Even though North Carolina has the most far-reaching soil runoff laws in the U.S., it still isn’t keeping its rivers clean, say scientists who’ve been studying the issue for four years. The problem, they say, is that the state doesn’t have a strong enough inspection regimen in place. The scientists from the University of North Carolina found that less soil washed off construction sites that were visited frequently by government inspectors, while significant runoff problems existed at sites that were visited less often. State officials weren’t shocked by the conclusions, but they expressed little hope of getting money for additional inspectors.
