PORTLAND— More than 74 percent of major industrial and municipal facilities across Maine discharged more pollution into our waterways than their Clean Water Act permits allow between July 2003 and December 2004, according to "Troubled Waters: An analysis of Clean Water Act compliance", a new report released today by Environment Maine Research & Policy Center.
“Maine has a tight inspection program that catches lots of violations. Unfortunately, Maine has not prioritized funding wastewater treatment improvements and the Bush administration is slashing the EPA’s budget and weakening critical clean water programs,” said Matthew Davis of Environment Maine Research & Policy Center.
Environment Maine called on Maine’s legislative leaders and governor to prioritize grant and loan funding for wastewater infrastructure in the current discussion about the budget and bonds. The state needs to commit at least $1 million to secure the $5 million of federal match in Clean Water State Revolving Fund Loans. Many towns are waiting to get loans before they can start projects, while other towns are unable to take advantage of loans and need direct state grants instead. The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) estimates that the most desperate 12 towns need $15 million in grants, which would leverage about $22 million in federal funding.
While the 1972 Clean Water Act has made significant strides in cleaning up U.S. waterways, the law’s goals of eliminating the discharge of pollutants into waterways by 1985 and making all U.S. waters safe for fishing, swimming and other uses by 1983 have not been reached. Today, more than 40 percent of U.S. waterways are unsafe for swimming and fishing. Maine is slightly ahead, with only 3 percent of rivers and 7 percent of lakes impaired.
Using the Freedom of Information Act, Environment Maine Research & Policy Center obtained data on major facilities’ compliance with the Clean Water Act between July 1, 2003 and December 31, 2004. Environment Maine Research & Policy Center researchers found that facilities repeatedly exceeded their permit limits, often by egregious amounts.
Additional findings include:
Nationally, 62 percent of all major industrial and municipal facilities discharged more pollution into U.S. waterways than their permits allow at least once during the 18-month period studied. The average facility exceeded its pollution permit limit by more than 275 percent, or almost four times the legal limit.
• More than 74 percent of Maine’s industrial and municipal facilities exceeded their Clean Water Act permits at least once between July 1, 2003 and December 31, 2004. Maine ranks 10th in the country for percentage of facilities exceeding their pollution permits.
• 87 facilities in Maine reported more than 460 exceedances of their Clean Water Act permits during the 18-month period, ranking the state 22nd in the country for the most exceedances.
• On average, Maine facilities exceeding their Clean Water Act permits did so by 246 percent, or by nearly three and a half times the legal limit.
• Facilities in Maine reported 58 instances in which they exceeded their Clean Water Act permit by at least 500 percent over the legal limit.
“Clean water is essential to our quality of life and our economy,” said Davis. “We need to place a higher value on our essential infrastructure that keeps our waters clean – clearly our wastewater treatment plants need funding to stay on track.”
Davis noted that the findings are likely conservative, since the data that Environment Maine Research & Policy Center analyzed includes only “major” facilities, those that discharge over a million gallons a day, and does not include pollution discharged into waters by the hundreds of thousands of minor facilities across the country.
Meanwhile, in Washington DC the Bush administration must back off its efforts to weaken the Clean Water Act and to commit to restoring the historical funding of the Clean Water State Revolving Fund. Previously, Maine received on the order of $11 million in federal funding, but this year Maine is only able to draw down about $5 million.
In addition, Environment Maine applauded Representatives Allen and Michaud for sponsoring the Clean Water Authority Restoration Act, which ensures all U.S. waters are protected by the Clean Water Act, and called for Senators Collins and Snowe to support the companion Senate bill.
In order to achieve the goals of the Clean Water Act, Environment Maine recommended federal and state officials do the following:
• Increase Funding of Maine’s grants and loans for wastewater infrastructure, of EPA to put more environmental cops on the beat to identify and punish facilities that violate their Clean Water Act permits, and of the federal government’s Clean Water State Revolving Fund to help communities upgrade their sewer systems.
• Protect all U.S. waters by withdrawing the Bush administration’s 2003 “No Protection” policy that eliminates Clean Water Act protections for many small streams and wetlands that feed and clean great waters, and supporting passage of the Clean Water Authority Restoration Act.
• Strengthen the Clean Water Act by preventing industrial polluters from profiting from pollution, tightening permitted pollution limits, revoking the permits of repeat violators, and ensuring citizens full access to the courts.
“To protect public health and the environment, the Bush administration and Maine officials must prioritize our wastewater infrastructure as much as they do for roads and bridges,” concluded Environment Maine’s Davis.
