Runoff from cropland—fertilizer, manure, eroded soil—is now a leading cause of impairment in the nation’s rivers, streams, lakes, and wetlands. “Nonpoint source” pollution is defined in a way that pulls agricultural runoff specifically out of the permitting system that holds industrial and municipal dischargers accountable. This brief follows that failure to its clearest consequences—nutrient-driven algal blooms, the Gulf of Mexico’s summer dead zone, and nitrate contamination now reaching the drinking water of more than 60 million Americans—and argues that the most realistic solution available to Congress is a stronger version of an existing policy.

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October 27, 2026