Federal Judge Temporarily Blocks Clean Water Rule

Questions administration’s interpretation of the Clean Water Act.

District Court Judge Daniel Hovland ordered President Biden’s administration to temporarily suspend a specific implementation of the Clean Water Act on Wednesday, ruling in favor of the 24 states that requested the block.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), under President Biden’s administration, implemented protections for wetlands and seasonal water runoffs to limit the chemical waste that farmers and meat producers can release into these specific areas. Many similar protections are in place for larger bodies of water like rivers and lakes through the Clean Water Act, and the EPA said that the legislation should apply to these temporary, seasonal bodies of water as well.

Judge Hovland wrote in his order that the states would “expend unrecoverable resources complying with a rule unlikely to withstand judicial scrutiny.” The EPA continues to claim that the broad interpretation is “the best interpretation” of the Clean Water Act.

As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…

  • For Judge Hovland and other district and appellate court judges as they consider legal challenges to federal rules and regulations.
  • For the president and his administrative officials as they implement restrictions on pollutants and chemicals.
  • For EPA Administrator Regan and members of the agency as they increase environmental controls.

Sources: Reuters, AP

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