The EPA’s power to enforce the Clean Water Act could be curtailed in a case to be considered by the Supreme Court when it convenes Monday.
The case of Sackett v. EPA centers on a long-standing argument over the definition of “waters of the U.S.,” a term included in the act to describe which bodies of water are subject to federal oversight.
The plaintiffs, Chantell and Michael Sackett, purchased a plot of land near Priest Lake in Idaho in 2004 with the intent of filling in what they described as a “soggy lot” with sand and gravel. After they had partially done so, they were ordered by the EPA to remove the fill and restore the wetlands because they were protected by the CWA.
