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Clean Water Act (CWA)

The Clean Water Act (CWA) is the primary Federal statute regulating the protection of the nation's waters. CWA was enacted in 1972 in response to nationwide water pollution issues and was amended in 1977 and 1987. Section 311 of CWA was amended by the Oil Pollution Act (OPA) of 1990, which has its own separate regulation and enforcement scheme. CWA established national programs for the prevention, reduction, and elimination of pollution in navigable water and groundwater. It also sets up a water quality standards program and required permits for discharge and treatment of wastewater and storm water. MSU has a certified spill prevention control and countermeasure plan (SPCC) for petroleum products stored on campus. Several departments on campus also have stormwater pollution prevention plans (SWPPP). These plans provide control measures to prevent hazardous materials from entering into sanitary and storm drains on campus. MSU has a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) issued by the MDEQ as part of our Illicit Discharge Elimination Plan (IDEP)/Public Education Plan(PEP) program.