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<br />OEC-0S-SB 11,31 FROM.M.B,S,S,
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<br />S90,OOO loan from the Homebuilders Association.
<br />The foundation attributes its success to a Corps
<br />Distric:r Offic:c: that wanted to make mitlgatlon b3nkiI1g a
<br />rcality by locating banks In watershecls that had sufficient
<br />development to generate demand for the credits and by
<br />cn:atlng a fair pricing struaure. The foundation assumes
<br />responsibWty fOt'the wetlancls mitigJltion obligations of
<br />eommetcial and resldc:ntlal developers In Ohio.
<br />Florida Wetlandsbank, At the same time that the
<br />Ohio Wetlands Foundation W2S being organized, a
<br />'group of environmental engineers, biologists, and attor-
<br />neys In Florida started the fot'profit Florida
<br />Wetlandsbank. The company's mission is to cocrect the
<br />failed approach of "posug<:-stamp. band-aid mitiga'
<br />tlon,. and to make a profit,
<br />Florida Wetlandsbank's first project was a ~45-a.cre
<br />site In the city of Pembroke Pines in Stoward County.
<br />The site, adjacent to a residential community, was dedi-
<br />cated to Pembroke Pines by a developer in the 19805,
<br />UnfortUnately, the city lacked the resources to maintain
<br />the lMge parcel, which was covered with melaleuca
<br />trees-an invasive, exotic species of Uttle ecological
<br />v:l1ue. Additionally, the property attrac:red all-terrain
<br />vehicles and trash.
<br />Under its agreement with the city, Florida
<br />Wetlanclsbank designed and consttUc:red a new ecosys-
<br />tem for the property. The process involved eradicating
<br />the melaleuca trees and replacing them with a mixture
<br />of ten habitats typical of the Everglades, including
<br />cypress stancls, emergent rn.a.rshes, tree islands, and
<br />sawgrass prairie. The plan allo~ fot' limited passive
<br />recreation with canoe trails, picnic areas, and natUre
<br />trails, The company Is responsible for maintaining and
<br />monitoring the new wc:tlands fot five years, after
<br />",'blch the city will assume responsibility,
<br />Florida W etlandsbank paid the city a tranehJse fee
<br />of S7,000 per acre for the first seventy.five acres of
<br />credit sales, which increases to S8,500 per acre: for the
<br />balance of the site. The city also received a S 1,000 per.
<br />acre fee placed in escrOW to fUnd perpetual mainte-
<br />nance of the restored wc:tlands, The city gets paid only
<br />
<br />
<br />Brownfields
<br />(Continuedfrom page 349)
<br />
<br />the current reality is that large developmen titles
<br />that an selt-f'l.l1anee or that are perce as less risky
<br />will have a slgnlfic:ult advanuge er smaUer, less
<br />financially able businesses plte increasing go\'em-
<br />mental pressure on Ie g institutions to reduce envi.
<br />ronmental redli ' g,
<br />Wi~ c:r to altc:rnative routes, nontraditional
<br />lending Institutions, nonprofit entities, and public and
<br />private funding sources should be rargeted for financial
<br />
<br />~SummerI998
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<br />
<br />10.970 247 BB27
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<br />PAGE
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<br />aftet' credits are sold. A SlO,ooo per-acre construc:rion
<br />bond W3S required to ensure completion of the Wet-
<br />land work as approved.
<br />Florida Wetlandsbank also had to negotiate
<br />approwls for the project from a bC'Y)' of regulato!)'
<br />agencies, including the: Ccnps, the South Florida Water
<br />Management District, and Broward County, The bank
<br />initially obtained appto\-a1 from the: Corps; however,
<br />that pe:nnit had to be modifie:d when the other agen,
<br />cies required significant hydrological changes.
<br />FstabUsbing "aedit ratios. -the nwnber of acres of
<br />bank wetlands required to compensate for the wetland
<br />impacts, of a client's projec:r-was auciaI to negotiations
<br />"ith the regulatoty agencies. If required mitigation ratios
<br />were tOO high, using the bank could prove uneconomi-
<br />cal. Florida Wetlandsbank negotiated favorable credit
<br />ratios with the three agencies, ranging from 0.75 to 1.25
<br />acres in the bank for every acre of wetlands impact,
<br />Florida Wetlandsbank sold all of its c:reditS in the
<br />Pembroke Pines site by 1997 at a price of approXirna.tely
<br />$45,000 per acre. Clients induded priv.ate land develop-
<br />ers, the Broward County School District, and the City of
<br />PJantalion, Florida Wetlandsbank has initiated another
<br />projec:r on a 2,775 acre site in Collier Counry, Florida.
<br />Despite the suecc:ss of Florida Wetlandsbank, prind.
<br />pals In the firm view mitigation banking as an exceeding-
<br />ly risky venture. They believe that the Corps mitigation
<br />banking Guidance Is sufliciently flexible: to allow for ec0-
<br />nomic V2tiabilities, However, the Guidance does not suffi-
<br />ciently constrain dupIican: agency review of banking pro-
<br />posals, which can lead to unnecess'uy project delays.
<br />Wetlands mitigation banking holcls gttat promise as
<br />an innovativ<:, markc:r-based solution for many of the
<br />problems with the exiSting wetlands regulatory S}'Stan,
<br />Some of the benefitS Include greater certainty In the
<br />development pennittlng process. more ecOlogically sig,
<br />nifiClnt and successful wetlands mitigation projects, and
<br />a new indUStry for restoring degx2ded wetlands.
<br />However, the subsWltlal benefits will not be reallzed
<br />unless regulatory agencies apply the guidelines and wet-
<br />lands reguLations In a pragmatic and f1c:xilile manner, ~
<br />
<br />assistance, For =nple, the S rc:Trust Bank,
<br />described in Edith Pepper' k, Lessons from the
<br />Field: Unlocking Econ ic Potential with an
<br />Environmental JG _ ortheast-Mid"''CSt institute,
<br />1997), exempIJ1i a nonrraditionallendlng institution.
<br />Th~ShOreT t Bank is a financial partnership betWeen
<br />the U.S, of Washington, the Shorebank
<br />Co ration of ChIago, and .EcoTrust. a Portland-based
<br />co rion organization, which "provides financial
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