Report Says U.S. Reduces Protection of Waters, Wetlands

October 13, 2005 — By Alan Elsner, Reuters
WASHINGTON — In the past four years, the United States has drastically cut back on its protection of waterways and wetlands, whose erosion was cited as a factor in the destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina, according to a report issued Wednesday.

The report by the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress, examined how the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Environmental Protection Agency assert jurisdiction over many of the nation's waterways and wetlands.

Environmental groups criticized government practices discussed in the report.

"Losses of wetlands in many areas in the United States are unprecedented, yet the corps is allowing many of the remaining wetlands to be destroyed, in violation of its Clean Water Act obligations, without even trying to figure out why," said Christy Leavitt of environmental group U.S. PIRG.

Navis Bermudez of the Sierra Club said, "The GAO's report confirms the administration is secretly pursuing a policy that favors developers and other industrial interests."