The new water rule issued by the Environmental Protection Ag­­ency (EPA) is even broader than the preliminary rule the agency first proposed in 2014, according to a new analysis by the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF).

The rule threatens to add more risk and uncertainty for farmers, as well as creating permitting requirements for normal farming activities, such as fertilizing and applying crop protection, and raises the potential for strict enforcement actions, it said.

"Our analysis shows yet again how unwise, extreme and unlawful this rule is," said Bob Stallman, AFBF president. "Our public af­­fairs specialists and legal team have assembled the best analysis available anywhere, and their conclusions are sobering: Despite months of comments and innumerable complaints, the Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) proposal is even worse than before."

The final "Waters of the U.S." or WOTUS rule, issued in late May ...