White House plans to improve water availability in the West
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The Phoenix Business Journal reported that the White House has released a plan that it said would improve water reliability and availability in the West by streamlining regulatory processes and conducting expedited reviews on water projects.
Under the memorandum “promoting the reliable supply and delivery of water in the West,” Trump directed the chairman of the Council on Environmental Quality and the secretaries of the Army, Commerce, Interior and Energy to repair “uncoordinated, piecemeal regulatory actions” affecting water projects.
Sarah Porter, director of the Kyl Center for Water Policy at ASU Morrison Institute, said the changes should not be rejected out of hand. Porter agrees that while environmental reviews are important, the lengthy regulatory processes can stall other meaningful conservation actions.
“It’s a legitimate and important process. It doesn’t mean it can’t be streamlined,” Porter said.
“We have these processes so that there is a chance for people to raise legitimate objections, many of which are environmental,” or are related to cost, Porter said. “And so it’s important to have the processes.”
READ: Trump plan to boost Western water by easing rules worries environmental group