Delta Waterfowl Supports Clean Water Restoration Act

Hunters Asked to Contact Congressional Representatives

Delta Waterfowl urges waterfowl hunters nationwide to contact their Congressional representatives and ask them to support the Clean Water Restoration Act of 2007, a bill that would protect millions of acres of small, isolated wetlands most critical for duck production.

Passage of the Clean Water Restoration Act of 2007 took on added importance after a new guidance issued by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers removed Clean Water Act protections for geographically isolated wetlands.

Also known as prairie potholes, these small wetlands are the engines that drive duck production on the prairie breeding grounds across North and South Dakota, Montana, Minnesota and Iowa. Without these small, ephemeral wetlands, continental duck populations would plummet.

The new guidance follows two Supreme Court decisions (2001 and 2006) that failed to adequately resolve which wetlands qualify for protection under the Clean Water Act of 1972.

The new legislation, which currently has roughly 160 co-sponsors, would reaffirm Congress' original intent and protect prairie potholes, as well as other critical bodies of water.

Aside from providing important habitat for ducks and other migratory waterfowl, the wetlands at risk of loosing protection help filter out pollution, replenish public water supplies and act as buffers against storms and flooding.

To help save our remaining prairie potholes vital for the future of duck hunting, click here.