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Preservation
Several news outlets have picked up the story on the General Accounting Office report on the Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE) inadequacies with regard to SWANCC-related jurisdictional determinations and the resulting impacts to waterways and wetlands.
Before 2001, the ACOE asserted jurisdiction over most waters, including isolated, non-navigable waters, if migratory birds habited them. Any anyone wishing to build homes, shopping malls, offices or golf courses in such environments first had to obtain a permit from the Corps.
A Supreme Court decision in January 2001 (SWANCC) concluded that the corps had exceeded its powers by seeking jurisdiction over such waters solely based on their use by birds.
A Reuters news article recently reported that in the past four years, the United States has drastically cut back on its protection of waterways and wetlands, whose erosion was cited as a factor in the destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina, according to a report issued on Wednesday.
The report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the investigative arm of Congress, examined how the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Environmental Protection Agency assert jurisdiction over many of the nation's waterways and wetlands. Environmental groups criticized government practices in the report.
Losses of wetlands in many areas in the United States are unprecedented, yet the corps is allowing many of the remaining wetlands to be destroyed, in violation of its Clean Water Act obligations, without even trying to figure out why," said Christy Leavitt of environmental group U.S. PIRG.
Navis Bermudez of the Sierra Club said, "The GAO's report confirms the administration is secretly pursuing a policy that favors developers and other industrial interests."
The GAO report found that under the Bush administration the corps and the Environmental Protection Agency had used that ruling as a reason to scale back its jurisdiction over waterways and wetlands much further than was required by the court decision.
"The corps is generally not asserting jurisdiction over isolated, intrastate, non-navigable waters using its existing authority," the report said.
Many scientists believe the loss of wetlands along the Gulf of Mexico to building and development contributed to the extent of the destruction wrought by hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Wetlands soak up and slow storm water. Paving them over leaves the excess water with no place to go and exacerbates flooding.
The wetlands are extremely important for our communities' health and safety. For example, when wetlands are destroyed or filled impermeable paving or structures that increase water runoff and can contribute to increased flooding often replace them. In addition to protecting homes by storing floodwater, wetlands provide a variety of other benefits: they filter pollutants from our drinking water, and provide habitat for fish, shellfish and wildlife.
The Clean Water Act prohibits most discharges of dredged or fill material into the "waters of the United States" without first obtaining a permit from the corps. The issue of whether or not the corps has jurisdiction over a particular stretch of water depends on how one defines the term "waters of the United States”.
The Clean Water Act prohibits most discharges of dredged or fill material into the "waters of the United States" without first obtaining a permit from the corps. The issue of whether or not the corps has jurisdiction over a particular stretch of water depends on how one defines the term "waters of the United States."
In 2003, the corps and the EPA issued a joint memorandum scaling back that definition to exclude virtually all non-navigable waters.
The report said corps officials told investigators they no longer considered seeking jurisdiction over many stretches of water or wetlands partly because "they believe headquarters does not want them to use this provision."
"The President and his appointees promised not to change the Clean Water Act's rules, but they are shirking that responsibility by just ignoring those rules, "says Joan Mulhern, senior legislative counsel for Earthjustice. "In turn, they are breaking the promise of the Clean Water Act, which is to protect all of the nation's waters, to make them safe for drinking water, for swimming and fishing. This cannot be done when the Corps leaves waters out of the law's scope."
Activists and environmentalists seeking wetland protection throughout Western New York agree with the GAO’s contention that the present administration is secretly pursuing a policy that favors developers and other industrial interests. The federal government is harnessing regulatory agencies to the point where their decisions are not in the best interest of the public and/or environment.
Where wetlands are destroyed or filled in and residential building takes place, the prospective Western New York homeowner receives no disclosure as to the existing soil types or potential land conditions that could ultimately adversely impact his or hers foundation or structure.
When visiting the Phoenix area recently, it was interesting to read that mapping will occur in the developing lands to the southeast of Phoenix that will determine where land “fissures” exist. If they do exist, that information will be made public.
© Copyright 2008 by Speakupwny.com
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