Oregon Farm Bureau Praises Pruitt’s Rescinding of WOTUS
The following may be attributed to Oregon Farm Bureau Federation President Barry Bushue:
“Oregon Farm Bureau applauds Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt for listening to America’s farmers and ranchers and taking action to rescind the onerous Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) rule.
“Farm Bureau led the national campaign beseeching the EPA to ditch the rule, and today we celebrate the results of that grassroots effort. Thousands of farmers and ranchers shared their stories with lawmakers about how the rule would’ve put their livelihoods at risk. Under WOTUS, farmers and ranchers would’ve had to apply for a costly permit to do even basic work on their land, or potentially be hit with enormous fines and frivolous lawsuits.
“Administrator Pruitt’s proposal reaffirms both a Supreme Court decision and Congressional action that had already made it very clear that WOTUS went far beyond the lawful bounds of the Clean Water Act. It was a federal land grab pure and simple, with no consideration of how it would hurt America’s farm and ranch families and hinder their ability to do their jobs.
“Every day Oregon’s farmers and ranchers work very hard to maximize water efficiency and protect water quality because our livelihood and future depend on it, it’s the law, and it’s simply the right thing to do. The EPA’s attempt at jurisdictional overreach would have been devastating to family agriculture in Oregon. We thank Administrator Pruitt for respecting the concerns of America’s farm and ranch families and for making the right decision to ditch WOTUS.”
The state’s largest general farm organization, Oregon Farm Bureau (OFB) is a grassroots, nonpartisan, nonprofit organization representing the interests of the state’s farmers and ranchers in the public and policymaking arenas. First established in Oregon in 1919, Farm Bureau is organized in all 36 counties and has nearly 7,000 member families that are professionally engaged in agriculture.
OFB’s 15th President, Barry Bushue, is a third-generation farmer raising a variety of vegetables, flowers, and berries at a nearly century-old farm near Boring.
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