Water Policy

Water policy covers the safety, allocation, and long-term availability of fresh water — a resource under growing stress from drought, aging infrastructure, agricultural demand, population growth, and climate change. The Clean Water Act (1972) and Safe Drinking Water Act (1974) established the federal framework for water quality, but enforcement is uneven and many systems fall short of standards. Lead pipe contamination remains a serious public health problem: the Flint, Michigan crisis (2014–2019) — in which lead leached from aging pipes into drinking water, poisoning thousands of children — put a national spotlight on the deterioration of water infrastructure. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (2021) allocated $55 billion for water infrastructure and lead pipe replacement. In the arid West, water allocation is governed by a patchwork of state water rights laws, interstate compacts, and federal treaties — many dating to a wetter era. The Colorado River, which supplies water to 40 million people across seven states and two countries, has been in crisis: Lake Mead and Lake Powell fell to record-low levels in 2022–2023, triggering mandatory cuts in water deliveries and forcing difficult negotiations among states over permanent allocation reductions. Agricultural use accounts for roughly 80 percent of water consumption in the western U.S., making farm water use central to any long-term solution. Internationally, water scarcity is a growing driver of conflict and migration: the UN projects that by 2025, half the world's population will live in water-stressed areas. The U.S. has not faced widespread water scarcity at the national level, but regional crises — in the Southwest, in cities with aging pipes, and in agricultural belts — are intensifying.