WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Donald Trump’s EPA Administrator, Scott Pruitt, announced that he will be repealing the 2015 Clean Water Rule that provided vital clean water protections against dangerous pollution contaminating America’s waterways and drinking water supplies.
The Clean Water Rule was created after the EPA held more than 400 meetings with stakeholder groups across the country and published a combination of more than 1,200 studies in peer-reviewed scientific publications. The rule’s strong grounding in the Clean Water Act and reliance on the significant scientific evidence showed the need for strong and clear protections against pollution in America’s rivers, lakes, and waterways.
Trump’s and Pruitt’s decision to repeal these important clean water safeguards will put communities across the country at risk.
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In response, Michael Brune, Executive Director of Sierra Club, released the following statement: “Once again, the Trump Administration has agreed to do the bidding of the worst polluters in our country, and once again it’s putting the health of American families and communities at risk.
“The Clean Water Rule was meticulously created to protect America’s water resources from pollution and destruction after doctors, scientists, public health advocates, and community leaders weighed in with the EPA. After years of thorough research and informed advice from policy experts and stakeholders, the rule was finalized in 2015. It was ready to protect the drinking water of 117 million Americans and then, within a few months of being in office, Donald Trump and Scott Pruitt threw it into the trash bin to appease their polluter allies.
“It goes without saying that the Trump Administration doesn’t care about the environment, public health, or its duty to protect our most precious natural resources -- and that is why it’s up to us, the American people, to hold them accountable. We will fight this and every other attempt by polluters and the Trump Administration to destroy our water resources.”