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Meramec Funding Sources

In-Lieu Fee (ILF) Compensatory Mitigation Programs

Mitigation Credits, In-Lieu Fee

Aug. 1, 2019
By Land Learning Foundation

Story summary:

  • In-Lieu Fees allow developers, states and local governments to offset “unavoidable impacts” to streams or wetlands and fulfill the National Policy of “no net loss of wetlands” through compensatory mitigation conducted by public agencies or nonprofits in compliance with Clean Water Act Section 404 Permitting. In other words, developers can “offset” stream and/or wetland impacts by purchasing credits that are generated by ILF programs which create, restore, and protect streams and wetlands within the affected Ecological Drainage Unit (watershed).

Quick Facts

Land Learning Foundation Mission
Fostering Stewardship through outdoor experience, youth education and conservation.

What do they fund?
Floodplain or wetland restoration and/or creation and Stream bank stabilization. The process includes Land acquisition, Structure demolition, Restoration planning/engineering /permitting, Bioretention, Planting of native trees and grasses, and Removal of invasive species. 

What do they not fund?
Land management and/or agricultural practices that do not offset stream and/or wetland impacts, such as levee repair and/or tile and terraces. 

How to Start
Contact the Land Learning Foundation with details of the impact including location, type of impact (stream or wetland), and potential credit need. 

Timing
ILF credits are sold on a first come first served basis. Contacting LLF and reserving the credits in a timely fashion is key to ensuring the credits are available at the time your project is permitted.

About

In-Lieu Fee is a method of “compensatory mitigation” used to compensate for unavoidable impacts to streams and wetlands due to development, road construction, or other projects. The developer pays a fee to a sponsor, such as the Land Learning Foundation. The fee represents the expected costs of replacing stream or wetland functions that will be lost or degraded as a result of the development. The Land Learning Foundation then pools the funds and uses them to identify, plan, build, and maintain conservation projects at “mitigation sites,” and to monitor and protect them in perpetuity.

The U.S. has a legislative goal of no net loss of wetlands (marshes, fens, bogs, etc.) despite growth and development that sometimes has an unavoidable impact. EPA requires developers to avoid or minimize impacts to wetlands, and to provide compensatory mitigation where an impact is unavoidable. Wetland mitigation banking is a cost-effective way of compensating for those impacts through conservation offsets where a project would otherwise be too expensive, or even impossible, to build without destroying wetlands. In 2015, wetland mitigation banking was a $3B industry.

At no out-of-pocket cost to local jurisdictions, Land Learning Foundation is a potential partner, using in-lieu mitigation fees to provide funding for conservation activities including wetland restoration, streambank stabilization, riparian restoration, and land acquisition in exchange for a commitment to long-term protection through a conservation easement.

 Project Examples

City of Chesterfield Mitigation Site (Wetland)

Labadie Bottoms, in Franklin County, MO, is the location of a mitigation site equaling 60 acres (+/-) of wetlands, 30 acres being forested and 29 acres emergent wetland.

Big Creek Mitigation Site (Stream)

Located in Lincoln County this site protects over one mile of riparian corridor on Big Creek. The project included a total of 1,900 feet of streambank stabilization. Funds where pooled from multiple impacts to fund the project including MODOT’s impact in developing the Warrenton overpass.

More Info/Resources

Contact Info

Land Learning Foundation
Scott Martin, Executive Director
Office: 877-573-2323
ILF Hotline: 800-761-6171

Consult your community’s attorney and financial advisors prior to moving forward with any of these funding options. Any reference in this website to any person, or organization, or activities, products, or services related to such person or organization, or any linkages from this website to the website of another party, do not constitute or imply the endorsement, recommendation, or favoring of companies or organizations.
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