Promote the Every Day Counts (EDC) initiative on the use of mitigation banking and in-lieu fee programs
Introduce mitigation banking, in-lieu fee programs, and conservation banking
Provide an example of a successful mitigation banking and conservation banking program

Slide 3: Shorten Project Delivery: Use of In-Lieu Fee (ILF) and Mitigation Banking

In projects that will impact waters of the United States (wetlands, for example), the permitting process under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act currently constitutes a major component of the project development and delivery process. This initiative proposes expanded use of in-lieu fees and mitigation banking currently allowed under existing statute, FHWA regulations, State law and court decisions in order to save time and expedite project delivery.

Slide 4: How can we meet this EDC initiative?

Utilize existing banks and ILF programs
Develop Department of Transportation (DOT) (single client) banks or ILF programs

Slide 5: DOT's purchase credits at existing banks or in-lieu fee programs

Advantages	Disadvantages
Relinquish mitigation requirement Saves time Less temporal loss of resource Close out construction contract	There may not be any banks or in-lieu fee programs where DOTs need credits.

Slide 6: DOT's setting up their own banks or in-lieu fee programs

Advantages	Disadvantages
The DOT establishes the price of the credits DOT knows where their mitigation needs are	States may not have up front/seed money to start bank or in-lieu fee Long term management of site Time to establish the bank or in-lieu fee

Slide 7: FHWA Policies

Regulations	Guidance and Executive Order
₂₃ CFR ₇₇₇ MITIGATION OF IMPACTS TO WETLANDS AND NATURAL HABITAT	Federal-aid Eligibility for Long-Term Management Activities in Wetland and Natural Habitat Mitigation (Oct 3, 2008) Federal-aid Eligibility of Wetland and Natural Habitat Mitigation (March 10, 2005) Executive Order 11990—Protection of wetlands

Slide 8: Speakers today

Steve Martin, USACE-IWR
- Mitigation banking
- In-Lieu Fee programs
Deblyn Mead, USFWS
- Conservation banking
Brad Livingston, Oregon DOT
- Case study on Oregon DOT's Conservation Banking program

Slide 9: FHWA Headquarters Contacts for Mitigation Banking, Conservation Banking, and In-Lieu Fee Programs

Corrie Veenstra
FHWA-HQ
Mitigation
Corrie.veenstra@dot.gov
202-366-8168

Mike Ruth
FHWA-HQ
Mitigation
Mike.ruth@dot.gov
202-366-9509

Slide 10: Advanced Environmental Mitigation Requirements

Environmental mitigation activities are “intended to be regional in scope, and may not necessarily address potential project-level impacts.”
- 23 CFR 450.104

Image:

Photograph of a small river in a grassy valley, with tree-covered mountains in the background

Slide 11: Funding Advance Mitigation

Reimbursable Maintenance

Image:

Photograph of a pond surrounded by green vegetation

Slide 12: Advance Mitigation Partnerships

Image:

A topographic map of Elkhorn Slough, California, and a smaller map of California marked with the location of Elkhorn Slough

Slide 13: Advance Mitigation Successes

Example:
South Carolina DOT —
Carolina Bays Ecosystem Initiative

Image:

Photograph of a small river in a grassy flatland

Example:
Mississippi DOT —
Deaton Ecological Preserve

Image:

Photograph of a swamp with bare trees

Slide 14: San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) Multi-species Conservation Plan/Transnet Environmental Mitigation Project

Transnet (1/2 cent sales tax) funds transportation projects including Mitigation Project:
- Funding to acquire and manage habitat lands.
- Buy land early and bank for future mitigation needs.
- Up to $200 million in savings.

Image:

Photograph of a bird looking down at a pair of eggs in a scrape nest in the sand. The eggs are camouflaged by being colored like the sand.

Mitigation Banks and In-Lieu Fee Programs

Most of the slides in this presentation are branded with US Army Corps of Engineers "Building Strong" logo.

Slide 15: Mitigation Banks and In-Lieu Fee Programs

Steve Martin
Environmental Scientist
Institute for Water Resources (IWR)
September 8, 2011

Image:	Institute for Water Resources logo
Image:	Two photographs are fit into the upper left quadrant of a circle that is situated in the lower right corner of the slide: two hikers in a lush green forest and a view across a grassy wetland.

