Do you know whether your property or business is subject to the Federal Clean Water Act ?
By Michael K . Reer
On June 27 , 2017 , the U . S . Environmental
Protection Agency and the U . S . Army Corps of Engineers published a proposed rule in the Federal Register that would amend the scope of the agencies ’ claimed jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act . The Clean Water Act prohibits the discharge of any pollutant , dredge , or fill material into “ waters of the United States .” Although the Clean Water Act does not define “ waters of the United States ” – the agencies have historically promulgated definitions of the phrase in order to clarify which waters are regulated under the Act .
The proposed rule announces a two-step process for reviewing and revising the definition . First , the agencies have proposed to rescind the controversial 2015 definition of “ waters of the U . S .” and to recodify the pre-2015 definition . Many industry and trade associations view the 2015 definition as impermissibly expanding the scope of the Clean Water Act regulations beyond that allowed by the statute . For example , under the 2015 definition , prairie potholes , western vernal pools , and Texas coastal prairie wetlands are considered jurisdictional .
Second , the agencies announced that they will conduct a substantive re-evaluation of the definition , considering the principles outlined by Justice Scalia in the Rapanos plurality opinion . Rapanos is widely considered one of the most significant cases in Clean Water Act jurisprudence . In a plurality opinion , Justice Scalia opined that the agencies have historically extended the prohibitions of the Clean Water Act to waters that are not , in fact , jurisdictional .
Instead , Justice Scalia would have limited the scope of the Act to only relatively permanent , standing , or continuously flowing bodies of water forming streams , oceans , rivers , and lakes . The principles outlined by Justice Scalia in Rapanos would specifically exclude intermittent and ephemeral streams , which are at times considered jurisdictional under both the pre- and post-2015 definitions . Intermittent and ephemeral streams may have water flow during certain times of the year or after rainfall but do not have consistent flow . Moreover , Justice Scalia would only consider wetlands jurisdictional if there is no “ clear demarcation ” between the wetlands and waters that are otherwise jurisdictional .
Given the significant criminal and civil penalties associated with even inadvertent discharges to jurisdictional waters , EPA and ACE encourage builders and construction companies to carefully consider whether any jurisdictional waters might be present before breaking ground on a new project . In some instances , the Fort Worth District of ACE may be willing to provide a “ jurisdictional determination ” to assist a project proponent in determining whether jurisdictional waters are present . ACE also maintains a jurisdictional determinations database which , although incomplete , contains many jurisdictional determinations previously issued by the agency . Landowners or project proponents can use the database to view previous jurisdictional determinations on an interactive map to determine whether EPA or ACE have asserted jurisdiction over any nearby waters .
This article is for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice . You should contact an attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular issue .
Michael K . Reer is an associate with Harris , Finley & Bogle , P . C . and is licensed to practice in Texas and Pennsylvania . He can be reached at mreer @ hfblaw . com or at 817-870-8741 .
SEPTEMBER 2017 PARKER COUNTY TODAY
11
Do you know whether your prop-
erty or business is subject to the
Federal Clean Water Act?
By Michael K. Reer
O
n June 27, 2017, the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers published a proposed rule in the
Federal Register that would amend the scope of
the agencies’ claimed jurisdiction under the Clean
Water Act. The Clean Water Act prohibits the
discharge of any pollutant, dredge, or fill material
into “waters of the United States.” Although the
Clean Water Act does not define “waters of the
United States” – the agencies have historically
promulgated definitions of the phrase in order to
clarify which waters are regulated under the Act.
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