Cities used to dump raw sewage in America’s rivers before the Clean Water Act. Chemical waste was discharged into streams, lakes, and oceans by industrial businesses. More than half of the country’s wetlands were destroyed since at least 1980 when records began.
In the past 50 years, thanks to the Clean Water Act, our rivers and lakes have become livable again. Every year, it prevents 700 billion pounds of pollutants from polluting our waters. It has also slowed down the loss of wetlands and increased the number of waterways that are safe for swimming and fishing by 100%. Additionally, metals like lead in our rivers have decreased significantly.
