U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will work with the United States Army Corps of Engineers to review the definition of “waters of the United States.” The agencies will move quickly to ensure that a revised definition follows the law, reduces red-tape, cuts overall permitting costs, and lowers the cost of doing business in communities across the country while protecting the nation’s navigable waters from pollution.

The definition of “waters of the United States” guides Clean Water Act implementation, including whether farmers, landowners and businesses must secure costly permits before they can pursue a project. To date, EPA has failed to follow the law and implement the Supreme Court’s clear holding in Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency. It is critical that Americans know which waters are subject to federal jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act to grow our economy and lower costs for American families while protecting human health and the environment.

EPA will start its review by expeditiously obtaining input from stakeholders who were sidelined during the previous administration. The agency will seek targeted information on the key challenges that Americans are facing. The agency will also undertake a rulemaking process to revise the 2023 definition of “waters of the United States” with a focus on clarity, simplicity and improvements that will stand the test of time. While this rulemaking process proceeds, the agency will provide guidance to those states implementing the pre-2015 definition of “waters of the United States” to ensure consistency with the law of the land.

EPA’s review will be guided by the Supreme Court’s decision in Sackett, which stated that the Clean Water Act’s use of “waters” encompasses only those relatively permanent, standing or continuously flowing bodies of water forming streams, oceans, rivers and lakes. The Sackett decision also clarified that wetlands would only be covered when having a continuous surface connection to waterbodies that are “waters of the United States” in their own right.

For the complete news release click on Administrator Zeldin Announces EPA Will Revise Waters of the United States Rule | US EPA.  For additional information, click on Waters of the United States.