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2008-08-01
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| In 2007 beach closings and advisories hit their second highest level in the 18 years the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) has been tracking them. The number of closing and advisory days at ocean, bay, and Great Lakes beaches topped 20,000 for the third year in a row, confirming that our nation's beaches continue to suffer from serious water pollution that puts swimmers at risk. |
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2006-03-23
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| When drafting the Clean Water Act in 1972, legislators set the goals of making all U.S. waterways fishable and swimmable by 1983 and eliminating the discharge of pollutants into the nation’s waterways by 1985. More than 30 years later, we are far from realizing the Clean Water Act’s original vision. |
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2004-10-14
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| oxic mercury, largely emitted from coalburning power plants, is polluting waterways, contaminating the fish we eat, and posing a serious threat to public health. State and tribal health departments issue fish consumption advisories in order to warn people to limit or avoid consumption of contaminated fish species from local rivers, lakes, and other waterbodies. This report details the active fish consumption advisories issued by the states in 2003 due to mercury pollution in local waterways and finds that fish in a large percentage of America's lakes, rivers, and coastal waters are not safe for unlimited consumption. |
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2004-08-03
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| Mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants and other industrial sources are making the fish in our lakes, rivers, and streams unsafe to eat. Coal-fired power plants are by far the nation’s largest unregulated source of mercury emissions, contributing 41 percent of all U.S. mercury emissions. The mercury deposits in soil and surface waters, where bacteria convert it to a highly toxic form of mercury that bioaccumulates in fish, including popular sport and commercial fish. This report analyzes new data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to determine the extent to which fish in the nation’s lakes are contaminated with mercury. |
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2004-03-30
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| When drafting the Clean Water Act in 1972, legislators set the goals of making all waterways fishable and swimmable by 1983 and eliminating the discharge of pollutants into the nation’s waterways by 1985. More than 30 years later, we are far from realizing the Clean Water Act’s original vision. |
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2003-06-10
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| Our environment, and now our food supply, is becoming increasingly contaminated with mercury, an extremely dangerous toxic chemical. When mercury is ingested in its organic form, methylmercury, it can lead to neurological damage, especially in children. Health impacts of exposure to mercury include attention and language deficits, impaired memory, inability to process and recall information, and impaired visual and motor function. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated in its January 2003 study that 8% of American women of childbearing age have elevated levels of mercury in their bodies from eating contaminated fish. This means that approximately 322,000 newborns are at risk of neurological problems due to exposure in utero. |
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2002-10-17
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| October 18, 2002 marks the 30th anniversary of the Clean Water Act, landmark legislation that set the ambitious goals of making all waterways fishable and swimmable by 1983 and eliminating the discharge of pollutants into the nation’s waterways by 1985. Although we have made important strides in water quality since the birth of the Clean Water Act, we are far from realizing its original vision. |
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2002-08-06
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| In 1972, a severe water quality crisis compelled Congress to pass the Clean Water Act. The Cuyahoga River literally caught on fire in 1969, and a spill off the coast of California had left millions of gallons of oil along the coastline. The goals of the Act – clearly stated – were to return all waters to fishable and swimmable conditions by 1983 and to eliminate the discharge of all pollutants by 1985. Now nearly 30 years later, although the visible signs of pollution may not be as evident as a burning river, a careful examination of the facts reveals a continuing water pollution crisis in this country. Approximately 40% of our waters are still not safe for swimming or fishing, and in 2001, 49 states issued fish consumption advisories because of high levels of dangerous chemicals. |
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