USDA Invests $4.4 Million in Seven Wetland Mitigation Banking Projects to Support Producers and Protect Wetlands
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced in Washington on October 29 that it is investing $4.4 million in seven projects to support the development of wetland mitigation banks for agricultural producers. Through the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Wetland Mitigation Banking Program (WMBP), wetlands are restored, created or enhanced, generating credits that producers can purchase to compensate for impacts to wetlands at another location.
NRCS Chief Colton L. Buckley said USDA is putting farmers first by investing in projects that expand wetland mitigation banking opportunities across the country, supporting working lands, advancing voluntary conservation and helping producers remain eligible for USDA programs. USDA said priority was given to banks in states with significant numbers of individual wetlands, wetland acres and conservation compliance requests.
To participate in most USDA programs, producers agree to comply with wetland conservation provisions, meaning they will not plant agricultural commodities on converted wetlands or convert wetlands to enable production. Where avoidance or on-site mitigation is challenging, the Farm Bill allows off-site mitigation through the purchase of mitigation banking credits, providing a legal mechanism for producers to maintain eligibility for USDA program benefits if they convert agricultural wetlands.
Awardees may use the funding for costs of developing and establishing a mitigation bank, including site identification, development of a mitigation banking instrument, site restoration, land surveys, permitting and title searches, and market research; WMBP funding cannot be used to purchase land or a conservation easement. Projects may request up to $1 million and last up to four years. When a bank is established, the landowner retains ownership and use of the property, while a conservation easement protects the wetlands from incompatible degrading activities.
NRCS awarded the first WMBP grants in 2016 and has since awarded 41 projects supporting the creation or expansion of wetland mitigation banks in 14 states. NRCS said it has helped farmers, ranchers and forestland owners for more than 90 years to improve air, water, soil and wildlife habitat through voluntary, incentive-based conservation programs.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：湿地与森林景观航拍。美国鱼类及野生动物管理局（USFWS）照片，摄影 Sarah Yates／USFWS，公有领域。 / Aerial view of wetlands and forests on the landscape. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service photo by Sarah Yates/USFWS, public domain.
