We dont need all the gadgets and gizmos. We dont need the internet, television, microwaves, cars, planes, computers, live streaming necklaces, tablets, cell phones. Heck, I suppose when it really comes down to it, we dont need fly rods, or fancy reels, or even size 12 Adams to probe the waters for hungry trout.

The list of things we dont need is nearly endless.

The list of things we do need, and I mean to survive on this planet as a species, is rather short indeed. At the top of that list is water - good, clean water.

Remarkably, the future of clean water in the United States is currently in peril as one of the first executive orders signed by the Trump administration tasked the Environmental Protection Agency with rescinding and replacing the Clean Water Rule, a rule that protects 60% of stream miles in the United States and one-third of the nations drinking water supply.

Its shocking, said Chris Wood, President and Chief Executive Officer of Trout Unlimited. What we are talking about here is water, the basic right of every American to have clean drinking water.

Of course these headwater streams that stand to lose protection are the same waters that hold trout, like our native brook trout here in Virginia.

Waters of the U.S (WOTUS), or the Clean Water Rule, was signed by President Obama in 2015 after years of uncertainty and debate and several Supreme Court cases regarding which waters and streams were protected under the Clean Water Act. Unfortunately, additional lawsuits have held up the implementation of the rule.

What was unclear under the Clean Water Act, some argued, was whether or not intermittent or ephemeral streams, ones that dont always have water or flow, should be protected. These are the headwater streams, or 60% of all streams in the United States.

After hundreds of peer-reviewed studies and millions of public comments, a clear nexus was established between headwater streams and the navigable waters into which they flow.

To sum it up, water flows downhill and it takes whatever you put in it upstream to where it goes downstream, even when that water might only flow for part of the year.

The whole point is these are the roots of streams and bays downstream, the coolest and cleanest waters downstream and the heart and soul of trout water, said Steve Moyer, Vice President of Government Affairs for Trout Unlimited.

We want to go forward on water. We want things to get better. We see streams and rivers getting better. We see the Chesapeake Bay getting better. Why would you want to go back?

And thats the heart of the issue. Why would we want to go backwards in terms of clean water?

Gravity works cheap and never takes a day off, Moyer continued. We stand to lose 1000s of miles of streams that wont be protected under the Clean Water Act with the need for basic permitting.

How could Virginia be affected? Not as badly as some states, but still, its not good. A significant amount of headwater streams in the Rappahannock, the Potomac, and the James River watersheds, including 58% of streams that constitute the Jackson River watershed, could lose their protection. Of course the water flowing into the Jackson ultimately makes its way into the James, which accounts for our drinking water here in Richmond.

From an ecological and science perspective, all these waters are connected, said Bill Street, Chief Executive Officer for the James River Association. Headwater streams are crucial for the health of waters downstream. We cant have a healthy James unless we have healthy headwaters. Removing federal protection from those waters makes them more vulnerable.

While the folks at Trout Unlimited are certainly focused on trout and their habitat, their concern here extends beyond just places where anglers might cast a fly.

Every new administration has the right to put their mark on things, said Moyer, but this is a fundamental and radical shift from how this nation has protected its water for 40 years.

The comment period on the proposed rescinding of the Clean Water Rule has been extended through September 27th. For more information, and to comment, visit Trout Unlimited s website (http://www.tu.org) or the Environmental Protection Agencys website (https://www.epa.gov).

More here:

Clarkson: Trump administration is imperiling progress made under Clean Water Act - Richmond.com