Waters of the United States

Pivot irrigation is crucial for many crops in the Great Plains. But in many states, it’s unclear how much groundwater the practice pulls from the Ogallala Aquifer.

As aquifer levels decline in the Great Plains, states weigh the need to meter irrigation wells

About a quarter of the United States’s irrigated cropland sits on top of the Ogallala Aquifer in the Great Plains. But water levels are dropping, and states are taking different approaches to monitoring how much groundwater irrigators are pumping out.

A roadside ditch in Phelps County, which routinely floods. Critics of new definitions of Waters of the United States could include areas like this and make land subject to regulations. Supporters say watersheds are connected, and the definitions should be broad and the regulations tight.

Health, Science & Environment

New clean water rules are coming. EPA and Army Corps hear from farmers tired of changing rules

Jonathan Ahl

A series of virtual roundtable discussions are underway regarding the Waters of the United States definition. But the input might not change much about what comes next.

Drinking water would be at the center of a new proposal from University of Missouri faculty to rework the country's water regulations.

Health, Science & Environment

Mizzou researchers want the Clean Water Act to focus on drinking water

Jonathan Ahl

A cross-disciplinary study suggests the multiple laws and regulations designed to protect water aren’t working, and a new focus on drinking water can fix that.

A pond at the Clarence Cannon National Wildlife Refuge

Health, Science & Environment

EPA's Decision To Scrap Clean Water Rule Could Weaken Missouri’s Flood Defenses

Eli Chen

Environmental advocates say that the Environmental Protection Agency’s repeal of a Clean Water Act rule Thursday could raise the flood risk for Missouri…

Ron Klataske is a rancher and leads Audubon of Kansas. He said the proposed rule changes are the "greatest rollback of conservation and protection of ecological resources that has occured, ever."

Public Airs Its Gratitude, Grievances Over Proposed Changes To Federal Waterway Regulations

Frank Morris

The water we drink is protected by federal rules, which are at the crux of a long-running fight over how far upstream that protection extends. ...

EPA Looking To Roll Back Many Of Obama's U.S. Waterway Protections

Jonathan Ahl

The Environmental Protection Agency is looking to remove thousands of acres of wetlands and miles of waterways from Clean Water Act protections. The EPA...