We consume too much stuff. Single use disposable products impact public health and the environment in every step of their lifecycle- from raw materials extraction to manufacture, transport and disposal. The impacts range from oil spills and deforestation, to energy and water use, pesticide use, soil depletion, water and air pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change. Plastic pollution in our oceans is at epidemic proportions and provides a clear signal that we are wasting the planet’s resources and polluting our waterways with that waste. Clean Water Fund is researching and developing new policies to reduce these impacts at the source.

Californians are paying a huge price for farming the fertile soils of the Central Valley – the loss of clean water. For decades, commercial fertilizers and pesticides have been applied in amounts that far exceed the ability of crops to absorb. While pesticide application is somewhat regulated and requires permits and safety measures, fertilizer use has no restrictions. Clean Water Fund is a leading voice in the development of new state regulations to protect groundwater and limit nitrate contamination. Read more about our efforts to reduce nitrate pollution.

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Most Central Valley communities rely on groundwater for their drinking water supply. Throughout the Valley, extensive and ancient groundwater deposits are being depleted and contaminated with runoff from farms, confined animal feeding opertations, and sewage systems. In addition, naturally occurring contaminants like arsenic, manganese, and uranium also contaminate groundwater as a result of wasteful irrigation practices of agricultural operations. Read more about what we are doing to ensure small communities have access to safe and affordable drinking water.

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As Sacramento continues to generate bizarre and often inconcistent plans to deal with failing levees and a severely degraded Delta ecosystem, wiser use of the existing water supply needs to be part of the solution. Clean Water Fund promotes water conservation not just during times of drought, but as part of long-term planning to reduce degradation of the Delta ecosystem and obviate the need for increased diversion of water from ecosystems. California's is a dry climate that is expected to become dryer still as the impacts of climate change intensify. It’s time to rethink our California’s approach to use of water existing water supply. Read more about Clean Water Fund’s water conservation strategy.

Manufacturing products with less toxic materials and promoting the development of "green chemistry" will protect communities, workers, and ecosystems, and also save businesses money. By preventing pollution and increasing efficiency, green chemistry holds the promise of reducing potential liability and giving manufacturers competitive advantage in the marketplace. Clean Water Fund is fighting to ensure that California's new chemical policies ensure the public's right to know about the health and environmental impacts of chemicals used in everyday products. Read more about the green chemistry program and Clean Water Fund's campaign to end toxic secrets.

A first-of-its-kind survey of the kinds of trash that end up in San Francisco Bay points the finger at specific sources: retailers such as McDonald's and 7-Eleven that feed our disposable lifestyle, and their littering consumers.

Clean Water Action, a national group, identified fast food restaurants and convenience stores as the top contributors of the types of trash they could identify in the streets of San Jose, South San Francisco, Richmond and Oakland. Street trash often ends up in the bay.

The results shed light on where cities should concentrate their efforts as they race to comply with a strict regional directive to end all trash pollution to the bay by 2022, said Miriam Gordon, California director for Clean Water Action.

READ OUR REPORT: The Human Costs of Nitrate-Contaminated Drinking Water in the San Joaquin Valley.

California has the largest agricultural economy in the nation, generating $34.8 billion in sales in 2009 [California Department of Food and Agriculture]. Nine of the top ten agricultural counties in the United States are located in California. Six of them are in the 8-county San Joaquin Valley.

Californians are paying a huge price for farming the fertile soils of the Central Valley – the loss of clean water. For decades, commercial fertilizers and pesticides have been applied in amounts that far exceed the ability of crops to absorb. While pesticide application is somewhat regulated and requires permits and safety measures, fertilizer use has no restrictions.

READ OUR REPORT: The Human Costs of Nitrate-Contaminated Drinking Water in the San Joaquin Valley.

California has the largest agricultural economy in the nation, generating $34.8 billion in sales in 2009 [California Department of Food and Agriculture]. Nine of the top ten agricultural counties in the United States are located in California.  Six of them are in the 8-county San Joaquin Valley.

Californians are paying a huge price for farming the fertile soils of the Central Valley – the loss of clean water. For decades, commercial fertilizers and pesticides have been applied in amounts that far exceed the ability of crops to absorb. While pesticide application is somewhat regulated and requires permits and safety measures, fertilizer use has no restrictions.