House committee deems WOTUS ‘flawed’

By |  October 28, 2016

The process that led to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule was flawed, according to a report from the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

According to the National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association (NSSGA), which filed a lawsuit in 2015 as part of a coalition of organizations and businesses to challenge the rule, the committee report indicates that the process leading to the WOTUS rule “was rife with legal shortcuts, predetermined conclusions, and politically-driven timelines.”

According to NSSGA, the committee outlines in the report the flawed process that led administration staff to bypass regulatory protocols in order to create a rule that radically expands federal jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act and poses concerns for a number of industries, including the aggregate industry.

“This confirms so much of what we have been saying about the rule since it was being written,” says Emily Coyner, NSSGA director of environmental affairs. “The rulemaking process was flawed from the beginning, and then EPA subverted the comment process, did not conduct a proper economic analysis and even broke anti-lobbying laws in order to increase support for the rule.”

A nationwide stay is currently keeping the rule from being implemented across the country, NSSGA adds.

Read the full House Oversight and Government Reform Committee report at www.nssga.org.

Kevin Yanik

About the Author:

Kevin Yanik is editor-in-chief of Pit & Quarry. He can be reached at 216-706-3724 or kyanik@northcoastmedia.net.

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