Mitigation banks for wetland conservation : a major success or an unmitigated disaster?

Shelley Burgin

Mitigation banks for wetland conservation : a major success or an unmitigated disaster?

Shelley Burgin

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

52 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

First developed in the USA in the early 1970s, ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢"šÂ¬Ã‹Å“wetland mitigation banksÃƒÂ¢Ã¢"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢ provide a framework for conservation activities that are designed to offset residual, unavoidable damage to the natural environment caused by development activities. The concept is now a worldwide phenomenon. In this paper I consider the level of success of wetland mitigation banks in the USA for biodiversity conservation with a view to informing ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢"šÂ¬Ã‹Å“best practiceÃƒÂ¢Ã¢"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢ in Australia. I conclude that although the concept has merit, even in the USA where the processes have been evolving for over 30 years, the outcomes frequently fall short of the target of a ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢"šÂ¬Ã‹Å“like for likeÃƒÂ¢Ã¢"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢ swap of habitat. While the outcome for wetland mitigation may not be an ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢"šÂ¬Ã‹Å“unmitigated disasterÃƒÂ¢Ã¢"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢ it is, at best, apparently only modestly successful.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	49-55
Number of pages	7
Journal	Wetlands Ecology and Management
Volume	18
Issue number	1
Publication status	Published - 2010

Keywords

wetland conservation
wetland mitigation banking

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Cite this

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title = "Mitigation banks for wetland conservation : a major success or an unmitigated disaster?",

abstract = "First developed in the USA in the early 1970s, {\~A}ƒ{\^A}¢{\~A}¢{"}{\v s}{\^A}¬{\~A}‹{\AA}“wetland mitigation banks{\~A}ƒ{\^A}¢{\~A}¢{"}{\v s}{\^A}¬{\~A}¢{"}{\v z}{\^A}¢ provide a framework for conservation activities that are designed to offset residual, unavoidable damage to the natural environment caused by development activities. The concept is now a worldwide phenomenon. In this paper I consider the level of success of wetland mitigation banks in the USA for biodiversity conservation with a view to informing {\~A}ƒ{\^A}¢{\~A}¢{"}{\v s}{\^A}¬{\~A}‹{\AA}“best practice{\~A}ƒ{\^A}¢{\~A}¢{"}{\v s}{\^A}¬{\~A}¢{"}{\v z}{\^A}¢ in Australia. I conclude that although the concept has merit, even in the USA where the processes have been evolving for over 30 years, the outcomes frequently fall short of the target of a {\~A}ƒ{\^A}¢{\~A}¢{"}{\v s}{\^A}¬{\~A}‹{\AA}“like for like{\~A}ƒ{\^A}¢{\~A}¢{"}{\v s}{\^A}¬{\~A}¢{"}{\v z}{\^A}¢ swap of habitat. While the outcome for wetland mitigation may not be an {\~A}ƒ{\^A}¢{\~A}¢{"}{\v s}{\^A}¬{\~A}‹{\AA}“unmitigated disaster{\~A}ƒ{\^A}¢{\~A}¢{"}{\v s}{\^A}¬{\~A}¢{"}{\v z}{\^A}¢ it is, at best, apparently only modestly successful.",

keywords = "wetland conservation, wetland mitigation banking",

author = "Shelley Burgin",

year = "2010",

language = "English",

volume = "18",

pages = "49--55",

journal = "Wetlands Ecology and Management",

issn = "0923-4861",