A proposal by the Environ­men­tal Protection Agency (EPA) to redefine the navigable waters subject to the Clean Water Act is a tremendous government overreach that would force farmers to obtain permits for nearly every agricultural activity, hinder Iowa’s conservation progress and make it tougher for young people to get started in agriculture, Iowa Farm Bureau members wrote in comments gathered through the FB Response system.

"It’s astounding. You’ve done it again EPA, gone and written a regulatory rule that exceeds all authority and, beyond that, all common sense," wrote Ryan Frederick, an Adair Farm Bureau member.

Jennifer Dammann, a Page County Farm Bureau member, wrote: "This proposed rule is so vague, long and very unclear that I feel that they are wanting farmers or others to fail at it so a large fine can be assessed. Why am I taking this...