From Jane Clark: Please take action on this urgent request. Iowa has already lost most of its wetlands and this change by the Corps sets up an "anything goes approach" to wetland replacement. The policy allows for wetland mitigation to consist of preservation or enhancement of existing wetlands, small buffer strips along streams, upland areas, ponds and other waters, or simply deepening an existing wetlands for swimming or fishing. "None of these types of 'mitigation' can compensate for the loss of natural wetlands and will contribute to a continued net loss of our nation's valuable wetlands," according to Robin Mann, Chair of the Sierra Club Wetlands Committee. URGENT: CONTACT PRESIDENT'S COUNCIL ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY TO OPPOSE THE CORPS' LATEST WEAKENING OF THE WETLANDS PROGRAM On October 31, 2001 the Army Corps of Engineers issued a Regulatory Guidance Letter changing the rules on wetlands mitigation in the nation's Section 404 wetlands program in ways that abandon the no net loss policy on wetlands that has been in place for a decade. There was no advance notice to the other federal agencies, let alone consultation, and no opportunity for the public to comment. See http://www.usace.army.mil/civilworks/hot_topics/rglmitigation.htm The Corps' guidance is a unilateral response to the mitigation study of the National Academy of Sciences issued last spring, which found serious deficiencies in the mitigation program. The Corps has responded to only a few of the study recommendations, ignoring or counteracting others. Under the new guidance, replacement for destroyed wetlands could be provided by preservation or enhancement of existing wetlands, small buffer strips along streams, upland areas, ponds and other waters, or simply deepening an existing wetland for swimming or fishing. Please send an email message to James Connaughton, Chairman of the Council on Environmental Quality, urging him to take action, c/o the following address: [log in to unmask] Tell Mr. Connaughton: 1. The Administration must have the guidance withdrawn. 2. The Administration must require the Corps to undertake a joint initiative involving the public and the academic community, as well as the EPA and other federal agencies charged with responsibility for the Section 404 program, to develop improvements to the mitigation program that address all of the NAS recommendations. Questions, contact Robin Mann, [log in to unmask] For background information on mitigation banking, please visit http://www.sierraclub.org/wetlands/resources/mitigation.asp - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - For SC email list T-and-C, send: GET TERMS-AND-CONDITIONS.CURRENT to [log in to unmask]