North Dakota court halts WOTUS rule in South Dakota, 23 other states
A federal court is blocking the Biden Administration's Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule, halting interpretations for what constitutes a body of water for South Dakota and 23 other states.
On Wednesday, the United States District Court for the District of North Dakota issued a preliminary injunction against the new rule, which interprets definitions for U.S. waters consistent with definitions set during the Obama administration, according to the EPA.
"The agencies are reviewing the decision and their options. The agencies continue to believe the rule … is the best interpretation of the Clean Water Act," EPA told the Argus Leader in an e-mail.
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The injunction stems from pressure by attorneys general from 24 states, including South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley, who jointly filed a lawsuit against the EPA and USACE in February. Idaho and Texas were previously granted an injunction in March, according to the Associated Press.
“Today’s ruling is a tremendous win for our farmers and ranchers and for the premise that the States are better positioned than a distant Washington to protect the environment within our own State,” Jackley said in a statement.
In light of the injunction, EPA said it will use pre-2015 regulations in the other 26 states until further notice.
The Biden-era rule expands federal protections allotted through the Clean Water Act to include "adjacent wetlands" and "additional waters" ― certain local lakes, streams, tributaries, wetlands, etc. ― as determined by the EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
The rule is applied to these qualifying waters on a case-by-case basis if they meet a "relatively permanent" or "significant nexus" standard.
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The former applies to "relatively permanent, standing, or continuously flowing waters" connected to traditional waters, like large rivers or lakes, seas and interstate waters. The latter applies to certain water bodies, like tributaries and wetlands, that significantly affect the water quality of larger downstream waters.
The Trump administration's "Navigable Waters Protection Rule," which the current rule repealed, narrowed the definition of what falls under "waters of the U.S." Tributaries that did not run year-round and wetlands that were not directly connected to larger water bodies were excluded by the previous rule.
The court's decision comes after President Biden vetoed a bipartisan congressional attempt to overturn the rule on April 6. Congress attempted to repeal the rule on March 10. The final rule went into effect 10 days later.
Dominik Dausch is the agriculture and environment reporter for the Argus Leader and editor of Farm Forum. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook @DomDNP and send news tips to ddausch@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: North Dakota injunction halts WOTUS rule in South Dakota, other states
