Stopping the EPA’s Rubber-stamping of Florida Wetlands’ Destruction

The EPA greenlit Florida’s proposal to take over the permitting process when developers want to build on sensitive marshes, cypress forests, ponds, and other wetlands.

Case Overview

On behalf of our clients, Earthjustice filed suit to stop an attempt by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to allow Florida to fast-track wetlands permits for construction projects that will degrade and ruin Florida’s natural landscape, all in violation of federal environmental laws. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

The agency approved Florida’s proposal to take over the federal program that issues permits when developers and others want to fill sensitive marshes, cypress forests, ponds and other wetlands — Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. In EPA’s rush to push this through, the agency skirted procedural requirements — failing even to make the state program legally effective.

The lawsuit points out that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s approval of Florida’s application to assume jurisdiction over the Clean Water Act permitting program is unlawful because:

  • Florida fails to demonstrate adequate authority to carry out the wetlands permitting program
  • Florida fails to ensure protection of animals and plants under the Endangered Species Act
  • Florida fails to demonstrate it has sufficient funding and staffing to implement and enforce the program.

The state program does not have equivalent permit requirements, enforcement authority, access to courts, public notice, public participation opportunities, and other components that are integral parts of the federal program.

A purple gallinule carefully walks on lily pads in the Everglades in Florida.
A purple gallinule carefully walks on lily pads in the Everglades in Florida. (Diana Robinson / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Case Updates

February 28, 2023 Document

Florida Assumption of 404 Permitting: Motion for Summary Judgment

Plaintiff conservation organizations bring this action to protect our Nation’s waters and the endangered species that rely on them. During the Trump Administration, Florida worked hand in glove with developers to achieve developers’ “holy grail”: state assumption over Section 404 of the Clean Water Act — which governs dredging and filling of many sensitive wetlands — in one of the most biodiverse states in the country. Between 2017 and 2020, the State and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Fish...

Aerial view of the Big Cypress National Preserve in South Florida on October 13, 2021.
January 10, 2022 Article

We’re Defending a Rare Florida Wetland From Oil Drilling

We're in court to force the federal government to protect some of the most important wetlands in America.

Aerial view of the Big Cypress National Preserve in South Florida on October 13, 2021.
January 9, 2022 Action Alert

Restore federal protections for Florida’s wetlands

Tell EPA to stand up for Florida’s wetlands and restore federal administration of the Clean Water Act wetlands program.