Wetlands
(Continued from Pago Al)
The second part amends the
state's “Clean and Green” tax
break law so that landowners can
get tax breaks for protecting wet
lands and forest areas.
The final part seeks to authorize
a $25 million bond to fund the
purchase of natural areas, includ
ing wetlands.
Several agricultural, or rural
interest organizations, have
expressed concern with wetlands
protections.
According to Brenda Sham
baugh. legislative director with the
Pennsylvania State Grange, the
Brightbill proposal requires more
study, but if it would address the
issues of primacy, compensation,
and the right to continue to farm on
areas historically farmed, then it
would tentatively receive Grange
support
The major concerns of most rur
al and agricultural organizations
and individuals are that landow
ners be compensated for any lost
monetary value placed on property
due to protecting wetlands; fair
compensation for wetlands con
doned by the state for protection;
clarify the definition of wjetlands;
establish primacy (one agency reg
ulatory authority overall); increase
the speed for DER review of per
mit applications; and establish a
revolving 25-ycar grandfather
clause so that any wetlands cur
rently in agricultural use are
exempt from regulatory actions
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Preservation Legislation
which would stop the historic use
of the land .
While it is too early to get a con
sensus of opinion from agricultural
organizations on Brighibill’s prop
osal, several spokespersons have
said that it appears to address the
issues.
However, there arc many diffe
rent interests concerned with wet
lands protection. More than 220
groups and individuals com
mented on possible protection
legislation to the state Environ
mental Resources and Energy
Committee last year.
“This wetlands protection pack
age was developed with the help of
hundreds of interested people on
all sides of the wetlands issue,”
Brightbill said.
The major differences between
BrightbiU’s proposal and DER’s
proposed regulations are many.
In addition to mandating a com
prehensive mapping of wetlands,
state funding in addition to permit
fees, establishing compensation
and the right of the landowner to
take DER to court if unjust taking
of property has occured, the
Brightbill proposal;
• Requires DER to be more
service-oriented. Specifically it
would direct DER to help property
owners determine whether or not
they have wetlands (within the fed
eral definition now used by the
Army Corps of Engineers).
• Encourages DER to delegate
its functions to county conserva
tion districts and local government
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to achieve better local working
relationships between landowner
and regulatory authority.
• Requires property owners to
notify potential buyers that wet
lands exist on the property.
• Authorizes DER to set criteria
for permit reviews for activities in
margin areas around wetlands.
• Requires wetlands replace
ments at a minimum VA acres of
new wetland for every acre lost
And it calls fora 2-year monitoring
of the replacement wetlands.
• Requires local governments to
use the same definitions of wet
lands in adopting local ordinances.
And governments must regulate
wetlands as part of their land deve
lopment program.
• Requires DER to study the
possibility of establishing state
authority over wetlands, instead of
(he existing federal authority. DER
would have to report to the General
Assembly within 6 months of the
signing of the bill into law.
• Requires DER to make an
annual report on its program to
protect wetlands and comment on
its effectiveness.
The proposal would also create
a 21-member “Wetlands Preserva
tion Advisory Committee” which
would be comprised of 12 mem
bers appointed by the secretary of
DER; three each by president pro
tempore of the Senate, and the
speaker of the House; and three
elected from DER’s Citizens
Advisory Council.
During the Pennsylvania State
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Grange’s Legislative Meeting,
Brightbill told the group that his
proposal did not seek to change the
definition, but rather to adopt the
federal definition and to find out
what kinds and amounts of wet
lands are really in existance.
Currently, estimates are that
about 500,000 acres of wetlands
exist in Pennsylvania, with an esti
mated yearly loss of 1,200 acres.
However, the mapping and clas
sification of wetlands would estab
lish whether or not the wetlands
that exist are valuable and what
amount of protection should be
afforded them.
Three types of classification are
proposed exceptional resource
value, intermediate resource value,
and ordinary resource value.
Exceptional and intermediate
resource value wetlands are to be
mapped within 3 years, while
ordinary value wetlands are to be
mapped within 5 years.
The definition of exceptional
value wetlands would be: “Wet
lands serving as habitats for endan
gered species and wetlands hydro
logically connected to them; wet
lands within 1 mile of and
connected to the headwaters of
streams designated as exceptional
value by DER, or wetlands within
the corridor of scenic rivers.
Exceptional wetlands are also
those necessary to maintain the
quality or quantity of private of
public water supplies, those in
natural or wild areas on state or
federal forest land, wetlands desig
nated under the federal Emergency
Wetlands Resources Act of 1986,
and any manmade wetland created
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to replace or enhance functions of
existing wetlands as a result of a
permit decision.
The specific types of wetlands
to be called “intermediate value” is
not outlined.
The types of wetlands which
would be considered “ordinary
value,” includes those constructed
to treat acid mine drainage, sewage
or other waste, wetlands formed in
manmade stormwater managment,
drainage, or in flood control facili
ties, or erosion and sedimentation
control facilities, wetlands formed
unitentionally as a result of man
made or animal-made changes in
drainage (unless they contain an
endangered species). Changes to
wetlands created as a result of
other DGR permits would be regu
lated under those permits.
Permit applications are required
to go through a public review and
comment process including a
notice in a local newspaper and
publication in the “Pennsylvania
Bulletin.” DER must also publish
its permit decision in the Bulletin.
DER must review permits with
in 45 days, with 15 working days
to determine whether applications
arc complete, and 15 days to notify
applicants if they are not complete.
If a landowner does not provide
information within 60 days, DER
can deny the permit. However, if
DER docs not issue a decision
within 45 days of reciept of a com
pleted application, the application
fee would have to be returned to
the landowner.
Permit fees would start at $3OO
each for basic permits. Small pro-
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