Posted October 24, 2014
U.S. Senator Thad Cochran (R-Miss.) and Republican members
of the Senate Agriculture Committee have requested that the newly released
agriculture rule released in conjunction with the Waters of the United States
(WOTUS) proposal be immediately withdrawn, according to a press release available here.
Agri-Pulse also published an article available here.
Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Cochran, Republican
Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Pat Roberts (R-Kan.), Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.),
John Boozman (R-Ark.), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), Mike Johanns (R-Neb.), Chuck
Grassley (R-Iowa) and John Thune (R-S.D.) have written a letter
asking the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Army Corps of Engineers, and
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to provide an “update on implementation
of the agriculture Interpretive Rule and requested its immediate withdrawal.”
“We have heard from farmers, ranchers, and other rural
constituents about the Interpretive Rule and are deeply concerned it has
created great confusion about what agriculture activities are exempt from
regulation under the Clean Water Act,” the Senators wrote in a letter.
The senators said that the WOTUS regulations would bring
more waters including, streams, creeks, wetlands, ponds, and ditches under the
jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act (CWA) subjecting them to EPA permitting
requirements. The agriculture Interpretive Rule outlines only 56
activities out of more than 160 conservation practices that previously
qualified for the normal farming and ranching exemption, according to Agri-Pulse.
“Beyond adding confusion and uncertainty, the Interpretive
Rule would fundamentally change the relationship between the Department of
Agriculture and farm families. Over decades of farm policy, USDA has
established an unprecedented relationship of trust with farmers, ranchers, and
rural stakeholders. This unique relationship is built on voluntary
conservation programs and a mutual commitment to protecting natural resources
and keeping land in agriculture. Bringing USDA into the Clean Water Act
permitting process would profoundly shift the nature of this successful
approach by dismantling a longstanding partnership between the Federal
government and agriculture community,” the Senators wrote.
Now, the
Senators are calling for more “transparency and stakeholder involvement.”
“As the administration continues to extend the timeframe for
finalization of the flawed WOTUS proposal, any further discussion of how
agricultural activities may fit into this framework must allow for a
transparent and public process in which the voice of American agriculture can
be heard,” the Senators' letter concluded.
For more information, a copy of the Senators’ letter is
available here.
For more information on the Clean Water Act, please visit
the National Agricultural Law Center’s website here.
