Working on WOTUS

Working on WOTUS

Working on WOTUS. I'm Greg Martin with today's Line On Agriculture.

The House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology released maps last week of waters and wetlands EPA is proposing to regulate under the Waters of the U.S. proposal.  The agency has to-date refrained from making these public, even after multiple requests.  These maps show individual states facing upwards of 100,000 additional stream miles that could be regulated under the proposed regulation.  EPA Region 7 Administrator Karl Brooks hadn't seen the maps when questioned about the proposal, but says the intent is not to penalize farmers.?BROOKS: The rule about waters of the Unites States would make sure that if somebody did not have to get a permit before this rule came out, they wouldn't have to get a permit after it came out. That's the goal we're trying to accomplish with EPA and the Corp proposing this rule, is to have clarity ad simplicity on the front end.

However, Brooks assures farmers they should not be concerned about increased regulation, even in waters not covered under a permit.?BROOKS: As far as whether the agencies would come in on the back end that would certainly depend on a lot of different factors. I men the goal here, real frankly, is to have a rule that producers and the agencies as well as out partners at USDA all understand at the very front end because the bet interaction that an ag producer has with EPA or the Corp is one that never has to happen.

That's today's Line On Agriculture. I'm Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network.

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