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U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Inspector General
At a Glance
14-P-0191
April 16, 2014
Why We Did This Review
Our objective was to
determine how the
U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) verifies that the
application of the wetlands
protection and restoration
guidelines achieves "no net
loss" of wetlands. The Clean
Water Act Section 404
regulatory program addresses
the discharge of dredged or fill
materials in the waters and
wetlands of the United States.
One of the EPA's roles in this
program is to review and
comment on individual permit
applications submitted to the
U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers. In its fiscal year
2013 Annual Plan, under the
Section 404 regulatory
program, EPA reported
"no net loss" of wetlands for
fiscal years 2009 through
2011.
This report addresses the
following EPA theme:
• Protecting water: A
precious, limited resource.
EPA Needs to Clarify Its Claim of
"No Net Loss" of Wetlands
What We Found
The EPA needs to clarify that its claim of
"no net loss" of wetlands is based on
projections of future results from mitigation
projects, because not all mitigation projects
succeed.
The EPA attempts to verify that the application
of the wetlands protection and restoration
guidelines furthers the goal of "no net loss" by comparing the total acres of
wetland impacts to the total acres planned for mitigation in the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers' Section 404 permits. However, performance reporting in the EPA's
2013 annual plan does not inform readers of the assumption that all mitigation
projects meet performance standards. Performance standards are the
ecologically-based standards that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers personnel
will use to determine whether a compensatory mitigation project is achieving its
objectives. Not clearly communicating such assumptions hampers the public's
understanding of the EPA's actual performance in protecting wetlands.
The EPA can improve
performance reports by
indicating that achieving
"no net loss" is based on the
assumption that all
mitigation projects will meet
performance standards.
Recommendation and Planned Corrective Actions
We recommend that the Assistant Administrator for Water clarify on the wetlands
measure definitions webpage and in future annual performance reporting that
"no net loss" of wetlands is based upon an assumption that mitigation projects
contained in Clean Water Act Section 404 permits will meet performance
standards. The agency agreed with the recommendation and provided acceptable
corrective actions. The recommendation is resolved.
For further information,
contact our public affairs office
at (202) 566-2391.
The full report is at:
www.epa.aov/oia/reports/2014/
20140416-14-P-0191.pdf

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