The Clean Water Act is a landmark law that transformed how the United States protects its waters by setting enforceable rules to control pollution, holding polluters accountable for illegal discharges into rivers, lakes, streams, and wetlands, and empowering states, tribes, and citizens to restore water quality in watersheds across the country.
The nation's irreplaceable waters supply drinking water, sustain wildlife, help reduce flooding, offer places to fish and swim, and support local jobs and economies. Today, the Clean Water Act has been weakened by U.S. Supreme Court decisions and federal regulatory changes, including eliminating protections against pollution and destruction of the country’s waters through a narrow definition of “waters of the United States”(WOTUS).
Scroll down to learn more, why it matters, how states can fill the gap and protect their water resources, and how you can get involved.
Learning
Waterways in the United States have come a long way
Before the Clean Water Act was passed in 1972, U.S. waters were severely contaminated by sewage, trash, oil, and toxic industrial pollution. Waters across the country were unsafe for human contact, water supplies, or fish consumption. Only 85 million Americans were served by sewage treatment plants.
For over fifty years, the Clean Water Act has dramatically reduced pollution and improved water quality across the country, but progress is threatened by deregulation, lack of enforcement, and other serious problems.
Many waters across the country remain polluted due to governmental failures to implement and enforce the Clean Water Act. That's where Waterkeepers come in—despite these failures at the federal level, Waterkeeper groups take advantage of the Act to force change and protect their watersheds and communities.
Major moments in Clean Water Act history
1880s
Congress directs the Army Corps of Engineers to prevent dumping and filling in U.S. harbors. (source; 88)
1886
Public outcry over industrial pollution of New York Harbor during the Statue of Liberty dedication prompts passage of the Federal Rivers and Harbor Act of 1886.
1899
The Rivers and Harbors Appropriation Act of 1899 becomes the first U.S. environmental law, making it a misdemeanor to discharge refuse matter of any kind into the navigable waters, or tributaries thereof, of the U.S. without a permit.
1948
The Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1948 becomes the first major U.S. law to address water pollution. (source)
1965
The Water Quality Act of 1965 is passed, requiring states to issue water quality standards for interstate waters, and authorizes the newly created Federal Water Pollution Control Administration to set standards where states failed to do so.
1966
Hudson River Fishermen’s Association (now Hudson Riverkeeper) is formed by commercial and recreational fishermen in response to massive pollution from several industrial facilities on the Hudson River.
1968
Hudson River Fishermen’s Association collects the first bounty ever paid under the 1888 Rivers and Harbors Act from Penn Central Railroad. The railroad pays $2,000 to the Fishermen’s Association and closes its Croton-Harmon oil pipe.
1969
The Cuyahoga River Fire sparks national outrage, prompting the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
1970
The United States Public Health Service reports that 41% of surveyed water systems are below minimum standards. (source)
EPA is officially founded on December 2 by President Richard Nixon with only weak, general authority.
20 million Americans participate in the first Earth Day on April 22; Hudson River Fisherman’s Association President Ritchie Garrett is a featured speaker at the Union Square demonstration in NYC.
1972
The Clean Water Act is passed by Congress, overriding President Nixon’s veto.
1973
The Oil Pollution Prevention regulations are published under the authority of Section 311 of the Clean Water Act, intended to establish prevention and response standards for oil spills. (source)
1974
The Clean Water Act inspires the creation and passage of the Safe Drinking Water Act, authorizing EPA to protect public health as it relates to groundwater, largely excluded from the Clean Water Act. (source)
1977
Amendments to the original act—known as the Clean Water Act of 1977—strengthens EPA, giving authority to protect wetlands as well as clean up oil and hazardous substance pollution.
1981
Revisions streamline municipal construction grants which improve water treatment plants. (source)
1982
Sierra Club v. United States Army Corps of Engineers. “Westway” Hudson River environmental groups turn back a politically juiced proposal to fill 200 acres of Hudson River shoreline—prime striped bass habitat—to construct a superhighway along the west side of Manhattan.
1985
Discharge of pollutants to the nation's waters is supposed to be eliminated by 1985 under the Clean Water Act. (CWA, 33 USC 1251(a)(1))
1987
Congress establishes the Clean Water State Revolving Fund under the Clean Water Act, a loan program administered by EPA and state authorities to provide capital for water quality improvement projects. (source)
1988
Hudson Riverkeeper’s successful federal lawsuit establishes that landfill leachate and contaminated rainwater are regulated pollutants under the Clean Water Act.
1990
Title I of the Great Lakes Critical Programs Act requires EPA to establish water quality criteria for the Great Lakes, assigning 29 toxic pollutants maximum levels that are safe for humans, wildlife, and aquatic life. (source)
The Oil Pollution Control Act passes following the Exxon Valdez disaster, establishing stronger enforcement on oil spills that were largely excluded from the Clean Water Act.
1993
Puget Soundkeeper settles a Clean Water Act case with the city of Bremerton, WA, requiring the implementation of upgrades to the city’s sewage system and combined-sewer overflow control system. In accordance with the Consent Decree, the upgrades are completed in 2011 at a cost of $50 million.
1996
Long Island Soundkeeper case establishes legal precedent that trap- and skeet-shooting ranges are pollution “point sources” and that spent shot and targets are “pollutants” within the jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act.
1999
Waterkeeper Alliance is established.
2001
Hudson Riverkeeper provides FBI and EPA criminal investigations with information about New York City’s mishandling of mercury in the water supply system. The information leads to guilty pleas for felony violation of the Clean Water Act and misdemeanor violation of the Toxic Substances Control Act. The city is fined and given seven years probation.
