Mitigation Banks
APPLICABLE POLICY: Wetland Mitigation Banking National Policy and Guidance.(link) The applicable policy, environmental laws and regulations can be found in the Federal Register, 28 Nov 95, Volume 60, Number 228, Pages 58605-58614, Federal Guidelines for the Establishment, Use and Operation of Mitigation Banks.
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Wetland Mitigation Banking - providing compensatory compensation in Advance of authorized impacts.
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Prospectus- the draft description of a proposed bank venture distributed to mitigation banking review team.
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Banking Instrument - this is the final draft of the bank prospectus. The banking instrument is the final form and will contain the signatures of concurring mitigation banking review team members.
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Mitigation Banking Review Team (MBRT)- an interagency group of Federal, State, Tribal and/or local regulatory and resource agency representatives which are signatory to a banking instrument and oversee the establishment, use and operation of the bank. The MBRT consist of representatives from the Corps, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and pertinent state resource agencies such as the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Missouri Department of Conservation, Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, etc. Also included are any Tribal or local park districts as needed.
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Sponsor- any public or private entity responsible for establishing and in most circumstances, operating wetland mitigation banks.
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Chair- Oversees all coordination and has final approval on establishing the wetland mitigation bank. The Regulatory Branch (Corps of Engineers) Chair’s all Bank’s; except for Bank’s established for the sole purpose of complying with the Food Security Act, as such the Natural Resource Conservation Service is the Chair.
GENERAL INFORMATION: Bank prospectuses can be submitted to the Corps Regulatory Branch with or without prior consultation. The Bank prospectus submitted for review should adequately address all fourteen terms and conditions found in the November 28, 1995, Federal Register.
Mitigation Banking is a provision of the mitigation process for authorized "activities" that are permitted under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act.
Compensation for these permitted "activities" can often be impractical or unfeasible to accomplish (Conceptually, this is the origin of Mitigation Banking).
In short, a bank establishes advanced credit, as impacts occur debit accrues, compensation achieved by debiting from a Bank. However, it is important to note that using a Mitigation Bank is simply an option when compensation is required for the authorized impacts. If more practical or feasible compensation options exist, they shall take precedence.
COORDINATION: Upon submittal of a completed prospectus to our office, members of the Mitigation Banking Review Team (MBRT) shall be forwarded one hard copy for their review. The following flow chart diagrams the chronology of this review:
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