Chris Koster on Environment

Sue the EPA for over-expanding Clean Water Act

"The EPA has exceeded their legal authority in defining what constitutes waterways," Koster said. "Thousands of acres of privately owned land in Missouri would suddenly be subject to federal water regulation. Missouri farmers will be particularly harmed by the federal government's restrictions on how their land can be used." Koster says the agencies' official definition of "waters of the United States" (WOTUS) extends their authority to include "ponds, streams that flow only briefly during or after rainstorms, and channels that are usually dry." The definition also expands to floodplains, even if the plains are dry 99 years out of 100, Koster says.