13. a. The department shall require as a condition of a freshwater wetlands permit that all appropriate measures have been carried out to mitigate adverse environmental impacts, restore vegetation, habitats, and land and water features, prevent sedimentation and erosion, minimize the area of freshwater wetland disturbance and insure compliance with the Federal Act and implementing regulations.

b. The department may require the creation, enhancement, or restoration of an area of freshwater wetlands of equal ecological value to those which will be lost, and shall determine whether the creation, enhancement, or restoration of freshwater wetlands is conducted onsite or offsite. The department shall accept and evaluate a proposal to create, enhance, or restore an area of freshwater wetlands only after the department has evaluated the permit application for which the proposal is made, and shall evaluate the proposal to create, enhance, or restore an area of freshwater wetlands independently of the permit application. The department’s evaluation of a proposal to create, enhance, or restore an area of freshwater wetlands shall be conducted in consultation with the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

c. If the department determines that the creation, enhancement, or restoration of freshwater wetlands onsite is not feasible, the department, in consultation with the United States Environmental Protection Agency, may consider the option of permitting: the creation of freshwater wetlands or the enhancement or restoration of degraded freshwater wetlands offsite on private property with the restriction on these freshwater wetlands of any future development; the protection of transition areas or upland areas offsite, on private property, that are deemed by the department to be valuable for the protection of a freshwater wetlands ecosystem, with the restriction on these areas of any future development; or the making of a contribution to the Wetlands Mitigation Bank. The contribution shall be equivalent to the lesser of the following costs: (1) purchasing, and enhancing or restoring, existing degraded freshwater wetlands, resulting in preservation of freshwater wetlands of equal ecological value to those which are being lost; or (2) purchase of property and the cost of creation of freshwater wetlands of equal ecological value to those which are being lost. The applicant may also donate land as part of the contribution if the Wetlands Mitigation Council determines that the donated land has potential to be a valuable component of the freshwater wetlands ecosystem. The department shall permit the donation of land as a part of the contribution to the Wetlands Mitigation Bank only after determining that all alternatives to the donation are not practicable or feasible.

L.1987,c.156,s.13; amended 1993,c.298,s.5.