The City recently said in the news that their ADEM permit does not make them responsible to do anything about "floatable" garbage entering City waterways. ADEM says that accumulations of litter does not constitute an illegal garbage dump. The US EPA says ADEM is responsible for administering the Clean Water Act in Alabama. You can see how much the City, ADEM, and the EPA care about the environment in the above photo.
There are inlet cages that trap litter upstream and waterway litter traps that capture litter downstream available in the market place. Mobile uses no litter control devices nor do they require such devices be used. Mobile ignores the public garbage being flushed into the local waterways. Rather than trap this trash or employ people to remove this garbage from the water, the City, County, State, and Federal authorities, and even environmental groups ignore this VISIBLE pollution. Yikes!
What about invisible pollutants? There are storm water inlets available in the marketplace that filter the first flush rain from parking lots and streets resulting in cleaner waterways. Mobile does not require inlets that filter street and parking lot chemicals to be used and instead allow cheap non-filter inlets to continue to be installed resulting in polluted storm water runoff being sent into area Rivers and Mobile Bay.
Leaders ignore this pollution because communities as a whole let them. That is stupid.
The most ironic thing is the US Government has spent about 4 trillion dollars this past decade occupying middle east countries fighting a war they say must be won to make sure the enemy doesn't kill another 3,000 people innocent people (approx number killed in the 9-11 event). You don't have to worry about Al Qaeda or the Taliban coming to America to kill innocent people by poisoning water supplies. Americans are poisoning their own water. Over 1,600,000 Americans are expected to be diagnosed with Cancer this year. What is in your water? Your garbage and raw sewage. Enjoy your swim.