2003
Orange County Coastkeeper secures $237.2 million, which is used to help local agencies and cities clean up highway and street runoff to meet Clean Water Act standards.
Hudson Riverkeeper wins a $5.7 million penalty against the City of New York for discharging highly turbid water from the Shandaken Tunnel into the Catskills’ Esopus Creek without a required permit, the largest penalty against a municipality for violating the Clean Water Act.
2006
In Rapanos v. United States, the Supreme Court concludes “waters of the United States” does not include wetlands without hydrological or ecological connection to navigable waterways, excluding them from Clean Water Act protection. (source)
2015
EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers publish the Clean Water Rule, clarifying “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) to include more streams and wetlands than previous definitions.
2019
The Trump administration suspends and repeals the 2015 Clean Water Rule, rolling back protections for millions of acres of wetlands, vernal pools, and other waterways.
2020
EPA finalizes damaging changes to its state water quality certification regulations under Section 401 of the federal Clean Water Act, an unlawful attempt to weaken state authority.
Waterkeeper Alliance and partners take legal action against toxic water pollution rollbacks and a new definition of “waters of the United States” that would strip protections from approximately half of the nation’s wetlands and potentially millions of miles of streams.
2021
Waterkeeper Alliance and partners file a lawsuit against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers over a nationwide permit that allows streamlined development of oil and gas pipelines through wetlands, streams, and rivers.
2023
The U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision in Sackett v. EPA, which eliminated CWA protections for a wide range of rivers, streams, lakes, wetlands, and other waters.
In response, the EPA and Army Corps issued a new, narrow regulatory definition of "waters of the United States."
2025
The Trump administration announced a new proposed rule to further reduce protections for the nation' water through an extremely narrow definition of "waters of the United States," far beyond what is required by the Sackett decision.
WHY THE ACT IS VITAL
Now that you know the basics, let’s dive a little deeper
The Clean Water Act provides the public with strategies, resources, and tools to ensure our waterways are protected. These are a few of our favorites here at Waterkeeper Alliance:
Water Quality Assessment and Restoration:
EPA, states, and tribes are required to assess water quality and take action to restore polluted waters.
Citizen Rights and Enforcement:
The law provides citizens with robust rights to information and participation in water quality decision-making and permitting, including the right to enforce the Clean Water Act in federal court when governments or polluters violate the law.
Supportive Resources, Funding, and Programs:
The law includes many programs to protect and restore watersheds through public-private partnerships, infrastructure supports, grant programs, and scientific, technical, and educational resources.
Let’s get technical! These are the four key provisions.
A provision is a statement in law that says what must be done.
PROVISION #1
Discharge Elimination Permits
Prohibit corporations, sewer plants, and others from using pipes, ditches, and similar conveyances to dump dangerous wastes, chemicals, and other pollution into water without a permit (Section 402 Permits – led primarily by states and tribes).
Click here for more information.
PROVISION #2
Dredge and Fill Permits
Prohibit dredging and filling of waters for mining, pipelines, and other development without a permit (Section 404 Permits – led primarily by the Corps).
Click here for more information.
PROVISION #3
State and Tribal Backstops
Allow states and tribes to evaluate federal permits involving pollution discharges to ensure they protect water quality (Section 401 Certification).
Click here for more information.
PROVISION #4
Technology Forcing and Water Quality-Based Pollution Standards
Require permits to include pollution controls, limits, and monitoring that protect public health and water quality needed for drinking water, fisheries, swimming, wildlife, shellfish, farming, and other uses. (Water Quality Standards and Effluent Limits).
Click here for more information.
The Victories
Clean Water protections have lead to real progress for watersheds across the United States.
You can explore the power and promise of the Clean Water Act through our interactive map that highlights 50 key victories won by our movement.
LOSING FEDERAL CLEAN WATER PROTECTIONS
Federal Rollbacks and the Urgent Need for State Protections
The U.S. Supreme Court’s May 2023 decision in Sackett v. EPA, evaluated the scope of Clean Water Act protections and issued an opinion that severely limited protections for rivers, streams, lakes, and wetlands. In response, EPA and the Army Corps issued a rule narrowly defining "waters of the United States."
Click here to learn more.
On November 17, 2025, EPA and the Army Corps announced a new proposed rule redefining "waters of the United States" that undermines landmark clean water protections, threatening water quality across the United States. By narrowing the scope of waters protected under the Clean Water Act, this reinterpretation removes federal safeguards from many rivers, streams, lakes, wetlands, and other vital waterways. Without oversight, these waters face increased risks from pollution, threatening clean drinking water, recreation, fisheries, and aquatic life.
Click here to learn more.
On January 17, 2026, EPA announced plans to weaken Section 401 of the Clean Water Act, a critical safeguard that allows states and Tribes to protect water from pollution. The proposal would limit local authority to prevent federally permitted projects—like interstate pipelines, dams, power plants, mines, and data centers—from polluting our rivers, wetlands, and drinking water sources, while silencing community voices.
Click here to learn more.
Protecting Clean Water at the State Level
States Can Step In to Protect Their Waters When Federal Protections Fall Short
Waterkeeper Alliance and the Center for Water Security and Cooperation issued a new report offering a practical playbook for community members and elected leaders to strengthen water quality protections at the state level. The report addresses gaps created by the Supreme Court’s Sackett decision and the resulting narrowing of the EPA and Army Corps of Engineers’ definition of “waters of the United States.” The report outlines opportunities to strengthen existing laws and regulations in each state, with a goal of improving water quality protections and ensuring greater continuity across shared watersheds.
Click here to read the Report.
