Protecting Our Waters

Clean water is vital to our ecosystems, our health and our quality of life. Unfortunately inadequate protections and lax enforcement still leave far too many of our rivers, lakes and streams vulnerable to pollution. Areas of the Chesapeake Bay and the Great Lakes have dead zones which no longer support aquatic life, and thousands of incidents of illegal pollution have gone unpunished.

This pollution can put the drinking water for millions of Americans at risk. To make matters worse, our drinking water frequently travels through pipes and fixtures that contain lead, a potent neurotoxin, which threatens healthy brain development. In fact, the Environmental Protection Agency estimates that 24 million children are at risk from lead contamination.