Federal Agencies Release Final WOTUS Rewrite by ACWA Staff Jan 18, 2023 Water News The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) today published a final rule revising the definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS). The rule will become effective on March 20. The final rule applies federal protections to traditional navigable waters, the territorial seas, interstate waters, as well as upstream water resources that significantly affect those waters. Adjacent wetlands could receive protection if they meet either the “relatively permanent” or “significant nexus” tests set forth in the U.S. Supreme Court case Rapanos v. United States. The final rule is generally viewed as a middle ground between previous WOTUS rulemakings under the Trump and Obama administrations. A potential complication for the agencies will be the forthcoming U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the Sackett v. EPA case, which will determine the scope of EPA’s power to define WOTUS. More details on the final rule, including a final rule fact sheet, can be found on EPA’s website.