Wetland Mitigation
INDOT Purchases 334 acres for wetland mitigation in LaPorte County
To receive federal matching grants from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), INDOT must mitigate (replace) all wetlands affected by transportation projects. For the US 31 Plymouth to South Bend project, approximately 30 acres of wetlands are impacted.
By law, this mitigation must be performed at a ratio ranging from 2:1 to 4:1, and be located within the same watershed. For the US 31 Plymouth to South Bend project, there are two watersheds affected: the St. Joseph watershed and the Kankakee watershed.
In December, INDOT made an offer to purchase 334 acres of suitable land in LaPorte County to mitigate the impact in the Kankakee watershed. The site will satisfy and exceed all the projected wetland, forest and stream mitigation needs.
Information about impacts to the St. Joseph watershed will be available later in 2008.
Why protect the wetlands?
Approximately 50 percent of our nation's wetlands have been lost in the last 200 years.
Executive Order 11990, Protection of Wetlands, directs federal agencies to avoid and reduce the impacts to wetlands, if possible. Other Federal programs designed to conserve and protect wetlands include the Emergency Wetlands Protection Resources Act of 1986, the North American Waterfowl Management Plan and the Wetlands Reserve Program.
When selecting the alternative for the US 31 Plymouth to South Bend corridor, the impact to wetlands was a major factor in INDOT and FHWA’s decision.
