Enforcement of the Clean Water Act

Audio of this September 6, 2007 panel discussion

In the 2006 plurality decision in Rapanos v. United States, the Supreme Court limited the scope of the Clean Water Act's protection of "navigable waters" to only include those bodies of water that are "permanent, standing or continuously flowing," and thus did not apply to channels through which water flows only some of the time. In the wake of the Rapanos decision, Rep. James Oberstar (MN) has sponsored the Clean Water Restoration Act of 2007 that would "fix the Clean Water Act," according to the Congressman's website. This legislation would allow the Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to enforce the Clean Water Act on wetlands, streams and ponds that are not part of a major "navigable" waterway.

Panelists include:
Prof. Jonathan H. Adler, Case Western Reserve University School of Law
Mr. M. Reed Hopper, Pacific Legal Foundation
Prof. Patrick A. Parenteau, Vermont Law School
Prof. Robert V. Percival, University of Maryland School of Law
Prof. Steven J. Eagle, George Mason University School of Law -- Moderator