How Paying for Tomorrow’s Clean Water Will Be Different

Regional and Statewide Charges and Fees Can Help Pay for Projects to Reduce Stormwater and Agricultural Runoff

By Michael Curley

Forty-five years ago, when the Clean Water Act (CWA) was passed, urban sewage was the No. 1 source of water pollution. The 1972 Act included the Construction Grants Program managed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which by 1987 had funded more than $70 billion in grants to publicly-owned treatment works (POTWs). With local matching funds added, there was a total of more than $100 billion spent on upgrading POTWs. And in those days, 30-40 years ago, $100 billion was real money!