EPA's water pollution control programs encompass a variety of cooperative efforts with federal, state, and local agencies as well as local stakeholders. Control methods include pretreatment, which is the treatment of industrial wastewater before it is released into the water system. Municipal water treatment plants, which are the most common form of water pollution control, control the spread of pollution by screening and filtering wastewater. The EPA also advocates the adoption of more efficient industrial and agricultural methods that reduce the amount of wastewater that is produced by these facilities. New biological treatment techniques such as carbon adsorption and reverse osmosis are also being developed.
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