Policies & Regulations

California State Water Resources Control Board Considering New Wetland and Riparian Protection Policy

The California State Water Resources Board is seeking input on the scoping process for a Statewide Wetland and Riparian Area Protection Policy intended to protect critical resources and water quality throughout the state. As part of the scoping process, the board is considering whether to propose a narrow policy concerning only dredge and fill activities in wetlands and riparian areas or a more expansive policy that would regulate many other activities and discharges. 

For more information go to
http://www.swrcb.ca.gov/cwa401/

 

Senator Feingold Discusses Restoring Federal Jurisdiction over U.S. Waters in the Current Issue of 'National Wetlands Newsletter' by the Environmental Law Institute (ELI)
By Rachel Jean-Baptiste – ELI’s National Wetlands Newsletter – May 9, 2007

Recent decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court have limited federal jurisdiction over waters of the United States beyond the original intent of the Clean Water Act. In the current National Wetlands Newsletter® (May-June 2007), Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) discusses legislation he plans to introduce this session that would restore the federal government's role in protecting the nation's waters. "Currently, the federal government's jurisdiction over U.S. waters is ambiguous, especially in light of the Supreme Court's recent ruling in Rapanos v. United States and the lack of agency guidance," said NWN editor Rachel Jean-Baptiste. "This legislation could provide much-needed clarity to wetlands professionals."

For full article, go to:
http://www.enn.com/net.html?id=1951

To learn more about the Environmental Law Institute (ELI), visit:
http://www2.eli.org/index.cfm

New Bill Would Halt Waste Dumping in Lakes, Rivers, Streams
Environment News Service (ENS) – May 4, 2007

A bi-partisan bill was introduced in the House Thursday to restore a 25 year old prohibition under the Clean Water Act that prevented mining companies and other industries from dumping masses of solid industrial wastes into the nation's waters. Representatives Frank Pallone, a New Jersey Democrat, and Chris Shays, a Connecticut Republican, introduced the Clean Water Protection Act. Already, more than 60 other members of the U.S. House of Representatives have co-sponsored the bill. The legislation overturns a 2002 rule change by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that allows coal mining companies to create enormous valley fills, burying thousands of miles of streams, to make the practice of mountaintop removal mining cheaper.

For the full article, go to:
http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/may2007/2007-05-04-09.asp#anchor3