The Johnson Administration's Water Quality Policies: A Fifty-Year Perspective

Lyndon Johnson's attitude toward polluted water was that the United States has a "moral imperative" to clean and restore its rivers. The Johnson Administration created America's first national water quality standards in 1965; enforced them without having to go to court; sought and spent funds to help cities build sewers and wastewater treatment plants to prevent, remove, and treat pollution; and helped the states develop water planning and water quality management programs. His administration supported training of new water quality professionals and research on difficult water quality problems, such as combined storm-sanitary sewerage and nonpoint pollution sources. The national water quality program the Johnson Administration put in place has thrived over the past 50 years and has improved surface water quality. Although President Johnson's successors have modified his program they also have kept its key elements in place, such as the relationships among the federal agencies, states, and local governments.