Supreme Court Refuses to Hear Chesapeake Bay Case
On Monday, February 29, the Supreme Court of the United States declined to take up a challenge by the American Farm Bureau Federation to stop the EPA’ s Chesapeake Bay plan.
American Farm Bureau argued the EPA was overstepping its authority under the Clean Water Act, and was usurping states’ rights in the process, opening the door for a massive expansion of power. Twenty-one states, 39 members of Congress and a group of counties within the Bay watershed supported AFBF’ s legal challenge in the lower courts.
The decision by the Supreme Court allows an earlier decision by U. S. District Court judge Sylvia Rambo to stand.
Farm Bureau believes EPA will now follow suit in other watersheds across the nation, including the Mississippi watershed.
In a statement released by AFBF, President Zippy Duvall said:“ We, of course, are disappointed by the Supreme Court’ s decision not to examine the lawfulness of EPA’ s Chesapeake Bay‘ blueprint.’ EPA has asserted the power to sit as a federal zoning board, dictating which land can be farmed and where homes, roads and schools can be built. We remain firm in opposing this unlawful expansion of EPA’ s power. We will closely monitor the agency’ s actions in connection with the Bay blueprint, as well as any efforts to impose similar mandates in other areas. This lawsuit has ended, but the larger battle over the scope of EPA’ s power is not over.
“ Farmers are justifiably proud of their successes in reducing agriculture’ s impact on water quality in the Chesapeake Bay, and they remain committed to further improvements. We will continue to support state and local programs to improve agriculture’ s environmental performance, and we will continue to oppose EPA overreach.”
Farm Bureau believes the ruling“ locks in” decisions made in 2010 and deprives state and local governments of the ability to adapt their plans to take account of changes in societal needs, developing technologies, or new information, thus preventing them from exercising their own judgment about the best and most efficient ways to achieve the goals for the Bay.
Implementation of the blueprint is expected to cost roughly $ 28 billion to $ 30 billion in Maryland and Virginia alone.
West Virginia Farm Bureau News 9