Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center
Effects of Section 404 Permits on Wetlands in North Dakota
by
Natalie R. Sexton1
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
National Ecology Research Center
Fort Collins, Colorado 80525
Abstract
I reviewed 87 wetland alterations from discharges of dredged or fill material
in the prairie pothole region of North Dakota. The discharges were authorized
by nationwide permits (NWP) 13, 14, and 26 and by individual permits issued
by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act
during 1987-1991. For each discharge, I assessed the magnitude and purpose,
the affected wetland type, the compliance of the permit holder with the permit
conditions, and the corps' acceptance of recommendations by resource agencies
for special conditions for individual permits. Nearly 117,748 m3
of material were placed into wetlands by 42 discharges, 13 ha of wetlands were
altered by 13 discharges, and 1,192 m of shoreline were modified by 15 discharges.
Most discharges were made into palustrine and riverine wetlands. Compliance
by permit holders with special conditions was 85%. The corps accepted 74% of
the recommended special conditions by resource agencies for individual permits.
Ninety percent of the special conditions of individual permits were implemented
by applicants. The effect on any one wetland from a discharge authorized by
NWP 13 or NWP 14 seems to have been minimal; however, cumulative effects were
not determined. The types and sizes of discharges authorized by NWP 26 were
variable and did not seem to meet certain regulatory requirements, for example,
that they be similar in nature and have minimal individual and cumulative effects.
Compliance by permit holders with permit conditions was greater than 75%. However,
because some special conditions for individual permits pertained to implementation,
compliance could not always be determined. More follow-up is needed of permitted
discharges during and after implementation.
Key words: Clean Water Act, prairie potholes, Section 404, wetland
losses, wetland permits, wetland alterations.
This resource is based on the following source:
Sexton, Natalie R. 1994. Effects of section 404 permits on wetlands in North
Dakota. U.S. Department of the Interior, National Biological Survey,
Washington, D.C. Resource Publication 200. 16 pp.
This resource should be cited as:
Sexton, Natalie R. 1994. Effects of section 404 permits on wetlands in North
Dakota. U.S. Department of the Interior, National Biological Survey,
Washington, D.C. Resource Publication 200.
Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center Online.
http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/wetlands/wetlperm/index.htm
(Version 03JUN98).
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Section 404 Regulations
- Methods
- File Examinations
- Field Examinations
- Results
- Magnitude of Wetland Alterations
- Purposes of Discharges and Affected Wetland Types
- Compliance by Permit Holders
- Mitigation
- Nationwide Permit 13
- Nationwide Permit 14
- Nationwide Permit 26
- Individual Permits
- Discussion
- Magnitude of Wetland Alterations
- Compliance by Permit Holders
- Nationwide Permits
- Individual Permits
- Conclusions
- Acknowledgments
- Cited Literature
List of Tables
- Table 1 -- Number of discharges of fill material
into wetlands.
- Table 2 -- Comparisons of expected and observed
wetland alterations from 70 discharges of fill material.
- Table 3 -- Purpose of 87 discharges of fill material
into wetlands.
- Table 4 -- Compliance with special conditions
for 87 discharges of fill material into wetlands.
- Table 5 -- Recommended stipulations by federal
and state resource agencies for 16 individual permits for discharges of
fill material into wetlands.
- Table 6 -- Implementation of special conditions
by holders of 16 individual permits for discharges of fill material into
wetlands.
List of Figures
- Frontispiece -- Shorebirds feeding in
an ephemeral wetland typical of North Dakota.
- Figure 1 -- The prairie pothole region of
North Dakota.
- Figure 2 -- A bank stabilization.
- Figure 3 -- A bridge replacement.
- Figure 4 -- A discharge of fill material into
a wetland.
- Figure 5 -- A discharge of fill material into
a wetland for a boating activity (development of a marina).
- Figure 6 -- Locations of the 87 discharges
reviewed for this study.
- Figure 7 -- Wetland types affected by the
87 discharges of fill material into wetlands reviewed for this study.
1Present address: Johnson Controls World Services Inc., P.O. Box
270308, Fort Collins, Colorado, 80527
Downloading Instructions -- Instructions
on downloading and extracting files from this site.
wetlperm.zip
(303K) -- Effects of Section 404 Permits on Wetlands in North Dakota
Installation: Extract all files and open index.htm in a web
browser.
U.S. Department of the Interior |
U.S. Geological Survey