Compensating for Wetland Losses Under the Clean Water Act (2001) / Chapter Skim
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1 Introduction
1 Introduction
Pages 11-21
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From page 11... ...
Accordingly, Congress articulated the more measurable goal of attaining water quality to provide for recreation and to protect fish, shellfish, and wildlife. Toward achievement of this goal, the CWA prohibits the discharge of dredged or fill material into waters of the United States unless a permit issued under Section 404 of the CWA authorizes such a discharge.
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From page 12... ...
However, when wetlands are lost, so are the many functions that they provide within landscapes (Mitsch and Gosselink 2000~. Although not all wetlands provide all functions, wetland functions can include water-quality improvement; water retention, which helps to ameliorate flood peaks and desynchronizes high flows in streams and rivers; groundwater recharge; shoreline stabilization; and provision of a unique environment, part aquatic and part terrestrial, that supports a diversity of plants and animals, including a majority of the nation's rare and endangered species.
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From page 13... ...
The wetland may have been degraded or hydrologically altered, and restoration then may involve reestablishing hydrological conditions to reestablish previous vegetation communities. Wetland creation refers to the conversion of a persistent upland or shallow water area into a wetland by human activity.
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From page 14... ...
A compensatory mitigation project is the creation, restoration, enhancement, or preservation of a wetland designed to offset permitted losses of wetland functions in response to special conditions of a permit. The mitigation project provides a desired set of hydrological, water quality, and/ or habitat functions in the watershed.
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From page 15... ...
When planning a compensatory mitigation project, a wetland's structure and location in the watershed are chosen to secure particular wetland functions. The plan might be based on a functional assessment that relates a wetland's structure and location to its function; alternatively, a compensatory mitigation project plan might seek to secure a particular type of wetland.
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From page 16... ...
Nonagricultural uses were not reported as separate categories in the earlier report published in 1991; they include silviculture, urban, and rural development uses. Also, the FWS tables include wetland gains through creation and restoration and do not reflect changes that may have occurred in wetland type.
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From page 17... ...
. Losses to agriculture fell from about 138,000 acres per year to about 15,000 acres per year, almost a TABLE 1-1 Causes Wetland Losses Due to Agricultural and Nonagricultural Wetland Losses Rate of Wetland Loss Total Acreage Lost and Time Period Due to Agriculture Due to Nonagriculture Annual Average Loss Mid-1970s to 137,540 acres /yeara 1 1 7,230 acres /yeara 2,547,700 acres;b mid-1980sa 54% of lossa 46% of lossa 254,770 acres/yeara (10 years)
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From page 18... ...
1994~. This 63% decline in nonagricultural wetland losses at a time of sharp economic expansion might be attributed to the presence of, and increased understanding about, Section 404 and nonfederal wetland permitting programs.
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From page 19... ...
Data provided by the Corps for its Section 404 permitting program during the 1990s suggest a net gain in wetland area (see Figure 1-1~. The Corps' Headquarters, Operations, Construction, and Readiness Division compiles data submitted by the district offices on the area of wetland losses and the compensatory mitigation required in permits.
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From page 20... ...
Assuming that most mitigation that has been required by the Corps was initiated and resulted in jurisdictional wetlands, the Section 404 program has achieved no net loss of wetland area. This would mean that wetland losses to urban and rural development, as reported by FWS, are occurring outside the scope of the Section 404 program.
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From page 21... ...
The committee will analyze an illustrative set of wetland mitigation projects, including individual projects, mitigation banks, and in-lieu fee programs to the extent that they have ecological goals. As part of its efforts, the committee will consider questions in these three areas: · Goals for mitigation and criteria for selecting mitigation project type.
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