What To Do About Certain Types of Groundwater Pollution? by Circle of Blue
What To Do About Certain Types of Groundwater Pollution? by Circle of Blue
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is seeking advice on how it should regulate the pollution of groundwater that is connected to rivers, lakes, and oceans.
The request for public comments comes amid a recent string of lawsuits from green groups that hope to use the Clean Water Act to cut down pollution from coal ash ponds, pipelines, and other discrete sources. The groups — and now the EPA — want to clarify circumstances under which surface water pollution via groundwater is governed by the Clean Water Act.
A court ruling in early February added urgency to the matter. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a sewage treatment facility in Maui needed Clean Water Act permits for injecting its wastewater into wells. Groundwater was carrying the waste into the Pacific. In a rare legal move, the Obama EPA filed an amicus brief supporting the plaintiff’s position — which was that the sewage facility did require a permit.