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Executive Director,
Joseph Hoffman
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I take this opportunity to welcome you to the web site of the Interstate
Commission on the Potomac River Basin. The ICPRB is an interstate
compact organization created in 1940 by our signatory members —
the commonwealths of Pennsylvania and Virginia and the states of
Maryland and West Virginia, the District of Columbia — passing
identical state laws, and then by the United States Congress adopting
a resolution providing federal recognition and a federal government
presence on the Commission.
Our purpose, as defined in the 1940 compact is:
"Regulating, controlling, preventing, or otherwise rendering
unobjectionable and harmless the pollution of the waters of said
Potomac drainage area by sewage and industrial and other wastes."
The compact does not give ICPRB any authority to establish water
quality standards or regulations even with the above stated purpose.
We rely on state and federal laws and regulations, and standards
to implement actions in the basin. The Compact, and our roles in
the basin recognize the fact that water quality and water quantity
are integrally related and that an agency must focus attention on
them as a whole to avoid divisive activities in the basin.
Water resources play a major role in much of the lives of today's
residents of the Potomac Valley and this entire region. As we address
the water resources issues of the 21st Century, we have the responsibility
for cooperating with other agencies, interest groups, and individuals
to integrate and coordinate the planning for the development and
use of the water and associated land resources of the Potomac River
Basin.
We have a group of appointed, and dedicated, commissioners representing
the member jurisdictions, and a full-time staff of professionals
who collaboratively seek to protect the Potomac River Basin for
today and for the future. We conduct projects and studies that lead
to better management actions by participating groups and agencies
and encourage governments at several levels to act responsibly for
the basin.
Welcome to our site. This web site provides information about the
ICPRB. We want to answer basic questions about the ICPRB and to
introduce you to ongoing activities and projects in the Potomac
River Basin. As you travel the Potomac through our pages, I hope
you better understand the Potomac River Basin and our unique role
in protecting the basin's water resources. We are among the oldest
of the interstate river basin commissions and take pride in our
Potomac River.
Joseph K. Hoffman, Executive Director
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