Mississippi River Basin Water Resource Weekly News (Pre-Holiday Edition)

~Most of the Water News - None of the Spin~

WOTUS - The Second Third Fourth . . . Next Chapter
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers officially published the

final Clean Water Act jurisdiction rule (a/k/a “Waters of the United States” or "WOTUS" rule) in the Federal Register on Monday (June 29).  The Administration maintained a fairly low profile on the controversial issue on Monday and waited until Congress was out of session (and lawmakers out of town) to officially publish the rule. The rule is now set to become effective on August 28.  Beyond the predictable rhetoric, the impending effective date will spur both legal and legislative challenges seeking to block its implementation. As if on cue, on Monday, three separate lawsuits were filed in three U.S. District Courts by attorneys general from 18 states to stop the new rule. On Tuesday, nine more states sued to stop the water rule, bringing the total to 27.  We've summarized these latest developments, along with a few of the more likely future scenarios here.

Next Week
Next Tuesday, members of the U.S. House and Senate return from their week-long holiday recess, and we should see House members renew their floor debate over the fiscal year 2016 spending bill funding the Department of the Interior and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).  The bill would cut funding for EPA programs by about nine percent, and contains riders blocking key Obama administration climate change and clean water policy, and putting a halt to endangered and threatened species listings.  You can follow this link for a preview of that floor action, as well as a listing of Congressional committee activities currently scheduled for next week related to the Mississippi River Basin's water resources.  

Noteworthy @UpperMiss Twitter Postings for the Week

Water Quality -

• EPA issues final 2015 updated national recommended water quality criteria for human health
  
  for 94 chemical pollutants http://ow.ly/P2dsl
• Minnesota Pollution Control Agency news release: "Blue-green algae: If in doubt, stay out" http://ow.ly/P2IqB
• North Dakota Department of Health "dropped ball" on years-long Ransom and Cass counties' arsenic-contaminated groundwater case http://ow.ly/P2QAE

Waters of the United States

• USEPA and Army Corps of Engineers officially publish the final Clean Water Act jurisdiction rule - becomes effective on August 28 http://ow.ly/OVvpw (related Agri Pulse article: http://ow.ly/OVxkR)
• Congressional Budget Office: Senate bill aimed at killing Obama administration's clean water rule would cost $5 million over next five years http://ow.ly/P4ZI5
• Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi sue Obama administration in federal court to stop new clean water regulation (WOTUS) http://ow.ly/OWSpN (see complaint and request for review here: http://ow.ly/OWWP4)
• 13 states file anti-WOTUS suit in U.S. District Court for the District of ND claiming rule violates Clean Water Act; story: http://ow.ly/P2bRF and link to complaint: http://static.ark.org/
• Ohio and Michigan file suit to block Obama administration's clean water rule; Lawsuit: http://ow.ly/OYCcc and Ohio AG press release: http://ow.ly/OYCk4
• Nine more states sue to stop the Obama administration water rule in U.S. District Court (on Tuesday); news story: http://ow.ly/P2cr0 and complaint: http://ow.ly/P2ca5
• Op-ed by former Rep. Larry Combest (R-Texas): "The EPA's big land grab" http://ow.ly/OYOoQ
• EPA releases its responses to about 1 million comments submitted on the proposed clean water rule (warning: it's over 7,000 pages long) http://1.usa.gov/1RN2ZUA

Water Resource Management (Floodplains, Dams, Navigation, Wetlands, Flooding, Supplies, etc.) -

• Flood insurance eligibility suspended for 15 Missouri localities because of
• noncompliance with National Flood Insurance Program floodplain management requirements http://ow.ly/P53eL
• U.S. Supreme Court agrees to consider longstanding Mississippi claim that Tennessee is

  

  Click to enlarge (source: USGS)

  stealing its groundwater http://ow.ly/OWWc4
• Four locks on the Mississippi River closed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers since Saturday due to flooding http://ow.ly/OWYSH
• USGS study finds that water use in shale oil and gas wells in Ohio River Basin among highest in nation - study: http://ow.ly/P2L63 (related Ohio news: http://ow.ly/P2Kud) See map to right
• The amount of water needed to cool U.S. power plants has dropped substantially http://ow.ly/P2MPL
• USGS: High Plains aquifer in Great Plains, Mississippi Embayment aquifer in the lower Midwest unsustainably managed http://ow.ly/P56ZM