Slide 16: Banks and ILFs are

1 or more sites where resources are restored, established, enhanced, and/or preserved to offset permitted impacts
Governed by an instrument & overseen by an Interagency Review Team (IRT)
3^rd Party mitigation – Sponsor assumes responsibility for the mitigation
Permittees acquire mitigation credits

Slide 17: Benefits

Reduced risk & uncertainty
More efficient compliance
Often greater planning and scientific effort
May streamline permitting, by reducing effort evaluating mitigation proposal

Image: Photograph of a restoration project showing rows of plantings in a wetland

Slide 18: Drawbacks

Failure may result in substantial loss of aquatic resource function
Migration of functions and services
Extensive effort in instrument development & oversight

Image: Photograph of a receded river bank with lush vegetation

Slide 19: Differences Between Banks & ILFs

Mitigation banks:
- Public or private sponsor
- Site secured & project initiated in advance of debits
- Corps has no authority over bank expenditures
In-lieu fee programs:
- Government or non profit conservation organization
- Fees often received before implementing project
- Corps approves project funding

Slide 20: Benefits of Each

Banks
- Advance site identification
- Credit release linked to performance
- Compensation in advance of impacts
ILFs
- Mitigation when there are no banks
- Compensation for a range of resources
- IRT can direct site selection in a watershed approach
- Sponsor interest in conservation

Image: Photograph of a lengthy tidal pool with areas of tall reeds

Slide 21: Drawbacks of Each

Mitigation Banks
- Site selection in advance of agency review
- Less likely to be developed in small or weak markets
In-lieu fee programs
- Risk of mitigation not being provided
- Temporal lag between permitted impacts and project implementation

Slide 22: Preference Hierarchy for Mitigation 33 CFR 332.3(b)

Mitigation bank credits
In-lieu fee program credits
Permittee-responsible mitigation using a watershed approach
On-site and/or in-kind permittee-responsible mitigation
Off-site and/or out-of-kind permittee-responsible mitigation

Slide 23: Watershed Approach to Mitigation 33 CFR 332.3(c)

Existing watershed plans
Without suitable plan, use available information on condition and needs
Consider landscape position and sustainability
Provide suite of functions
Level of information and analysis commensurate with impacts

Slide 24: Distribution of bank sites

Image:

Satellite photograph of North America, with the contiguous United States and Alaska populated with colored markers at bank site locations

Slide 25: Bank Sponsorship

Sponsor	% of sites	% of area
Single user	19	14
Commercial	81	86

Image:

A colored 3D pie chart showing the breakdown of the 86% of the bank sponsorship area that is commercially-sponsored – Private Commercial: 63%; Public-Private: 31%; Public Commercial: 5%; and Private Non-profit: 1%.

Slide 26: Instrument Development Process

Draft prospectus
Prospectus & Public Notice
Draft instrument
Final instrument

Image:

Two pages of the Gum Log Mitigation Bank Instrument: the document cover page is overlaid on top of the Table of Contents page. The cover page includes a photograph of a green field in springtime bordered by budding trees with vegetation in the foreground.

Slide 27: 3rd party mitigation instruments include:

Service area(s)
Accounting procedures
Sponsor assumption of mitigation responsibility
Default and closure provisions
Reporting protocols
Other information deemed necessary

Slide 28: Service areas

Geographic area served by bank or ILF

Based on watershed, ecoregion, physiographic province, or other suitable geographic area
One or more 8-digit HUCs
May consider economic viability
Basis for service area location & extent must be documented in the instrument

Slide 29: Maps

Image:	Colored map of North Carolina labeled “USGS 8-Digit Cataloging Units – North Carolina”
Image:	Black and white map of the counties along a portion of Nebraska's eastern border showing two Wetland Mitigation Service Areas along the Missouri River
Image:	Map of Missouri with two wetland mitigation areas highlighted in color
Image:	Map of a section of northwest Virginia with a mitigation area's Bank Site and Service Area outlined
Image:	Black and white map of the St. Louis, Missouri, area with Madison County shaded and the Madison County Mitigation Bank pinpointed by a red dot

