News

March 9, 2010
Action Alert

On March 15th, 2010 many longtime Clean Water Network groups participated in a national call in day to help stop the dumping of mining waste in our water. CWN members called the White House on March 15th to ask President Obama to restore the Clean Water Act's prohibition on filling waters with waste. This issue is one of the CWN's top administrative priorities.

March 8, 2010
Legislative Update

On March 3rd, the Clean Water Network's Board of Directors voted to endorse HR 4202, The Green Infrastructure for Clean Water Act. The bill will provide critical support for green infrastructure strategies, improving our ability to effectively manage polluted runoff and sewage overflows while relieving pressure on aging infrastructure.

March 4, 2010
Legislative Update

On March 4th, the Great Lakes Ecosystem Protection Act was introduced in both the House and the Senate by Great Lakes champions. The bill, S. 3073, was introduced in the Senate by Carl Levin along with co-sponsors George Voinovich (R-OH), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Amy klobuchar (D-MN), Al Franken (D-MN) and Richard Durbin (D-IL). The House bill, H.R. 4755, was introduced by Representative Vern Ehlers with co-sponsors John Dingell (D-MI), Louise Slaughter (D-NY) and Mark Kirk (R-IL).

March 4, 2010
Policy

On March 3rd, Democrats and Republicans took the senior brass of the Army Corps of Engineers to task for what they say has been the corps' hesitant implementation of reforms mandated by Congress more than two years ago.

March 3, 2010
Action Alert
Newspaper Article

On March 1st the New York Times published a compelling article describing how the SWANCC and Rapanos Supreme Court decisions are hampering the ability of federal regulators to protect our nation's waters from pollution. Since 2001, Clean Water Act violations have risen while EPA enforcement has declined.

February 25, 2010
Legislative Update

On February 24th, Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) introduced the Columbia River Restoration Act (H.R. 4652) that will fund the clean-up and restoration of the Columbia River, the largest river in the Pacific Northwest. The Columbia River is plagued by habitat loss and degraded with dangerous PCBs and chemical pollutants that are detrimental to fish and wildlife, including many species of salmon and steelhead that are listed as threatened or endangered species.

February 22, 2010
Policy

On February 21st, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson announced an ambitious 5-year plan to tackle toxic contamination, invasive species and dwindling wildlife habitat in the Great Lakes.  The federal government plans to spend $2.2 billion restoring this precious ecosystem, which stores 20 percent of the world's freshwater. 

February 22, 2010
Policy

February 17th marked the one–year anniversary of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), commonly known as the economic stimulus. Included in the economic stimulus package was $6 billion for the clean water and drinking water state revolving funds. 1.2 billion (20% percent) of this water infrastructure money was set aside for projects that incorporated green infrastructure and water and energy efficiency.

February 9, 2010
Clean Water Network News

On February 7th, the Clean Water Network's list of the top ten most important clean water achievements and events of 2009 was featured on Surfrider's blog. The list highlights just a few of the positive things that happened for clean water in 2009.