Aggregates Manager Digital Magazine
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AGGREGATES MANAGER / August 2017 3 August 2017 Vol. 22, No. 8 aggman.com /AggregatesManager /AggManEditor Editorial Editor-in-Chief: Therese Dunphy Editorial Director: Marcia Gruver Doyle Senior Editor: Kerry Clines Online Editor: Wayne Grayson editorial@aggman.com Design & Production Art Director: Sandy Turner, Jr. Production Designer: Timothy Smith Advertising Production Manager: Kim Knight production@aggman.com Construction Media Vice President, Construction Media: Joe Donald sales@randallreillyconstruction.com 3200 Rice Mine Rd NE Tuscaloosa, AL 35406 800-633-5953 randallreilly.com Corporate Chairman: Mike Reilly President and CEO: Brent Reilly Chief Operations Officer: Shane Elmore Chief Financial Officer: Russell McEwen Senior Vice President, Sales: Scott Miller Senior Vice President, Editorial and Research: Linda Longton Vice President of Events: Stacy McCants Vice President, Audience Development: Prescott Shibles Vice President, Digital Services: Nick Reid Vice President, Marketing: Julie Arsenault For change of address and other subscription inquiries, please contact: aggregatesmanager@halldata.com. 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(See DMM 507.1.5.2); NON-POSTAL AND MILITARY FACILITIES: send address corrections to Aggregates Manager, 3200 Rice Mine Road N.E., Tuscaloosa, AL 35406. Revamping WOTUS, Again by Therese Dunphy, Editor-in-Chief tdunphy@randallreilly.com EDITORIAL R elief from the 2015 Clean Water Rule: Defi nition of 'Waters of the United States,' also known as WOTUS, is making its way through the rulemak- ing process. Promulgated in 2015, the onerous rule was quickly stayed from implementation by the courts. In February, President Trump issued an executive order that outlined a two-step process that would "ensure that the nation's navigable waters are kept free from pollution, while at the same time promoting economic growth, minimizing regula- tory uncertainty, and showing due regard for the roles of Congress and the States under the Constitution." In late June, three agencies — the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Department of the Army, and Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) — kicked off the fi rst step with a proposed rule that essentially turns the clock back to before the 2015 rulemaking, recodifying the identical regulatory text in place before that rulemak- ing. In fact, it's the same text that has been used for regulatory purposes since the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit stayed the 2015 rule. Interestingly, an economic analysis performed by the EPA and Corps as part of the proposed rule refutes its own earlier analysis that the benefi ts of implement- ing the rule out-weighed the costs. The agencies attribute the change to the use of faulty information. "We are taking signifi cant action to return power to the states and provide cer- tainty to our nation's farmers and businesses," EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt said in a press release announcing the proposed rule. "This is the fi rst step in the two-step process to redefi ne 'waters of the U.S.' and we are committed to moving through this re-evaluation to quickly provide regulatory certainty, in a way that is thought- ful, transparent, and collaborative with other agencies and the public." The new rule is good news for operators, particularly those with sites that include dry creekbeds or isolated wetlands, which would have been harmed by the overly broad 2015 rule. But, the work on WOTUS is not yet complete. The second step of the process involves a re-evaluation and revision of the defi - nition of "waters of the United States" as outlined in the executive order. This time, all three agencies will be deeply involved in the development of that defi nition. "The Army, together with the Corps of Engineers, is committed to working closely with and supporting the EPA on these rulemakings," said Douglas Lamont, a senior offi cial who is performing the duties of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works. "As we go through the rulemaking process, we will continue to make the implementation of the Clean Water Act Section 404 regulatory program as transpar- ent as possible for the regulated public." For those affected by the deeply muddled waters of the U.S., transparency would be a welcome change.