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THE PRINCIPLES OF THE PRESIDENT'S PLAN 



"Protecting America's Wetlands: 

 A Fair, Flexible and Effective Approach" 



August 24, 1993 



To affirm its commitment to conserving wetlands resources, the Administration will issue 

 an Executive Order embracing the interim goal of no overall net loss of the Nation's 

 remaining wetlands resource base, and a long-term goal of increasing the quality and 

 quantity of the Nation's wetlands; 



To increase fairness in the wetlands permitting process, the Corps will establish an 

 administrative appeals process so that landowners can seek speedy recourse if permits are 

 denied without having to go to court; 



To make sure that decisions are made without delay, the Corps will establish deadlines 

 for wetlands permitting decisions under the Clean Water Act; 



To reduce uncertainty for American farmers, the Corps and EPA issued a final regulation 

 ensuring that approximately 53 million acres of prior converted cropland ~ areas which 

 no longer exhibit wetlands characteristics - will not be subject to wetlands regulations; 



To reduce duplication and inconsistency for American farmers, the Soil Conservation 

 Service will be the lead Federal agency respwnsible for identifying wetlands on 

 agricultural lands under both the Clean Water Act and the Food Security Act; 



To close a loophole that has led to the degradation and destruction of wetlands, yesterday 

 the Corps and EPA issued a final regulation to clarify the scope of activities regulatal 

 under the Clean Water Act; 



To emphasize that all wetlands are not of equal value, EPA and the Corps issued 

 guidance to field staff highlighting the flexibility that exits to apply less vigorous permit 

 review to small projects with minor environmental impacts; 



To ensure consistency and fairness, the Army Corps of Engineers, the Environmental 

 Protection Agency, the Soil Conservation Service, and the Fish and Wildlife Service will 

 all use the same procedures to identify wetland areas; 



To increase the predictability and environmental effectiveness of the Clean Water Act 

 regulatory program and to help attain the no overall net loss goal, the Administration 

 endorses the use of mitigation banks; 



