Putting the Pieces Together: State Nonpoint Source Enforceable Mechanisms in Context

Pollution of our nation’s waters is a continuing problem despite nearly thirty years of regulatory attention and funding. The largest remaining obstacle is “nonpoint source” water pollution. The federal Clean Water Act’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program regulates discharges of pollutants from “point sources,” which include wastewater discharges from pipes, outlets, and other discrete conveyances, and stormwater discharges from industrial facilities, municipal sewer systems, and construction sites of five acres or more (one acre or more under recent regulations). But the NPDES program does not address nonpoint source
water pollution from farms, forests, and other lands. Runoff from these lands carries sediment, nutrients, bacteria, metals, pesticides, organic compounds and other forms of pollution into the nation’s rivers, lakes, estuaries, and wetlands.

This study uses a case study method to look at application of the tools identified in the Almanac of Enforceable State Laws.

The study examines how these programs work, and what tools they use to achieve results, identifies how and where the enforceable mechanisms interact with the cost-share, voluntary, and technical assistance methods that comprise the primary approaches in these watersheds; and describes tools that can be adopted or adapted for use in other states.