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.

Water flowing out of a pipe into an open field

Putting Drinking Water First: The Case for Sustained and Equitable Federal Water Infrastructure Investment

This paper makes the case for sustained and equitable federal investment in water infrastructure, highlighting the critical role of State Revolving Funds (SRFs) in delivering safe, affordable drinking water and protecting source water. It outlines the risks of upcoming funding cuts, showcases community impacts, and calls for an all-of-the-above strategy that includes SRFs, WIFIA, technical assistance, and direct grants.
Learn More

More Publications

Lake Erie Algal Bloom - August 2015. Photo Credit: NOAA Great Lakes CoastWatch

Putting Drinking Water First to Address Nutrient Pollution

Nutrient pollution from nitrogen and phosphorus runoff is one of the most pervasive water quality problems in the U.S., and there's increasing concern about its impact on drinking water.

Learn More

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.
Read More

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.
Read More

What's at stake with the Dirty Water Rule

In January 2020, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized it's Navigable Waters Protection Rule (AKA "The Dirty Water Rule") to slash federal clean water safeguards. Trump’s Dirty Water Rule is a radical reinterpretation of the Clean Water Act that would eliminate protections for rain

Read More
Stream in a yellow meadow
Search Clean Water