Sunday
Presentations on Wetlands Protection in Tompkins County
May 4, 2008.
On Thursday night the Ithaca Town Conservation Board heard a presentation on local wetlands and the regulatory mechanisms needed to protect them. The U.S. Supreme Court has handed down several decisions in recent years affecting the Clean Water Act and the extent to which the Army Corps of Engineers (the agency, along with the EPA, responsible for protecting the nation’s waters) can regulate and protect small, isolated wetlands. The upshot of the complicated legal decisions is that some wetlands in New York State smaller than 12.4 acres in size may be without any protection whatever. While the Army Corps hardly inspires confidence in the way that they protect wetlands, the state of things now, thanks to the Supreme Court, is even more dispiriting and alarming.
The presentation urged local municipalities to be proactive in protecting their wetlands, and it suggested a number of regulatory mechanisms to achieve this goal. Some of these mechanisms could very be effective in protecting Sapsucker Woods and other wetlands in the Town, and we ought to encourage the Town to adopt these measures.
This presentation will be given again at this Tuesday’s Town Planning Board meeting, at 7:00. It will last about 45 minutes or so. If you are interested in helping to protect our area’s resources, this presentation is highly recommended.
On Thursday night the Ithaca Town Conservation Board heard a presentation on local wetlands and the regulatory mechanisms needed to protect them. The U.S. Supreme Court has handed down several decisions in recent years affecting the Clean Water Act and the extent to which the Army Corps of Engineers (the agency, along with the EPA, responsible for protecting the nation’s waters) can regulate and protect small, isolated wetlands. The upshot of the complicated legal decisions is that some wetlands in New York State smaller than 12.4 acres in size may be without any protection whatever. While the Army Corps hardly inspires confidence in the way that they protect wetlands, the state of things now, thanks to the Supreme Court, is even more dispiriting and alarming.
The presentation urged local municipalities to be proactive in protecting their wetlands, and it suggested a number of regulatory mechanisms to achieve this goal. Some of these mechanisms could very be effective in protecting Sapsucker Woods and other wetlands in the Town, and we ought to encourage the Town to adopt these measures.
This presentation will be given again at this Tuesday’s Town Planning Board meeting, at 7:00. It will last about 45 minutes or so. If you are interested in helping to protect our area’s resources, this presentation is highly recommended.
