"Three decades after the passage of the landmark Clean Water
Act, our nation continues to lose tens of thousands of acres of
wetlands each year, and hundreds of miles of streams as well,"
said Howard Fox of Earthjustice, attorney for the
conservationists. "Industry should comply with the law and
reduce the massive aquatic destruction it causes annually,
instead of trying to poke holes in our premier water pollution
control law during its thirtieth anniversary year." At issue in
the case are activities on a California ranch that destroyed and
damaged numerous wetlands and streams, in order to convert them
to crop production. The US Army Corps of Engineers and the US
Environmental Protection Agency concluded that such activity
could not be undertaken without a permit, and federal district
and appellate courts in California agreed. The appellate court
noted that the wetlands and streams "depend upon a dense layer
of soil, called a 'restrictive layer' or 'clay pan,' which
prevents surface water from penetrating d