May 19, 2017
Several farmers remain tied up in legal battles over the controversial Waters of the United States (WOTUS). President Donald Trump signed an executive order to withdraw the rule early in his presidency, but the United States Environmental Protection Agency still has to re-write it, leaving producers to continue their fight. Among those producers is John Duarte from Tehama County, California.
Federal agencies told Duarte to cease and desist wheat planting on his farm, saying it was destroying wetlands.
“All we ask is that we have good laws and let’s make sure those good laws are interpreted, and put into action in a way that common sense would dictate, not somebody that is sitting in Washington D.C., makes up their own mind, of what Congress intended,” says Paul Wenger, California Farm Bureau Federation President.
Although producers like Duarte have to wait for a new clean water act, the EPA is currently reaching out to state governors for their help in the re-write. The American Farm Bureau Federation says that outreach will give farmers more say on the revised water rule. Implementing the Executive Order is a two-step process. There are outreach programs that have been created to give feedback on these processes.
Learn more about the wotus at https://www.epa.gov/wotus-rule