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March 12, 2025

Corps of Engineers narrows WOTUS jurisdiction excluding wetlands

www.usace.army.mil
Federal Register
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EPA strips federal protection from wetlands and intermittent streams

On Mar. 11, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency finalized a rule excluding ephemeral streams from the Clean Water Act’s “waters of the U.S.” definition (EPA fact sheet).

The rule implements the Supreme Court’s 2023 Sackett v. EPA decision, which confined federal jurisdiction to relatively permanent waters (SCOTUSblog).

The EPA’s Regulatory Impact Analysis projects $230 million in annual compliance savings from reduced permitting and administrative requirements (EPA RIA).

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Test Your Knowledge

10
Q1

The original 1977 Clean Water Act amendments added jurisdiction over which ‘‘adjacent’’ feature?

Q2

Which environmental group launched the #KeepOurWaterClean campaign?

Q3

Which crop-growers association praised the rewrite as ‘‘regulatory certainty’’?

Q4

Fox headline called the rewrite a ""victory for"":

Q5

EPA relied on which hydrologic connectivity distance test?

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People, bills, and sources

What you can do

1

Developers planning stream fills up to 300 feet can submit a pre-construction notification under Army Corps Nationwide Permit 12 using guidance at https://www.usace.army.mil/Media/News/2025/nwp-update/ (USACE).

2

Landowners should assess whether on-site wetlands and streams qualify for federal protection by comparing site conditions to exclusions detailed in the EPA’s final rule fact sheet at https://www.epa.gov/wotus/final-rule-2025 (EPA fact sheet).

3

Support water-quality advocacy by sharing Clean Water Action’s #KeepOurWaterClean campaign materials at https://cleanwater.org/releases/2025/03/11 on social media using the hashtag #KeepOurWaterClean (CWA).