Under section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act, states, territories, and authorized tribes are required to develop lists of impaired waters. These are waters that are too polluted or otherwise degraded to meet the water quality standards set by states, territories, or authorized tribes. The law requires that these jurisdictions establish priority rankings for waters on the lists and develop TMDLs for these waters. A Total Maximum Daily Load, or TMDL, is a calculation of the maximum amount of a pollutant that a waterbody can receive and still safely meet water quality standards.

In response to concerns about the East & West Branch DuPage River TMDLs and the Salt Creek TMDL, a local group of communities, POTWs, and environmental organizations have come together to better determine the stressors to the aquatic systems through a long term water quality monitoring program and develop and implement viable remediation projects.   The DuPage River Salt Creek Workgroup (DRSCW) is committed to producing comprehensive data sets for local watersheds in order to determine and resolve priority stressors to local aquatic systems. The organization seeks to implement targeted watershed activities that resolve priority water way problems efficiently and cost effectively. 

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