Environmental News: 17 States Sue Over Clean Water Rule Rollback

Seventeen states, led by California and New York, filed suit Friday against the administration for lowering clean water standards, part of President Trump’s campaign to expunge environmental rules imposed by his predecessor.

The Environmental Protection Agency last week published a final rule rolling back key parts of the Clean Water Rule, easing regulations for polluters by narrowing the definition of “waters of the United States.” It eliminates protections for streams, wetlands and other waters.

A 2015 rule issued by the Obama administration included headwaters of rivers and creeks as well as other non-navigable waters that have an impact on downstream water quality.

“With this new rule, the Trump administration is once again on the wrong side of history, the wrong side of science, and the wrong side of the law,” California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said in a press release. “Clean water is a fundamental right. It is essential to preserving California’s biodiversity and protecting the health of our children and communities. We don’t intend to turn back the clock on clean waters. We’ll prove that in court.”

New York Attorney General Letitia James called the administration action “reckless.”

“EPA’s new rule ignores science and the law by stripping our waters of basic protections under the Clean Water Act, putting our communities and our wildlife at risk,” she said.

Calling it the “dirty water rule,” the suit argues the new rule runs counter to the Clean Water Act’s objectives and conflicts with Supreme Court precedents, disregards prior factual findings and ignores longstanding policy and practices.

“The dirty water rule’s removal of protections for streams and wetlands under the [Clean Water Act] will result in more pollution, flooding, and harm to fish and wildlife in New York and across the country — undermining decades of work to protect and enhance water resources,” the New York press release said, adding that because New York is downstream of 13 states, it will be forced to devote more resources to clean up pollution and be at a competitive disadvantage with states that have less stringent rules.

Also joining the suit were: Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia, along with the California State Water Resources Control Board, the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality and the city of New York.