Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt has signed a directive giving himself more authority to determine environmental regulations for projects near regional waterways, according to a memo released Wednesday.

 

The internal document obtained by the advocacy group Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) gives the EPA chief final decisionmaking authority over the protections of streams, ponds and wetlands.

 

The one-page March 30 memo vests Pruitt the authority to make “final determinations of geographic jurisdiction,” under the Clean Water Act, also known as the Water of the United States (WOTUS) rule.

 

Click Here to read more.