California Lawmakers Move to Protect Waterways

California state lawmakers and environmental advocates are seeking ways to protect wetlands and waterways, reports Alastair Bland for CALmatters.

The Trump administration plans to change the definition of the Clean Water Act to exclude seasonal waterways, which make up 80 percent of linear miles of streams and rivers in California. During his first term, Trump signed an executive order to rescind protections for seasonal waterways. President Biden later reinstated those protections. “The new Trump administration decision is intended to align with a 2023 landmark Supreme Court ruling. The court ruled that a wetland, to gain federal protections under the Clean Water Act as ‘waters of the United States,’ must bear a ‘continuous surface connection’ to perennial navigable waters.”

According to executive director of California Coastkeeper Alliance Sean Bothwell, “This is a Supreme Court case, decided on the East Coast, where rivers and hydrology flow a lot more than here in California. I really feel like the decision didn’t take into account our Mediterranean climate.”

California Senate Bill 601, authored by State Senator Ben Allen, would strengthen the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act and add new permitting rules for discharging pollutants. Noting the urgency of the bill, Allen said, ““It is clear that federal priorities are shifting to leave many of our water ecosystems more vulnerable to dangerous pollutants and discharge.”