sin, authorized industrial and municipal discharges represented only 24.3
percent of the total organic load recorded in the water. The computed contri—
bution from these authorized sources was lowest in the Raritan River Basin—
only 7.3 percent of the total organic load. ln light of their ndings, the Rut—
gers
sciensts pointed out the futility of treating recorded efuents to achieve
desired water quality without considering the effects of undesignated sources
of pollution.
To counteract this kind of disparity, the 1972 federal law requires the de—
velopment of area—wide waste management plans in regions that have severe
nonpoint—source pollution problems. However, development and administration of the plans will be a state responsibility. The EPA will assist the
_
states by preparing guidelines for control of pollution from agriculture, min—
_"
ing, construction, and underground waste disposal (the law does not deal ex—
tensively with deep—well disposal of industrial wastes, other than to require
that states determine that such disposal is harmless before issuing permits for
it).
‘
An Alternative Approach
1
Even if both identiable and elusive nonpoint-source pollution discharges
-
_
were controlled under the new legislation, water pollution would still exist.
We still would be left With many situations in which a product is manufac—
tured cleanlÿ in one place only to contaminate water many miles away dur—
;
ing-use or disposal. One example is the manufacture of ammonium nitrate fer—
Ÿ
tilizer in Tennessee described previously in this chapter. Similarly, even
_,
‘
tholly pollution—free petroleum rening or coal mining would create fuels
_
-
that, during use, would produce air and water pollution in the form of
or metallic by—products of combustion. The most careful manufacture
of plastic disseminates products from—which potentially toxic plasticizers va—
porize to contaminate the air and water [19]. Scavaging of cadmium during
metal plating and galvanizing keeps that toxic metal from plant waste water,
.
but the plating itself releases cadmium to the air and hence to the water
when scrap metal is melted down for reuse [20].
All this ensures that the 1985 goal of no pollution discharges into water
will be elusive. This is not to
that the new legislation establishing the goal
is not a landrhark in our efforts to regulate the massive pollution produced by
our society. It is that. The law attempts to deal with water pollution on a uni—
form basis aéro'ss political boundaries by employing pollution control meas_
ures
both technologically and adh1inistratively If aP‘
plied
the quality of many waterways.
AS 0111“
of the serioùsness of water pollution has increased
over the years,
have become more comprehensive and more effecè
'
V€- This evoluti0n
with other historical trends in the United
States during Wh1ch,under political pressure, laws have been periodicàu)î
rewritten t0 govem 0u1‘actw1ües iri_areas of
public concern
tightly. Each new law hasbeen built at least partially on the
184
The Limits of Patchwork
…
;
,
.
percent of the total organic load recorded in the water. The computed contri—
bution from these authorized sources was lowest in the Raritan River Basin—
only 7.3 percent of the total organic load. ln light of their ndings, the Rut—
gers
sciensts pointed out the futility of treating recorded efuents to achieve
desired water quality without considering the effects of undesignated sources
of pollution.
To counteract this kind of disparity, the 1972 federal law requires the de—
velopment of area—wide waste management plans in regions that have severe
nonpoint—source pollution problems. However, development and administration of the plans will be a state responsibility. The EPA will assist the
_
states by preparing guidelines for control of pollution from agriculture, min—
_"
ing, construction, and underground waste disposal (the law does not deal ex—
tensively with deep—well disposal of industrial wastes, other than to require
that states determine that such disposal is harmless before issuing permits for
it).
‘
An Alternative Approach
1
Even if both identiable and elusive nonpoint-source pollution discharges
-
_
were controlled under the new legislation, water pollution would still exist.
We still would be left With many situations in which a product is manufac—
tured cleanlÿ in one place only to contaminate water many miles away dur—
;
ing-use or disposal. One example is the manufacture of ammonium nitrate fer—
Ÿ
tilizer in Tennessee described previously in this chapter. Similarly, even
_,
‘
tholly pollution—free petroleum rening or coal mining would create fuels
_
-
that, during use, would produce air and water pollution in the form of
or metallic by—products of combustion. The most careful manufacture
of plastic disseminates products from—which potentially toxic plasticizers va—
porize to contaminate the air and water [19]. Scavaging of cadmium during
metal plating and galvanizing keeps that toxic metal from plant waste water,
.
but the plating itself releases cadmium to the air and hence to the water
when scrap metal is melted down for reuse [20].
All this ensures that the 1985 goal of no pollution discharges into water
will be elusive. This is not to
that the new legislation establishing the goal
is not a landrhark in our efforts to regulate the massive pollution produced by
our society. It is that. The law attempts to deal with water pollution on a uni—
form basis aéro'ss political boundaries by employing pollution control meas_
ures
both technologically and adh1inistratively If aP‘
plied
the quality of many waterways.
AS 0111“
of the serioùsness of water pollution has increased
over the years,
have become more comprehensive and more effecè
'
V€- This evoluti0n
with other historical trends in the United
States during Wh1ch,under political pressure, laws have been periodicàu)î
rewritten t0 govem 0u1‘actw1ües iri_areas of
public concern
tightly. Each new law hasbeen built at least partially on the
184
The Limits of Patchwork
…
;
,
.