The EPA’s proposal to repeal the Clean Water Rule would negatively affect Iowa water.

Here in Iowa, summer always reminds us why we care about clean water. Thanks to the Clean Water Act (1972), many of the places we go swimming, fishing, or boating, such as the Mississippi River, are now cleaner.

That’s why I was so appalled to learn on Tuesday that the EPA proposes to repeal key protections for Iowa’s waterways. Finalized in 2015 with widespread public and scientific support, the Clean Water Rule restored federal protections to 62 percent of Iowa’s streams, which feed waterways such as the Mississippi and Iowa Rivers and help provide drinking water to 667,428 Iowans. The rule also protects wetlands, which help filter out pollutants and provide wildlife habitat.

More than 800,000 Americans, including 3,469 Iowans, urged the EPA to adopt the Clean Water Rule. Yet the new agency is now proposing to dismantle it.

Repealing this rule turns the mission of the EPA on its head; instead of protecting our rivers, lakes, and streams, the Trump administration would leave them open to pollution. It defies common sense, sound science, and the will of the people of Iowa.

The EPA should reconsider this reckless repeal and stand up for the Mississippi River.

— Tracy Wang

Environment Iowa