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Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

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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 Myorkas.

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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.

Protecting MN Waters: Final Rule from EPA on Clean Water Act

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Thursday, May 28, 2015   

ST. PAUL, Minn. - There are again protections for some vulnerable waters and wetlands in Minnesota and across the country, with the release of a final rule to clarify what is covered by the Clean Water Act.

The rule from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) defines which streams, tributaries and wetlands should be protected from development and pollution, an issue muddied by past Supreme Court decisions.

Erik Jensen, co-chair of Minnesota Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, says these regained protections are crucial for the state's fish and wildlife habitat and the tourism economy.

"Even the state fish and game enforcement is paid largely by hunters and anglers. So, if you see a decline in participation, it gets to be sort of a downward spiral," says Jensen. "Fish and game habitat gets worse, fewer people hunt and fish, then there's less funding for wildlife habitat and enforcement of fish and game laws."

Jensen says the new rule, known as Waters of the United States, will not only strengthen efforts to reduce water pollution, but will also help mitigate flash flooding and better protect Minnesota's drinking water supplies.

Those opposed call the rule more unneeded government regulation and say it will take away the private property rights of landowners and farmers on land-use decisions and farming practices.

According to the EPA, the rule does not change the exemptions that apply to agriculture. It also does not expand on which smaller bodies of water are regulated, says John Gale, the conservation director for Backcountry Hunters and Anglers.

"We're being absolutely up-front," says Gale. "We're not trying to do anything new with the rule, other than
restore protections for those important headwater streams, and taking a look at wetlands that are home to those important migratory species."

Gale says sportsmen and sportswomen are making their views known because they've witnessed the effects of water management decisions year after year, at their favorite hunting and fishing spots.


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