MODEL WETLAND PROTECTION ORDINANCE 



Section 1: Findings of Fact and Purpose 



1.1 Findings of Fact 



The [City Council or Board of Commissioners] of the [local 



jurisdiction] hereby finds that: 



a. Wetlands and their buffer areas are valuable and fragile 

 natural resources with significant development constraints due 

 to flooding, erosion, soil liquefaction potential, and septic 

 disposal limitations. 



b. In their natural state, wetlands provide many valuable social 

 and ecological services, including: 



1) controlling flooding and stormwater jrunoff by storing or 

 regulating natural flows; 



2) protecting water resources by filtering out water 

 pollutants, processing biological and chemical oxygen demand, 

 recycling and storing nutrients, and serving as settling 

 basins for naturally occurring sedimentation; 



3) providing areas for groundwater recharge; 



4) preventing shoreline erosion by stabilizing the substrate; 



5) providing habitat areas for many species of fish, wildlife, 

 and vegetation, many of which are dependent on wetlands for 

 their survival, and many of which are on Washington State and 

 Federal Endangered Species lists; 



6) providing open space and visual relief from intense 

 development in urbanized area; 



7) providing recreation opportunities; and 



8) serving as areas for scientific study and natural resource 

 education. 



c. Development in wetlands results in: 



1) increased soil erosion and sedimentation of downstream 

 water bodies, including navigable channels; 



2) increased shoreline erosion; 



3) degraded water quality due to increased turbidity and loss 

 of pollutant removal processes; 



4) elimination or degradation of wildlife and fisheries 

 habitat; 



5) loss of fishery resources from water quality degradation, 

 increased peak flow rates, decreased summer low flows, and 

 changes in the streamflow regimen. 



6) loss of stormwater retention capacity and slow-release 

 detention resulting in flooding, degraded water quality, and 

 changes in the streamflow regimen of watersheds; 



7) loss of groundwater recharge areas; 



