Courting Disaster

• National Wildlife Federation Staff
• Apr 01, 2009

The National Wildlife Federation, in cooperation with six other conservation groups, released this report detailing threats to America’s waters and highlighting the urgent need for Congress to act immediately to restore full Clean Water Act protections.

Recent Supreme Court decisions and subsequent policy changes by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have shattered the framework of the Clean Water Act. For instance, up to 60 percent of the nation’s stream miles have lost or are at risk of losing vital protections, and at least 20 million acres of wetlands have effectively lost federal water pollution safeguards.

Courting Disaster highlights more than 30 cases demonstrating that without immediate action, a generation of progress in cleaning up U.S. waters may be lost.