Senate kills dirty water bill

posted in:

November 3, 2015

Hunters and anglers celebrate brief reprieve for headwater streams and wetlands before preparing for a fresh threat to the Clean Water Rule

In a Senate vote today, “The Federal Water Quality Protection Act,” S.1140—which would have stripped Clean Water Act protections from some waters and nullified a rule to clarify protections for others—was defeated.

“For all Americans who love trout, beer, and a nice glass of water, today is a great day,” says Steve Moyer, Trout Unlimited’s vice president for government affairs. “We thank all of the senators who stood with sportsmen, turned away the blizzard of bad information, and supported clean water.”

Susquehana-River-web — Image courtesy of Nicholas A. Tonelli.

Earlier this week, eight of the country’s leading sportsmen’s groups sent Senators a letter opposing the legislation, introduced by Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming, saying that it would leave headwater streams and wetlands at risk, despite a multi-year public rulemaking process that highlighted the need to protect these areas. “Senators who voted against the Barrasso bill voted for clean water and the outdoor recreation economy, which depends on healthy streams and wetlands,” says Scott Kovarovics, executive director of the Izaak Walton League of America. “These lawmakers followed science and common sense and listened to hunters and anglers, who overwhelmingly support conserving vital water resources.”

A recent National Wildlife Federation poll found that 83 percent of sportsmen and women think the Clean Water Act should apply to smaller streams and wetlands, as the new Clean Water Rule directs. “The science behind the rule is strong, as is its public support, and these streams and wetlands are critical for fish, wildlife, and our way of life,” says Collin O’Mara, president and CEO of the NWF. “So, while we are pleased that this bill failed to reach cloture, and we thank the senators who voted for clean water today, but it’s hard to understand why it was up for debate in the first place.”

Despite this support, not to mention the rule’s benefits for drinking water for one in three Americans and flood protection for local communities, multiple threats remain. Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa has called for the use of the Congressional Review Act to overturn the current rule and prevent any future rulemaking. The Senate is expected to turn to Sen. Ernst’s proposal next. [Updated 11-5-2015 3:48 p.m. ET: Sadly, the Senate approved Senate Joint Resolution 22 on Wednesday. The bill now goes to the House of Representatives, where it is expected to pass easily. Fortunately, the president is sure to veto S.J.Res.22.)

“Hunters and anglers must remain vigilant despite our victory today,” says Whit Fosburgh, president and CEO of the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. “Many in Congress are determined to undercut the safeguards we need to enjoy clean water and quality days afield, whether it’s through obscure legislative processes or tucking offending provisions into thousand-page must-pass spending bills at the end of the year.”

“Everyone who likes to spend time outdoors—whether to fish or swim—needs to pick up the phone and let their senators know that clean water is non-negotiable,” says O’Mara.

Learn more about these attacks and other threats to clean water here. Sportsmen can contact their lawmakers in support of better protection for headwaters and wetlands here.

5 Responses to “Senate kills dirty water bill”

Andrew Phillips November 5, 2015

Only Republicans would name a bill that wasn’t about clean water protection “The Federal Water Quality Protection Act.”

November 5, 2015 at 3:58 am

Reply
mike November 5, 2015

Do you re, republicans out there ever pay attention to what your representatives are really doing? Or do you just mindlessly watch Fox news while the mislead and misinform, and lie by omission and lie by commission! They are doing this kind of crap ALL THE TIME, giving their billionaire donor’s the right to pollute our air and water without consequences, other than their favorite consequence of ever greater profits! For which of course, the GOP get’s their all important kickbacks! If you people would just start paying attention to and following actual congressional voting records (not that hard to do), you’d quickly discover that these guys don’t give a rats ass about anyone or anything except the profits of their billionaire owners!

November 5, 2015 at 10:32 pm

Reply
pete November 6, 2015

We need sportsman to hold a giant rally and make some noise. We need a big name to get it started like maybe a county music star.

November 6, 2015 at 1:38 am

Reply
- BillyBob November 12, 2015
  
  Robert Redford is on board already with common sense environmental activism. Check it out!
  
