Recently, Nancy Stoner, acting assistant administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), published a blog to set the record straight on the proposed "Waters of the U.S." rule under the Clean Water Act. The new rule has been getting a lot of flak in op-eds and blogs across the country as various factions claim that it will hurt the farming industry and that property rights are being trampled over, and Stoner's blog is a response to the myriad accusations regarding the rule.
According to Stoner, "EPA’s proposal will bring clarity and consistency to the process, cutting red tape and saving money. The proposed Waters of the U.S. rule does not regulate new types of ditches, does not regulate activities on land and does not apply to groundwater. The proposal does not change the permitting exemption for stock ponds, does not require permits for normal farming activities like moving cattle, and does not regulate puddles."
Stoner also states that all Clean Water Act exemptions and exclusions for agriculture will remain intact and will actually be expanded to exempt 56 additional conservation practices.
You can read the blog and a Q&A on all of the EPA's clarifications of what the new rule will entail, and, just as crucially, what it won't. In the meantime, kudos to the EPA for their attempts to educate the public in concise formats, and here's hoping that the furor about the new rule starts to subside now that the air has been cleared.
Hannah Kratky
