Overview of Mitigation Banking
Wetlands are recognized for numerous natural and societal benefits such as providing wildlife habitat, water quality enhancement, water recharge and retention, rare species sanctuary, and flood control. The U.S. Federal Government has acknowledged these benefits and supports their presence by formally encouraging mitigation banking.
"No Net Loss" is the cornerstone of U.S. wetlands conservation and traces its roots to a 1987 National Wetlands Policy Forum. The forum aimed to achieve no overall net loss of the nation's remaining wetlands base and to create and restore wetlands, where feasible, to increase the quantity and quality of the nation's wetland resources. Both former President George W. H. Bush and his son, President George W. Bush have publicly echoed this concept encouraging restoration and replacement of destroyed wetlands to prevent further wetlands loss.
Section 404 of the Clean Water Act defines the regulatory process with which the public must comply when encountering wetlands on a construction site. When it is not possible to avoid impacts to wetlands, then the site operator must minimize impacts to the greatest extent practicable and mitigate for unavoidable impacts. Mitigation entails replacing impacted wetlands with a similar wetland type (when possible), within the same watershed, and in a manner that compensates for the functions and values lost at the impact site. This may be done on-site or off-site and the mitigation must be documented successful.
Mitigation banking provides site operators the convenient option of purchasing compensatory mitigation credits rather than creating wetlands and transfers long-term mitigation management from site operators to bank personnel that specialize in wetland management. Mitigation banks deliver mitigation on-demand and streamline Clean Water Act permitting, freeing site operators to focus on their project instead of wetland replacement.
For more information, see the Federal Guidance on Mitigation Banking Tab above.