Slide 30: Credit Release Schedule Example

20% Initial Release
15% Hydrologic restoration
15% 2nd incremental release
15% 3rd Incremental release
15% 4th Incremental Release
20% Final Release (approx Year 10)

Image:

Photograph of a field of tall grass and wildflowers at the edge of a forest

Slide 31: Additional requirements for In-lieu fee programs

Description of ILF program account
Compensation planning framework
Advance credits, by service area
Advance credit fee schedule, by service area
Method for determining fees and credits

Image:

Photograph of the cover of the Mississippi Delta - In Lieu Fee Program, which includes a collage of nature photographs

Slide 32: Compensation Planning Framework includes:

Service area (watershed-based)
Analysis of historic aquatic resource loss & current condition
Threats to aquatic resources & how they are addressed
Aquatic resource goals & objectives
Prioritize mitigation projects
Use of preservation
Description of stakeholder involvement
Long-term protection and management
Evaluation and reporting

Image:

Photograph of a field worker in a mitigation area inputting data into a handheld device

Slide 33: NC EEP Fee Schedule

Fee Category	Unit	Fee per Unit - Higher Fee HU	Fee per Unit - Lower Fee HU
Riparian Buffer	Sq.ft	$0.96	$0.96
Stream	Lin.ft	$344	$260
Non-riparian wetland	Acre	$45,752	$23,528
Riparian wetland	Acre	$63,414	$35,853
Coastal wetland	Acre	$155,998	$155,998

Slide 34: ILF Program Advance Credits

Cap on advance credits specified in instrument
Advance credits available once instrument approved
As projects produce released credits, advance credits are fulfilled & available again

Slide 35: ILF project implementation

Land acquisition and improvements must be initiated by 3rd growing season after first advance credit is acquired

Image:

Aerial photograph of a winding stream in an open, rural field

Slide 36: More information

Steve Martin (IWR)
Steven.m.martin@usace.army.mil
(757) 201-7787

Corps Regulatory Program
https://www.usace.army.mil/Missions/Civil-Works/Regulatory-Program-and-Permits/

Regulatory In-lieu fee & Bank Information Tracking System
https://www.usace.army.mil/Missions/Civil-Works/Regulatory-Program-and-Permits/techbio/

Image:

Colored illustration of a green tree frog

Conservation Banking: A Market-Based Incentive Program for Conserving Species & Habitat

Slide 37: Conservation Banking: A market-based incentive program for conserving species & habitat

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Endangered Species Program

Image:	Logo of the US Department of the Interior
Image:	Logo of the US Fish and Wildlife Service
Image:	Collage of four images: a photograph of the document Endangered Species Act of 1973 is layered on top of three photographs: an orange tree frog, two purple wild irises, and the head of a brown bear

Slide 38: Today's Discussion...

What are conservation banks?
How do conservation banks differ from mitigation banks?
Why establish conservation banks?
When and where to establish conservation banks?
How the program works –
- Service areas
- Credits & Debits
- Combination conservation-mitigation banks (ESA+CWA)
Conservation banking considerations – FHWA and DOTs

Slide 39: What is a conservation bank?

A site or suite of sites containing natural resource values that are conserved and managed in perpetuity for specified endangered, threatened, or other at-risk species and used to offset impacts occurring elsewhere to the same type of resource (e.g., species)

Off-site and In-kind

Slide 40: Conservation banking is not...

a substitute for avoidance and on-site minimization of effects on listed species or other sensitive resources and is only for use with projects that would otherwise be permitted.

Banking does not facilitate development of habitat.

Slide 41: Purpose and Goals

Provide an economically effective process that provides project proponents with options to offset unavoidable adverse impacts to listed and other at-risk species
Aid in recovery of listed species
Aid in preventing future listing of other at-risk species
Reduce the Service's ESA sections 7(a)(2) and 10(a)(1)(B) workload

Slide 42: Purpose and Goals

Conservation banking should result in a net species conservation benefit
Conservation banking should contribute to Service and partners regional conservation planning efforts including:
- Landscape/ecosystem scale plans (take advantage of/get involved with Landscape Conservation Cooperatives)
- Consider climate change model projections when selecting bank sites
- Consider both green and grey infrastructure

Slide 43: Legal Authorities

Endangered Species Act
- Section 7 – Interagency Cooperation
  - 7(a)(1) – carry out programs for the conservation of listed species
  - 7(a)(2) – consult on listed species
  - 7(a)(4) – conference on proposed species
- Section 10(a)(1)(B) – Habitat Conservation Plan
- Section 2 – provide a means whereby the ecosystems upon which endangered and threatened species depend may be conserved...

