WASHINGTON - The Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership (TRCP) today expressed its disappointment with the Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision to negate protections for isolated wetlands. Ruling in the combined cases of Rapanos v. United States and Carabell v. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Court said that lower courts must reconsider the Clean Water Act’s definition of navigable waters and whether Congress has authority over wetlands that are adjacent to or separated by man-made berms from their tributaries.
“The TRCP and its partner organizations are closely examining the implications of the Supreme Court decision issued today,” said Matthew B. Connolly Jr., President and CEO of the TRCP. “Our initial review indicates that some wetlands with known value to fish and wildlife may be losing legal safeguards, and we find this deeply troubling.”
In commenting on the decision, Chief Justice John Roberts wrote, “It is unfortunate that no opinion commands a majority of the Court on precisely how to read Congress’ limits on the reach of the Clean Water Act. Lower courts and regulated entities will now have to feel their way on a case-by-case basis.”
Commented Connolly: “Recognizing that our country lacks a crystal clear legal standard that protects the value of all wetlands to fish and wildlife, the TRCP and its partners hope our elected officials are now spurred to act on new legislation that removes all ambiguity from the realm of wetlands protection. Simply put, our remaining naturally functioning wetlands are a national treasure and must be treated as such.”
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The Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership is a coalition of leading conservation organizations and individual grassroots partners, working together to conserve fish and wildlife and their habitat, increase funding for conservation and management, and expand access to places to hunt and fish.