By Dawn Attride for Sentient.
Broadcast version by Mark Moran for Iowa News Service reporting for the Sentient-Public News Service Collaboration

In a single day, Lee Zeldin, head of the Environmental Protection Agency, has spearheaded an institutional reversal of longstanding U.S. environmental policies in what he calls "31 historic actions." From questioning the well established finding that greenhouse gases are harmful to health to eradicating Clean Water Act provisions, the deregulation blitz could lead to increased pollution and risk to public health, environmental groups warn. "We are driving a dagger straight into the heart of the climate change religion to drive down cost of living for American families, unleash American energy, bring auto jobs back to the U.S. and more," said EPA Administrator Zeldin.

Weakening Water Quality Laws Garners Support From Farm Lobby

One controversial action is a set of proposed changes to the Clean Water Act, established in 1972 to regulate pollutants in U.S. waters and prevent contamination from industries like factory farms and mineral mining. In a 2023 Supreme Court decision, Sackett v. EPA, the Court narrowed the definitions of protected waters to exclude certain wetlands unconnected to "navigable" waterways. Although Biden's EPA revised protections to include this ruling, Zeldin argues his predecessors "failed to follow the law and implement the Supreme Court's clear holding in Sackett." He now seeks to further deregulate waterway protections.

"The previous Administration's definition of 'waters of the United States' placed unfair burdens on the American people and drove up the cost of doing business," Zeldin said on Wednesday.

For states like Iowa where roughly half of water bodies are polluted (thanks in part to the 109 billion pounds of animal manure produced each year by factory farms in the state), the Clean Water Act already doesn't do enough to protect water as it stands, David Cwiertny, professor of civil engineering and director for the Center for Health Effects of Environmental Contamination at the University of Iowa, tells Sentient. It fails to meaningfully address non-point source pollution, and exempts major pollutant sources like subsurface agricultural drainage, he says.

"As a result, analyses have shown that Iowa has among some of the worst water quality in the nation based on impaired stream miles and lake area under the Clean Water Act. These impairments have endangered public drinking water supplies while also limiting recreational water access for Iowans," says Cwiertny.

The EPA's latest announcement may make matters worse. "It's hard to see water quality in Iowa improving with the proposed plans to rework WOTUS, which will most likely end up further reducing the number of water bodies protected by the Act," Cwiertny says.

Zeldin credited concerns from farmers and ranchers as a factor to the change, as attendee American Farm Bureau President Zippy Duvall said he was pleased with the decision, stating it provides clarity for farmers and will help them "protect the environment while ensuring they can grow the food America's families rely on."

Stacy Woods, research director for the Food and Environment Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), said the EPA is "giving a green light" for industrial agriculture to pollute and drain valuable wetlands. "Big Ag interest groups like the Farm Bureau pretend to represent small family farms when they are really working for giant industrial agricultural companies who could not care less about draining, polluting and flooding rural America in service of their bottom line. Missing from this conversation are the voices of farmers who are invested in being good stewards of their land and who are actually part of the rural communities that benefit from wetlands," Woods said in a statement.

Crackdowns on Environmental Pollutant Regulations Will Have an Outsized Impact on Vulnerable Communities

Water wasn't the only thing on the agenda, as oil and gas regulations are also under scrutiny, along with clean air standards and termination of the "Good Neighbor" rule that requires states to manage their own pollution that can be blown into nearby states.

"EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin today announced plans for the greatest increase in pollution in decades. The result will be more toxic chemicals, more cancers, more asthma attacks, and more dangers for pregnant women and their children. Rather than helping our economy, it will create chaos," Amanda Leland, Executive Director of the Environmental Defense Fund said in a statement.

Ending or revoking such regulations means fewer protections for communities with high numbers of low socioeconomic status residents. Pollution also disproportionately impacts Black and Hispanic communities, due in part to historical practices like redlining, which meant rejecting financial services to those looking to move to a residential area, often based on race or ethnicity. This practice, as well as ongoing pollution and other inequities, leads to concentration of vulnerable communities near hazardous pollution sources. Research shows these communities have higher rates of asthma and poor mental health. The EPA also plans to shut down its climate justice offices across the country whose primary focus is to help those most affected by the burdens of pollution and climate change.

These latest policy moves are likely to be met with legal action from both sides; environmental groups have already promised to "vigorously oppose" Zeldin's "attack" on public health while Trump's FBI pledged to criminally charge climate groups who received funding from the Biden administration.

