Putting Drinking Water First

“Putting Drinking Water First” means stopping threats to drinking water where they start.

Clean Water Action is working to win strong water pollution controls  by focusing on public health and drinking water impacts and bringing public health and environmental advocacy into Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) implementation.

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Putting Drinking Water First: Clean Water Act Protections for Streams and Wetlands are Essential for Safeguarding Drinking Water

The Clean Water Act is intended to protect waterways from harmful pollutants, yet many streams and wetlands have lost their protections and others continue to be at risk. Streams and wetlands are more than just landscape features — they are critical parts of our natural water infrastructure that influence downstream water quality, including in drinking water sources.
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Content Related by Campaigns

Clean Water Currents | Spring 2025

In This Issue: Clean Water Act Protections Under Attack: Urge EPA to Protect Our Water | Defending Our Safeguards | Dismantling Environmental Justice Initiatives Harms Us All | Update From Jeff Carter, President & CEO | State and Regional News: California, Chesapeake Region (Maryland, DC, Virginia), Michigan, Minnesota, New England (Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island), New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Texas.

Letter to EPA: Refrain from Further Narrowing the Definition of the “Waters of the United States”

Clean Water Action / Clean Water Fund submitted the following comment letter as part of the April 2025 public comment period for EPA's Request for Recommendations on the definition of the "Waters of the United States"

Putting Drinking Water First: Clean Water Act Protections for Streams and Wetlands are Essential for Safeguarding Drinking Water

The Clean Water Act is intended to protect waterways from harmful pollutants, yet many streams and wetlands have lost their protections and others continue to be at risk. Streams and wetlands are more than just landscape features — they are critical parts of our natural water infrastructure that influence downstream water quality, including in drinking water sources.

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Beakers. Photo credit: Africa Studios / Shutterstock

PFAS Chemicals – Protecting Our Drinking Water And Our Health

PFAS are a class of human-made chemicals that very long-lived, which means that they remain in the environment and in humans and wildlife for a very long time. Clean Water is taking on pollution from these "Forever Chemicals" through education, research, working with impacted communities, advocating for legislation and regulation at the state and national level, supporting Safe Drinking Water Act monitoring, holding polluters accountable, and more.
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Harmful Algal Outbreaks and Drinking Water

Freshwater Harmful Algal Blooms happen most often where there are high levels of nutrients like nitrogen or phosphorus present in warm, still waters like lakes, ponds, or reservoirs. They can also occur in rivers, especially during summer months. Aquatic ecosystems need nutrients to thrive but fertilizer runoff from agriculture, sewage and industrial discharges, and urban stormwater have added an excessive of nutrients into many of our nation’s bays, lakes and rivers.
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Lake Erie Algal Bloom - August 2015. Photo Credit: NOAA Great Lakes CoastWatch

Lead and Drinking Water

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that lead in drinking water can be 20% or more of a person’s lead exposure. We need to get lead out of contact with water. That’s where full lead service line replacement comes in - alongside advocacy, collaboration, and education.
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Putting Drinking Water First - the Reports

Polls show that people consider drinking water the most important public health and environmental issue, but environmental policies don’t always reflect this.

Most water pollution is caused by human activities. Growing food, producing energy for electricity and transportation, making products and

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Manmade canal on a sunny day. Photo credit: nayneung1 / Shutterstock

Content Related by Campaigns

Clean Water Currents | Spring 2025

In This Issue: Clean Water Act Protections Under Attack: Urge EPA to Protect Our Water | Defending Our Safeguards | Dismantling Environmental Justice Initiatives Harms Us All | Update From Jeff Carter, President & CEO | State and Regional News: California, Chesapeake Region (Maryland, DC, Virginia), Michigan, Minnesota, New England (Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island), New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Texas.

Letter to EPA: Refrain from Further Narrowing the Definition of the “Waters of the United States”

Clean Water Action / Clean Water Fund submitted the following comment letter as part of the April 2025 public comment period for EPA's Request for Recommendations on the definition of the "Waters of the United States"

Putting Drinking Water First: Clean Water Act Protections for Streams and Wetlands are Essential for Safeguarding Drinking Water

The Clean Water Act is intended to protect waterways from harmful pollutants, yet many streams and wetlands have lost their protections and others continue to be at risk. Streams and wetlands are more than just landscape features — they are critical parts of our natural water infrastructure that influence downstream water quality, including in drinking water sources.

Blog Posts

Publications

Clean Water Currents | Spring 2025

In This Issue: Clean Water Act Protections Under Attack: Urge EPA to Protect Our Water | Defending Our Safeguards | Dismantling Environmental Justice Initiatives Harms Us All | Update From Jeff Carter, President & CEO | State and Regional News: California, Chesapeake Region (Maryland, DC, Virginia), Michigan, Minnesota, New England (Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island), New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Texas.

Letter to EPA: Refrain from Further Narrowing the Definition of the “Waters of the United States”

Clean Water Action / Clean Water Fund submitted the following comment letter as part of the April 2025 public comment period for EPA's Request for Recommendations on the definition of the "Waters of the United States"

Putting Drinking Water First: Clean Water Act Protections for Streams and Wetlands are Essential for Safeguarding Drinking Water

The Clean Water Act is intended to protect waterways from harmful pollutants, yet many streams and wetlands have lost their protections and others continue to be at risk. Streams and wetlands are more than just landscape features — they are critical parts of our natural water infrastructure that influence downstream water quality, including in drinking water sources.

News

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