50 years after ‘Jaws,' US beaches still aren't safe for swimming
Only later did I learn that the more widespread threat in the water was not killer sharks but man-made pollution. Just three years before 'Jaws' hit the theaters, Congress responded to the unrestrained dumping of toxins and heavy metals into our waters by passing the Clean Water Act, which pledged to make all of America's waters safe for swimming.
Five decades later, that promise of the Clean Water Act remains unfulfilled. While we have made some progress in reducing direct discharges of industrial pollution, billions of gallons of sewage and polluted stormwater continue to flow into America's rivers, lakes and bays and onto beaches.
New research shows just how scary that pathogen pollution can be.
Environment America Research & Policy Center's recent 'Safe for Swimming?' report found that 61% of U.S. beaches had potentially unsafe contamination levels of fecal bacteria on at least one day in 2024. Each year, people swimming in contaminated U.S. waters experience an estimated 57 million cases of illness. These include nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, as well as respiratory disease, ear and eye infection and skin rash.
Even though 'Jaws' is about a shark rather than fecal bacteria (I'm pretty sure no one wants to see a movie about that), it contains a lesson for dealing with any pervasive threat in nearby waters: You need adequate resources and political will. In the movie, the failure of Mayor Larry Vaughn to protect residents of the fictional New England beach town of Amity Island compounds the danger posed by the shark. Only after appeals from local Police Chief Martin Brody does the mayor commit the resources and take the steps needed to find the shark.
Similarly, it will take significant resources to stop sewage overflows and runoff pollution. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that managing our nation's wastewater and stormwater will require at least $630 billion over the next 20 years. The main federal program that communities rely on for projects to reduce sewage and stormwater pollution — the Clean Water State Revolving Fund — is currently funded at less than 20% of that annual cost. You can't fight water pollution (or a shark) without enough resources at your disposal.
Yet some in Congress are steering us in the wrong direction. Amid a summer of floods and beach closures across America, the U.S. House Appropriations Committee recently voted to slash funding for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund.
The committee's bill also significantly reduces funding for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, even as toxic PFAS 'forever chemicals' taint the drinking water of more than 158 million Americans, and more than 9 million dangerous lead pipes are still in use.
It's clear that Congress needs to increase water infrastructure funding — not slash it.
We need our elected representatives to act in the spirit of Chief Brody, who urged swift action to protect the public and joined the expedition to hunt the killer shark. After an epic battle, with the help of a scuba tank and a rifle, Brody delivered the fatal blow, finally making Amity Islands beaches once again safe for swimming.
With Congress now in recess, we have a critical window of time to stop these proposed cuts to the money we need to tackle sewage pollution. Americans can add their voices by contacting their representatives in Congress to urge them to vote against the committee's bill. For our members of Congress to make our waters safer, the only weapon they need is their vote.
John Rumpler is clean water director at the 501(c)(4) nonprofit Environment America. He is also co-author of the 'Safe for Swimming?' report by Environment America Research & Policy Center.
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