Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2025

Abstract

Nonpoint source water pollution is the largest cause of water pollution in the United States today. From harmful algal blooms to acid rain to red tide, the impacts of nonpoint source pollution are devastating for human and environmental health. In the last several decades, states and the Environmental Protection Agency have spent billions of dollars trying to address this pollution through the Clean Water Act’s TMDL program. TMDLs have been derided for their lack of a coherent regulatory driver, but many academics have come to argue for their value as an example of information regulation: a regulation that requires the disclosure of information but does not impose significant regulatory burdens or requirements on the basis of this information. While information regulation is a favorite approach to environmental management, little evidence exists on whether it is an effective regulatory strategy.

This Article provides a critical assessment of the Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) program to concretely evaluate whether such information regulations lead to measurable improvements in water quality. Despite significant resources allocated to TMDL implementation, robust analyses evaluating its success have been lacking. For the first time, this Article presents a comprehensive quantitative analysis using nationwide data. The findings reveal that impaired waters with TMDLs in place have not shown marked improvements in quality over time, suggesting the ineffectiveness of this type of information regulation in environmental law. Based on these insights, the Article argues for several reforms to nonpoint source pollution and TMDL regulations, highlighting key aspects that undermine the effectiveness of information regulation more generally.

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