EPA, NOAA Approve Coastal Nonpoint Programs for S.C., Fla.
On March 27, 2008, EPA and NOAA jointly approved the Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control Programs for South Carolina and Florida, which these states submitted in accordance with Section 6217 of the Coastal Zone Act Reauthorization Amendments of 1990 (CZARA). South Carolina's and Florida's programs are the 20th and 21st of the 34 state and territory coastal nonpoint programs to receive full federal approval. The purpose of the coastal nonpoint programs is to develop and implement management measures for nonpoint source pollution to restore and protect coastal waters. To win full federal approval, a state or territory must have programs with enforceable policies and mechanisms in place to ensure implementation of 56 wide-ranging management measures that prevent or minimize the impacts of nonpoint source pollution from agriculture, urban, forestry, marinas, hydromodification and wetlands.