The Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers have upheld their promise to release a final Waters of the United States rule by the end of 2022. The final rule goes back to the pre-2015 WOTUS framework (the 1986 rule) with a few tweaks in the text. EPA Ag Advisor Rod Snyder tells Brownfield the decision is based on feedback from listening sessions.
“That includes prior converted croplands. It’s a long-standing exclusion, but we’re putting it directly into the rule to make sure it’s consistent with USDA’s definition so if farmers have prior converted croplands, they can be assured those aren’t federally jurisidictional under the Clean Water Act.”
Other exclusions moved within the rule include some ditches, irrigated lands and artificial ponds for watering livestock.
