USDA is investing $7 million in eight projects to support the development of wetland mitigation banks for agricultural producers through the Wetland Mitigation Banking Program (WMBP).
WASHINGTON, Nov. 21, 2024 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing $7 million in eight projects to support the development of wetland mitigation banks for agricultural producers through the Wetland Mitigation Banking Program (WMBP). Through wetland mitigation banks, wetlands are restored, created or enhanced, generating credits that can be purchased by producers looking to compensate for unavoidable impacts to wetlands at another location.
“Private landowners play an important role in restoring and protecting wetland health on working agricultural lands,” said USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Chief Terry Cosby. “Through wetland mitigation banking we can help them not only meet USDA requirements but also improve the health of wetlands and boost wetland benefits, like storing floodwaters, filtering pollutants and providing critical habitat to wildlife.”
This year’s awarded projects are:
Corblu Ecology Group LLC
Funding Amount: $641,590
Georgia
Corblu Ecology Group LLC will develop a new mitigation site under the Georgia Agricultural Wetland Bank umbrella banking instrument to meet the needs of USDA producers in Georgia. The site is proposed to be in the coastal plain ecoregion in a high or moderate priority watershed and will include up to 50 acres of wetland restoration/enhancement.
Ellingson Drainage, Inc.
Funding Amount: $975,300
Minnesota
Ellingson Drainage, Inc. and its partner, Moore Engineering, Inc., will develop three to five wetland mitigation bank sites under this project in southern and western Minnesota. Agricultural producers will be able to access 150-200 bank credits.
Iowa Agricultural Mitigation, Inc.
Funding Amount: $999,900
Iowa
This project is a public-private partnership between Iowa Agricultural Mitigation, Inc., the Wright County Conservation Board, Wright County Drainage District No. 229, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, and several area farmers and landowners. The project will result in the restoration of approximately 75 acres in Wright County in north-central Iowa.
Magnolia IL LLC
Funding Amount: $599,500
Illinois
Magnolia IL LLC proposes to expand the previously approved Illinois Conservation Exchange umbrella banking instrument to include an additional mitigation bank site, generating a minimum of 40 acres of forested wetland mitigation credits in the northwestern part of the state.
Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Funding Amount: $1,000,000
Michigan
This project will expand Michigan’s Wetland Mitigation Banking Program to provide 250 credits to agricultural producers to mitigate wetland conversions and maintain compliance with Farm Bill wetland provisions. A combination of grant and partner funds will be utilized to restore a minimum of ten wetlands in Michigan’s southern Lower Peninsula.
Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources
Funding Amount: $994,800
Minnesota
This project will create a minimum of six wetland banks and develop 115 wetland credits. These banks will be established in the Upper Red River, Lower Mississippi River, Mississippi Headwaters, Middle Mississippi River, Minnesota River, and Missouri River Watersheds.
Wetland Mitigation II
Funding Amount: $1,000,000
Michigan
This project aims to help develop four sites to achieve a minimum of 157.5 acres of high-quality forested wetlands in southern and mid-Michigan. There is a high demand for credits in these areas.
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Funding Amount: $981,480
Wisconsin
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources seeks to further support the Wisconsin Agricultural Mitigation Bank by developing an additional 64 wetland credits on two sites.
About the Wetland Mitigation Banking Program
To participate in most USDA programs, agricultural producers agree to comply with the wetland conservation provisions, which means producers will not farm converted wetlands or convert wetlands to enable agricultural production. In situations where avoidance or on-site mitigation is challenging, the Farm Bill allows for off-site mitigation through the purchase of mitigation banking credits.
WMBP award recipients can use WMBP funding to support the costs of developing and establishing a wetland mitigation bank, like costs for site identification, development of a mitigation banking instrument, site restoration, land surveys, permitting and title searches, and market research. Funding cannot be used to purchase land or a conservation easement.
When a mitigation 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. Since then, NRCS has awarded 31 projects supporting the creation or expansion of wetland mitigation banks in 14 states.
NRCS is prioritizing WMBP funds in specific states that have a large backlog of certified wetland determination requests.
Awardees can request up to $1 million for a project and projects may last up to four years.
For more information about the Wetland Mitigation Program, visit the website.
USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. In the Biden-Harris administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit usda.gov.
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