Supreme Court Hears Arguments in L.A. Stormwater Runoff Case

Should Los Angeles County have to get a Clean Water Act permit for urban runoff collecting in channelized river systems it maintains and improves? This is the question that the Supreme Court asked on December 4, 2012, in a high-stakes case involving permits and responsibilities for polluted storm water flowing into the Pacific Ocean. Chief [...]

Alliance President Testifies Before Congress

On March 21, 2012, Alliance President Ben Grumbles testified before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment in a hearing on water infrastructure funding.  He said that “We urgently need water innovation and collaboration, not only to sharpen and polish existing tools, but also to forge new tools for communities [...]

A Call to Farms

As we celebrate the bounty of the season, pitchforks and storm clouds are gathering throughout the country and the nation’s capital over agriculture and water policy and the potential collisions between the two. On the water quantity side, some of the fresh wrangling is over subsidies that distort the real cost of water, ground water [...]

Muddy Waters of the United States

Seekers of regulatory certainty are still singing the blues after the Supreme Court muddied the waters of jurisdiction under the federal Clean Water Act in 2001 and 2006 but don’t blame the Supremes and don’t expect a harmonious solution any time soon. Sometimes we forget but wetlands are at the heart of our country’s natural [...]