And now:Ish <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes:
via MarthaET
Scientists ask for stronger Clean Water Act
Friday, April 2, 1999
Animal waste is one cause of severe coastal pollution. Pollution is
severely threatening America's waterways and the Clean Water Act needs
to be strengthened to control the problem, according to a group of
marine scientists who petitioned Congress last week for additional clean
water legislation.
According to the scientists, who represented 320 scientific leaders and
the Center for Marine Conservation, America is dealing with "the most
pervasive pollution problem in the coastal marine environment" -- excess
nitrogen and phosphorous pollution, nutrients, animal waste and
fertilizers that are carried into our nation's waterways by polluted
runoff.
Dr. Nancy Rabalais, co-discoverer of the Gulf of Mexico "Dead Zone" and
president of the Estuarine Research Foundation, and Dr. Tom Malone, an
expert on nutrient pollution in coastal waters, including the Chesapeake
Bay, and president of the American Society of Limnology and
Oceanography, offered five recommendations to control water pollution:
�Specifically address nutrient reduction, now entirely exempt from the
act. �Do not backslide on existing point source requirements, which have
been effective in controlling municipal wastewater and industrial
discharge. �Link the Clean Water Act with other pertinent statutes, such
as the Clean Air Act, since airborne pollution is a significant
contributor to water pollution. �Conduct more research-driven monitoring
programs to better quantify nutrient inputs and identify sources from
land, air and water so that we know more about how our coastal waters
are being polluted. �Consider cost-effective nutrient reduction
strategies to meet quantifiable nutrient reduction goals in specific
watersheds.
CMC identified three key problems that changes to the Clean Water Act
should address:
�Low oxygen levels in more than 50 percent of U.S. estuaries and a
7,000-square-mile hypoxic "dead zone" in the Gulf of Mexico that degrade
the resources of commercial and recreational fisheries; �Noxious algal
blooms in coastal waters that can adversely affect human health,
fisheries and aesthetics; �and The loss of marine habitat from
overgrowth of algae, especially in coral reefs and seagrass beds in many
U.S. estuaries that serve as nurseries for commercial and noncommercial
fisheries.
"Nonpoint sources of pollution from farms and other runoff sources are
taking a devastating toll on our coastal waters," said Dr. Jonathan
Phinney, water quality scientist at CMC. "We need to address these
pollution sources under the Clean Water Act and other relevant
environmental laws."
For example, the blame for the hypoxic dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico
-- an area that cannot sustain life because it has too little oxygen --
has been placed on fertilizer runoff from American farms. Scientists
assert that only changes in agricultural practices will alleviate the
problem.
The Clean Water Act was last reauthorized in 1987. Several
representatives and senators say they will introduce Clean Water Act
amendments in this Congress.
For more information, contact Steven Schlein, CMC, (202)331-4323.
Copyright 1999, Environmental News Network, All Rights Reserved
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Related stories:
�Controversial factory farm controls released
�Dead zone burden placed on farmers
�A little pollution can add up to a big problem
�NOAA, EPA unite to fight water pollution
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Tsonkwadiyonrat (We are ONE Spirit)
Unenh onhwa' Awayaton
http://www.tdi.net/ishgooda/
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