"Though [these actions] will not hold up in the face of science or the court of law, they already pose grave and immediate threats to people and the environment," Dr. Rachel Cleetus, the policy director with the Climate and Energy Program at the UCS, said.


Dawn Attride wrote this article for Sentient.


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Environmental advocates have warned President Donald Trump's proposed budget could cripple restoration of the Chesapeake Bay.

Federal agencies have long partnered with six watershed states to protect its waterways.

Harry Campbell, science policy and advocacy director for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, said the cuts would severely affect Pennsylvania and beyond. He added the Environmental Protection Agency, which oversees the Chesapeake Bay Program, faces a 54.5% budget reduction, from $9.1 billion to $4.2 billion.

"This would eliminate critical state grants and other support mechanisms that Pennsylvania relies upon in working with farmers, upgrading wastewater treatment plants and improving fisheries that are so critical to the healthy condition of our urban streams but also to our economic vitality," Campbell outlined.

Campbell noted the EPA supports states in improving water quality by funding projects and offering low-interest loans for upgrading drinking water and wastewater systems. The agency also offers scientific guidance, helps develop monitoring and reporting systems and, in some cases, aids in enforcing pollution-reduction measures.

Campbell pointed out numerous other federal agencies are facing major funding cuts. For Pennsylvania, he contended, the most significant is the U.S. Geological Survey, set to lose $564 million in funding, which could halt research on the effects of climate change and eliminate or curtail essential water quality monitoring.

"This is the type of research that is looking at what is happening on the ground in our local communities, on our farms, in our streams," Campbell emphasized. "And trying to ascertain ways that we can utilize science and information to make informed decisions about the future of those communities."

Campbell noted the U.S. Department of Agriculture and local conservation programs provide crucial support to farmers by helping them design and implement conservation practices. The efforts improve water quality, soil health and herd health while reducing flooding and farm input costs. Proposed budget cuts could threaten the programs and the environmental and agricultural benefits they deliver across the region.

As Colorado and other Basin states relying on the shrinking Colorado River work to reduce water use, new data showed just how much water is helping prop up factory farms.

Amanda Starbuck, research director for the nonprofit Food and Water Watch, said the biggest draw is coming from thirsty alfalfa farms, producing hay for livestock living in confined feedlots and dairy stalls.

"In 2024, alfalfa farms in the Colorado River Basin used over 2 trillion gallons of water," Starbuck reported. "This is enough water, to put it in perspective, to supply the water needs for 40 million people for three and a half years."

In 2024, alfalfa farms in Colorado soaked up more than 418 billion gallons of water, up 41% from 2022, the largest increase across all Basin states. It amounts to a third of the state's entire Colorado River allocation and enough water to supply the city of Denver for 38 years. Defenders of factory farming have argued the practice is necessary to feed the nation's growing population.

Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming have until the end of 2026 to match water use with what the Colorado River can actually deliver after decades of drought exacerbated by climate change. Starbuck pointed out plants used to feed livestock generate more calories than meat or milk.

"Factory farms are not a very efficient way to produce calories," Starbuck argued. "If feeding people were really the top concern here, we would be growing more food for direct human consumption."

In 2022, Colorado's 193,000 dairy cows living in confinement operations consumed nearly 7 billion gallons of water, a 20% increase from 2017 and also the largest increase among Basin states. It is enough to supply indoor water to half a million people. Starbuck added untreated wastewater at factory farms can also affect water supplies.

"Both wastewater from cleaning out stalls, but also a ton of waste in the form of manure," Starbuck outlined. "That leads to runoff and that will also pollute major water systems that feed into the Colorado River."


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New research at Iowa State University shows elevated nitrate levels have an outsize effect on the state's most vulnerable populations.

Studies show exposure to nitrates can increase the risks of birth defects and various types of cancer.

ISU Water Resources Assistant Professor Liu Lu said nitrates, which are prominent in ground and surface water near commercial agriculture operations, exceed safe levels, and affect Iowa's most vulnerable.

"Such as people of color," said Lu, "low-income populations, elderly, and also children."

Despite their negative health impacts, the Iowa Environmental Council reports only 4% of public water utilities in Iowa have nitrate removal systems.

The data show the presence of nitrates in the water is especially high in rural communities, and Liu said northeast Iowa's Blackhawk County stands out in her research.

"This county has very high nitrate in their treated water," said Lu. "They also have very high social vulnerability. So, people living in that county are disproportionately exposed to high nitrate in their drinking water."

Her research includes an interactive map that shows which parts of the state have the highest nitrate pollution in their groundwater.

Liu's work was published in Environmental Science: Water Research & Technology.



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