Wildlife And Wetlands At Risk After EPA Moves To Strip Clean Water Act Protections

In a deeply disappointing move, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed a rule that would strip Clean Water Act protections from millions of acres of wetlands and potentially millions of miles of streams. If finalized, this change would significantly roll back protections, leaving countless waterways, and the habitats that depend on them, vulnerable to pollution, degradation, and long-term harm.

These wetlands and headwater streams are not minor features on the landscape. They filter drinking water, reduce flooding and drought impacts, and support countless species of wildlife. Yet under the EPA’s proposal, many of these waters would lose protection entirely, despite their irreplaceable role in keeping ecosystems and communities safe.

NRDC’s 2025 GIS analysis found that 38 million to 70 million acres of wetlands are at risk under scenarios similar to the proposed changes. Losing protections for even a fraction of these areas would undermine water quality, wildlife habitat, and the resilience of entire river systems.

“This is a reckless giveaway to polluters. By gutting protections for wetlands and streams, the EPA is trying to disown its legal obligation to protect our drinking water and our communities,” said Andrew Wetzler, senior vice president of NRDC’s Nature Program. “Wetlands are nature’s safeguard against flooding, and stripping away protections for them puts millions of people in harm’s way.”

Many of the wetlands at risk are seasonal or intermittent, but that doesn’t make them any less important. These areas help filter harmful pollutants and act as buffers during extreme weather, which is becoming increasingly common. Without federal safeguards, they are far more likely to be filled, drained, or contaminated.

“The EPA’s proposal is an extreme and unscientific exploitation of an already extreme and unscientific Supreme Court ruling,” said Jon Devine, director of freshwater ecosystems at NRDC. “Erasing protections for wetlands and streams that clearly affect downstream water quality and community safety ignores decades of hydrological science and will create regulatory chaos, leaving businesses, farmers, and communities with less certainty while exposing waters to more pollution.”

Under the proposed rule, federal protections would apply only to wetlands that hold surface water during the “wet season” and physically touch a river or stream that also flows during that period. This narrow approach excludes large areas of wetlands and seasonal streams that are essential for clean water, flood control, and healthy ecosystems.

“Instead of undermining the Clean Water Act, the EPA should be building durable, science-based safeguards that honor both the law and the realities of how water moves across the landscape,” Devine stated.

For more than 50 years, the Clean Water Act has safeguarded drinking water, wildlife, and communities. Weakening it now would be a devastating step backward. This proposal puts not only wetlands and streams at risk, but also the health and safety of millions of people and animals who rely on clean, safe water every day.