EPA Takes Steps to Undo Trump-Era Rollback of Protections Under Clean Water Act

EPA Takes Steps to Undo Trump-Era Rollback of Protections Under Clean Water Act

The Biden administration began the process of restoring federal protections to hundreds of thousands of streams, wetlands and other bodies of water on Thursday, undoing one of the most significant environmental rollbacks of the Trump administration.

According to The Associated Press, the regulation is commonly referred to as WOTUS, the "waters of the United States" regulation, which defines what waterways qualify for protection under the Clean Water Act.

The action by the Environmental Protection Agency will reinstate a rule that was in place in 2015 while the administration creates a new rule sometime next year.