WOTUS Vote in House
From the Ag Information Network, I’m Bob Larson with today’s Fruit Grower Report. The U.S. House voted to repeal the EPA’s controversial ‘Waters of the U.S.” or WOTUS rule, and the Senate could follow suit this week.
Democrats, like Washington Democrat Rick Larsen, argued clean water is a human right that will suffer with this GOP move that nine other Democrats backed …
LARSEN … “House Democrats believe we can protect clean water while providing certainty to businesses, to farmers, and to Americans who depend upon clean water for their lives and livelihoods.”
But Republicans like Ag Chair GT Thompson, of Pennsylvania, dismissed that argument …
THOMPSON … “This rule isn’t about clean water. It’s about the Biden EPA’s appetite for power. America’s farmers, ranchers, and landowners deserve a WOTUS definition that is fair to agriculture and maintains the historical reach of the Clean Water Act—neither of which is accomplished by the Biden Administration’s flawed rule.”
Which undid the Trump Navigable Waters Protection Rule and caused farmers to fear more prosecutions like that under the earlier Obama rule.
Enough is enough, declared Missouri’s Eric Burlison …
BURLISON … “Farmers have been hit hard with fuel costs, fertilizer costs, and supply chain challenges recently. The last thing they need is this. The EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers should rescind this rule and leave our farmers alone!”
Senate Republicans claim to have the votes to pass the WOTUS repeal, but President Biden says he’ll veto it.
