Planner's Guide to Wetland Buffers for Local Governments

Okay, I must have been asleep because this little guide was released by the Environmental Law Institute (ELI) in March 2008.  A friend of mine who knows far more about wetlands and local governments than I recommends it highly.

Here you can download a free pdf copy or purchase one if you like.

From the WWW site:

The upland area surrounding a wetland – the wetland buffer – is essential to its health and survival. Healthy wetlands and buffer areas help to control flooding, protect water flows, conserve native plants and wildlife, and support nature-friendly land use and development. Local governments are often better situated than state and federal environmental authorities to control activities on the lands that surround wetland resource areas, because they are not just concerned with wetland functions, but also with surrounding land uses and the benefits wetlands provide for their communities. Based on ELI’s detailed examination of more than 50 enacted wetland buffer ordinances around the nation and nine model ordinances, as well as several hundred scientific studies and analyses of buffer performance, the Planner's Guide to Wetland Buffers for Local Governments identifies both the state-of-the-art and the range of current practice in protection of wetland buffers by local governments. The Guide provides to local governments considering enacting or amending a wetland buffer ordinance what they need to know to manage land use and development in these important areas.

Enjoy!

"Philosophers are people who don't want what they can't have." -- Unknown