Scientists have been sounding the alarm about the health and environmental dangers of plastics. We have been slow to pay attention. Plastic production causes a range of environmental harms. Furthermore, larger plastic items break down over time into smaller and smaller pieces-microplastics. Much of the plastic waste in our environment originates as single-use items which degrade into microplastics that pollute rivers, wildlife, and humans ourselves. Today, we sit on the verge of a new tidal wave of petrochemical build-out to produce plastic in the United States in areas already overburdened with air and water pollution. Can the Clean Water Act address this challenge? The Clean Water Act can indeed make an important difference. Why has it failed to do so thus far? Environmental activists have highlighted the Clean Water Act's potential to stem the tide of plastic toxification of our waters, citizens, and wildlife. This has included important regulatory efforts through citizen petitions, engagement in voluntary EPA programs, and citizen-suit litigation. Although federal law encourages citizen engagement, it should not replace effective regulatory programs to address known threats to water resources. This paper will look at these combined citizen efforts, the pressure these efforts have directed at responsible government officials, and what those efforts reveal about the durability of the Clean Water Act at fifty years old to address evolving threats to the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of our precious water resources.
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