Waterkeeper Alliance Responds to Water Transfers Rule Decision
By: Daniel E. Estrin
Waterkeeper Alliance is very disappointed in the Second Circuit’s 2-1 reversal of the summary judgment granted in our favor by the district court, which had invalidated the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s harmful and misguided Water Transfers Rule.
Under this shameful industry giveaway of our precious water resources: salt water can be transferred into fresh water; toxic or sediment-laden water can be discharged into clear drinking water reservoirs; warm waters can be pumped into cold water habitats; chemical-laden waters can be dumped into waters employed in farm and ranch irrigation; and invasive species can be transferred into waters not yet infested — all without the human health and ecological protections guaranteed by a Clean Water Act discharge permit.
We continue to believe that the Water Transfers Rule is facially inconsistent with the Clean Water Act’s pollutant discharge prohibition and its bedrock objective to “restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the Nation’s waters.”
We are still reviewing the majority and dissenting opinions and have not made any decisions as to next steps.