Rock Island District Public Notices

Ponderosa Wetland Mitigation Bank (CEMVR-RD-2024-0030)

Rock Island District
Published Jan. 11, 2024
Expiration date: 2/14/2024

Project Location: The proposed site is located within Section 16, Township 78 North, Range 44 West, Harrison County, Iowa. Latitude: 41.563033, Longitude: -95.900245. (See attached location maps).

Bank Objectives: The fundamental objective of compensatory mitigation is to offset environmental losses resulting from unavoidable impacts to waters of the United States authorized by Department of Army Permits. Other objectives include providing economically efficient and flexible mitigation opportunities; supporting no net-loss of wetlands; enhancing or restoring additional wildlife and aquatic habitat; improve water quality to the watershed by reducing sediment loading and nutrients.

Project Description/Bank Establishment: The bank sponsor proposes to complete activities on approximately 33 acres of privately owned property that would result in the establishment of wetland mitigation credits. The bank proposes to enhance 2 acres of emergent wetland, restore 23 acres of emergent wetland, restore 8 acres of emergent wetland buffer to generate approximately 26 wetland credits. Currently farmed areas will be restored to emergent wetlands through hydrology improvement. Construction of an earthen berm (approximately 2 feet tall, with a 4 feet wide top, 4:1 side slopes, and spillway) will be utilized to capture and hold surface water runoff. Shallow excavations with scalloped edges and undulating bottom would allow water to pool with varying depths but remaining below 3 feet to ensure a diverse wetland habitat. Hydrology of the site will also be improved by plugging the south end of an agricultural ditch on the property, not the ditch which runs along the eastern edge near property line. Additionally, directing flow from the eastern ditch to the interior of the property would increase site hydrology. Emergent wetland areas will be seeded with a native wetland seed mix, or comparable mix, more information on seed mixes can be found in Appendix C of the Prospectus.

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