FORT WORTH, Texas — In Nov. 2021, the EPA and Army Corps of Engineers announced their proposal to repeal and replace the Navigable Waters Protection Rule, NWPR. As the agencies move forward, they are seeking public comment on their latest step, which is reimplementing the 1980s-era Waters of the United States, or WOTUS, definition.

The Texas & Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association submitted formal comments to the agencies on Thursday detailing many of the concerns raised by cattle producers. According to association president Hughes Abell, chief among those concerns is the return of a vague definition.

“As the EPA and Army Corps try to reimplement an old definition of federally regulated water features, they’re also bringing back old problems that the Navigable Waters Protection Rule already solved,” said Abell. “Once again, ranchers will pay the price, fighting to keep their stock ponds, dry creek beds, and even puddles, from succumbing to federal oversight and costly permitting requirements.”

The association also urges individual cattle producers and landowners to submit their own comments on the matter and have published a webpage with more information on how to do so.

The deadline to submit comments is Feb. 7, 2022.

–Texas & Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association