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Abstract
The jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act over aquatic and riparian habitats in the Western US is continuing to shrink in response to past Supreme Court decisions, leaving a gap in water quality governance for an increasing number of streams in the Western US. Arizona is preparing to remove certain streams, springs, wetlands, and lakes from the state’s water quality standards based on these decisions. Arizona also seeks primacy for future determinations of Clean Water Act jurisdiction under Section 404 for non-navigable waters. Transfer of those Clean Water Act responsibilities to the state will remove the need for Endangered Species Act Sectiion 7 consultations and mitigation of a project’s effect to federally protected species, unless the project has some other federal nexus.
Parent Publication
Keywords
forest restoration,
history,
climate,
soils,
vegetation,
geomorphology,
watersheds,
water quality,
water quantity,
fluvial ecosystems,
fish and invertebrate fauna,
riparian ecosystems
Citation
Fonseca, Julia. 2022. Arizona's Clean Water Act protections are in “jurisdictional limbo". In: Neary, D. G.; Gottfried, G. J., eds. Collaboration Now for the Future: IV Conference on the Biodiversity and Management of the Madrean Archipelago. Proceedings RMRS-P-79. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. p. 67-73.