Slide 44: Legal Authorities

Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act
National Environmental Policy Act
USFWS Conservation Banking Guidance
other statutes, regulations and policies

Slide 45: Why establish conservation banks?

Image:

Photograph of a San Joaquin Kit Fox
- Courtesy of Heather Bell

Slide 46: Conservation banks vs. individual, on-site mitigation

Avoid piecemeal mitigation and small indefensible “avoidance areas”
Contribute to existing and planned community conservation strategies (e.g., Habitat Conservation Plans, State Wildlife Action Plans)
Streamline the permit process for all

Slide 47: Conservation banks vs. individual, on-site mitigation

Better Assurances
- Real Estate (perpetual conservation easement)
- Management & Monitoring (long-term management plan, with measurable monitoring criteria and thresholds for action, remediation process)
- Financial (non-wasting endowment to fund implementation of the management plan, operation & maintenance at the bank)
Greatly reduces agency time spent tracking compliance and monitoring mitigation sites
Reduces the need for enforcement actions

Slide 48: How the program works—

Conservation banking is optional & used in conjunction with:

Individual consultations
Programmatic consultations
Conferences
HCPs

Image:

Photograph of a Gopher Tortoise
- Courtesy of Randy Browning

Slide 49: Service Areas

A service area is the geographic area within which credit trading occurs for a particular conservation bank
- service areas are determined by USFWS
- service areas are biologically justifiable areas based on species recovery units, watersheds, species population structures, or other ecological considerations
A bank may have more than one service area when multiple credit types are available

Slide 50: Credit Determination Methodology

Should be based on species conservation strategy/framework; focus on species recovery
Methodology should work in conjunction with adverse effects determinations at impact sites
Ranges from simple to complex—keep it as simple as possible at the bank user-end
Credit methodologies can be used to encourage landowner participation in targeted areas

Slide 51: Credit Determination Methodologies

X acres = 1 credit
1 mating pair of individuals = 1 credit
1 relocated individual = 1 credit
Specific methodology in which the credit score is based on multiple criteria; some of which may be weighted
Multiple habitats with species overlaps that generate different credit values per acre for different species
Existing/restored/enhanced habitat with different credit values
Combination of CWA and ESA credits

Slide 52: Combination ESA-CWA Banks

Benefits:

Better serve regulated public where aquatic resources and endangered species overlap
More holistic approach to stewardship
Typically larger sites with multiple habitat types
Better use of agency resources
Potential to reduce agency efforts tracking compliance and monitoring mitigation sites

Drawbacks:

Generally a longer approval time
Crediting metrics can be complicated

Slide 53: Bank Establishment Process

Mitigation Banking

Prospectus
Public review & comment
Mitigation Bank Instrument (MBI, BEI)
- Development Plan
- Management Plan
- Conservation Easement
- Bank Closure Plan
IRT review
Agency approval

Conservation Banking

Proposal (Prospectus)
Conservation Bank Agreement (CBA, CBEI)
- Development/Restoration Plan (if needed)
- Management Plan
- Conservation Easement
- Bank Closure Plan
CBRT review
Agency approval

Slide 54: How long does it take to establish a conservation bank?

It depends on a number of things, including:
- Experience of bank sponsor and previous history with banking
- Completeness of prospectus
- Complexity of bank
- Level of adherence to FWS banking templates and guidance
- FWS workload
- DOI Solicitor workload
The range: 3 months to 7 years

Slide 55: What about establishing single client banks for DOT use only?

Image:

Photograph of a Valley Elderberry Longhorn Beetle straddling the edge of a leaf
- Courtesy of Theresa Sinicrope Talley

Slide 56: Single client banks vs. use of private banks — advantages of each...

