This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Clean Water Act. And several Connecticut environmental groups are marking the occasion by filing citizen lawsuits in federal court against eight junkyards that, according to the enironmentalists, are polluting Connecticut rivers and Long Island Sound.

If a federal judge agrees, the scrap metal businesses may find themselves taking a huge financial hit. Fines can run as high as $37,500 per day for violating the Clean Water Act.