Federal Wetlands Conservation Program Deeply Flawed

In a report issued this week, a National Research Council panel concluded that a federalwetlands remediation program has failed to stem the loss of wetlandsnationwide. The Council, which is affiliated with the National Academyof Sciences (NAS), deemed only 30 of 70 wetlands-replacement projects in Orange County successful. The panel accused the Army Corps of Engineers, the programoverseer, of negligence in enforcing developer compliance. The reportconcludes that, based on U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service figures, the 1990 federal objective of "no netloss" of wetlands has not been met, though wetland losses have slowed.The report contains several policy recommendations, including broadersearches for replacement sites. The continental U.S. has lost about 50percent of its wetlands since 1780, and Southern California has lostmore that 90 percent of its coastal wetlands to development.

Thanks to California 2000 Project