North Dakota Hearing Wrestles With Scope of Federal Water Regulation

(Photo by Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)

(North Dakota Monitor) – Agriculture and construction industry representatives backed a proposed federal rule limiting federal authority over wetlands, ditches and groundwater, while others said protecting those areas is essential.

The Trump administration is proposing a narrower definition of Waters of the U.S., a term that has proven slippery to pin down where federal authority over waterways ends. It is key to the Environmental Protection Agency’s enforcement of the Clean Water Act, passed in 1972.

The EPA listening session was in North Dakota at Bismarck State College, hosted by Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., and the EPA. Cramer said the proposed rule provides clarity, prevents federal government overreach, and is in line with the most recent Supreme Court decision on the issue, Sackett v. EPA in 2023.

“I’m really grateful that this administration, and (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin, unlike the Biden administration, has crafted a rule within the confines of the law,” Cramer said.