared to other regulatory options. It is weak because it doesn't require any action be taken; it relies on polluters taking action themselves.
Command and control
Command and control policies are direct government regulations. The CWA is designed with this kind of direct command and control regulation for point source pollution. However, command and control regulations through the CWA apply to nonpoint source pollution a lesser extent. TMDLs are one tool in the CWA that directly regulates NPS effluent
Effluent is wastewater from sewers or industrial outfalls that flows directly into surface waters either untreated or after being treated at a facility. The term has slightly different meanings in certain contexts, and may contain various pollut ...
. As noted earlier, the CWA ''requires'' state governments to set TMDLs based on both point source and NPS effluent. However, conventional command and control policies could potentially influence industry structure and cause political reluctance in the event that it could bankrupt businesses.
Economic incentives
Incentive based instruments include performance incentives, like taxes on nonpoint pollution sources; design incentives, like subsidies on inputs and control technology; market-based approaches, like trading and/or abatement allowances. Economic incentives are frequently used to control NPS pollution, and include things like the CWA section 319 and 208 grants. Below, different economic incentives are listed along with explanations and how they apply to NPS pollution.
Design standards or technology specifications
These types of regulations specify how a certain plant, piece of machinery, or pollution control apparatus should be designed. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration'' (OSHA ) is a large regulatory agency of the United States Department of Labor that originally had federal visitorial powers to inspect and examine workplaces. Congress established the agenc ...
(OSHA) and United States Environmental Protection Agency
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an independent executive agency of the United States federal government tasked with environmental protection matters. President Richard Nixon proposed the establishment of EPA on July 9, 1970; it be ...
(EPA) have written numerous design standards on the assumption that a particular technology exists whose performance can meet the regulations. A regulatory target may prudently decide its safest course to compliance is to install that technology.
Design-based standards are widely applied to agricultural nonpoint sources, including BMPs on cropland. For example, there can be a mandatory establishment of riparian buffer strips between the cropland and neighboring water bodies. There are also restrictions on where and at what rates agricultural chemicals
An agrochemical or agrichemical, a contraction of ''agricultural chemical'', is a chemical product used in industrial agriculture. Agrichemical refers to biocides (pesticides including insecticides, herbicides, fungicides and nematicides) and syn ...
can be applied to crops. Design based standards require an effective measurement approach, like BMPs, while performance standards limit pollutant discharges to a specified amount.[Ribaudo, Marc; Richard D. Horan and Mark E. Smith (1999). "Economics of water quality protection from nonpoint sources: theory and practice". Resource Economics Division, Economic Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture. Agricultural Economic Report: 782.][Larson, Douglas; Gloria Helfand, Brett House (1996). "Second-Best Tax Policies to Reduce Nonpoint Source Pollution". American Journal of Agricultural Economics: 1108-1117.]
Performance standards or emission limits
Performance standards or emission limits are types of regulations that set an objective or performance level for the regulatory target to meet. What makes these regulatory approaches unique is that they do not specify how the polluter must meet the standard. These regulations can include emission limits that specify the rate, amount, and kinds of pollutants that may be emitted from a given source over a specific period. The EPA's various effluent limitations for water pollution under the CWA are simply a few of the many environmental regulations that are nominally performance standards.
Product bans and use limitations
These prohibit a product or activity or limit its use. Product bans and limitations apply to NPS pollution through restrictions on things like chemicals, pesticide
Pesticides are substances that are meant to control pests. This includes herbicide, insecticide, nematicide, molluscicide, piscicide, avicide, rodenticide, bactericide, insect repellent, animal repellent, microbicide, fungicide, and lampri ...
s, and food additive
Food additives are substances added to food to preserve flavor or enhance taste, appearance, or other sensory qualities. Some additives have been used for centuries as part of an effort to preserve food, for example vinegar (pickling), salt (salt ...
s. For example, farmers were banned from using the insecticide DDT
Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, commonly known as DDT, is a colorless, tasteless, and almost odorless crystalline chemical compound, an organochloride. Originally developed as an insecticide, it became infamous for its environmental impacts. ...
in 1972 for their crops because it was found to be harmful to humans and wildlife.
