CRS-112 



seemed to want to strongly protect wetlands under their jurisdiction. 159 / 

 The manager from Connecticut thought that wetlands should be judged on the 

 values of functions they perform today, not on either the causes of change 

 or former values. This basis for making a judgment Is evidently a problem 

 in deciding whether some permits should be issued. The California coastal 

 zone management program distinguishes degraded wetlands in coastal areas. 

 These wetlands, which have little or no remaining biological value, are not 

 as well protected, and instead, efforts are centered on the protection 

 and restoration of more viable wetland areas. 160 / 



Three of the surveyed States, Minnesota, Connecticut, and Massachusetts, 

 recognize size as an important variable. In the first two States, statutes 

 set a minimum size for wetlands to be included in the regulatory program. 

 There was a general sense expressed by all three managers that small wetlands 

 are more difficult to administer through their programs. Managers from three 

 of the States (Connecticut, Utah, and Wyoming) cited special problems in 

 reviewing permit proposals that would modify small created wetlands. Managers 

 from the two western States (Utah and Wyoming) were especially concerned that 

 these wetlands, which appear to have limited ecological value In many cases, 

 had become the center of some serious conflicts between Federal permlting 

 authorities and project proposers. 



159 / Flexibility has been a contentious issue in wetlands management. 

 Some have argued that programs should be flexible, recognizing that many small 

 or modified wetlands have limited value for each wetland function. Others 

 call for protection of all remaining wetlands, citing both the large losses 

 in the past and increased knowledge about high values generally. 



160/ Metz, Eric and Michael Delapa. California's Wetland Regulatory Pro- 

 gram: Developing an Interpretive Guideline for Protecting Significant Nat- 

 ural Resources. In Edge, Billy, ed. Coastal Zone 80. New York, American 

 Society of Civil Engineers, publication pending. 



