Alabama Rivers Alliance will produce a comprehensive statewide report detailing the inadequacies and underperformance of the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) in managing and enforcing the NPDES program in Alabama, as well as the affects those inadequacies are having on Alabama’s waterways. Upon completion, the report will be presented to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the form of a petition for withdrawal of the state’s delegated authority over the program. As evidence is compiled, a media and public awareness campaign will be planned using the report to support and encourage EPA’s and ADEM’s prompt action in reviewing and improving the program. 

 

 

Citizens Campaign Fund for the Environment’s Sustainable Water Solutions report will highlight actions municipalities can take to engage in 21^st Century sustainable water management practices.   Sustainable Water Solutions will be a resource for local municipalities to understand the experiences of other communities living with desalination plants and it will serve as a guide to establish policies and practices to manage water efficiently and preserve ground water supplies. It will provide examples of actions difference municipalities have taken to reduce local water demand and effectively promote groundwater recharge.

 

 

The goal of this project is to create presentation quality maps showing waters most at risk of losing Clean Water Act protections. These maps will show waters that may no longer be protected based upon jurisdictional determinations and court rulings. This project was piloted in key geographic areas in Minnesota, Pennsylvania and Michigan and has proven to be a useful tool for conveying the extent of threatened waters and the urgency to fix the Clean Water Act. The maps will be used to educate reporters, in outreach to possible allies and in meetings with elected officials and policymakers.

 

 

 

The threat of oil and saltwater spills into the waters of North Dakota has increased significantly in the last few years because of increased oil and gas exploration, especially in the Bakken formation, where the use of hydraulic fracturing has placed increased stress on water resources. Dakota Resource Council (DRC) will research and summarize possible threats to North Dakota waters posed by oil and gas production pipelines and saltwater disposal pipelines. They will identify state policies that North Dakota could implement in order to reduce the threat to water resources from oil and gas production.   DRC’s research and findings will culminate in a written report that will outline recommendations for stronger regulation of oil and gas production in North Dakota.

 

For decades in Idaho, land application of liquid waste from municipal and industrial sources through pressurized irrigation systems has been tightly regulated. However, no comparable regulation exists for liquid waste from dairy lagoons. Dairy lagoon samples tested by Idaho Rural Council (IRC) had concentrations of fecal coliform 10,000 times greater than what an industrial or municipal applicator would be allowed to apply on land in many conditions. IRC successfully advocated for a “negotiated rulemaking” at the Idaho State Department of Agriculture (ISDA) to address this regulatory gap. IRC will continue to pressure the ISDA to establish a dairy lagoon sprayfield permit system similar to the current municipal and industrial waste permit system.

 

 

Factory farms are expanding rapidly in Wisconsin, threatening water quality and rural communities. Because most local grassroots organizations presently lack the knowledge and resources to be effective advocates against factory farms, Midwest Environmental Advocates proposes to develop a toolkit and workshop series to help them become empowered and to serve as a crucial local watchdog on Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation (CAFO) activities around the state. The toolkit will educate the public about applicable laws and regulations protecting water quality from CAFO pollution and will guide them towards active involvement in local permitting decisions and compliance investigations. 

 

 

San Diego Coastkeeper’s Municipal Stormwater Enforcement Project strengthens clean water policies throughout San Diego County. Urban and stormwater runoff are the greatest sources of pollution to California’s coastal waters. San Diego Coastkeeper will conduct jurisdictional audits of stormwater management systems, identify violations and collaborate with municipalities to improve resources and empower citizens to monitor compliance with the Clean Water Act. 

 

The goal of the Lake Lanier Clean Water Campaign is to ensure that the lake is fishable and swimmable for current and future generations, in accordance with the Clean Water Act. Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper is working with the state Environmental Protection Division and local governments in Lake Lanier’s watershed on several projects to achieve this goal, one of which involves the development and implementation of a TMDL cleanup plan. Specific project benchmarks include: (1) tighter pollution limits in discharge permits for municipal and industrial facilities; (2) stronger local ordinances to reduce non-point source pollution; and (3) mandatory water quality monitoring programs to track progress and identify hot spot problem areas.