Marketable allowances and trading system
Marketable allowances are a regulatory approach that allows companies to buy and sell pollution rights. This type of regulation uses market forces to ensure that pollution is reduced in the least costly manner to the polluter. Under a marketable allowance system, there is a presumption that permits will be traded to those companies which have the highest pollution abatement costs. These companies would then sell their allowances to other companies for whom such reductions would be more expensive.
Auctions to effectively allocate resources, like public pollution control expenses, could increase competition and maximize revenues in private markets for pollution control. This mechanism could also be used to improve the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of government programs. This mechanism provides better market-based information to allocate resources effectively with lower cost. The societal goal is to reduce pollution rather than to avoid paying for unsuccessful pollution control projects. Auctions for public pollution control expenses could be a way to deal with some of the most intractable sources of pollution including nonpoint pollution sources. The government could accept bids based on units of cost per units of pollution reduced and it could pay based on proof of actual pollution reductions based on a performance measurement.
Pollution taxes or emission charges
Typical policy remedies such as Pigovian tax
A Pigouvian tax (also spelled Pigovian tax) is a tax on any market activity that generates negative externalities (i.e., external costs incurred by the producer that are not included in the market price). The tax is normally set by the government ...
es cannot address the issue of non-point source pollution. Such policies require direct monitoring of pollution at the individual polluter level. This is, by definition of pollution being non-point source, infeasible. The economics literature has many alternative policy remedies however. These alternative policies try to apply the polluter pays principle but basing the tax on what can be observed. Things that a tax can be based on include, the use of dirty inputs, a proxy for individual emissions, or some measure of ambient pollution level.
In the case of agriculture, one basis for NPS controls would be to tax farmers based on the amount of erosion they cause. However, measuring erosion and topsoil is expensive. Another way is to impose special purpose district property taxes on farmland that does not adopt BMPs or employ methods to reduce nonpoint source pollution.[Zaring, D. Agriculture, Nonpoint Source Pollution, and Regulatory Control: The Clean Water Act's Bleak Present and Future. Originally published in Harvard Environmental Law Review 1996.]
Another option is to tax farmers based on the amount of fertilizer
A fertilizer (American English) or fertiliser (British English; see spelling differences) is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from ...
and pesticides
Pesticides are substances that are meant to control pests. This includes herbicide, insecticide, nematicide, molluscicide, piscicide, avicide, rodenticide, bactericide, insect repellent, animal repellent, microbicide, fungicide, and lampric ...
they use. Taxes on pesticides, however, would be limited by the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) which takes into account economic impacts. However, a tax on pesticides would only reduce one source of agricultural NPS pollution and would ignore other important sources, such as livestock waste runoff from Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs).
Research done by Segerson "demonstrated that taxes-based approaches on ambient water quality can achieve an efficient level of nonpoint pollution, with a uniform tax appropriate for heterogeneous farmers only when marginal benefits of abating pollution are constant."[Larson, et al. Second-best tax policies to reduce nonpoint source pollution. American journal of agricultural economics, vol. 78, no. 4, Nov 1996] When marginal damages from pollution are uncertain, a cost-effectiveness approach is often the most useful framework. The most cost-effective policy is one that has the smallest deadweight loss in achieving certain policy goals. One case study in Salinas Valley in California shows a water-only tax at about $0.21/mm-ha would achieve a 20% reduction, cost roughly $138 in tax payment; a nitrogen-only tax at $0.76/kg associated with a tax bill of $79 could also achieve a 20% reduction.
Subsidies
Subsidies are the converse of taxes. Corporate investments beneficial to the environment can be encouraged by providing companies with public funds, tax breaks, or other benefits to subsidize such activities. In the past, subsidies frequently promoted environmentally destructive activities. Elimination of such subsidies can be a means to promote environmental protections. However, subsidy programs are not without problems. They are often difficult to revise or abandon, may result in a free-rider effect, and may have unintended effects that negate some benefits
Deposit refund systems
A deposit-refund system A deposit-refund system (DRS), also known as deposit-return system, advance deposit fee or deposit-return scheme, is a surcharge on a product when purchased and a rebate when it is returned. A well-known example is when container deposit legislation ...
for contaminants like pesticides, which is similar to current programs for beverage containers could potentially reduce uncontrolled disposal, over-use, and recycling for pesticides. For example, the retail dealer could pay a deposit when purchasing pesticides, and pass the deposit to consumers, who could receive a refund when he or she returned the container to dealers.
