Nonpoint sources of water pollution, or diffused sources, have been identified as the primary reason for these continued problems. Objectives, Scope, and Methodology

The Chairman, Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment, House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, asked us to (1) provide background information and funding levels for federal programs that primarily address nonpoint source pollution (i.e., those programs identified as either focusing primarily on nonpoint source pollution or that devote at least $10 million annually to the problem); (2) examine the way EPA assesses the overall potential costs of reducing nonpoint source pollution nationwide and alternative methods for doing so; and (3) describe nonpoint source pollution from federal facilities, lands, and activities that federal agencies manage or authorize, or for which they issue permits or licenses. Key Federal Programs That Address Nonpoint Source Pollution

The 35 federal programs identified by the agencies represent a broad array of activities, reflecting diversity in both the nature of nonpoint source pollution and the remedies needed to address it. Some programs are intended to deal directly with the problem. By far, USDA’s largest source of funding for nonpoint pollution activities is the Conservation Reserve Program, which accounted for about 65 percent of all the federal funds identified in this report obligated to address nonpoint source pollution for fiscal years 1994 through 1998. Although EPA’s study represents one of the few attempts to estimate control costs nationwide, EPA officials acknowledge that their methodology has several limitations. Watershed-Based Approach Offers a Promising Alternative to Estimate Control Costs

Addressing the limitations mentioned previously can improve EPA’s cost estimation methodology and resulting cost estimate, but the agency is also considering an additional approach that would take into account the unique characteristics of individual watersheds. Recommendations

To improve EPA’s approach toward estimating the cost of controlling nonpoint source pollution, we recommend that the Administrator of EPA direct the Office of Water to address key limitations in its approach and presentation of the methodology and its results by (1) including the costs of operating and maintaining best management practices, (2) assessing and disclosing the range of uncertainty associated with its control cost estimate, and (3) more fully documenting its cost estimation methodology and work with researchers at USDA and USGS to obtain lessons learned, data sources, and modeling approaches to help advance EPA’s own efforts to develop a watershed-based cost-estimation approach. Federal and state officials that we contacted identified five of these activities as those with the most potential to contribute significantly to nonpoint source pollution: silviculture (specifically timber harvesting and associated roads), grazing, drainage from abandoned mines, recreation, and hydromodification. 4.3.) 4.8.) With few exceptions, federal agencies do not have specific guidance or policies for dealing with recreation and associated water quality impacts. Other Clean Water Act Sections Addressing Nonpoint Pollution

In addition to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) programs discussed in this report that primarily address nonpoint source pollution, a few other programs authorized by the Clean Water Act address nonpoint source pollution but to a lesser extent. 6. Our comments on the Department’s two major concerns follow.
Why GAO Did This Study

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the impacts of nonpoint source water pollution and the potential costs of dealing with the problem, focusing on: (1) funding levels for federal programs that primarily address nonpoint source pollution; (2) the way Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) assesses the overall potential costs of reducing nonpoint pollution nationwide and alternative methods for doing so; and (3) nonpoint source pollution from federal facilities, lands, and activities that federal agencies manage or authorize, or for which they issue permits or licenses.

What GAO Found

GAO noted that: (1) the federal agencies GAO contacted reported spending about $3 billion annually for fiscal years 1994 through 1998 on 35 programs that they identified as addressing nonpoint source pollution; (2) some deal directly with nonpoint source pollution; others focus on different objectives but still address the problem; (3) while EPA is the primary agency involved in water quality issues given its role under the Clean Water Act, many other federal agencies have programs addressing nonpoint source pollution and, in some cases, devote a significant amount of resources to the problem; (4) in particular, the Department of Agriculture's (USDA) programs account for over $11 billion of all federal funding identified by these agencies; (5) USDA officials explain that while most of the programs identified by the agency do not have specific nonpoint source pollution objectives, the programs' activities nonetheless help to reduce nonpoint source pollution; (6) EPA has estimated the annual costs of controlling three major sources of nonpoint source pollution to be $9.4 billion, an amount that represents one of the few systematic attempts at estimating such costs nationwide; (7) specifically, EPA's methodology to produce the estimate analyzes agriculture, silviculture, and animal feeding operations and estimates pollution-control costs for these sources; (8) EPA acknowledges that the methodology has several limitations; (9) GAO also found that the methodology does not assess and disclose the considerable range of uncertainty associated with EPA's control cost estimate and that it includes insufficient documentation of its cost-estimation methodology; (10) EPA officials told GAO that the agency is considering an additional cost-estimation methodology, a watershed based approach, that could provide a substantially more realistic estimate by taking into account the unique characteristics of individual watersheds; (11) the federal government manages or authorizes a variety of activities that result in nonpoint source pollution and, in some cases, affect water quality; and (12) the following five activities have been identified as those with the most potential to contribute significantly to nonpoint source pollution: (a) silviculture; (b) grazing; (c) drainage from abandoned mines; (d) recreation; and (e) hydromodification.