The Trump administration will soon propose a new Clean Water Act rule that could eliminate federal protections for many wetlands across the U.S., according to an internal EPA presentation obtained by POLITICO’s E&E News.
Under the proposed rule, the federal government would regulate wetlands only if they meet a two-part test:
They would need to contain surface water throughout the “wet season,” and they would need to be abutting and touching a river, stream or other water body that also flows throughout the wet season, according to the presentation.
Fewer wetlands permits would be required under the new language, according to a slide from the presentation, which was confirmed by two EPA staffers who were briefed on the rule. In 2023, the Supreme Court ruled in Sackett v. EPA that only wetlands with a “continuous surface connection” to a “relatively permanent” body of water are protected by the law.
