Half of Wisconsin’s wetlands could regain federal protections lost after changes to the Waters of the United States rule.
The Biden administration has begun legal action to repeal a Trump-era rule ending federal protections for hundreds of thousands of small streams, wetlands, and other waterways.
Majority of the wetlands affected by the change are in the northern half of Wisconsin.
“The Nature Conservancy is really pleased to see the Biden Administration taking this on. It’s because strong wetlands protections are really needed to keep Wisconsin’s waters clean, to help reduce flooding problems, and to keep our wildlife thriving,” said Nick Miller, Director of Science and Strategy for the Nature Conservancy’s Wisconsin Chapter.
The rule changes essentially change the definition of what qualifies as a wetland.
Even though those wetlands lost federal protection, they’re still protected under state law.
But Miller says when one changes it threatens the other.
He says this changing of the definition has been going back forth for years.
“Because of that we need a little more certainty in our state about what’s protected and what’s not. That certainty is important not just for conservation but also for developers,” said Miller.
President Trump said he made the rule change because it imposed unnecessary burdens on businesses.
The Environmental Protection Agency administrator has pledged to issue a new rule that protects water quality while not overly burdening small farmers.
