Methods for Supporting Mitigation at a Large Landscape Scale

Over $3.3 billion is spent annually on compensatory mitigation under the Clean Water Act and the Endangered Species Act (ELI 2007).  In addition, environmental permitting can be up to 59% of road construction costs (Louis Berger & Associates, Inc. and BSC Group 1997). Transportation agencies and others involved in infrastructure development often view these expenditures as “costs”, but instead they could be viewed as one of the largest sources of funding for achieving high priority conservation in the U.S.  Indeed, the potential benefits of strategically applying these funds could be enormous, supporting both conservation needs and a reduction in infrastructure development costs. (Crist et al 2013)

A progressive approach to mitigation site selection and design rely on a scientifically rigorous analysis of the watershed or landscape in which the compensatory mitigation project is being proposed. This approach results in mitigation projects that improve the overall condition of a hydrologic or ecological unit by considering multiple species and multiple ecosystem functions or services. (NCHRP 2011)

This presentation will summarize the key characteristics of a progressive approach to compensatory mitigation, examples of how these approaches can significantly improve environmental outcomes, and some technical methods to support practitioners in moving away from a project-by-project approach towards a large landscape-scale approach. We will review several types of landscape-scale conservation datasets that can be utilized, and quantitative, science-based methods for identifying mitigation sites in a large landscape context and setting accurate mitigation performance standards.