Late Thursday we heard U.S. District Judge Ralph Erickson of North Dakota issued a preliminary injunction against implementation of the Clean Water regulation, saying a group of 13 states was likely to succeed in their lawsuit challenging the Environmental Protection Agency regulation as unlawful. National Cattlemen’s Beef Association President Philip Ellis statement regarding federal court ruling in North Dakota that … Read More
Army Corps Criticizes EPA for Flawed Rulemaking
The Army Corps of Engineers serves as the primary regulator over Environmental Protection Agency’s “waters of the United States” rule. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee released internal memos stating the Corp doesn’t believes the rule will not hold up in the courts and it misinterprets data. The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association has called for the EPA to immediately … Read More
Officials Say Final WOTUS Rule Respects Agriculture
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Wednesday released the final version of the Clean Water Rule that has become known as the Waters of the United States or WOTUS which they say protects clean water “while respecting agriculture.” EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy and Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works Jo-Ellen Darcy released … Read More
NCBA: EPA Writes off Rural America
The Environmental Protection Agency finalized its “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) proposed rule, which unilaterally strips private property rights and adds hundreds of thousands of stream miles and acres of land to federal jurisdiction. In the Clean Water Act, they added language to the law that leaves regulation up to the subjectivity of individual regulators across the country. By … Read More
House Passes Regulatory Integrity Protection Act
Yesterday the House passed the H.R. 1732 Regulatory Integrity Protection Act by a vote of 261 to 155 to withdraw the proposed “waters of the United States” rule. Here is a statement by National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) President and Chugwater, Wyoming, cattleman Philip Ellis: “We commend the members of the House on taking this action to protect America’s farmers, … Read More
Senators Introduce WOTUS Rewrite Bill
A bipartisan group of U.S. Senators introduced a bill Thursday that calls on EPA to develop a new “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) proposal. The senators, including John Barrasso (R-WY), Joe Donnelly (D-IN), Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND), Pat Roberts (R-KS) and Joe Manchin (D-WV), jointly introduced the Federal Water Quality Protection Act, directing EPA and the U.S. … Read More
House Committee Calls for Repeal of WOTUS
The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and the Public Lands Council applaud the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee for sending a clear message to the Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers that the proposed Waters of the U.S. rule is an expansion of federal jurisdiction that strips rights from private property owners. Passing the full Committee today by … Read More
WOTUS Subject of Senate Ag Panel
The proposed ‘Waters of the United States’ (WOTUS) rule was the topic of the day for the Senate Agriculture Committee Tuesday, led by Chairman Pat Roberts (R-KS) who is concerned about the impact of the regulation on numerous industries. “I find it particularly troubling that despite the unanimous outcry from a broad coalition of stakeholders and industries that have voiced … Read More
Apply for USPOULTRY's 2015 Clean Water Awards
USPOULTRY is accepting applications for the 2015 Clean Water Awards. The awards recognize outstanding performance of wastewater treatment plants that operate at poultry or egg processing facilities. Winners will be announced at USPOULTRY’s 2015 Environmental Management Seminar to be held Sept. 24 – 25, at the Hilton Sandestin Beach Golf Resort & Spa in Destin, Fla. Awards are presented in … Read More
EPA and Corps Withdraw WOTUS Interpretive Rule
The Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have at least ditched part of the WOTUS rule. The Interpretive Rule Regarding the Applicability of Clean Water Act Section related to the proposed Waters of the United States (WOTUS) was officially withdrawn by EPA and the Corps in a memo last Thursday, January 29. Congress requested asked for … Read More