User:Cyndaquil12/Aquatic toxicology

In the United States, the passage of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1947 marked the first comprehensive legislation for the control of water pollution and was followed by the Federal Water Pollution Control Act in 1956. In 1962, public and governmental interests were renewed, in large part due to the publication of Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring, and three years later the Water Quality Act of 1965 was passed, which directed states to develop water quality standards. Public awareness, as well as scientific and governmental concern, continued to grow throughout the 1970s with the regulation of water pollution, implemented under the Clean Water Act (1972) '''. By the end''' of the decade research had expanded to include hazard evaluation and risk analysis. In the subsequent decades, aquatic toxicology has continued to expand and internationalize so that there is now a strong application of toxicity testing for environmental protection.

Aquatic toxicology is continuing to evolve as risk assessment is becoming more practiced in the field. The field is gaining popularity as it has begun to link the effects of pollutants on marine animals to humans who eat fish and other marine life. There are also various global concerns relative to aquatic toxicology including, but not limited to, oceanic eutrophication, acidification of freshwater bodies, and the spread of antibiotic resistant bacteria.