David Jackson, USA TODAY 10:26 a.m. EDT May 27, 2015
President Obama(Photo: Jim Watson, AFP/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration moved Wednesday to expand anti-pollution regulations over smaller bodies of water, another executive action that drew cheers from environmentalists and jeers from Republicans.
The Environmental Protection Agency, which already regulates large rivers and bays under the 1972 Clean Water Act, issued a rule asserting that authority over smaller rivers and wetlands.
While environmentalists hailed the rule as a necessity for the cleanup of polluted waters, business groups described it as another executive overreach by the Obama presidency.
NFIB, a small business organization, said in a statement that its members "are concerned that the rule could mean new costs for permits, fees and fines under the Clean Water Act. Federal regulation could reach into puddles, ponds and even streambeds that are dry most of the year."
Trip Van Noppen, president of Earthjustice, said more than half of the nation's rives and streams are unfit for swimming, drinking or fishing.
"While the state of U.S. waters has worsened, the Clean Water Act has been blunted by a decade of confusion and inaction," he said.
The Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have been holding a series of public meetings on the proposed rule, bracing both sides for Wednesday's announcement.
For years, the government has exercised anti-pollution regulations in large rivers, lakes and bays, pursuant to the 1972 Clean Water Act. The new rule is designed to clarify conflicting court rulings on the government's power to regulate smaller streams, wetland and similar bodies of water.
Some congressional Republicans — who have objected to previous Obama executive actions on items ranging from the environment to immigration — are looking to counter the new water rule with legislation that would blunt it.
Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., who has said the new federal rule would hurt farmers, ranchers and private landowners, has proposed a new Federal Water Quality Protection Act directing the EPA and Army Corps of Engineers to develop a new rule.
"It's possible to have reasonable regulations to help preserve our waterways, while still allowing them to be used as natural resources," Barrasso said.
Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1Hw9XYs
President Obama(Photo: Jim Watson, AFP/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration moved Wednesday to expand anti-pollution regulations over smaller bodies of water, another executive action that drew cheers from environmentalists and jeers from Republicans.
The Environmental Protection Agency, which already regulates large rivers and bays under the 1972 Clean Water Act, issued a rule asserting that authority over smaller rivers and wetlands.
While environmentalists hailed the rule as a necessity for the cleanup of polluted waters, business groups described it as another executive overreach by the Obama presidency.
NFIB, a small business organization, said in a statement that its members "are concerned that the rule could mean new costs for permits, fees and fines under the Clean Water Act. Federal regulation could reach into puddles, ponds and even streambeds that are dry most of the year."
Trip Van Noppen, president of Earthjustice, said more than half of the nation's rives and streams are unfit for swimming, drinking or fishing.
"While the state of U.S. waters has worsened, the Clean Water Act has been blunted by a decade of confusion and inaction," he said.
The Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have been holding a series of public meetings on the proposed rule, bracing both sides for Wednesday's announcement.
For years, the government has exercised anti-pollution regulations in large rivers, lakes and bays, pursuant to the 1972 Clean Water Act. The new rule is designed to clarify conflicting court rulings on the government's power to regulate smaller streams, wetland and similar bodies of water.
Some congressional Republicans — who have objected to previous Obama executive actions on items ranging from the environment to immigration — are looking to counter the new water rule with legislation that would blunt it.
Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., who has said the new federal rule would hurt farmers, ranchers and private landowners, has proposed a new Federal Water Quality Protection Act directing the EPA and Army Corps of Engineers to develop a new rule.
"It's possible to have reasonable regulations to help preserve our waterways, while still allowing them to be used as natural resources," Barrasso said.
Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1Hw9XYs
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