  November 12, 2015 at 5:33 pm
  
  Reply
Dave Lawrence November 6, 2015

But they didn’t stop there…
Look for: clean-water-rule-senate-overturn-ernst

November 6, 2015 at 10:53 am

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by: Kristyn Brady

posted in:

November 2, 2015

Sportsmen Oppose Congressional Threats to Clean Water and Healthy Wetlands

The Senate will vote on a dirty water bill tomorrow–here’s what sportsmen’s groups are doing about it

Today, eight sportsmen’s groups representing hundreds of thousands of hunters and anglers sent Senators a letter opposing the “Federal Water Quality Protection Act,” which would derail the Clean Water Rule, produced to clarify protections for headwaters and wetlands under the Clean Water Act. Sen. John Barrasso’s S.1140, which the Senate will vote on Tuesday afternoon, would also remove protections for some waters already covered by the Act.

USCapitol_TRR — Image courtesy of Nicolas Raymond.

The letter—signed by the American Fisheries Society, American Fly Fishing Trade Association, Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, International Federation of Fly Fishers, Izaak Walton League of America, National Wildlife Federation, Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, and Trout Unlimited—urges Senators to vote down the bill, because it would force the EPA and Army Corps of Engineers to restart the rulemaking process, putting valuable fish and waterfowl habitat at risk in the meantime.

The letter highlights a recent poll, which found that 83 percent of sportsmen and women think the Clean Water Act should apply to smaller streams and wetlands, as the new Clean Water Rule directs. These resources impact drinking water for one in three Americans, protect communities from flooding, and provide essential fish and wildlife habitat that supports a robust outdoor recreation economy. “The sportfishing industry accounts for 828,000 jobs, nearly $50 billion annually in retail sales, and an economic impact of about $115 billion every year that relies on access to clean water,” the letter says. “The Clean Water Rule will translate directly to an improved bottom line for America’s outdoor industry.”

In a separate letter to lawmakers, sportsmen’s groups opposed a Congressional Review Act resolution that would invalidate the Clean Water Rule and prevent any future attempts to craft a rule. Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa has called for the use of Congressional Review Act, which gives Congress the ability to overturn agency actions using special rules that bypass the normal legislative process. In effect, this would substitute the judgment of Congress for the deliberate and thorough multi-year public rulemaking process that produced the Clean Water Rule. Congress may proceed to Ernst’s resolution after tomorrow’s vote.

Learn more about these attacks and other threats to clean water here. Sportsmen can contact their lawmakers in support of better protection for headwaters and wetlands here bout $115 billion every year that relies on access to clean water,” the letter says. “The Clean Water Rule will translate directly to an improved bottom line for America’s outdoor industry.”

Learn more about these attacks and other threats to clean water here. Sportsmen can contact their lawmakers in support of better protection for headwaters and wetlands here.

by: Julia Peebles

posted in:

Glassing the Hill: November 2 – 6

The TRCP’s scouting report on sportsmen’s issues in Congress.

The House will be in session Monday through Thursday. The Senate will be in session Tuesday through Friday.

TR_Binoculars — Photo courtesy of Library of Congress.

Boehner sealed a budget deal just in time to say goodbye. In his ultimate departure from Congress, Former Speaker John Boehner passed the gavel to Speaker of the House Paul Ryan late last week, but not before collaborating with Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on successful passage of an $80-billion budget deal that will increase spending caps and raise the debt limit through March 5, 2017. The House and Senate Appropriations Committees now have until December 11, when the current continuing resolution expires, to draft an omnibus spending bill that funds the government for the remainder of the fiscal year. The most contentious issue will be legislative riders, including those that Republicans want to use to roll back Obama administration regulations, like the recently finalized Clean Water Rule. Some members will also seek to add pro-conservation riders to reauthorize LWCFand provide a fix for fire borrowing.

This week, the House begins consideration of a six-year highway bill. Speaker Ryan is expected to work with Majority Leader McConnell and bring the bill to conference. The Export-Import Bank reauthorization will also be considered as a rider to the Highway Trust Fund legislation that keeps the Highway Trust Fund solvent for the next three years. On the floor, the House will also consider legislation related to the National Defense Authorization Act.

On Tuesday, the Senate will continue consideration of Senator Barrasso’s (R-WY) legislation regarding the Federal Water Quality Protection Act. With Halloween behind us, it’s time to unmask this ironically-named bill that would roll back clean water protections. Learn more here.

What We’re Tracking

Wednesday, November 4, 2015

Legislation impacting federal lands in Nevada and Louisiana, to be discussed by the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Federal Lands. Rep. Hardy’s (R-NV) bill, Eastern Nevada Implementation Improvement Act, and Rep. Fleming’s (R-LA) legislation on stability of title to certain lands in Louisiana are up for debate.

