There is a need for reasonable regulation. In this case there is and the use on non-toxic and non-phosphate soaps and detergents to clean a deck is legal under EPA regulation. http://www.epa.gov/npdes/pubs/vessel_vgp_factsheet.pdf My objection is with people and groups that use the threat of civil actions to enforce their idea of how the law should read or to shakedown an industry. Where someone, or some company is in violation there should be punishment and it should be meaningful. The Hovnanian story I linked to, while Hovnanian agreed to pay a million dollar penalty, it was less than 1/2 percent of their after tax income. My home states cut of the penalty wasn't enough to hire one environmental inspector. To me that "punishment" is a joke and didn't even hurt the investor's dividend payment.

Side note: I am a member of several environmental groups here on the Chesapeake and do actively participate to try and get insure reasonable constraints on development. We aren't going to stop development, but its impact can/must be controlled.