“President Trump has issued an Executive Order directing the Administrator of the EPA and the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works to review the Clean Water Rule and publish for notice and comment a proposed rule rescinding or revising the rule, as appropriate and consistent with law. EPA and the Army intend to immediately implement the Executive Order and publish a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to rescind or revise the rule” (EPA).

The Environmental Protection Agency issued the above statement after President-elect Donald Trump called for Congress to review of the Clean Water Rule. This policy defines what bodies of water are meant to be protected under the landmark Clean Water Act, making protection a less time-consuming process and easier for businesses and industry to understand. Many are concerned that the ensuing deregulation would make it more difficult to monitor pollution levels, posing a risk both to public and environmental health.

Since the water crisis began in Flint, public interest in water safety has increased here in Michigan. In the city of Alma, a group of citizens concerned about pollution levels in the local water supply— the Pine River—formed the Healthy Pine River Organization with has the stated goal of improving water quality and educating their community about water pollution.

Their fears are not unfounded. This past summer, I monitored the Pine River for unsafe levels of E. coli as part of a larger, ongoing study of river pollution. I was told that testing we did would have experienced severe delays had the city been forced to rely upon the state for assistance, despite the fact that we consistently observed dangerously high levels of bacteria in this supposedly recreational body of water. If Trump does decide to deregulate these programs, then I fear that assessing environmental risk will become an even more slow and arduous process.

Proponents of this plan argue that spending on water quality testing is a waste of national resources. Yet, I have to ask what they think the cost would be to our nation if we fail to control pollution early on and it ends up damaging the health of residents and surrounding ecosystems. The impact could be irreversible, as was the case with Flint. It will be a stain on our nation if, in our haste to save money, we do not take responsibility for the safety of our citizens and the health of our land.