Reinstate Waters of the United States rule
Reinstate Waters of the United States rule
Why this petition matters
We, the people of the Mississippi Valley, sign this petition to require the EPA to continue to defend the Waters of the United States rule, which was ended by the Trump administration on Thursday, January 23, 2020.
The Waters of the US rule applies to 60 percent of the nation’s bodies of water, protecting sources of drinking water for about one-third of the United States. The Mississippi River is formed by thousands of smaller streams flowing into it. We need this rule for the health of our families, our communities, and our future. It was issued under the 1972 Clean Water Act, which gave the federal government broad authority to limit pollution in major water bodies, like Chesapeake Bay, the Mississippi River and Puget Sound, as well as streams and wetlands that drain into those larger waters.
I personally drink the water of the Mississippi River, live along one of its tributaries, and my work is inextricably linked to the health of the river. I am just one of 66 million US citizens who could say the same. The Mississippi flows into the Gulf of Mexico where the lives and well-being of another 23 million US citizens are affected. The 2019 die off of dolphins, oysters and shrimp in the Mississippi Sound is but one example of a compromised Mississippi River. We will all suffer greatly with increased pollution if the Waters of the US rule is not reinstated. Primary threats are industrial waste, raw sewage and farm chemicals. President Trump, EPA, please do the right thing for the health of our Mississippi River (and all other rivers and freshwater streams and wetlands) and reinstate the Waters of the US rule -- for our children, our grand children, and all generations to come.
Decision Makers
- EPA
- president Trump
- Donald J. TrumpPresident of the United States