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p. Strategies to mitigate impacts to wetlands will be examined in the 

 following order: 



Use of traditional mitigation measures: 



1 ) Avoid impacts by selecting alternative alignments or locations. 



2) Reduce the impact by limiting encroachments, using less intrusive 

 construction techniques, or other methods. 



3) Restore the impact area to as near its original condition as possible. 



4) In-kind replacement, on-site and within the right-of-way. 



Use of the wetland bank: 



5) In-kind replacement, off-site and within the right-of-way. 



6) In-kind replacement, off-site and outside of the right-of-way. 



Use of traditional mitigation measures: 



7) Out-of-kind replacement, on-site and within the right-of-way. 



Use of the wetland bank: 



8) Out-of-kind replacement, off-site and within the right-of-way. 



9) Out-of-kind replacement, off-site and outside of the right-of-way. 



Right-of-way includes the roadway median, borrow sources, interchange 

 areas, and along the roadside. A combination of mitigation strategies may 

 be used if it is demonstrated they better mitigate for the impact than the use 

 of a single strategy. 



q. As a general rule, wetland bank sites offered as mitigation will be the 

 same system, subsystem, and class as those impacted by development (i.e. 

 in-kind replacement of palustrine, forested, wetlands will be accomplished 

 by trading for the same). 



r. Justification exists, at times, for mitigation to provide more or less than 

 one acre of replacement land for each acre taken. Justification exists when 

 1:1 replacement, by area, is not a trade of equal value as measured by 

 habitat units or average annual habitat units defined by US FWS Habitat 

 Evaluation Procedures. This includes: when considerable time must pass 

 before a bank site provides the wetland functional values provided by the 

 impact site; when there are considerable differences in the initial quality of 

 the impact site as compared to the bank site; and when the area impacted 

 by a project extends beyond easily identified boundaries, such as the limits 

 of fill. 



s. The acceptability of a trade of greater size but lesser quality, or lesser 

 size but greater quality than the impacted wetland shall be determined by 

 agencies with a statutory interest, or an interest by mutual agreement, on a 

 case by case basis. 



