CLEAR Waters Act

The CLEAR Waters Act (S 2421) clarifies the definition of "navigable waters" under the Clean Water Act by explicitly excluding certain water features from federal regulation. It directly affects wastewater treatment facilities (like lagoons and ponds), seasonal streams that flow only after rain, and groundwater by removing them from the Clean Water Act's jurisdiction. Key provisions add specific exclusions to the definition, including waste treatment systems, ephemeral features, groundwater, and future exclusions determined by the EPA and Army Corps. This changes which water bodies require federal permits for pollution control, shifting oversight away from these excluded features.