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The latest on the Key Bridge collapse, New York puts forth legislation to get clean energy projects on the grid and Wisconsin and other states join a federal summer food program to help feed kids across the country.

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Republicans float conspiracy theories on the collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge, South Carolina's congressional elections will use a map ruled unconstitutional, and the Senate schedules an impeachment trial for Homeland Secretary Mayorkas.

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Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Cheers and Jeers for Proposal to Clarify Clean-Water Rule

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Tuesday, April 8, 2014   

BISMARCK, N.D. - A plan to better protect vulnerable waters across the state and the nation is earning praise from some, although others have expressed concerns. The proposed Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule aims to end the long-running legal battle over how to apply the Clean Water Act by clearly defining which water bodies fall under its protections.

That clarity is vital for effective pollution control, said Jan Goldman-Carter, senior manager, wetlands and water resources, National Wildlife Federation.

"The very heart of the Clean Water Act's ability to hold polluters accountable for pollution had been undermined by this confusion," Goldman-Carter said.

Nationally, it is estimated that once finalized, this rule would better protect the drinking water supplies for roughly one-third of all Americans.

Still, some expressed worry about the rule's impact as it pertains to so-called "isolated wetlands," including "prairie potholes." One is Dan Wogsland, executive director of the North Dakota Grain Growers.

"We are very, very concerned about how is that going to impact agricultural practices in the state of North Dakota," Wogsland said. "How is this going to impact the land that farmers have? How is this going to impact what they do and how they do it in the production of food?"

However, waterfowl rely on the nation's wetlands, said Scott Manley, regional director of conservation programs, Ducks Unlimited, and the proposal would not change the exemptions that apply to agriculture.

"Nobody's interested in slowing down the agricultural productivity of the country," Manley said. "This new draft rule helps clarify how agriculture can continue as it is today to feed the country."

The proposed rule is from the Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers and is subject to a 90-day public comment period.

Information about the proposed rule is available at 1.usa.gov.



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