54 



A FAIR, FLEXIBLE, AND EFFECTTVE APPROACH 11 



The following initiatives dcmonstnte our coaunitmeot to protect and restore the Nation's 

 wetlands and eliminate unnecessary impacts on the fBxm oommtmity: 



-• Prior Converted -Cropland Rulemaking. EPA and the Corps have just completed a 

 rulemaking which assures American brmers that an estimated S3 million acres of prior 

 converted cropland will not be subject to regulation under Section 404 of the Qean Water 

 Act. Hiese lands were converted from wetlands to croplands prior to the passage of the 

 Food Security Act of 1985, which established the Swampbuster program, and no longer 

 exhibit wetlands characteristics. The Administration is also recommending that Congress 

 include in the Qean Water Act a definition of 'waters of the United States' that e:q>lidtly 

 excludes from Qean Water Act jurisdiction areas determined to be prior converted 

 cropland. 



• A Package to Eliminate Duplication and Ineonsisteney 



The SCS, EPA, the Corps, and FWS signed an interagency agreement on August 23. 1993 

 that will reduce existing overlap and inconsistencies in the implementation of Federal 

 wetlands programs affecting agricultural lands by undertaking, within 120 days, the 

 following initiatives: 



- Make the SCS the Lead Agency on Agricultural Lands. The SCS, the Corps, 

 EPA, and FWS will develop procedures to provide that SCS wetland delineations 

 will represent the final government position on the extent of Swampbuster and 

 Clean Water Act jurisdiction on agricultural lands. Interagency training pr ograms 

 will be developed to ensure that agency field staff are properly trained, that 

 standard, agreed-upon methods arc utilized in making delineation and mitigation 

 determinations, and that EPA and the Corps, consistent with their stamtory 

 authorities, have the ability to monitor SCS determinations on a programmatic 

 basis. SCS, EPA and the Corps will also coordinate enforcement responsibilities 

 on agricultural lands to ensure that the Federal government's activities are 

 equitable, and consistent. 



- Guarantee Consistency in Delineations on Agricultural Lands. In order to 

 ensure consistency in identifying wetlands on agricultural lands, the Corps, EPA, 

 SCS, and FWS will all use the same procedures to delineate wetlands. The 

 agencies will develop field guidance for implementing the 1987 Wetlands 

 Delineation Manual to establish procedures for identifying wetlands in areas 

 managed for agriculture. The agencies will also expedite current efforts to revise 

 the SCS Food Security Aa Manual to«liminate inconsistencies between wetlands 

 delineation procedures in the FSA Manual and the 1987 Manual. 



•Greatly Increase Farmers' Certainty in Agency Decisions. The Corps, in 

 coordination with EPA, SCS, and FWS^ will propose a Nationwide General Permit 

 for discharges associated with "minimal effects" and "frequently cropped with 

 mitigation" conversions determined by SCS and FWS to qualify for exemption 



