Farmers and ranchers now have until Sept. 27 to submit comments in support of the Environmental Protection Agency ditching the 2015 Waters of the U.S. rule. The rule, which was halted by the courts, had more to do with controlling land than protecting water and only created confusion for farmers, according to Don Parrish, AFBF’s senior director of regulatory relations.  

The regulations were so broad the agency was able to “blur the distinction between regulating water and land use, or in other words, allowed the agency to regulate land use by just claiming the land was water, so it was really problematic for farmers and ranchers,” Parrish explained in Tuesday’s Newsline (August 22, 2017).  

Farmers and ranchers are encouraged to submit their comments through the advocacy section of AFBF’s website, fb.org.