FORT WORTH, Texas — In June, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) announced their intention to repeal the so-called Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule. Upon the announcement by EPA administrator Scott Pruitt, Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association (TSCRA) president, Richard Thorpe, commented:

“The WOTUS rule was a misguided attempt to control private lands under the guise of clean water. Since 2015, when the rule was implemented, ranchers and private property advocates nation-wide have fought to maintain their rights in the face of this overly burdensome federal regulation. We applaud the EPA’s action to ensure ranchers can continue to provide America with a safe and affordable food supply.”

On behalf of TSCRA, Thorpe today submitted official comments to the two federal regulators supporting the repeal, and encouraged fellow cattle raisers to do the same.

“It is important that every property owner and rancher continue to play an active and vocal role in supporting the repeal of the 2015 WOTUS rule,” said Thorpe. “Preserving clean water is imperative for ranchers, and we take great pride in land stewardship, but never before have we faced such a outrageous government overreach, and we must ensure its repeal remains a priority in Washington.”

To submit your own comments, visit www.regulations.gov and click the “Comment Now” button.

To view the comments submitted by Thorpe, click here.

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TSCRA is a 140-year-old trade association and is the largest and oldest livestock organization based in Texas. TSCRA has more than 17,500 beef cattle operations, ranching families and businesses as members. These members represent approximately 55,000 individuals directly involved in ranching and beef production who manage 4 million head of cattle on 76 million acres of range and pasture land primarily in Texas and Oklahoma, but throughout the Southwest.