The EPA proposal defies the 2006 Supreme Court decision in Rapanos v. U.S. In the case, the high Court sided with landowners who objected to federal efforts to regulate Michigan wetlands near drains and ditches emptying into bodies of water traditionally covered by the law. The ruling restricted efforts to force discharge permits for smaller waterways adjacent to larger bodies of water. But some say the Supreme Court did not rule definitively on a host of issues – including whether federal protections extend miles away to nearby waterways – leaving it to the lower courts to decide. At that time, congressional critics of the majority holding began mulling how to blunt the ruling’s impact.
Bottom line: The current EPA proposal is open to public comment about their effort to regulate – what we see as – temporary bodies of water, intermittent steams and seasonal wetlands. People who comment are writing letters, as requested by EPA using the following:
Identifying their comments as Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-2011-0880 by one of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
Email: ow-docket@epa.gov. Include EPA-HQ-OW-2011-0880 in the subject line of the message.
Mail: Send the original and three copies of your comments to: Water Docket, Environmental Protection Agency, Mail Code 2822T, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20460, Attention: Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-2011-0880.
WVFA encourages our members to attend the following WV Farm Bureau meetings* on this issue:
May 27, 2014 – 5:30 p.m. - Hardy County
May 27, 2014 – 7:00 p.m. – Cabell Midland HS, Cabell County
May 28, 2014 – ? - Pendleton County
May 28, 2014 – 7:00 p.m. - Gilmer County Historical Society, Gilmer County
May 29, 2014 – 7:00 p.m. – Judge Black Annex, Wood County
June 2, 2014 – ? – Greenbrier East FFA, Greenbrier County
June 2, 2014 – 7:00 p.m. (?) – Greenbrier East, Greenbrier County
June 3, 2014 – 7:00 p.m. – Hampshire County
June 5, 2014 – 7:00 p.m. – West Milford Community Center, Harrison County
June 5, 2014 – 7:00 p.m. – Community Center, Lincoln County
June 6, 2014 – 6:30 p.m. – 4-H Camp, Mercer County
June 9, 2014 – 7:00 p.m. – Extension, Mineral County
June 9, 2014 – 6:30 p.m. – Courthouse, Putnam County
June 10, 2014 – 7:00 p.m.- Sunday Road Baptist – Fayette County
June 11, 2014 – 7:30 p.m. – Lewis County
June 12 – 13, 2014 – Summer Ag Institute
June 17, 2014 – 7:00 p.m. – Camp Pioneer, Randolph County
June 23, 2014 – 7:00 p.m. – Community Building, Braxton County
June 23, 2014 – 6:00 p.m., EPA 7:00 p.m. – Courthouse, Ice Cream, Marshall County
June 30, 2014 – 7:00 p.m. – Berkeley County Fairgrounds, Berkeley/Jefferson/Morgan
* More details will be shared as they are made available to us.
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