Conservation Federation of Missouri!

Urge Congress to Restore Clean Water Act Protections and Safeguard the Nation’s Waters

From last year’s floods and drought, one lesson should be clear: we must protect our natural water supplies and water infrastructure.

• Healthy streams and wetlands naturally filter and replenish our drinking water supplies.
• They absorb flood waters and protect coastlines during heavy storms and hurricanes.
• They recharge and release precious water supplies during times of drought.
• They support diverse and abundant fish and wildlife.
• They support local hunting, fishing, birdwatching, and boating industries.
• They offer refuge and recreation close to home for people and wildlife alike.

Urge Congress to Protect These Waters: These waters are losing Clean Water Act protections in the wake of Supreme Court decisions in 2001 (SWANCC) and 2006 (Rapanos) and subsequent Corps of Engineers and EPA guidance.

In April 2008, House Committee Chairman Oberstar made clear his willingness to craft amended legislation that will restore Clean Water Act protections to critical waters while addressing opponents’ concerns. There is bi-partisan support on the Committee for such amended legislation, and sportsmen’s, conservation, and other groups are ready to join these Committee members in moving forward. The fact is, the original bill did not expand the Clean Water Act, and it recognized long-standing exemptions for farming, ranching, mining, and forestry. It is possible to build on that solid foundation. Options include:

• Using the definition of “waters of the United States” that has been in Corps and EPA regulations for decades, adding certainty and reducing costly litigation and delays;
• Clarifying the constitutional authority upon which Clean Water Act jurisdiction rests;
• Strengthening and clarifying prior converted cropland and waste treatment systems exemptions.

Please urge members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee to introduce and move quickly to enact the Clean Water Restoration Act or a similar Clean Water restoration bill in 2009.

What Do We Have to Lose??

Intermittently Flowing Streams: According to EPA, 59% of stream miles in the continental U.S. are intermittent or ephemeral and may lose, or have already lost, Clean Water Act protection as a result of the 2006 Rapanos decision and 2007 Rapanos guidance. These smaller streams provide important drinking water, flood control, and aquatic habitat functions.

Wetlands: An estimated 20 million acres of wetlands – or 20% of all remaining wetlands in the lower 48 states – are already losing Clean Water Act protection after the SWANCC decision. Many more are at risk after Rapanos.

Drinking Water: EPA estimates that more than 111 million Americans get their drinking water from public supplies fed in whole or in part by intermittent or ephemeral streams vulnerable to pollution under these decisions. Treating polluted drinking water is expensive. New York City estimates that pollution of small streams and wetlands in the city’s drinking water source areas could cost up to $6 billion for treatment plant construction and $300 million/year for operation.

Industry and Agricultural Water Supplies: Farmers and ranchers need clean water for irrigation and livestock. Food and drink processing requires clean water. Pollution and destruction of wetlands and small streams threaten surface and ground water supplies.

Flood Control: The Midwest has suffered two 500-year floods in the last 15 years. Wetlands and intermittently flowing streams naturally absorb flood waters, moderating peak flood stages and reducing flood damage. A 1% loss of a watershed’s wetlands can increase total flood volume by almost 7%. Floods cause an estimated $3.7 billion in damage annually. Recent flooding in Illinois and Iowa underscores the need for wetland protection. These two states have lost 85 and 89% of their original wetlands, respectively.

Migratory Bird Habitat: After the 2001 SWANCC decision and guidance, the Corps and EPA have abandoned Clean Water Act protections for millions of acres of geographically isolated wetlands, including those of the Prairie Pothole Region. These wetlands provide essential breeding habitat for 50-75% of North America’s duck population.

Fish Habitat: Ninety percent of fish caught by American recreational anglers need wetlands for shelter, food supply, spawning, and nursery areas.

Fishing and Boating Lakes: Several Midwestern lakes have lost Clean Water Act protections, including Gurno Lake in northern Wisconsin which supports active recreational fishing for largemouth bass, muskie and walleye in an area well-known for fishing, boating and outdoor recreation.

Enforcement of Clean Water Act Pollution Controls: Uncertainty due to the Court decisions and agency guidance is undermining enforcement of the Clean Water Act’s pollution controls. According to a March 2008 memo from EPA’s head of enforcement, “[s]ince July 2006, the Rapanos decision or the Guidance negatively affected approximately 500 enforcement cases.”

Some federal courts have reversed pollution convictions based on the Supreme Court decisions. Last fall, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit overturned criminal penalties imposed under the Clean Water Act for a company that intentionally dumped oil, zinc and lead in an Alabama creek that flows year-round and into a larger river.

Timely Permitting and Certainty: The confusing and cumbersome new requirements for jurisdictional determinations have delayed permit reviews by two months to two years. The Rapanos guidance has substantially delayed and increased the cost of transportation projects.

Please urge your congressional representatives to bring clarity to the Clean Water Act; to protect drinking water sources for more than 110 million Americans; and to safeguard streams, lakes and wetlands critical to flood control, water quality, and hunting, fishing and outdoor recreation.

Ducks Unlimited ? Izaak Walton League of America ? National Wildlife Federation ?

Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership ? The Nature Conservancy ? Trout Unlimited ?

The Wildlife Society NOTE: These groups approved the July 2008 version of this fact sheet. Minor revisions re the new session of congress still need their formal approval.