The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of the Army announced Thursday that a public hearing will be held later this month on the proposed rule revising the definition of “waters of the United States” changing the scope of waters federally regulated under the Clean Water Act.
The Trump administration says its plan to replace the Obama EPA’s 2015 definition provides states and landowners more certainty, but opponents say it would make it easier for polluters to contaminate vital U.S. waters.
The EPA and the Army signed the proposed rule Dec. 11, 2018. The agencies announced that a public hearing will be held Feb. 27-28 in Kansas City, Kansas, to provide interested parties the opportunity to present data, views or information concerning the proposed rule.
The hearing will be held in the Wyandotte Ballroom of the Reardon Convention Center, 520 Minnesota Ave., Kansas City, Kansas. The Wednesday session is to convene at 4 p.m. local time and is to conclude no later than 8 p.m., and the Thursday session is to convene at 9 a.m. and is to conclude no later than noon.
A complete set of documents related to the proposal will be available for public inspection through the federal eRulemaking portal. Refer to docket ID No. EPA–HQ–OW–2018–0149 once the notice of proposed rulemaking is published in the Federal Register.
For those unable to attend, you will be able to submit your comments, at the above portal. The 60-day comment period ends April 7.
A newly released Government Accountability Office (GAO) report is shining a spotlight on a concern many in the mitigation banking industry have raised for years: inconsistent implementation of the federal compensatory mitigation program across U.S. Army Corps of Engineers districts. Under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, the Corps requires compensatory mitigation
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