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Ricketts: New WOTUS rule still isn’t the right fix

A US Senator says the lack of public input from the ag industry for the revised Waters of the US rule could lead to more uncertainty for producers.

Pete Ricketts, a Republican from Nebraska, says EPA’s latest rule is disappointing. “I would have preferred that they would have rewritten the entire rule and then put it back out for public comment so they could continue to get feedback from our farmers and ranchers and our small businesses about how their potential overreach on regulation is going to impact them.”

The Supreme Court ended the use of significant nexus tests to determine whether a wetland is subject to federal jurisdiction.

When asked if he thinks the agriculture exemptions are enough, Ricketts told Brownfield, “I am concerned that what they’re going to do is try to very narrowly define what the Supreme Court told them to do and then still try to expand their authority to these other types of waters through other types of regulation.”

Speaking with reporters this week, he said he’ll continue to monitor future developments and hopes EPA doesn’t expand its authority.