Establish own DOT-use only banks

Credits readily available once bank is established and fully funded
Control credit cost

Use private banks

Transfer of liability for success of mitigation
DOT has no responsibility for success of bank site
Greater service area opportunities (generally)
More credit types available (generally)
No bank start-up costs for DOT

Slide 57: Questions?

USFWS Conservation Banking web page
https://www.fws.gov/service/conservation-banking

Deblyn Mead
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
National Conservation Banking Coordinator
deborah_mead@fws.gov
703-358-1898

ODOT's Mitigation and Conservation Banking Program Case Study: Whetstone Vernal Pool Mitigation and Conservation Bank

The slides in this presentation are bordered on the left with a blue-tinted photograph of a whitewater stream in the woods

Slide 58: ODOT's Mitigation and Conservation Banking Program Case Study: Whetstone Vernal Pool Mitigation and Conservation Bank

Presented by Brad Livingston, Wetlands Program Coordinator
Eco-Logical Webinar, September 8, 2011
503-986-3062
Bradley.f.livingston@odot.state.or.us

Image:	A section of the State of Oregon seal showing an etching of a covered wagon
Image:	Logo of the Oregon Department of Transportation

Slide 59: Bank Development Fundamentals:

Eco-Logical-integrated transportation and conservation planning
Needs Assessment/Market Analysis
Scope and Scale: Watershed or Ecoregion
Site selection consistent with Stewards goals

Slide 60: Planning Horizon

20 years ideally, FHWA
- Population and transportation growth projections
- Development trends
ODOT constraints:
- Uncertainty with projects beyond STIP planning
- Uncertainty with project $ allocation
- Limited to highway needs, not a broker

Slide 61: Needs Assessment

Retrospective data and long term projections
ODOT Project Delivery Structure
Stakeholder Involvement
Geographic extent
- Klamath Mountains Ecoregion (KME)
- I-5 CORRIDOR

Slide 62: Map

Image:

A map of Oregon's Region 3 Mitigation Needs Assessment with color-coded circles showing the locations of Current Projects, Future Projects, and projects Already Debited From VPMB. There are also color-coded lines to delineate the VPMB Service Area, County borders, City Limits, and Highways.

Slide 63: Service Area Rationale

Sliver impact to roadside resources over broad geographic area
On-site within Right of Way may not be appropriate, generally
- Perpetual disturbance
- Future improvements
- Conflicts with maintenance requirements
Stormwater facilities on-site

Slide 64: Klamath Mountains Ecoregion (KME)

Geographically Distinct
Recognized Ecological Boundary with Diverse Geology and Climates
Botanical Treasures, Floristic Crossroads
- Approx. 4,000 Plant Species in OR
- Approx. 2,000 Plant Species in KME*
- Approx. 500 Endemic Species* (*ODF 2001)

Image:

Photograph of a field of unique vegetation on the edge of a forest

Slide 65: “Vernal Pool Complex (VPC) Preservation is essential to preserve biological integrity on a landscape scale”*

Ecoregion priority
Rarity and support of endemics
Development pressure
Regulatory issues
Difficulty replacing
Biocomplexity

(*ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE ASSOCIATES, 2007)

Image:

Photograph of a field of various grasses with a grove of trees in the background

Slide 66: A testament to VPC biocomplexity: Dumontia oregonensis

“three ephemeral ponds near Medford, Ore., have yielded a once-in-a-century taxonomic surprise: a new species of water flea that represents an entirely new family - a missing link of sorts - of water fleas”
- Devitt 2004

Image:

Illustration of an enlarged Dumontia oregonensis
Courtesy of Kandis Elliot

Slide 67: Site Selection Due Diligence

Focus on rare habitats &/or watershed priorities
Research wildlife action plans, rare species habitats, wildlife connectivity and adjoining land uses
Collaborate with resource agencies early
Collaborate with potential stewards early

Slide 68: ODOT Bank Site Attributes

Image:

Map of Medford, Oregon, area showing the ODOT Mitigation Site

Map created by Cara Conroy, TNC AmeriCorps volunteer

Slide 69: Map

Image:

Satellite image of the ODOT Mitigation Site labeled “ODOT Vernal Pool Bank” with vernal pool areas outlined in green

Slide 70: Figure 6: Vernal Pool Distribution and Assessment

Image:

Grayscale topographic map of the ODOT Mitigation Site

Slide 71: Map

Image:

Page taken directly from The Oregon Conservation Strategy, prepared by ODFW, February 2006. It shows a map of the Klamath Mountains Ecoregion in southwest Oregon with Conservation Opportunity Areas shaded and numbered KM1-KM13. Map sections are colored by land ownership type: Federal, State, and Private.

