(11) “Degraded wetland" means a wetland subjected to deleterious activities, such as drainage, grazing, cultivation, increased stormwater input, or partial filling, to the extent that natural wetland characteristics are severely compromised and wetland function is substantially reduced.
(12) “Department” means the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.
(13) “Direct impacts” means adverse impacts to wetlands that occur immediately as the result of a permitted or exempt activity and that result in the loss of wetland function and area.
(14) “Enhancement" means the manipulation of physical, chemical, or biological characteristics of an existing wetland resource to heighten, intensify, or improve a specific wetland function that results in the gain of selected wetland function but may also lead to a decline in other wetland function and does not result in a gain in wetland resource area.
(15) “Exempt project proponent” means an entity or individual that discharges dredged or fill material into wetlands but is exempt from permit requirements pursuant to s. 281.36 (4), (4m), and (4n), Stats. (16) “Functional values” or “wetland function” means one or more of the following ecological or cultural services that wetlands provide, including storm and flood water storage and retention; hydrologic functions; filtration or storage of sediments, nutrients, or toxic substances; shoreline protection against erosion; habitat for aquatic organisms; habitat for resident and transient wildlife species; and recreational, cultural, educational, scientific, and natural scenic values.
(17) “HUC 6” means a watershed delineated by the U.S. geological survey using a nationwide system based on surface hydrologic features at the 6-digit basin scale (the hydrologic unit code 6).
(18) “HUC 8” means a watershed delineated by the U.S. geological survey using a nationwide system based on surface hydrologic features at the 8-digit sub-basin scale (the hydrologic unit code 8).
(19) “In-lieu fee program” means a mitigation subprogram established by the department under s. 281.36 (3r) (e), Stats., or sponsored by a public or nonprofit entity that sells advanced mitigation credits to permittees or exempt project proponents to satisfy their mitigation requirements and uses funds from the sale of credits for restoration, enhancement, creation, or preservation of wetlands. (20) “Interagency review team” means the group of federal, tribal, state, and/or local regulatory agencies that review and approve wetland mitigation banks and in-lieu fee programs.
Note: As described in 33 CFR 332.8(b), the U.S. army corps of engineers is the lead agency on the interagency review team and the U.S. environmental protection agency, the U.S. fish and wildlife service, the natural resources conservation service, noaa fisheries, and other agencies may participate as appropriate to review specific mitigation sites. The U.S. army corps of engineers will seek to include all public agencies with a substantive interest in the establishment of a mitigation bank or in-lieu fee program on the interagency review team. The department may participate on the interagency review team for mitigation banks and any non-department in-lieu fee programs at the discretion of the U.S. army corps of engineers. Wisconsin tribes and the state bureau of aeronautics may serve as interagency review team members when they have interest in mitigation projects. Members of the interagency review team shall review prospectuses, compensation site plans, mitigation bank and in-lieu fee program instruments, construction reports, monitoring reports, credit release requests, mitigation bank and in-lieu fee program instrument modification requests, and other documents as needed and provide comments to the U.S. army corps of engineers. The U.S. army corps of engineers will give full consideration of any timely comments from other members but retains final authority for instrument and all other approvals for a mitigation bank or in-lieu fee program that is used to satisfy compensatory mitigation for federal wetland permits. (21) “Mitigation” means the restoration, enhancement, creation, or preservation of wetlands to compensate for adverse impacts to other wetlands.
(22) “Mitigation bank” means a system of accounting for wetland loss and compensation that includes one or more sites where wetlands are restored, enhanced, created, or preserved to provide credits to be subsequently applied or purchased in order to compensate for adverse impacts to other wetlands.
(23) “Mitigation bank instrument” means a legal document governing the establishment and operation of a mitigation bank, which includes the compensation site plan, financial and mitigation credit provisions, site ownership and legal protection, and long-term management plans.
(24) “Mitigation project” or “mitigation site” means a wetland restoration, enhancement, creation, or preservation site that is developed with the intention of selling credits to permittees or exempt applicants in need of mitigation or a site developed by a permittee or exempt applicant to fulfill their mitigation requirements.
(25) “Mitigation sponsor” or “sponsor” means any public or private individual or entity responsible for establishing and operating a mitigation bank, in-lieu fee program, or permittee-responsible mitigation project.
