Expiration date: 7/22/2023
Project Location: The proposed site is located within Section 31, Township 79 North, Range 2 West, Cedar County, Iowa.
Bank Objectives: The fundamental objective of compensatory mitigation is to offset environmental losses resulting from unavoidable impacts to waters of the United States (WOTUS) authorized by Department of the Army Permits. Other Objectives include the support of the national goal of no net-loss of wetlands, the enhancement of wildlife habitat within the Pee Dee Creek-Cedar River watershed, to compensate for wetland losses in a manner which contributes to the long-term ecological functioning of the watershed where the bank is located, the reduction of temporal losses of wetland functions, and to restore and enhance water quality and habitat within the Land of the Swamp White Oak Preserve.
Project Description/Bank Establishment: The bank sponsor proposes to complete activities on 96-acres of property owned by The Nature Conservancy of Iowa (TNC), which is within TNC’s Land of the Swamp White Oak Preserve. This project would result in the generation of wetland compensatory mitigation credits. The goal of this project is to restore 22.7-acres of wetland, enhance 23.3-acres of existing wetland, and enhance 45.4-acres of buffer to generate an initial estimate of 45.68 wetland credits. The bank sponsor proposes to use different construction methods to aid in the completion of this project. Hydrologic restoration will include plugging existing onsite ditches in addition to light grading of specific areas. Improvements to the vegetative community include management to remove and control invasive species while promoting the growth of native species. Specifically, management may include chemical or mechanical removal of invasives and/or the use of periodic prescribed burns. Establishment of native plant communities will focus on herbaceous wet prairie species within wetland areas and will include interspersed tree planting. Wetland buffer areas will be planted with an upland prairie seed mix again with interspersed tree plantings. A wetland delineation, and additional information on construction techniques, target plant community types, and detailed planting plans will be completed prior to the submission of the draft Mitigation Banking Instrument.