DID YOU KNOW........
America is home to fishermen who have become millionaires from catching BIG FISH in rivers and lakes that at one time were so polluted fish could not survive? Developed after American's were fed up with polluted water, politicians who were worried about NOT getting re-elected, amended the CLEAN WATER ACT to include harsh penalties for those that chose to violate a persons health instead of spending the money necessary to clean up their mess so others downstream did't get sick.
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|  | GEORGIA DOT PROJECT
CLEAN WATER ACT
COMPLIANT | |
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| | OKLAHOMA DOT PROJECT
CLEAN WATER ACT NON-COMPLIANT |
It's compliance with the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) of permits, with enforcement to back it up, that changed America's future back in the 70s, and it's compliance and enforcement of NPDES permits today that will protect our children tomorrow. Most of America's surface water is what it is today because some already learned the hard way what happens when we focus to much on profit and not the American's living downstream.
 Are we going to allow our children to live in a polluted America like the billions of people in Asia, Africa, and India who have laws set to protect them, but no ability to make the polluters comply?
BALANCE is the KEY to a STRONG
AMERICA! In other words, imbalance is not going to work on either side of the profit/water quality scale. Are you seeing your state and local government under funding the agencies that are supposed protect your quality of life? Are water quality laws that keep your personal property and health protected considered a nuisance by your state and local politicians? IS it right that a company with documented ongoing pollution discharges into your creeks, rivers and lakes NOT be held accountable? IF NOT, "What are you going to do about it?!"
by T. Luke Owen
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CHANGES
to Georgia Erosion Laws!
2) NEW NPDES PERMITS FOR CONSTRUCTION SITES are COMING OUT ON JULY 1st, 2016. THEY DO NOT AMEND THE CURRENT PERMIT CYCLE and INCLUDE language that addresses:
a) Coastal Marshland Buffers, and
b) the GAR100002 Permit for Infrastructure Permits that expands the definition of "maintenance" projects that will not include NPDES permit coverage.
 3) The state law (GESA) is amended (see below) to clarify the definition of minor land disturbance. CLICK HERE to go to EPDs document.
MINOR LAND-DISTURBING ACTIVITIES
As per O.C.G.A. 12-7-17(3), minor land-disturbing activities are exempt from the Georgia Erosion and Sedimentation Act (GESA): "Such minor land-disturbing activities as home gardens and individual home landscaping, repairs, maintenance work, fences, and other related activities which result in minor soil erosion."
As per Part1(C)(1)(c), minor land-disturbing activities are exempt from coverage under the NPDES General Permits for Storm Water Discharges Associated with Construction Activity Common Development and Stand Alone Permits (Permit), "coverage under this permit is not required for discharges of storm water associated with minor land-disturbing activities (such as home gardens and individual home landscaping, repairs, maintenance work, fences and other related activities which result in minor soil erosion":
The intent of this document is to clarify minor land-disturbing activities as defined in GESA and the NPDES General Permits for Storm Water Discharges Associated with Construction Activity Common Development and Stand Alone Permits, as follows:
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The U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling today 
