Clearing Up the Water

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In an unanimous decision from the Supreme Court, a victory for farmers, small businesses and landowners as the court ruled on the long-awaited outcome in Sackett v. EPA.

Lee Maddox: Clearing Up the Water. Welcome and hello again everyone, for Tennessee Home and Farm Radio – I’m Lee Maddox.

Travis Cushman: Supreme Court just agree with our interpretation of what water should be.

Eric Mayberry: Todays a great day after that court ruling to be able to go forward now with some clarity.

Lee Maddox: In an unanimous decision from the Supreme Court a victory for farmers and many other small businesses and landowners as the court ruled on the long awaited outcome and Sackett versus EPA. Deputy General Counsel for the American Farm Bureau, Travis Cushman.

Travis Cushman: It is an absolutely a fantastic ruling. This involves the definition of what a water of the United States is WOTUS under the Clean Water Act, for many, many years, decades have been fighting over this as the EPA and the US Army Corps of Engineers have continued to try to draft very, very broad, broad definitions of WOTUS, which matters to us because it allows the federal government to regulate essentially dry land features on farms across the country.

Lee Maddox: Cushman says the High Court believe that the EPA was clearly overstepping its authority of the Clean Water Act exposing farmers to very burdensome regulations and restricting their rights to develop their land despite being far from a navigable water source. Tennessee Farm Bureau President Eric Mayberry says this was a big victory for farmers across the country.

Eric Mayberry: It just sets things in motion from this point forward that there shouldn’t be any question that a farmer on his land should be able to manage the water. It longtime from temporary situations after rainfall that he didn’t have to fall under some sort of federal regulation. And navigable means need means just that something that the water that is navigable it needs to be regulated, but you know, small farm ponds and little little trenches and little ditches on farms should not be.

Lee Maddox: Eric Mayberry says it’s now time for a rewrite of the rule that won’t require a team of attorneys for farmers to care for their land. For Tennessee Home and Farm Radio, I’m Lee Maddox.