How The Water Clean Act. Benefits American Business

How the Clean Water Act Benefits American Business
Name
Institution
How the Clean Water Act Benefits American Business
The rising concern over the adverse repercussions of climate change as a result of human activity in the United States demands a radical shift towards embracing environmentally friendly practices in carrying out daily operations or activities. The increasing environmental awareness in the public domain demands a positive reaction from the business organizations in spearheading campaigns against environmental pollution. It is for such a good reason that corporate organizations in the United States are shifting towards sustainable production practices as not only corporate social responsibility endeavors but as long-term strategies for business growth and development. Compliance with the government-set policies and regulations on safe production practices further make it easier for such organizations to succeed in achieving their environmental protection objectives while still maintaining their relevance in the market. One of the most influential policies in the United States is the Clean Water Act, whose purpose is to help in the protection against water pollution. Originally formed in 1948 as the Federal Water Pollution Control Act the policy provided the first legal framework for regulating industrial water pollution as well as surface waters’ quality standards regulation CITATION Env17 \l 1033 (Agency, 2017). However, the increasing public concern and awareness over water conservancy and the protection of water catchment areas in the United States led to various amendments of the Act to address the emerging trends in water pollution. Several amendments were made on the original Act in 1972 leading to the enactment of the Clean Water Act CITATION Env17 \l 1033 (Agency, 2017). The provisions of Clean Water Act (1972) and its subsequent amendments have a wide range of benefits to the United States’ business community.
Since its enactment into the American legal system, the United States government has spent over $1 trillion in fighting or safeguarding the countries water bodies from pollution CITATION Bro15 \l 1033 (Brodwin, 2015). The cost of combating water pollution since the enactment of the Clean Water Act appears to be a steep price to pay with such legal protections in place. However, the benefits accrued to the business community by the law against water pollution outweigh the cost of implementing the provisions of the Clean Water Act. Among the provisions of the 1972 amendments include the establishment of the basic structure for regulating pollutant discharges into the waters of the United States CITATION Env17 \l 1033 (Agency, 2017). The Environmental Protection Agency oversees the compliance of business or industrial organizations with the set stipulations for discharging waste product into the American waters CITATION Env17 \l 1033 (Agency, 2017). The regulations further form part of the provisions through which the agency protects and maintains the safety of the aqua system from which the American society gains a lot of benefits. The 1972 amendments also made it illegal for an individual or business entity to discharge any pollutant from a point source into the nation’s...