Laws and Regulations: Water QualityFederal statutes (laws), Executive Orders, and regulations concerned with water quality. Follow the links below to learn about Federal statutes (laws), Executive Orders, and regulations that may apply to specific activities associated with energy development that may impact water quality. Legislation governing the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of surface waters. The CWA (33 USC 1251-1387) defines various types of pollutants and establishes protective standards, programs, and permit requirements. The CWA was amended in 1990 by the Oil Pollution Act (33 USC 2701 et seq.) to incorporate requirements for the prevention of, preparedness for, and response to oil spills at non-transportation-related facilities. The full suite of CWA regulations promulgated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is available at 40 CFR 100-136, 401-471, and 500-503. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) also has responsibility for Section 404 of the CWA related to permits for the discharge of dredge and fill material into waters of the United States; the USACE regulations are available at 33 CFR 323. Legislation governing the protection of public drinking water supplies. The SDWA (42 USC 300 et seq.) establishes health-based drinking water standards and source water protection programs, including wellhead protection and sole source aquifer protection programs. The full suite of SDWA regulations promulgated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is available at 40 CFR 141-149. |
