ARTICLES

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The Galveston Bay Wetland Crisis PDF

by Andrew Sipocz

The charges wetland advocates have long levied against the Galveston District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have recently drawn national attention. Critics say the district willfully misinterprets recent court rulings when making jurisdictional calls. Here, a Texas biologist gives an in-the-field perspective on the Galveston District’s post-SWANCC jurisdictional practices.

Andrew Sipocz is a coastal habitat biologist with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department at the Dickinson Marine Lab, where he has been for the past 15 years. Previously he attained a Masters Degree from Texas A&M University, studying coastal wetlands, and worked for the Indiana Department of Natural Resources.

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Water Quality Trading: What Can We Learn From 10 Years of Wetland Mitigation Banking? PDF

by Eric Raffini and Morgan Robertson

The mitigation banking industry has grown tremendously since the early 1990s. The regulatory architects of the nascent water quality trading industry hope to learn from the mitigation banking experiment, replicating and improving upon its successes while managing the unique challenges of a market that commodifies water quality.

Eric Raffini is an environmental scientist and Morgan Robertson is a post-doctoral fellow in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Wetlands, Oceans and Watersheds. They can be reached at raffini.eric@epa.gov and robertson.morgan@epa.gov. The opinions expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the position of EPA. EPA has not endorsed the views, policy positions, or legal analyses contained in this paper.

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Public Trust Doctrine Affirmed PDF

by Robert Viguerie

A legal battle erupted in Louisiana between two groups that superficially had much in common—the oyster fishermen who had been long-time users of the state-owned coastal water bottoms and state officials determined to restore Louisiana’s rapidly vanishing coastal wetlands. The state’s eventual victory has implications for coastal restoration efforts nationwide

Robert Viguerie has been engaged in the private practice of law for 27 years and is currently an assistant professor of legal studies at the University of Louisiana, Lafayette. He also is a past chairman of the board for the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana and currently serves as chair of the coalition’s advisory council.

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Reality Check: Evaluating the Progress Toward Watershed Level Assessment PDF

by Carl Hershner

Since the National Academy of Sciences published in 2000 its evaluation of the nation’s progress toward no net loss of wetlands, policymakers and natural resources managers have sought to implement “watershed-level assessment” and “watershed-based management.” But is the pace of wetland science keeping up with their ambitions?

Carl Hershner directs the Center for Coastal Resources Management at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science of the College of William and Mary. The center focuses on applied research in wetlands, watersheds, and coastal shorelines in support of policy and management at all levels of government.

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Consequences of Mississippi River Diversion for Louisiana Coastal Restoration PDF

by Nancy Rabalais

State and federal officials concerned with Louisiana’s rapidly vanishing wetlands are counting on riverwater diversions to replenish sediment in degraded coastal marsh beds. However, a scientist argues that this plan may have adverse consequences for human health and the environment.

Nancy Rabalais is a professor at the Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium, based in Cocodrie, Louisiana. She has conducted research on hypoxia, eutrophication, and river-ocean interactions for the past 20 years. The viewpoints expressed in this article are those of the author.

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Pasco Corridors: Using Mitigation to Achieve Watershed Planning Goals PDF

by H. Clark Hull Jr., John R. Hall, and Robert J. Tietz Jr.

In a county where development pressures are intense, watershed-based planning and management require creativity. Resource managers in Pasco County, Florida, found that wetland mitigation banking could be key to achieving their watershed goals—and learned important lessons about the banking industry in the process.

H. Clark Hull Jr., PWS, is director of the Environmental Resource Permitting Program in the Southwest Florida Water Management District. John R. Hall, Ph.D., is the former Regulatory Division Chief of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District. Robert J. Tietz is a biologist for Pasco County, Florida.

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