EPA’s Federal Waters Update Seen Vulnerable at Top Court (1)

A test for federal Clean Water Act jurisdiction over waterways and wetlands that is central to an EPA rule announced last week will make the rule especially vulnerable to an upcoming US Supreme Court ruling, water lawyers say.

The Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers published their final definition of “waters of the US,” or WOTUS, on Dec. 30—the latest iteration of a Clean Water Act regulation that has shifted in each presidential administration since 2008.

The 2023 rule, which will take effect 60 days after it is published in the Federal Register, is based on ...