The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Northwestern Division, administers a comprehensive Regulatory Program, rooted in one of the federal government’s earliest laws to protect the navigable capacity of the nation’s waters. The Regulatory Program has evolved significantly since inception, gaining scope, complexity, and authority in response to shifting public needs, court rulings, and legislation. Spanning 11 states in the Pacific Northwest, North Central and Central U.S., the Northwestern Division operates through its five districts: Kansas City, Omaha, Portland, Seattle, and Walla Walla.

The division implements Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899, Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, and Section 103 of the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act, requiring permits for activities in navigable waters, for the discharge of dredged or fill material into waters of the U.S., including wetlands, and for the transport and disposal of dredged material in the ocean. The Northwestern Division is the largest division, issuing thousands of permits annually, while balancing the protection of the nation’s aquatic ecosystems with responsible development, providing fair, balanced, and timely decisions while maintaining the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of waters of the United States.

Mitigation Information

The overall objective of the Clean Water Act (CWA) is "to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the Nation's waters." To achieve this goal, the CWA prohibits the discharge of dredged or fill material into wetlands, streams, and other waters of the United States unless a permit is issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. During the permit review process, the applicant must demonstrate that he or she has avoided and minimized impacts to aquatic resources to the maximum extent practicable. For any remaining unavoidable impacts, compensatory mitigation is usually required to replace the loss of wetland, stream, and/or other aquatic resource functions. The Corps is responsible for determining the appropriate form and amount of compensatory mitigation that may be required. Methods of providing compensatory mitigation include aquatic resource restoration, establishment, enhancement, and in certain circumstances, preservation.

In accordance with the Final Compensatory Mitigation Rule, the applicant is required to provide a "Mitigation Statement" with any application stating how he or she intends to compensate for the loss of aquatic functions or why compensatory mitigation should not be required. As the development and implementation of a compensatory mitigation project can be beyond the capability of many applicants, the Final Compensatory Mitigation Rule expresses a preference for first, obtaining mitigation credits from an established mitigation bank; second, purchasing credits from an approved in In-Lieu-Fee program; and lastly, by providing permittee responsible mitigation.

Final Compensatory Mitigation Rule

Regulatory in Lieu Fee and Bank Information Tracking System (RIBITS)

RIBITS was developed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to track mitigation banking and in-lieu fee (ILF) program activities across the United States. RIBITS includes information regarding banks and ILF program sites, associated documents, mitigation credit availability, service areas, and policies and procedures that affect bank and ILF program development and operation.

With support from the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, NOAA-National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA-NMFS), and Federal Highway Administration, RIBITS has grown to include conservation banking and multi-agency banking activities. Support from the U. S. Department of Agriculture allows RIBITS to track water-quality trading activities in multiple states, with pilot projects in the states of Virginia and Iowa, and additional support from NOAA-NMFS allows RIBITS to track credits for restoration banks recognized under Natural Resource Damage Assessment statutes.