States Urge Epa To Increase Delegation Of Wetlands Permit Program

摘要

State environment officials are urging EPA to develop clear guidelines to ease states' ability to assume responsibility for wetlands permitting under section 404 of the Clean Water Act (CWA), including a simplified and more flexible process that would allow states to assume partial responsibility for the federal program. The Environmental Council of the States (ECOS) passed a resolution April 14 at its spring meeting in New Orleans that supports the delegation of section 404 responsibilities to states, including making it easier for states to assume control of the 404 program. The resolution also calls on Congress to appropriate adequate funding for states that assume the section 404 permitting program and to broaden the eligibility of the existing EPA wetland grant program to cover both the development and implementation of wetlands protection policies. Relevant documents are available on InsideEPA.com. See page 2 for details.