Liability rules and insurance requirements
Some statutes strengthen common law rules imposing liability for environmental damage. Regulations issued under other statutes are intended to increase the effectiveness of liability rules by requiring that facilities seeking permits to handle hazardous materials have sufficient insurance or other resources to pay for potential damage caused by their activities. Liability guides compensation when polluters are sued. Liability could be strict (pay for any damages), or negotiable with the victims. However, private lawsuits are a difficult way to resolve nonpoint source pollution because it is difficult to prove NPS pollution was the proximate cause of damages. The inability to trace nonpoint sources could greatly weaken the effectiveness of liability.
Information and education
A number of policies have been developed that are intended to inform regulators and private citizens as to how NPS effluent can be better controlled. One example is with the CZMA mentioned earlier, the EPA is required to provide states with a listing of BMPs for controlling NPS coastal pollution. BMPs are state-of-the-art methods to treat NPS pollution. There is no shortage of BMPs to reduce NPS pollution. For agriculture, examples of BMPs include: conservation easements, cover crop
In agriculture, cover crops are plants that are planted to cover the soil rather than for the purpose of being harvested. Cover crops manage soil erosion, soil fertility, soil quality, water, weeds, pests, diseases, biodiversity and wildlife i ...
s, drainage management, grid sampling, manure injection, manure staging, reduced tillage practices, rotational grazing, and two stage ditches.
Other potential policy instruments for nonpoint pollution
To evaluate these tools' potential, some economic, distributional and political characteristics should be considered: economic performance, administration and enforcement costs, flexibility, incentives for innovation and political feasibility. Challenge regulation or environmental contracting could also be applied. With challenge regulation, the government could establish a clear environmental performance target, while the regulated community could design and implement a program for achieving it. Environmental contracting involved an agreement between a government agency and a source to waive certain regulatory requirements in return for an enforceable commitment to achieve superior performances.
Challenges for regulation
Nonpoint source controls are difficult to coordinate because they are usually administered by local rather than state government. Local governments do not have an incentive to adopt nonpoint source controls because their nonpoint pollution usually is exported elsewhere. Another problem is the pervasiveness of nonpoint pollution. A major strategy controls nonpoint pollution at the source by reducing surface runoff through the use of BMPs. BMPs are fragmented and difficult to coordinate because of the great variety in nonpoint sources and because they are administered by local governments. Another obstacle to control nonpoint pollution is that the nonpoint source may be unable to internalize the cost of the control or pass it on to consumers.[ Besides, policy instruments and policy combination should have strong legal enforcement like liability to insure transparency in transaction and prevent failure in market based instruments.
Characteristics of NPS and the differences from point source pollution indicated stricter and powerful control mechanism should be applied. Market-based approaches, design-based approaches, and command and control could be useful, and a policy tool combination or best suit tool depends on particular problem, local condition and policy goal, as well as costs and budget would be desired. The ultimate goal for controlling nonpoint pollution is to maximize environmental benefits, especially in some environmental sensitive areas, degraded areas, critical habitats for endangered species. The baseline for nonpoint pollution abatement should be attending acceptable water quality.
Collaboration among agencies is necessary. Federal agencies involved in nonpoint pollution control include the ]Natural Resources Conservation Service
Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), formerly known as the Soil Conservation Service (SCS), is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) that provides technical assistance to farmers and other private landowners an ...
, US Forest Service
The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency inc ...
, Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE) is a branch of the United States Department of the Interior. It is the federal agency entrusted with the implementation and enforcement of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamati ...
, Bureau of Land Management
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands. Headquartered in Washington DC, and with oversight over , it governs one eighth of the country's la ...
and the Army Corps of Engineers.Clean Water State Revolving Fund The Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) is a self-perpetuating loan assistance authority for water quality improvement projects in the United States. The fund is administered by the Environmental Protection Agency and state agencies. The CWSRF, ...
and governmental spending programs under the CWA and the Farm Bill
In the United States, the farm bill is the primary agricultural and food policy instrument of the federal government. Every five years, Congress deals with the renewal and revision of the comprehensive omnibus bill. Johnson, R. and Monke, J. (8 ...
References
External links
Regulations in Canada
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091219013602/http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/wat/wq/bmps/npsaction_action.html , date=2009-12-19
Diffuse source pollution regulation in New South Wales, Australia
Environmental law in the United States
Environmental issues with water
Water pollution in the United States