BAM NEWS

Request for your opinion on wetland replacement
The Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR) has been going through rulemaking changes for the Wetland Conservation Act the past two years, and they’re now in the home stretch for final rules. The Builders Association of Minnesota (BAM) and the Builders Association of the Twin Cities have been at the table discussing and weighing in on how various rules will affect your ability to build. Listed below are five public policy initiatives, in draft form, that BAM feels will hamper building and development in Minnesota.
Please take some time to review the new rules and send your feedback to Lisa Frenette, BAM Government Relations Director. Her email address is: lisaf@bamn.org. All BAM considerations are draft suggestions in an effort to provide feedback to BWSR. Final determination on any suggested rulemaking language will be made by the Government Relations Committee and worked out in conjunction with BATC.
1. Letters of Credit: BWSR is proposing a Letter of Credit (LOC) to assure successful replacement of a wetland by the applicant. The financial assurance would cover the, "cost of actions necessary to bring the project into compliance with the approved replacement plan specifications and monitoring requirements." BWSR is also proposing to retain portions of a LOC on Wetland Replacement Areas until a final monitoring period of 5 years comes to a close. The release of any amount would depend on successful vegetative establishment and completion of the monitoring period (see monitoring below). BAM Recommendation: BAM proposes a full release of the LOC when the monitoring period is complete.
2. Monitoring: BAM agrees that monitoring is an important part of the wetland replacement process to ensure compliance. However, BWSR is proposing that, "any agreements regarding the transfer of monitoring responsibilities must be agreed upon by both parties in writing and do not release the applicant from the responsibility to provide replacement as specified in the approved replacement plan." BAM Recommendation: BAM proposes striking this language. Any contract made between parties (landowner and builder) ought to be the determining factor for responsibility of compliance for a wetland replacement. BWSR has also added language that would allow the monitoring period to last an unspecified amount of time without a Technical Evaluation Panel (TEP) review. Determination would be left to the discretion of the local government. BAM Recommendation: BAM proposes striking this language. A 5-year growing season is timely even with varying weather conditions for a replacement wetland.
3. Buffer Areas: Discussions about buffer areas are still ongoing at BWSR and no specific language has been brought forth. BAM Recommendation: BAM proposes that all buffer areas be site-specific with determination by Local Government Units and a TEP analysis review. This ensures that local conditions, function and value of wetlands are considered when local government units set the buffer width consistent with their delegated authority to protect water quality.
4. Determination of Complete Application: In an effort to interpret Minnesota Statutes 15.99, BWSR has proposed "cit(ing) seasonal constraints as a basis for determining an application incomplete." BAM Recommendation: BAM proposes striking this language. BWSR must be consistent with the current law that allows development upon conditional approval of a plat. This allows builders and developers to move forward with a project rather than waiting for a whole season to pass by while allowing BWSR to re-inspect for different conditions in the spring.
5. De Minimis: BWSR has been talking for some time about changing replacement plans for de minimis areas. After discussions with builders and developers, BAM decided not to battle this rulemaking change on the front end.
Please let us know your thoughts about the policy initiatives above. We will provide the feedback to the Government Relations committee for review and recommendation to the BWSR. Thank you for your input.