Slide 72: The Nature Conservancy's (Steward) Role

Ecological Assessment:

Habitat condition past and present
Performance standard baseline
Impact of historic disturbances
Status of current threats
Status of key management species
Long Term Steward

Image:

Photograph of a grassy field dotted with wildflowers

Slide 73: Performance Standards: Vernal pool habitat

VERNAL POOL VEGETATION
TARGET	Standard	Condition (90% CI)	Performance
absolute cover of exposed substrate	< 75%	4.35% (+1.81)	Meets
key native vernal pool species	≥ 15	24 species	Meets
relative invasive cover	≤ 15%	18.13% (+6.12)	Probably Not
relative native cover	> 70%	50.10% (+9.35)	No

Image:

Collage of five photographs:
A vernal pool edged with green vegetation
The same vernal pool, later in the season: dried out, with plants growing where there once was water
A Lomatium cookii (Cook's desert parsley) plant, with yellow flowers, growing out from a pile of rocks
A plant whose flowers are all purple, yellow and white
A Limnanthes floccosa ssp grandiflora (woolly meadowfoam) plant with white flowers

Image:

Photograph of a vernal pool
Courtesy of Lyndia Hammer

Slide 74: Performance Standards: Endangered species

LISTED SPECIES

TARGET	Standard	Condition (90% CI)	Performance
LIFLGR plants	> 200	289 LIFLGR counted	Meets
LOCO plants	≥ 200	No LOCO found at site	Not present
BRLY pool occupancy	> 40%	12.08% occupancy	No
BRLY shrimp relative to baseline	≥ 95%	No baseline	In process...

Image:	Photograph of two Dumontia oregonensis (water fleas) © George Turner 2000
Image:	Photograph of Limnanthes floccosa ssp grandiflora (woolly meadowfoam) plant with white flowers Courtesy of Belinda Lo

Slide 75: Vegetation Sampling

Vegetation sampling for performance standards:

¼ meter² quadrats
20 vernal pool
20 upland

Image:

Map of the Vegetation Sampling Quadrat Locations shaded to show Habitat Areas: Prairie, Swale, and Woodland. The map is overlaid with a grid whose rectangles are labeled 0-19, each having two small squares: red for the Upland location and blue for the Vernal Pool location.

Slide 76: Accounting

State revolving fund reimbursed by projects
Credit receipts submitted with permits
Credit ledger maintained
Annual reporting

Slide 77: Challenges

Scope, Scale and Priorities
Regulatory Flexibility
Service Areas
Project Schedule and timelines
Conservation Banking

Slide 78: Lessons Learned

Engage Steward, Agencies early
Define milestones
Document decisions
Acknowledge risk
Keep credit/debit procedures simple
Select sustainable site

Slide 79: –FIN– QUESTIONS?

Brad Livingston, Wetlands Program Coordinator
503-986-3062
Bradley.f.livingston@odot.state.or.us

Image:

Photograph of a vernal pool in the middle of summer: dried out in a field lush with grasses, shrubs, and trees

For questions or feedback on this subject, please contact Mike Ruth at 202-366-9509.

Eco-Logical Webinar Mitigation Banking, Conservation Banking, and In-Lieu Fee Programs: Mitigation Options Using the Eco-Logical Approach

PDF Version [2.4 MB]

Table of Contents

FHWA Overview of Mitigation Requirements and Activities

Mitigation Banks and In-Lieu Fee Programs

Conservation Banking: A Market-Based Incentive Program for Conserving Species & Habitat

ODOT's Mitigation and Conservation Banking Program Case Study: Whetstone Vernal Pool Mitigation and Conservation Bank

Eco-Logical Webinar
Mitigation Banking, Conservation Banking, and In-Lieu Fee Programs: Mitigation Options Using the Eco-Logical Approach