ABSTRACT
Water pollution control has its own unique characteristics. Point sources traditionally have been easier to manage while nonpoint sources add more complexity and require different kinds of policy. Water quality trading across point and nonpoint sources has allowed more cost-effective solutions to nutrient pollution to emerge in some locations. Recreational benefits are important when considering water quality. Toxics like mercury persist in fish tissue and as such air pollution control can also affect water quality. Oil spills present challenges worldwide and the plastics in the ocean are perhaps one of the largest and hardest problems to address. This chapter spends considerable time on the history of water pollution control in the United States since it offers many lessons and examples of rules that have not been cost-effective. Water pollution control policies in Europe and in developing countries are also covered.