Agriculture -

• Des Moines Register: Iowa farmers reeling from rainfall http://ow.ly/OVwz5



Photo: Bryon Houlgrave/The Register

• Heavy rains and flooding reduce Indiana's corn and soybean crop by nearly $300 million http://ow.ly/OVNh7
• Midwest flooding continues threatening soybeans and corn http://ow.ly/OYO5J
• Minnesota's multi-billion-dollar food industry is trying to cope with major shifts in consumer attitudes, other stresses http://ow.ly/OVzs8 
• Scientific model suggests a society collapse in less than three decades due to catastrophic food shortages, absent policy change http://ow.ly/OVLnP
• Introducing the wireless farm: When your cow's eating patterns suddenly shift or your crops are ready to harvest, you'll know it in the "Internet of Things" world http://ow.ly/OWaZN
• USDA reports show top states for Federal local food system investments include Kentucky, Wisconsin, Mississippi http://ow.ly/P2d3L
• In St. Louis, an urban farmer uses a rooftop and food to spur renewal http://ow.ly/P2OIW
• AGree report calls for food and agriculture research reform http://ow.ly/P2TuR
• USDA: 88.9 million acres of corn planted in 2015, a 1.7 million acre drop from 2014; soybean acreage up 2 percent http://ow.ly/P2Xme

Click to enlarge (Source: NOAA)

Climate and Weather -

• US drought update: continued improvements over Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, and Minnesota; no changes in Great Plains http://ow.ly/wmTdv 
• NOAA Climate Prediction Center monthly drought outlook (for July): expect west-central Montana drought development and drought removal across the Plains, and upper Ohio and Tennessee Valleys http://ow.ly/q3yAx (see map to right) 
• This June was officially the wettest in Illinois history http://ow.ly/P2YnY
• "HydroClim Minnesota" summary of June/July climate and resulting/predicted water resources impacts http://ow.ly/P3d1J

Biodiversity, Wildlife and Invasives -

• Multi-agency Asian carp strategy (2015 Asian Carp Control Strategy Framework) includes possible new lock and dam at junction of Mississippi River and Lake Michigan watersheds http://ow.ly/P50pC
• South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks discovers invasive rusty crayfish in state waters; threatening native crayfish http://ow.ly/OVOyC
• Western Governors' Association's new Chairman: priority for year ahead will be "wildlife management" - "Habitat conservation, recovery of species, making the law better" http://ow.ly/OVRaN (includes CO, KS, MT, ND, OK, SD, WY in the Mississippi River Basin)
• Population of federally-threatened Lesser Prairie Chicken in southern Great Plains grew by about 25 percent over the past year http://ow.ly/OW3z2
• Officials consider closing a popular Montana bison hunting area in effort to encourage animals to roam more widely http://ow.ly/OWXEr
• Apparent long-term decline in Minnesota's yellow perch populations has state officials concerned http://ow.ly/P2PVs
• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service set to 21 species for reclassification under the Endangered Species Act, including Illinois Chorus Frog and Blanding's turtle http://ow.ly/P2XI8 (also see: Minnesota turtle may get federal endangered status http://ow.ly/P507G)

In the Cities -

• New PBS documentary exposes human toll of oil boom-bust cycle in Williston, North Dakota

  

  Photo:Chris Granger, Times-Picayune

  http://ow.ly/OW1xv
• Chattanooga, Tennessee to require verification of infiltration rates for newly constructed stormwater management structures http://ow.ly/P2eAJ
• Tulsa, Oklahoma is a leader in storm-water management and resilient floodplain design in the United States http://ow.ly/P2fhI
• Pittsburgh residents turn increasingly to rain barrels to deal with excessive rain and runoff http://ow.ly/P2gaA
• LaBelle, Pennsylvania-an old coal town on the Monongahela River-struggles with 360-acre coal waste legacy http://ow.ly/OVCap
• Sunken city or surging metropolis? 9 visions for the future of New Orleans http://ow.ly/P4Y6n
• Clarksdale, Mississippi and Helena-West Helena, Arkansas become Mississippi River Delta "sister" cities http://ow.ly/P55EL

In the States-

• Compromise on ditch buffer initiative becomes Minnesota state law http://ow.ly/OVWwO
  

  

  Mississippi River Basin States' News

• Illinois EPA Launches Online Tool Provides Public Access to Highly Sought Agency Records http://ow.ly/P4YM4
• Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner vetoes 19 budget bills that he said would create a nearly $4 billion deficit http://ow.ly/OWij3
• Illinois Gov. Rauner and statehouse Democrats far apart as ‘mess’ of shutdown looms; stopgap extension eyed http://ow.ly/P2Fgb (also see: Budget Stalemate Cripples Illinois Government http://ow.ly/P2HM6)
• Illinois is not the only Mississippi River Basin state struggling to pass a state budget - Pennsylvania and Wisconsin are too http://ow.ly/P4XaN
• Iowa state politics cited as case study for "why it's hard to see progress in state governments' environmental efforts" http://ow.ly/P2HiC
• With July 1 deadline looming, Pennsylvania House passes GOP-created budget proposal to the dismay of Democrats http://ow.ly/OVA2z (Democratic summary shows it's a mixed bag of cuts and increases for environmental and agriculture programs: http://ow.ly/OVAGM)
• Pennsylvania Legislature passes and then sends state budget bill to Governor Wolf, who vetoes it http://ow.ly/P3bGc and http://ow.ly/P3bl2
• Proposed Pennsylvania Senate bill invalidates DEP regulations proposed to ensure conventional oil and gas wells protect the environment and makes agency restart the proposal process http://ow.ly/P28EO (more: see NPR analysis of bill here http://ow.ly/P29if)
• South Dakota Board of Water and Natural Resources approves $23.7 million for water and waste infrastructure projects http://ow.ly/OVPhF

