Coal miners, stone quarrying companies, and other businesses are rushing to lock down any exemptions to federal water jurisdiction for at least five years, under changes the Trump administration recently made to the nation’s water rule.
Interviews and a Bloomberg Law analysis of agency data show the Army Corps of Engineers is making regulatory decisions, called jurisdictional determinations, with ease and speed since the Navigable Waters Protection Rule (RIN: 2040-AF75) took effect June 22 all across the country, save Colorado where a federal court stayed it.
A decision that might in some instances have taken multiple site visits ...