The Trump administration is considering eroding a Biden-era wetlands conservation policy in the Midwest, unleashing a torrent of backlash from conservative hunters and dividing some of the White House’s closest allies in Congress.
The administration has not yet proposed specific revisions to the rules governing federal conservation easements in the Prairie Pothole region, a wetland-rich area in the Upper Midwest that supports over half of North America’s ducks. But a brief notice last month inviting feedback on the current policy already has hunters up in arms over fears that changes would deplete prime waterfowl habitat.
The issue is pitting North Dakota Republicans and farmers against conservatives like Sens. John Boozman (R-Ark.) and Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) — both of whom are defending the Biden administration’s regulation for wetland easements despite being otherwise in lockstep with President Donald Trump’s deregulatory mission.
If the Trump administration moves to change the policy, it could have ripple effects on bird populations and wetlands that are already more vulnerable due to reduced protections under the Clean Water Act, conservation advocates say.
