WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito and 3rd District Congressman Evan Jenkins criticized a new EPA rule backed by the Obama Administration that gives the government authority to regulate any private body of water.
Both Republicans called the law another example of EPA overreach that will negatively affect not only West Virginia, but all states.
“What kind of onus is this going to put on our local construction, or golf courses, or farmers to have to have permits for any kind of water?” Capito asked.
“We’re going to fight this through. I’m on the Environment and Public Works Committee. It has far-reaching implications. It’s so much about government taking over all aspects.”
Jenkins described the new rule as “an outrage” and had little use for the EPA after its recent regulations decimated the coal industry.
“Does anybody think for one minute that the overreach and over-regulation” won’t affect this state, Jenkins said. “Look what this administration has done to our coal-fired power generation system, and the impact on coal mining in West Virginia.”
The Clean Water Rule, announced Wednesday, expands government oversight to control pollution in smaller bodies of water, not just the navigable waterways recognized in the 1972 Clean Water Act. The new measure has drawn opposition from Republicans, while potentially rattling some Democrats whose local economies rely on agriculture, energy production and fertilizer manufacturers.
“This is basically the Obama Administration’s attitude—that ditches and other things where water can stand or float should be subject to federal law,” Jenkins said. “The EPA is going after what clearly used to be a focus of state and local authority.”