The Clean Water Act (CWA) is the national law that establishes a structure to regulate discharges of pollutants into waters of the United States and regulate the quality of surface waters. Congress created the Federal Water Pollution Control Act in 1948. In 1972, the Act was significantly reorganized and expanded, becoming the Clean Water Act.
The CWA establishes pollution control programs, such as stormwater and wastewater standards for industry. EPA’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) makes it unlawful to discharge any pollutant from a point source into navigable waters without a permit. Under the CWA, EPA also developed national water quality criteria recommendations for pollutants in surface waters.
With the passage of the CWA, Congress provided strong federal water protections while recognizing the important role of individual states in pollution control. Under the CWA, states are able to gain authority to administer water programs.
The seven major components of the CWA are:
Wastewater management.
CWA Section 404.
Oil spills and spill prevention.