Gulf Coastal Region-

• BP agrees to settle with Gulf Coast states and federal government for up to $18.7 billion in environmental, state damages from 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill http://ow.ly/P5ttr
• U.S. Supreme Court will not hear BP and Anadarko appeals over potential federal fines for their 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill roles http://ow.ly/P2RPd

Forestry -

• Senate bill introduced to "expedite and prioritize forest management activities to achieve ecosystem restoration" http://ow.ly/OVPUQ and borrowing significant NEPA review-streamlining language from H.R. 2647 http://ow.ly/OVQ9K

Resource Development -

• Senators urge USDA, EPA and DOE to uniformly recognize and support biomass energy as sustainable and significant http://ow.ly/P54SJ
• RFS: Hundreds turn out in opposition, including appeals from two Midwest governors, of proposed plans to reduce biofuel standards in the U.S. gasoline supply http://ow.ly/OQ2Aa

Federal Budget (You can follow the status of all of the fiscal year 2016 appropriation bills on this Congress.gov web page)

• House Republican Leader McCarthy outlines July House legislative agenda; at least some appropriations bills expected to move http://ow.ly/P59m3

Events - Information on all past and future events listed here each week can be viewed in the on-line calendar, located above and to the right (and here as a stand-alone calendar)

• TODAY: Wisconsin DNR and DHS experts will answer questions about algal blooms live on-line on Thursday, July 2 at noon CT http://ow.ly/P24WN
• Webinar: Advances in Water Quality Trading as a Flexible Compliance Tool
• (sponsored by The Freshwater Trust), July 8, 1 PM ET http://ow.ly/P27Jv
• The Omaha Green Infrastructure Tour: Stormwater Management’s Shifting Paradigm, July 9, 9:00 AM-3:30 PM CT  http://ow.ly/P2gxL
• EPA Extreme Events and Climate Adaptation Planning Workshop, July 14-15, Des Moines, Iowa http://ow.ly/P3gJW
• Minnesota River Congress' fourth Congress: July 23, Turner Hall, New Ulm, MN http://ow.ly/OVVpw
• Association of State Floodplain Managers and MN DNR are offering free 4 day training on floodplain management; July 27-30, Minneapolis http://ow.ly/OWlFY
• Webinar: Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience, July 30, 2 PM ET  http://ow.ly/P2UlG
• National Research Council meeting: Effective Approaches for Monitoring and Assessing Gulf of Mexico Restoration Activities; August 24-26, New Orleans http://ow.ly/P3fex (project information: http://ow.ly/P3g2M)

e-Newsletters, Publications, Journals, Multimedia  -

• St. Croix River Association's July Events Summary http://ow.ly/OQu09
• Association of State Floodplain Managers June 2015 "News and Views" http://ow.ly/P285k
• Gulf Restoration Network's July 1 GulfWaves e-newsletter: "Dead Zone, the Pope and a Dam Victory" http://ow.ly/P39qD

Other news-

• EPA issues clarification on effective dates for new rules governing power plant combustion waste (coal ash); story: http://ow.ly/P3alg (here is the Federal Register clarification: http://ow.ly/P524f)
• Farmers and activists continue the fight against a proposed 23,000-acre coal mine in central Illinois http://ow.ly/P2JSo
• Missouri River Water Trail website provides information to explore the River http://ow.ly/OW0Uq
• Poll: slight majority of Americans prefer living in a single-family house in the suburbs or a rural area even if it means long commutes; Significant minority would choose living in an urban area, with a short drive to work or opportunity to use public transportation, bike or walk http://ow.ly/OWdm1
• Like Lake Calhoun, other bodies of water in Minnesota have drawn efforts to change their names http://ow.ly/OYMCg
• McKnight Foundation awards $865,000 to six groups working to reduce agricultural pollution in four Upper Mississippi River states http://ow.ly/P25Yf

Politics and People-

• Jack Sullivan, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources science bureau director,  will resign after his office is targeted for severe budget cuts http://ow.ly/OW4Iq
• Pat Murphy (D-Iowa) planning a new bid for the Iowa U.S. House seat he lost to Republican Rod Blum in 2014 http://ow.ly/P22Jy

Your Moment of Zen -

Anne Wilson/Ikon Images/Corbis