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Wetlands in Site Design - Part 1

Wetlands are a frequent topic of discussion in development projects and can greatly impact the layout, outcome, and cost of a project. The US Army Corps of Engineers is the federal entity responsible for overseeing the protection of wetlands. Some states have entities that oversee wetlands at the state level (i.e. the DNR in Minnesota). Other states, such as North Dakota, allow the USACE to oversee the protection of their wetlands. Per the US Army Corps of Engineers, a wetland is defined as "an area that is covered by shallow water or has waterlogged soils for long periods during the growing season in most years". The following information highlights the process of discovering and receiving proper permitting for a site that contains a wetland.
  1. A city or state entity requires the project engineer to identify any wetlands on the site.
  2. Hire an environmental engineer to conduct a wetland delineation.
  3. The environmental engineer performs the wetland delineation and produces a report with findings.
  4. Project engineer submits report and "Request for Jurisdictional Determination" application to US Army Corps of Engineers.
  5. The US Army Corps of Engineers determines whether or not the subject wetland is jurisdictional.
  6. If the Corps determines that the wetland is NOT jurisdictional, no further action is needed, and the project can proceed within the guidelines and rules of the local entities.
  7. If the Corps determines that the wetland is jurisdictional, the project engineer completes a Section 404 permit and selects one of the following mitigation options: 
    • Modify the project to completely avoid disturbing the wetland.
    • Come up with a mitigation plan that creates and maintains a wetland on the project site.
    • Buy wetland credits from a conservation organization, such as Ducks Unlimited. The cost is based on the size of the wetland area that will be disturbed. The cost of a wetland credit changes every year and is dependent on the region that the project is in. A few ways the conservation organization may use that money include creating wildlife easements, purchasing different properties that contains a wetland and turning them into protected wildlife areas, and restoring existing habitat that is deteriorating.
  8. Receive approval from the US Army Corps of Engineers on the Section 404 permit. Proceed with project.