Abandoned mines and maintenance costs, in a House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources hearing

Thursday, November 5, 2015

EPA’s efforts to block Pebble Mine, as examined by the House Science, Space and Technology Committee in a hearing

Budgetary impacts of wildfires, in a Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee hearing

by: Kristyn Brady

posted in:

October 30, 2015

While You Were Sleeping Congress Passed a Bipartisan Budget Deal

Default crisis was averted. Spending levels were moderately increased. But will any of it go toward conservation?

Shortly after 2:30 a.m. today, the U.S. Senate passed a two-year bipartisan budget agreement that will permit a modest reinvestment in important programs through fiscal year 2017 and lift the debt ceiling through March 2017. An additional $80 billion in government spending will be split evenly among defense and non-defense accounts, which could mean a much-needed increase in funding for conservation, natural resource agencies, and public access projects that benefit sportsmen and women.

“In the last four decades, we’ve seen funding for conservation as a percentage of the federal budget get cut in half,” says Whit Fosburgh, president and CEO of the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. “The increased funding for domestic programs in the new budget deal means more resources could go towards habitat protection, conservation easements, access enhancements, and water quality improvements.”

“It would be an investment in our economy, because quality habitat creates quality hunting and fishing opportunities, and we all know by now that sportsmen and women pour dollars into local businesses in their pursuit of great experiences afield,” says Fosburgh.

Before today’s action, and passage in the House on October 28, the dual threat of a default and a government shutdown was all too real. The outcome of today’s vote creates greater certainty that the government will remain functional—good news for sportsmen who were disproportionately affected by the 16-day government shutdown preceding the passage of the Murray-Ryan bipartisan budget deal in 2013. But, exactly how funding will be appropriated, and what the threat from various legislative riders will be, is left to be determined in the weeks ahead.

Since early this summer, the TRCP and its partners—including the Outdoor Industry Association, The Nature Conservancy, and 30 others—have been urging lawmakers to take up negotiations on a true successor to the Murray-Ryan deal, “the only way Congress is going to be able to make the investments in conservation that American sportsmen deserve,” Fosburgh said in a press release in June. The groups sent a letter to Congress in July.

Keep following the TRCP for news on how this year’s budget will be spent to implement conservation, improve fish and wildlife habitat, and protect America’s heritage of hunting and fishing on public lands.

by: Kristyn Brady

posted in:

October 29, 2015

Meet our next #PublicLandsProud contest judge: Bill Buckley

Bill Buckley is a Montana-based outdoor photographer who is known for his regular contributions to Field & Stream, Outdoor Life, American Hunter, and Ducks Unlimited magazines, but he’s also a heck of a storyteller. I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Bill every time his work was chosen for F&S’s First Shot section—a two-page spread of a fantastic photo that makes you say, “What’s going on here?” or “I so want to be there.” (Case in point, this shot and this shot.)

From now through November 8, Buckley is guest judging your best dog photos for this round of the #PublicLandsProud photo contest. He’s looking for a winning photo with an intriguing, animated quality, so let your gun dog’s personality shine through.

Buckley_web — Image courtesy of Bill Buckley.

TRCP: So, Bill, how do you like to spend your time outside?

Buckley: Living in Montana, I spend a lot of time doing what most folks I know do here: hunting, fishing, hike, and enjoying nature. That’s why I’ve been an outdoor photographer for much of the 24 years I’ve lived out West. I’m probably revealing my age here, but one of my favorite activities is being in my backyard, where I might see anything from mule deer, whitetails, and tons of turkeys to the occasional elk, bear, and even pheasants or ruffed grouse.

TRCP: What makes a great photo of man’s best friend?

Buckley: Great dog photos convey whatever’s animating a dog at that moment, whether it be a Lab focused on a flock of ducks, a pointer snuffling bird scent, or a house dog staring intensely at a ball about to be thrown. I’m always looking for intensity and drive, like whatever the dog’s doing right now is the most important thing he could imagine. And a good catchlight in their eyes never hurts!

TRCP: What makes you #PublicLandsProud?

Buckley: I moved West to have daily access to thousands of acres of public land, from the backcountry to the plains. What satisfies me most is filling my freezer every year with meat largely collected on public land. Downing a good bull elk on private land usually isn’t that big a deal; doing it regularly on public land says you’re a competent hunter.

Show us your #PublicLandsProud moment and you could be featured on our blog and win a new pair of Costa sunglasses and a copy of Steven Rinella’s new book, The Complete Guide to Hunting, Butchering, and Cooking Wild Game.