The Clean Water Act established the structure for regulating pollutants in U.S. waterways and regulating quality standards for surface waters. The basis of the Clean Water Act was enacted in 1948; however, growing public awareness and concern for controlling water pollution led to sweeping amendments in 1972 which included: 

• Established the basic structure for regulating pollutant discharges.
• Gave EPA the authority to implement pollution control programs.
• Maintained existing requirements to set water quality standards for all contaminants in surface waters.
• Made it unlawful to discharge any pollutant from a point source into navigable waters, unless a permit was obtained under its provisions.
• Funded the construction of sewage treatment plants under the construction grants program.
• Recognized the need for planning to address the critical problems posed by nonpoint source pollution.

As such an important piece of legislation, the CWA provides citizens the right to waterways that are clean, biologically intact, and safe for use, and includes an array of protections and programs to reach that goal. For more information, please visit the California Water Boards or the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) website. 

Great American Environmental honors the 50th anniversary of the Clean Water Act and is proud to serve you, keeping your business strong, and in turn, our world clean for generations to come. We provide control services through our in-house risk engineering team alongside a network of specialty vendors, representing diverse capabilities and experience in a variety of environmental areas. 

Recently, our very own Heather Boyd and Greg Kelder collaborated with environmental remediation and litigation experts to host a virtual panel discussion on the history of the CWA and its implications on regulations, climate change, and citizen suits. With the CWA essentially affecting every industry, Heather discussed how Great American Environmental offers a variety of policies and programs to help mitigate environmental risks. Celebrate the CWA turning 50 with us by checking out some of these policies and programs:

• Premises Liability Policy
• TankAssure Program
• Response and React Program

We encourage you to explore our CWA webpage and the following Environmental Insider publications discussing the impact CWA has had on our industry legislation and how environmental insurance can be obtained for protection against costly remedial efforts. 

• Wrong Place, Wrong Time - 2022 Industry Trends!
• Environmental and Toxic Torts—Claims Management of Emerging Environmental Issues
• Environmental Justice in the World of Insurance
• Future Environmental Regulatory Trends

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