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11.15.2011 0

Senators Barrasso and Heller take a stand for private property

By Rebecca DiFede — The Environmental Protection Agency continues to overstep their boundaries as a government body. Their previous infractions have been partially documented in a previous article from NetRightDaily.com where they imposed regulations on toxic emissions from power plants, causing a massive loss of money and jobs for the sake of (maybe) reducing our carbon footprint.

And now, once again, they have come to fight their battles in the arena of private property. Their latest encroachment is to propose regulatory changes to the Clean Water Act that drastically expand the scope and reach of their power. Regardless of Congressional approval, these mandates give the government permission to take/maintain control of any body of water that exists on private property for the purpose of energy conservation and economic preservation.

However, it is clear that those are not their true objectives. This is a blatant attempt by the EPA to encroach upon the rights of private property owners, thereby hindering their ability to make a living off their land.

Like Rogue, the mutant X-Men character who sucked power from everyone she touched, so Lisa Jackson is going on a spree, touching everything she can so as to absorb (read: steal) its power for herself.

Not only that, but the new regulations would make it more costly to grow crops, provide water to cities, operate and maintain water storage and delivery facilities, produce energy (yes, even renewable power), build and maintain public transportation systems, deliver affordable goods and services to consumers, and carry out nearly any activity that occurs on the land without the government barging in and having a say.

Sens. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) and Dean Heller (R-Nev.) have introduced an amendment to a government funding bill which intends to stop the overreach of the EPA onto private land and making sure that the bodies of water that occur on land not owned by the government remains under the owners control. The Barrosso-Heller amendment is not only important for small business and homeowners, but for cities and states that depend on a steady water supply (so, essentially everyone) and especially those in rural areas that rely on crops and livestock for their livelihood.

The bill has received some support from other organizations, such as the National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD), and their President Gene Schmidt had this to say, when asked about his feelings on the bill: “We agree with Senators Barrasso and Heller that the jurisdictional reach of the Clean Water Act should not be expanded. As conservationists, we fully support the common goal of achieving cleaner, healthier watersheds across the nation. The best way to achieve clean water is through locally-led conservation efforts, rather than a one-size-fits-all, top-down federal regulatory approach. States, local governments and private landowners play a critical leadership role in water management.” NACD promotes local conservation efforts across the nation and is a helpful supporter when the bill goes up for a vote.

The EPA has meddled in private affairs before, and it’s high time that somebody set out to cut out the weeds lest their vines grow to suffocate the rights of decent, hardworking Americans even more than they already have. Hopefully Barrasso-Heller have what it takes to go the distance and keep the government off of America’s privately owned land.

It is anticipated that the legislation could be considered as soon as Nov. 16.

Rebecca DiFede is a contributing editor to Americans for Limited Government.

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