ABSTRACT
Discussed in this chapter are the global problems of water quality and security and attendant policies meant to prevent the problems. U.S. federal water policies are vested with the Clean Water Act of 1972 and the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974. The former act established a program of grants to construct sewage treatment plants and a regulatory and standards program to control discharges of chemical and microbial contaminants into U.S. waters. The latter act gives EPA the authority to set drinking water standards in the U.S. Global water pollution policies are described for the EU, China, and India. As to water security, WHO estimates that 1.1 billion people lack access to “improved water supply” and more than 2.4 billion lack access to “improved sanitation.” Discussed is the forecast effect of climate change on water security and policies to deal with water insecurity during period of drought.
