57 



14 PROTECTING AMERICA'S WETIANDS: 



impact of proposed discharges. This guidance clariCes that small projects with minor 

 impacts are subject to less rigorous permit review than larger projects with more 

 substantial enviroimiental impacts. 



•• Develop Improved Analydeal Tools for Wetlands Functional Assessment The 



agencies will expedite development of a new approach for wetland functional assessment 

 known as the Hydrogeomorphic Classification System (HGM). The HGM methodology 

 is being developed by the agencies and the academic community as an improved 

 analytical tool to make timely and accurate assessments of wetland functions. This tool 

 will assist the agencies in assessing the relative severity of environmental impact of 

 proposed discharges to determine an appropriate regulatory response consistent with the 

 404{bXl) Guidelines flexibility guidance referenced above. 



• Encourage Advance Planning Efforts. The agencies will provide technical assistance 

 for advance pl annin g efforts addressing wetlands conservation, and will counsel plarming 

 participants on methods to link local or regional plarming with Section 404 regulatory 

 decision making. Wetland categorization will be supported within the context of an 

 approved advance plan to provide landowners with early identification and 

 characterization of wetlands on their property, streamlined permit review, and more 

 flexible mitigation sequencing where appropriate. 



• Regionalize General Permits for Activities in Defined Categories of Waters. The 



Seaion 404 program already embodies a form of wetlands categorization through use of 

 Nationwide Permit 26 (NWP 26). a "category of waters" general permit that authorizes 

 discharges into isolated waters and headwaters. The Corps will undertake, in close 

 coordination with relevant State and Federal agencies, a field level review and evaluation 

 of NWP 26 for the purpose of regionalizing and improving its use. Congress should 

 amend Section 404(e) to recognize the concept of regionalized "category of waters" 

 general permits. 



E. GEOGRAPfflC JURISDICTION 



The term "geographic jurisdiction" encompasses a set of wetlands issues that concern the 

 determination of which waters fall within the jurisdiction of the Section 404 program of the 

 Qean Water Aa. These issues include the delineation manual that sp>ccifies the methodology 

 by which wetlands are identified; the definitions of "wetlands" and "waters of the United States;" 

 'artificial" wetlands; and isolated waters. (For "Delineation Training and Certification" see 

 ADDRESSING LANDOWNER CONCERNS.) 



\ 

 Issue Definition: Delineation Manual 



As previously indicated, there has been a great deal of controversy surrounding the manuals that 

 Federal agencies use in the field to delineate wetlands. The 1989 Manual was strongly criticized 

 by some who claimed that it was an attempt by the bureaucracy to greatly expand the geographic 



