Wetlands: Calif. Sues EPA For Nixing Protection Of S.F. Bay Salt Ponds

"California sued the Trump administration today over EPA's refusal to extend Clean Water Act protections to salt ponds in San Francisco Bay.

At issue are development plans for 1,365 acres owned by Cargill Inc. and DMB Pacific Ventures LLC in the southern bay. Those tidal wetlands were converted to industrial salt production in the mid-1800s, but conservationists have been buying tracts in that area since the 1970s, arguing that restoring marshes will improve water quality and combat rising sea levels.

EPA declared in March that none of the property qualified as "waters of the United States" and therefore is not protected by the Clean Water Act.

Today, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra (D) filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California taking aim at the EPA decision, joining environmental groups that have already sued the Trump administration seeking protection for the salt ponds."

Ariel Wittenberg reports for Greenwire September 24, 2019.

Source: Greenwire, 09/25/2019