Five point five percent of the United States are wetlands. Wetlands are an ecosystem that is full of water, and they are considered a critical part of our environment. During the last few days of January, Donald Trump and his administration finalized a new rule that discards all environmental protection around the U.S. for wetlands, streams, and groundwater.

“This policy on the surface really helps farmers. It relaxes population control, but the fertilizers they are putting down are some of the most excessive pollutants that do down into the Gulf of Mexico and cause the dead zones,” said environmental teacher Joseph Rogalski

Some wetland protection acts have been in place since 1963, like the Jones Act that was passed to protect all coastal wetlands. They were put into place to provide flood protection, provide a well habitat for wildlife and to keep water clean.

Without the Jones Act, the wildlife in that area might have created a great deal of issues. Some being wildlife not even having a habitat or there not being any wildlife in the area at all. Then of course without this act the towns near where the Jones Act covers could be at risk of huge floods.

“From the government perspective, there could be certain interest groups that are lobbying him to remove those barriers,” said government teacher Stacy Selle.

Environmental choices in the U.S. are almost always involved with the government considering most environmental choices require a law that the president has to pass. So when it comes to wetlands, streams, and groundwater perhaps what the president is doing it not for his own entrance but someone else’s perhaps like the farmers that really benefit from the removal of this act.

The “ New York Times” reported that “From day one of his administration, President Trump vowed to repeal President Barack Obama’s “Waters of the United States” regulation, which had frustrated rural landowners. His new rule, which will be implemented in about 60 days, is the latest step in the Trump administration’s push to repeal or weaken nearly 100 environmental rules and laws, loosening or eliminating rules on climate change, clean air, chemical pollution, coal mining, oil drilling and endangered species protections.”

With this being in Trump’s mind most likely ever since he was signed into office, who knows why he wanted to remove the act. Though it does benefit farmers, it will hurt the ecosystems that would resign in these waterlands.

“It might not seem that way in Chicago. We’ve got a nice beautiful source of freshwater, Lake Michigan, but consider if there wasn’t regulation on it. It’s no secret that a couple decades ago in Ohio these giant bodies of water started on fire. That’s why these regulations exist. That’s why the Clean Water Act was passed by Nixon I might add. Regulation can hurt business, but if the alternative is our river lighting on fire, maybe some regulation is important,” Rogalski said.