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Trump de-sanctifies roadside ditches, no longer EPA wetlands
US President Donald Trump has de-sanctified roadside ditches and no longer official US wetlands sheltered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to the delight of America's highway builders, who see their protected status as an impediment.
The president's new executive order has withdrawn them from the "Waters of the United States", thus removing an obstacle that delays highway upgrades, according to the American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA).
The EPA has declared rainwater that collects it roadside ditches are "Waters of the United States" and subject to federal authority, over the objections of the roadbuilding industry association, which argued they were not connected to the waters that flow into the rivers of the country.
In response, EPA regulators set out conditions that must be met before a roadside ditch can be deemed exempt from federal oversight and control.
ARTBA roadbuilders said such a piecemeal approach would add another layer of permit requirements, create confusion and increase permitting delays for transportation projects and used as a litigation tool to delay projects and, in the process, make them more expensive for taxpayers.
The president's new executive order has withdrawn them from the "Waters of the United States", thus removing an obstacle that delays highway upgrades, according to the American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA).
The EPA has declared rainwater that collects it roadside ditches are "Waters of the United States" and subject to federal authority, over the objections of the roadbuilding industry association, which argued they were not connected to the waters that flow into the rivers of the country.
In response, EPA regulators set out conditions that must be met before a roadside ditch can be deemed exempt from federal oversight and control.
ARTBA roadbuilders said such a piecemeal approach would add another layer of permit requirements, create confusion and increase permitting delays for transportation projects and used as a litigation tool to delay projects and, in the process, make them more expensive for taxpayers.
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