Stakeholder Coordination

In 1999, the Federal agencies began hosting a series of stakeholder forums to gather information and opinions on the concerns and challenges of compensatory mitigation. These forums have brought together a diverse group of individuals representing the regulated community, environmental organizations, academia, non-governmental organizations, and mitigation providers. The first forum was held in Washington, DC, in 1999, to discuss draft guidance on in-lieu-fee mitigation. The second forum was held in Baltimore, Maryland, in October 2001. This meeting helped lead to the formulation of the National Wetlands Mitigation Action Plan. The third and fourth forums were held in Portland, Oregon (July 2003) and Tampa, Florida (September 2004) to discuss progress on Action Plan tasks and solicit input on future Action Plan tasks. The fifth forum was held in Washington, DC in May 2006 and focused largely on the proposed Corps/EPA compensatory mitigation rulemaking For a complete summary of the forums visit eli.org. The MAP workgroup is in the process of planning the next Stakeholder Forum, which will be held in Madison, Wisconsin.

Discussing maintenance issues at a two-year old mitigation site during the 2003 Mitigation Stakeholder Forum held in Portland,OR

2001 Mitigation Stakeholder Forum (link to it)
On October 1-2, 2001, a Mitigation Stakeholders Forum was held at the National Aquarium in Baltimore. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Maryland Department of the Environment, and the National Aquarium in Baltimore sponsored the event. The forum brought together a diverse group of individuals from federal and state government, non-profit environmental organizations, third party mitigation providers, and others (e.g., academia, home builders, representatives of the oil and gas industry, non-governmental organizations, etc.). The 2-day meeting was designed to provide an opportunity for the participants to discuss issues associated with improving the implementation of ecologically effective wetlands mitigation under the Clean Water Act Section 404 program.

2003 Mitigation Stakeholder Forum (link to it)
In July 2003, the Third Stakeholder Forum on Federal Mitigation was held in Portland, Oregon. The meeting was designed to provide a forum for a broad range of stakeholders to comment on and discuss the National Mitigation Action Plan (MAP) process, products in development, and anticipated work in order to inform efforts to improve federal compensatory mitigation. This report is intended as a representative record of the issues discussed at the mitigation forum. It can serve as a resource for those interested in improving compensatory mitigation under §404 of the Clean Water Act. It can also serve as a foundation for federal and state agencies and others to develop specific and concrete actions for improving mitigation success.

2004 Mitigation Stakeholder Forum (link to it)
The Fourth Stakeholder Forum on Federal Mitigation was held in Tampa, Florida on September 20-22, 2004. At the meeting, the MAP workgroup presented and solicited feedback on the latest drafts of three Federal guidance documents: (1) Guidance on the Use of Preservation, (2) Guidance on the Use of Vegetated Buffers, and (3) Guidance on the Protection and Mitigation of Difficult to Replace Aquatic Resources. The meeting also presented a forum for stakeholders to discuss completed action items and products currently under development. Products under development that the MAP workgroup will be addressing through 2005 include the Watershed Context Guidance and the Performance Standards Guidance. The meeting was an opportunity for stakeholders to comment on the direction of the MAP and its effectiveness at improving compensatory mitigation under the Clean Water Act Section 404 program.

2006 Mitigation Stakeholder Forum (link to it)
The Fifth Stakeholder Forum on Federal Mitigation was held in Washington, DC on May 10-11, 2006. The objectives of the meeting were to: 1) review and solicit input on recent developments in federal mitigation regulations and policy, 2) discuss recent findings on the character and performance of mitigation, and 3) discuss future research priorities for the direction of federal aquatic resource mitigation. A large portion of the meeting was devoted to discussion of the proposed Corps/EPA compensatory mitigation regulation that was released for public comment in the Federal Register on March 28, 2006. Additionally, there were presentations and discussions related to the watershed approach, the new Clean Water Act Section 404 permit program database (ORM), the recent GAO report on compensatory mitigation compliance, as well as recent research regarding the character and performance of compensatory mitigation.

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