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Courtesy of NAA:

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) issued a notice of proposed rule defining “the waters of the United States” (WOTUS) under the Clean Water Act.

The proposed rule attempts to restore the regulations defining WOTUS that were in place before 2015. Unlike the pre-2015 rule, the proposed rule expands the definition of WOTUS to include all waters that either:

1. Have a relatively permanent surface connection to a traditional navigable water; or,
2. either alone or with similarly situated waters significantly affect the chemical, physical, or biological integrity of a traditional navigable water.

EPA and the Corps will host three virtual public hearings to provide an overview of the proposed rule as well as to provide an opportunity for the public to provide oral comments in response to the proposed rule. The public hearings will occur on January 12, January 13, and January 18, 2022. Comments on the proposed rule are due February 5, 2022.

• Read the Federal Register notice and submit comments here or submit comments directly to CWAwotus@epa.gov.
• Register for the January 12th public hearing here.
• Register for the January 13th public hearing here.
• Register for the January 18th public hearing here.

The Office of Advocacy of the U.S. Small Business Administration has expressed its intent to host EPA and Corps staff in January to discuss the proposed rule with small entities at its Small Business Environmental Roundtables. For more information about these Environmental Roundtables, please contact Assistant Chief Counsel Astrika Adams for Environmental Law and Policy at astrika.adams@sba.gov or 202-798-7750.

If you have questions, the EPA and Corps host a website, Waters of the United States | US EPA, devoted to the twists and turns of WOTUS rule making which was triggered by a 2006 Supreme Court decision.