The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that polluted water that flows underground into nearby lakes, rivers, and bays is covered by the Clean Water Act. The law prohibits the unpermitted discharge of pollutants into navigable waters or at points where the water also reaches the same result by similar means.
The decision came after researchers at the University of Hawaii, Manoa, proved that waste from a municipal sewage treatment plant on Maui was flowing into groundwater and reaching the ocean. These residues have been causing algae growth and damaging coral reefs since at least the mid-2000s.
Learn more: bit.ly/cleanwateractgw