EPA Repeals Controversial Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) Rule

(WASHINGTON, DC) On Thursday, the Environmental Protection Agency repealed the previous Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule and laid the groundwork for a new final rule. The previous WOTUS rule was issued by the Obama administration in August 2015, giving EPA broad jurisdiction over U.S. waters to include other water bodies, upstream waters and intermittent and ephemeral streams that farmers use for drainage and irrigation. NPPC issued a press release applauding EPA’s action. National Pork Producers Council President David Herring, a pork producer from Lillington, N.C. said “the previous WOTUS rule was dramatic government overreach and an unprecedented expansion of federal authority over private lands. Today’s action will remove the threat that the 2015 WOTUS rule posed for our ability to efficiently grow the amount of food needed by people around the globe while providing regulatory certainty to our farmers and businesses. We look forward to working with this administration to finally implement a new WOTUS rule,” he added. NPPC had opposed the 2015 WOTUS rule because it was overly broad and had significant technical flaws, including the process that EPA used to develop the rule, which violated basic due process and long-standing procedural protections.