(26) “Monitoring plan" means a narrative describing the data collection, analysis, and reporting requirements for documenting the change in wetland function on mitigation sites in a compensation site plan approved by the department.
(27) “Nonfederal wetland” means a wetland that is not subject to federal jurisdiction under 33 USC 1344. (28) “On-site" means a mitigation project located within one-half mile of the impacted wetland.
(29) “Performance standards" means quantifiable physical, chemical, or biological measures or objectives required for the mitigation site in a compensation site plan approved by the department.
(30) “Permittee” means an applicant for a wetland general or individual permit under s. 281.36, Stats. (31) “Permittee-responsible mitigation project” means a mitigation project developed by a permittee or exempt project proponent, or their authorized agent or contractor, to complete required mitigation and for which the permittee or exempt project proponent retains full legal responsibility.
(32) “Preservation” means preventing the decline of ecologically significant or rare or high-quality wetlands through long-term site protection that alone does not result in a gain of wetland resource area or functions.
(33) “Prospectus” means a preliminary wetland mitigation project design prepared by a mitigation sponsor and including descriptions of existing site conditions, site ownership and management, mitigation goals and objectives, and ecological suitability of the project.
(34) “Re-establishment” means the manipulation of the physical, chemical, or biological characteristics of a site with the goal of returning ecological functions to a former wetland resource that results in a gain in wetland resource area and function.
(35) “Rehabilitation” means the manipulation of the physical, chemical, or biological characteristics of a site with the goal of repairing ecological functions to a degraded existing wetland resource that results in a gain in wetland resource functions but does not result in a gain in wetland resource area.
(36) (a) “Restoration" means the manipulation of the physical, chemical, or biological characteristics of a site with the goal of returning ecological functions to a former or degraded wetland resource.
(b) Restoration includes re-establishment and rehabilitation.
(37) “Secondary impacts” means impacts to wetlands that are causally linked to the proposed project.
Note: Secondary impacts may include, but are not limited to, hydrologic impacts, changes in wildlife use to due habitat fragmentation or habitat conversion, or the introduction or increase of invasive or non-native plant species to a wetland.
(38) “Temporary impacts” means adverse impacts to wetlands that are not permanent and are the result of a permitted or exempt project and that meet one or more of the following requirements:
(a) Only occur during the non-growing season.
(b) Result in negligible impacts to wetland function or area.
(c) Preexisting wetland function is restored at or soon after the conclusion of the permitted or exempt activity.
Note: Temporary impacts may include, but are not limited to, open trenching, timber mat placement, or temporary vegetation clearing.
(39) “Wetland" means an area where water is at, near, or above the land surface long enough to be capable of supporting aquatic or hydrophytic vegetation and which has soils indicative of wet conditions.
(40) “Wetland delineation” means the standard procedure for determining the boundary of a wetland area according to procedures contained in the wetland delineation manual published in 1987 by the U.S. army corps of engineers.
(41) “Wetland quantification tool” means a coordinated set of numeric measures scientifically developed by the department or a contractor for the purpose of calculating potential wetland function loss due to permitted or exempt adverse impacts to wetlands and for calculating the gain in wetland function at wetland mitigation sites.
NR 350.004 Mitigation Sequence. (1) For mitigation required under the issuance of wetland individual permits per s. 281.36 (3n) (d), Stats., and for a discharge that is exempt from permitting requirements under s. 281.36 (4n) (b) Stats., or under s. 281.36 (4n) (c), Stats., the department shall allow mitigation to be accomplished by any of the following methods: (a) Purchase of mitigation bank credits in the same HUC 8 watershed as the wetland impacted by the discharge.
(b) Purchase of mitigation bank credits in the same service area as the wetland impacted by the discharge.
(c) Purchase of in-lieu fee program credits in the same service area as the wetland impacted by the discharge.
(d) Completing a permittee-responsible mitigation project within the same service area of the site of the discharge.
(e) Purchase of mitigation bank credits in the same basin as the wetland impacted by the discharge.
(2) The department may, in consultation with the U.S. army corps of engineers, require mitigation to be completed using any of the methods in (a) to (e) that are available if the department determines it would better serve natural resource goals, such as retaining flood water, improving water quality, improving hydrologic function, improving or restoring wildlife habitat, or more closely matching the impacted wetland type.
