Destroying environmental protection regulations is a priority for the regime of Il Douche, and unlike other areas of responsibility like national security and foreign policy, he is doing a damn fine job. So far he has eliminated or seriously curtailed 85 rules protecting the environment. The New York Times is keeping tabs on the rollbacks.
The latest victim of the environmental ghouls; is the Clean Water Rule which puts limits on the amount of polluting chemicals that can be used near streams, wetlands and other bodies of water. The Obama administration promulgated the regulation in response to a Supreme Court case that expanded the definition of what constitutes "waters of the United States". The new rule drastically narrows the definition in response to intense lobbying by farm and industrial interests. Farmer have claimed it burdens their operations using fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides if there is a creek, ditch or pond near the fields that could be polluted by runoff. Now, farmers need a Clean Water Act permit for these types of discharges. The regime says the change in definition puts an end to "an egregious power grab". Environmentalists say the rule change threatens clean drinking water supplies and endangers wildlife. Up until the rule change about 60% of the nation's water bodies were protected even though they may not be connected to larger water bodies such as lakes and rivers by a surface channel. Experts predict that the rule change will be met with hundreds of law suits in federal court seeking to protect waters stripped of regulatory protection.