WOTUS final rule faces multiple lawsuits |
Tuesday, July 07, 2015 07:58 AM |
Sixteen states and a number of state departments and authorities have filed lawsuits against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Army Corps of Engineers regarding the recent Clean Water Act Final Rule (“Waters of the US” or WOTUS). Colorado is a plaintiff in one of the lawsuits, which claims that the Clean Water Rule affects or interferes with state sovereign authority. It also purports that additional requests related to the rule will create additional burden to state staff. Industry has also entered the conversation, with numerous industry groups from American Farm Bureau Federation to Public Lands Council filing a lawsuit to overturn the rule. They claim that the rule is still too vague and is open to a broad interpretation, which could result in overreach of the original jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act. The lawsuits claim that:
It is expected that the passing of the final rule will be delayed while these lawsuits are considered. Further reading: |