The EPA on Tuesday to retract the clean water rule and redefine ‘waters of the United States.’
By Madeleine Neal
The U.S. definition of “waterway” may be changing yet again.
The Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers Civil Works formally proposed to rescind the Obama administration’s clean-water policy. The EPA also announced its plan to rework terms of “the waters of the United States.”
As the EPA submits the proposition for publication in the Federal Register, some Iowa politicians are pleased with this announcement.
Gov. Kim Reynolds, R-Iowa, released a statement responding to the EPA’s decision.
“Waters of the United States was a significant and severe case of government overreach by the Obama administration,” Reynolds said in the statement. “I want to thank [EPA administrator Scott] Pruitt for recognizing that [the Obama policy] forced onerous and unnecessary burdens on Iowa’s farmers and businesses. I also want to express my appreciation to the Trump administration for its continuing commitment to work with states, not against them.”
The office of Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, referred to the senator as an “ardent opponent of the [clean water] rule.” In a statement Tuesday, Grassley said the withdrawal is great news for accountability in government.
“This was a bad regulation drafted under a bad process,” Grassley said. “The EPA over-reached its authority and ignored and manipulated legitimate concerns raised by the public.”
The release contended that the rule would have defined 97 percent of the land in Iowa as a waterway. Grassley has called on Trump to repeal the rule since before his inauguration.
“Farmers, landowners, and builders in Iowa struggled to make sense of the regulation. Having the federal EPA and the Corps of Engineers require permits for routine land-use decisions is a waste of resources that are better used enforcing existing regulations against discharging pollutants into the nation’s waterways,” he said. “Agencies ought to enforce the laws as Congress intended, not stretch beyond their authority to inflict unnecessary expense and red tape on law-abiding farmers and employers.”
Some Iowa Democrats, however, believe that this is an example of Republicans, specifically Trump, being “out-of-touch.”
“Trump is out of touch with the clean energy and clean technology revolution that is not only protecting the environment, it is also creating jobs and driving our economy,” said Sen. Rob Hogg, D-Cedar Rapids. “Wind power, solar power, biodiesel, other renewable energy, green buildings, and energy efficiency industries all create jobs, grow businesses, help farmers, and save consumers money. His statements opposing environmental protection and renewable energy are another disappointment.”
In his recent visit to Cedar Rapids, Trump said federal rollbacks are necessary to ensure Iowans can maintain control of their farms, ranches, and businesses.
“No longer will the EPA be telling you how to run your business, or do your job, or live your life — instead it will focus on its true mission: clean air and clean, beautiful, crystal water — nice, beautiful, clean water, that’s what we want, right?” Trump said. “We believe states, communities, and private landowners know best how to manage their own resources; we’ve made a lot of progress with that.”