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Breaking News: Appeals Court Halts WOTUS Rule Nationwide

On Friday, October 9, a federal appeals court halted a high-profile rule defining the scope of the Clean Water Act, marking the latest legal maneuver for the controversial rule. Judges on the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati, Ohio issued an order granting states’ request to stay the Waters of the U.S. rule while the court considers its legality. The order comes in response to challenges by 18 states to the Waters of the U.S. rule from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Army Corps of Engineers and puts the rule on hold pending legal review. The petitioners included: Ohio, Michigan, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia, West Virginia, Alabama, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources, South Carolina, Utah and Wisconsin.

Federal Court Halts WOTUS Rule

On Aug. 27, a United States District Court for the District of North Dakota issued an order blocking the controversial Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule hours before it was due to take effect. Judge Ralph Erickson found that the 13 states suing to block the rule met the conditions necessary for a preliminary injunction. Erickson included that the states would likely be harmed if courts didn’t act.

The decision is a major roadblock for the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers, who were planning to begin enforcing the WOTUS rule last week, expanding federal jurisdiction over small waterways like streams and wetlands. Read more here.

Stream + Wetlands will continue to monitor this situation and provide information as it becomes available.

Credit Release Anticipated at Granger Mitigation Bank

The Corps of Engineers has informed us that they intend to release a small amount of credits at the Granger Wetland Mitigation bank in early September. The credit release may include forested and non-forested wetland credits. For more information, please contact us soon as we anticipate that there will be a strong demand for these credits.

Stream mitigation ILF approved

We are pleased to announce that on July 8, the Pittsburgh Corps District approved the Final Instrument for our stream mitigation in-lieu fee program. This encompasses the four 8-digit HUC’s in the Ohio portion of the Pittsburgh Corps District. “We are thrilled to have received final approval of our in-lieu fee program for stream mitigation in the Pittsburgh District,” said Stream + Wetlands Foundation President Vince Messerly. “This will provide an immediate relief to permit applicants in this part of Ohio that need to provide compensatory mitigation for impacts to streams.”

The cost of the stream mitigation credits will be $230 per linear foot. We anticipate receiving approval from the Huntington Corps District for our in lieu fee program for streams in that District by the end of this summer. For more information, please feel free to call us at (740) 654-4016 or read more about our ILF programs here.

Coming Soon

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Ohio Wetlands Foundation’s Approved In-Lieu Fee Programs

The Ohio Wetlands has received approval of our In-Lieu-Fee Programs (ILFP) for the USACE Pittsburgh District and Huntington Corps Districts. The Pittsburgh District comprises part of eastern Ohio while the Huntington District encompasses 45,000 square miles in parts of five states, including the majority of Ohio. This authorization will assist permit applicants in these Districts with their mitigation needs. Contact Vince Messerly for more information about these programs.