Norman Mineta: “my amendment is an effort to salvage the heart of the Clean Water Act. It would do so by striking the provisions in…”

“my amendment is an effort to salvage the heart of the Clean Water Act. It would do so by striking the provisions in title III that roll back standards for industrial dischargers. We have all heard repeatedly that the Clean Water Act is the most successful Federal environmental law. The widely acknowledged successes of the Act are attributable to its control of pollutant discharges from so-called point sources. Point sources are industry and sewage treatment works discharging their polluted wastewater into our Nation's lakes, rivers and streams, and the ocean. Ironically, it is precisely the part of the act that is responsible for its success that H.R. 961 would dismantle. In the name of increased flexibility, loophole by loophole the bill would eliminate fundamental protections of the Act that have resulted in the significant gains we have seen over the past 20 years. Ideally, any amendments to the Clean Water Act would improve water quality, since 40 percent of our Nation's waters still do not meet state-designated water quality standards. Under that standard, these waivers clearly should be stricken. However, even under a far lower standard for judging whether the bill's industrial waiver provisions should be stricken, the waivers must go. That lower standard is simple: will the waiver provision increase pollution and degrade water quality below today's level? If so, it should be stricken. That is what my amendment would do.”