So the Sierra Club, with some help from the Ohio Environmental Protection agency, threw a birthday party Saturday for the landmark law, to celebrate its accomplishments and tell people they'll have to personally do more in the coming years to ensure their rivers, streams and lakes stay clean for future generations.

Several environmental groups set up displays at Caesar Creek State Park on Saturday for the Little Miami River Watershed Festival. The event was to educate people about environmental issues in their area and teach folks how to test waterways for dangerous bacteria.

Hugh Trimble, an environmental specialist with the state EPA, said the federal water protection law has been successful over the past three decades. But it's not enough.

"I think we've done a lot to control pollution from point sources, or the pollution that comes out of the end of a pipe," Trimble said. "But there's a lot more individual responsibility that needs to take place. People have to be more aware of the lawn chemicals or their septic tanks polluting waterways. We're trying to raise awareness about that personal responsibility."

More people might have learned about those issues Saturday if the weather had cooperated. Only a couple of dozen people attended the event because of the cold and windy weather.

Katie Danko, conservation organizer for the local chapter of the Sierra Club, said changes to the law could make matters worse. For example, a change that would allow raw sewage to be "blended" with treated sewage and released into waterways could further erode the quality of local streams like the Little Miami River, she said.

"That could be happening at plants right around here, like the Sycamore Creek plant," which currently has an expansion permit pending with Ohio Environmental Protection, Danko said.

E-mail dklepal@enquirer.com