Despite progress under current water pollution control laws, many U.S. lakes, rivers and streams continue to be threatened by pollution. According to EPA, this pollution comes from so-called “non-point sources,” such as run-off from farms and streets, which could be miles away from the nearest lake or river.
On Jan. 13, EPA announced a new policy, developed to encourage states to start a water-pollution trading credit program, which would allow factories and treatment plants to trade pollution credits with each other as well as with non-point sources such as farms, ranches or storm water systems.
According to EPA’s plan, state and local officials would oversee trading of credits within individual watersheds. Individuals and businesses would then be able to receive water pollution credits by reducing their discharges to below federal requirements. These credits could then be sold to companies who are unable or choose not to reach these same standards.
The primary goal is to reduce the amount of nutrients and sediment entering waterways. EPA believes this trading program will create incentives for voluntary reductions of water pollution from all sources.
Approximately a dozen states now experiment with water pollution credits, according to EPA. The new policy gives other states the go-ahead to enact similar programs. It specifies how states can set up the program within the framework of the Clean Water Act and details which types of trading EPA will allow.
For example, trades should only occur within a single watershed. Additionally, trading of persistent bio-accumulative toxins will not be allowed. At this time, EPA only supports trades of nutrients like phosphorus and nitrogen, or sediment loads, although it has stated it will study the effects of trading more toxic pollutants, like mercury and selenium, over the next few years.
The purpose of the policy, according to EPA, is to reduce the cost of compliance with water quality standards, create an economic incentive for voluntary pollution reduction and provide flexibility for both polluters and regulators. EPA officials say the concept works because reducing pollution can be less expensive for some sources than for others.
Farmers, who stand to earn extra income by reducing runoff from their fields and then selling the credits to treatment plants, support the new rule. However, environmental and conservation groups are split on this proposal. Some environmental groups met this announcement with skepticism, stating the proposal did not include tough enough rules, since it lacks a cap on the overall amount of pollution. Other groups stated this is a good way to reduce nutrient and fertilizer pollution at a reduced cost.
