On April 23, ABC urged the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to streamline the federal permitting process under the Clean Water Act while protecting America’s navigable waters from pollution in comments submitted as part of the Waters Advocacy Coalition.

The comments were submitted in response to the EPA and USACE’s request for feedback regarding how the agencies can better ensure clear and consistent rules for the regulated community and bring the agencies into full compliance with the U.S. Supreme Court’s holding in Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency.

ABC’s comments reiterated support for a clear and consistent definition of “waters of the United States” subject to CWA regulation and permitting that complies with Sackett and included the following recommendations:

• Clearly define “relatively permanent” waters;
• Clarify the definition of “adjacent” waters to ensure wetlands are regulated only when indistinguishably connected to another WOTUS;
• Exclude most ditches from WOTUS; and
• Eliminate unnecessary WOTUS categories and retain/revise certain exclusions.

The EPA and USACE are also holding an initial public listening session on May 14 virtually and in person in Charleston, West Virginia, and a listening session for small businesses on May 19 virtually and in person in Washington, DC.

A second public listening session has yet to be scheduled and will be available on the EPA’s website.