Democratic challenger Paul Davis says if he’s elected Kansas governor, he will resist a new federal rule asserting regulatory authority over many of the nation’s streams and wetlands.

Davis said Thursday that the rule would be damaging to agriculture. He said he would consider a lawsuit to block the rule if necessary.

He spoke shortly after Republican Gov. Sam Brownback announced that he and five members of his Cabinet are sending a letter to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s administrator, asking the agency to withdraw the rule.

Brownback has made opposition to the rule part of his re-election campaign before the Nov. 4 election. He’s in a tough race with Davis.

The EPA contends the rule clarifies which waters are shielded from development under federal law.