What does the CWA regulate?
CWA section 501(12) defines discharge of a pollutant as any addition of any pollutant to waters of the United States. Sediment is a pollutant that is regulated by the CWA and cannot be discharged into waters of the United States. Waters of the United States is a term that has been the subject of recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions and may be subject to future litigation or federal legislation. In general terms, waters of the United States, include most surface waters that have a continuous flow of water, e.g., most streams, creeks, lakes, and rivers. For water bodies that may flow only with a rainfall or flow only on occasion, it may be necessary to have a legal interpretation of whether that water body is a water of the U.S. The CWA requires any discharge to meet the requirements of a federal permit known as the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination (NPDES) permit. In separate sections below, this manual will describe the NPDES permit system and enforcement of NPDES permits. Who ad
