30.62A.550 Mitigation banking and in lieu fee program.
(1) The director may approve the establishment and use of a wetland, fish and wildlife habitat conservation area or buffer mitigation bank to provide mitigation required by this chapter. The director’s approval may allow for deviations from the requirements of Parts 100 through 400 with respect to the treatment of wetlands, fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas or buffers.
(2) Criteria for approval of use of mitigation banks:
(a) The following must have been approved by the county and the federal, state and local agencies with jurisdiction:
(i) a memorandum of agreement (MOA) defining guidelines for establishing a wetland, fish and wildlife habitat conservation area or buffer mitigation banking program and an implementation manual establishing a mitigation bank at a specific site; and
(ii) the MOA and/or implementation manual shall include, but not necessarily be limited to, provisions for the following:
(A) specific criteria and standards for use of the mitigation bank;
(B) methods for tracking credits;
(C) an interagency oversight committee composed of representatives from each of the agencies with jurisdiction for the purpose of regulatory review and approval of banking activities;
(D) permanent management and maintenance to assure the long-term viability of the bank site;
(E) professional construction oversight to ensure successful construction of the mitigation bank site;
(F) quantitative and qualitative performance standards;
(G) systematic compliance and performance monitoring to determine the degree to which the site meets performance standards;
(H) a schedule and timeline for compliance and performance monitoring,
(I) contingency plans;
(J) methods to be used to determine the functions and values of replacement wetlands, fish and wildlife habitat conservation area or buffers based on a watershed analysis;
(K) provisions for assuring the funding of long-term maintenance of the bank and performance of mitigation and monitoring requirements;
(L) a description of wetland, fish and wildlife habitat conservation area or buffer mitigation ratios to be used and justification for these ratios based upon best available science. Mitigation ratios will be based upon consideration of factors including but not limited to the likelihood of success of the mitigation, the types and quality of wetland, fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas or buffers involved, research results, and monitoring results;
(M) the mitigation plan requirements contained in SCC 30.62A.150; and
(N) provisions for mitigation sequencing that requires at minimum that all proposals using a mitigation bank shall have made reasonable efforts to avoid and minimize impacts to wetlands, fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas and buffers.
(b) The use of the mitigation bank will result in equivalent treatment of the functions and values of the wetland, fish and wildlife habitat conservation area or buffer to offset the impacts to critical areas functions and values on the project site such that the total net impact will be no net loss of critical area functions and values in the watershed in which the impacts will occur. For the purposes of this section, "watershed" means an area identified as a state of Washington water resource inventory area (WRIA) under WAC 173-500-040.
(c) The creation and operation of the mitigation bank and development activity which utilizes the wetland, fish and wildlife habitat conservation area or buffer bank, shall not create unmitigated long term or permanent adverse impacts to the critical functions and values of the wetlands, fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas or buffers in the sub-drainage basin in which the impacts will occur. Critical functions and values listed at SCC 30.62A.220 are those that are important to the long-term ecological viability of the wetlands, fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas or buffers in the sub-drainage basin.
(3) The director shall make MOAs and mitigation banking documents available for public review and comment prior to approval.
(4) In-lieu fee mitigation.
(a) The director may approve the establishment and use of a wetland, fish and wildlife habitat conservation area or buffer mitigation in-lieu fee program to provide mitigation required by this chapter. The director’s approval may allow for deviations from the requirements of Parts 100 through 400 of this chapter with respect to the treatment of wetlands, fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas or buffers.
(b) In-lieu fee mitigation shall be established in accordance with the guidance contained in “Guidance on In-lieu Fee Mitigation” (Washington State Department of Ecology, December 2012, or latest edition, Publication #12-06-012). (Added by Amended Ord. 06-061, Aug. 1, 2007, Eff date Oct. 1, 2007; Amended by Amended Ord. 15-034, Sept. 2, 2015, Eff date Nov. 1, 2015).