"Water has a voice. It carries a message that tells those down stream who you are and how you take care of the water." ~Bernie McGurt |
Nonpoint Source Pollution
The United States has made tremendous advances in the past 25 years to clean up
the aquatic environment by controlling pollution from "point sources"
such as industry and sewage treatment plants. Today, polluted runoff from from
agriculture and
urban runoff remains the nation's largest source of water quality
problems. It's the main reason approximately 40 percent of surveyed rivers, lakes,
and estuaries in the United States are not clean enough to meet basic uses such
as fishing or swimming.
Use these pages to learn more about: polluted runoff; how it affects water,land and air; what EPA and its partners are doing about it; funding sources for nonpoint source pollution projects; and people to contact for more information.