12/11/2025
👉 Federal protection for countless small, essential habitats is gone.
📢 ACTION ALERT: Protect Our Water! 📢
The comment period is NOW OPEN for the shortened "Waters of the United States" (WOTUS) definition. This decision is a critical moment to protect the clean water that our families, wildlife, and economy rely on.
We need decision-makers at the EPA and Army Corps to defend and strengthen, not weaken, the critical environmental laws that safeguard our water resources and secure our health, economy, and the promise of prosperity for future generations.
📝 Your Voice Matters! Take Action:
• Leave a Comment: Use the official link to submit your comments directly to the EPA and Army Corps.
• LINK: https://shor.by/4mCp
• Call Congress: Contact your local Members
💧 Big Problem for Small Waters: What the "WOTUS" Change Means for Wildlife 🐟
What Happened? The Supreme Court recently narrowed the definition of "Waters of the United States" (WOTUS). This federal rule decides which waters the EPA and Army Corps of Engineers can legally protect from pollution and development.
The Simple Shift: Protection Shrinks 📉
• OLD RULE: Federal government protected waters (like wetlands and seasonal streams) if they had a "Significant Connection" to a larger river or lake.
• NEW RULE: Federal protection is only for waters that have a "Continuous Surface Connection" to a larger river or lake.
Why Does This Matter for Animals? 🦢
• Goodbye Wetlands: Most isolated wetlands and seasonal swamps are now unprotected. These are vital nurseries for birds, amphibians, and fish. When they’re destroyed, wildlife loses its home.
• Pollution Freeway: Small streams that only flow when it rains (ephemeral streams) often lose protection. They act as the first defense against polluted runoff (like fertilizer). Now, that pollution can flow unchecked straight into our big rivers and drinking sources.
• State-by-State Risk: The burden of protection now falls mostly on individual states. If your state doesn't have strong environmental laws, these vulnerable habitats could be lost forever.
Wetlands
