Wetlands Protection

In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled against federal jurisdiction over intrastate, isolated wetlands that do not have a direct connection to navigable waterways such as lakes, rivers or streams.1 The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that at least 20 percent—and possibly more than 50 percent—of the nation’s wet meadows, forrested wetlands, ephemeral ponds and bogs are unprotected.2

Developers are taking advantage of this ruling, filling in wetlands for future use. Once destroyed, wetlands are difficult or impossible to fully restore.

Wetlands intercept polluted runoff before it contaminates our lakes, rivers, and coastal waters. They act as natural water filters, absorbing pesticides, nitrogen, phosphorus, and other pollutants before they infiltrate our drinking water.

Damage from flooding and water erosion tends to increase as wetlands disappear. Since wetlands are usually located in low-lying areas, they act as a sponge to collect and hold large quantities of surface runoff during storms, helping to prevent floods. The annual costs of flooding is estimated to be $3.1 billion by the National Weather Service. States that have lost 80 percent or more of their wetlands (e.g., Ohio, Kentucky, California, and Missouri) have experienced their worst flooding in recent years.3 The overdevelopment of wetlands in Louisiana eroded a major buffer against massive storms, dramatically illustrated by 2005’s Hurricane Katrina. State and federal officials are now considering a multi-billion dollar plan to protect remaining wetlands in an effort to mitigate the destruction of future storms.4

Wetlands provide opportunities for popular activities such as hiking and boating. American adults spend $59.5 billion annually on hunting, fishing, bird watching, and photographing wildlife. More than one-third of the threatened or endangered species in the United States live exclusively in wetlands, and nearly half use wetlands at some point in their lives. About one-third of North American bird species use wetlands, and 138 bird species cannot survive without wetland habitats.5

Wisconsin legislation directs the state department with authority over natural resources to issue permits for the development of these unprotected wetlands under limited circumstances. The legislation does not impose new regulations on landowners, but allows the state to continue following the same process used by the federal government to decide whether a project that potentially affects wetlands should proceed. The law also provides that no person can fill or dredge in an isolated wetland unless the state certifies that the project meets water quality standards and does not significantly impair the wetland’s functions.

Signed into law in May 2001, Wisconsin’s Wetlands Protection Act passed unanimously, sweeping the Democratic-controlled Senate 33-0, and the Republican-controlled Assembly 97-0. A broad coalition of hunters, fishermen, environmentalists and homebuilders all supported this legislation.