Clean Water Act (CWA)-Related Work

Association members are stateinterstate and territorial officials who implement surface-water protection programs. Anastasio helps resolve questions about the “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) rule, so that states the EPA and the Corps of Engineers can focus on implementation. She also works on ways to address nutrient pollution and implements changes and updates to the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System, which regulates point sources that discharge pollutants into U.S. waters.

Maintaining existing funding sources and finding new ones so states can carry out the CWA is another role of Anastasio’s. “States already absorb over two-thirds of the cost of mandated state and delegated federal water-quality programs, and state budgets are strained to the maximum. Additional federal funding cuts to these programs will seriously compromise state water-quality protection activities,” she says.

CWA Trends and Big Issues

“There’s a focus on federalism and strengthening the co-regulator relationship with the EPA. The CWA is structured around the concept of cooperative federalism and sets up a regime where state and federal governments work together in structured overlapping and complementary ways. The complexity of today’s water-quality challenges demands collaboration and cooperation between the EPA and states. Today’s pervasive and emerging water quality challenges demand effective federal and state cooperation, so that resources are leveraged and sound policy is created.”