ASLA Releases Statement on Repeal of WOTUS Rule

ASLA has denounced the repeal of the 2015 Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule announced by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). 

“Our planet is running out of potable and clean water. The WOTUS rule was meant to facilitate enforcement of the Clean Water Act and keep American water resources safe. Instead, we’re left with this repeal – which is the first step in rolling back clean water protections on a much larger scale,” says Shawn T. Kelly, FASLA, president of the American Society of Landscape Architects. 

“It is difficult for landscape architects to operate under the current patchwork of rules. ASLA supports replacing it with one clear, concise rule that defines which waters are subject to the Clean Water Act and addresses the real dangers of unchecked water contamination.”

Earlier this year, ASLA submitted comments to the EPA opposing a revision to the WOTUS rule that would undermine the Clean Water Act and put families and communities at risk from pollution.