EDITORIAL

Editor: James J . Morgan WASHINGTON EDITORIAL STAFF Managing Editor: Stanton S. Miller Assistant Editor: H. Martin Malin, Jr . Assistant Editor: Carol Knapp Lewicke Assistant Editor: William S. Forester

MANUSCRIPT REVIEWING Manager: Katherine I . Biggs

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For author's guide and editorial policy. see June issue, page 51 7 , or write Katherine 1 . Biggs, Manuscript Reviewing Office, ES&T

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Maintaining a water cleanup posture On one hand we wonder if the public is convinced that water pollution cleanup is really under way. On the other, we witness the flurry of paperwork triggered by the Federal Water Pollution Control Amendments of 1972 and wonder, sometimes, how the public can be anything but convinced. But as it has been pointed out before, regulations and guidelines are only the beginning: only when enforcement actions are taken will the doubting Thomases be convinced.

As ES&T 's Carol Lewicke points out in this month's special report, states are making headway under the new water law, somewhat slowly, perhaps reluctantly, but nevertheless progress. Obviously, much remains to be accomplished in the ensuing years. Also, in this month's issue, is ES&T's first PAT report. It's aimed at publicizing the practical and available technology that is finding use either in the public or private sectors.

Environmental Quality, the improvement in water quality on a national scale was not significant. We wonder i f we will hear the same line later this month when CEQ's fourth annual report on environmental quality is released. Certainly, we hope to hear better news than last year's.

At the end of this month and the first week of October, the Water Pollution Control Federation will host its annual convention in Cleveland, Ohio. Somewhat later, the second International Pollution Control Conference and Exposition will be held in Philadelphia. More technical progress will be presented at each.

But if the public is not aware of and happy with the cleanup, then we wonder who is. Certainly, one would think that the professionals, the members of WPCF, who owe their livelihoods and professional careers to the cleanup program would be somewhat pleased with the progress. To the list we would add construction firms who are involved in the building of these waste water treatment facilities. We submit that if they had to choose between unhappy and happy, the majority of these people would choose the latter. But that, of course, is not saying they are ecstatic about the cleanup progress either.

According to last year's annual report of the Council on

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