In a recent interview with Reuters, U.S. EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt laid out the agency’s plan to rework Obama-era clean water regulations while emphasizing the need to combat lead contamination in municipal water pipes.
The announcement from Pruitt is part of an ongoing effort by President Donald Trump’s administration to soften regulations it claims are too restrictive and hurt the economy. Meanwhile, environmentalists say the Obama-era regulations are crucial for people and wildlife.
One of the EPA’s goals for the new year is to rewrite the Waters of the United States rule, which defines federally protected waterways. Some of those protected waterways, according to Pruitt and Trump, are too small to be significant.
The EPA administrator also called on Congress to create an infrastructure package to replace municipal water pipes in an effort to address the problem of high lead levels in some parts the country.
“That to me is something very tangible, very important that we can achieve for the American people,” Pruitt told Reuters.