by Debbie Sharpton
Conservation Director

There are many good laws on the books of our society – the Clean Water Act of 1972 is one of them. It’s hard to believe it is over 40 years old, and although the big polluters were the first targets, the hardest one for everyone to get their hands around is what is called “non-point source pollution”. This is the type that comes from many different points instead of one discharge pipe.

In California the State Water Board and its multiple regional water quality control boards are responsible, and under court order, to create and implement the regulations to meet the Clean Water Act objectives. Several regulations have been in place dealing with acceptable levels of pollutants in waters of the state, one being trash. The acceptable level of trash in the water is zero. That’s a pretty lofty goal, but how could anyone say that trash is acceptable at any other level? There was much resistance from the jurisdictional agencies but the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board passed the regulation some time ago.  This means that agencies must do their part in cleaning up trash from the waters, if they don’t they stand to be in violation of the regulation and their permits.

Several years ago Erick Burres, Conservation Biologist and head of the State’s Clean Water Team, passed on some great information about how people can be part of the solution.  Here is an excerpt form the IBM Research Lab’s internet site about one of the great things Erick is doing;