National wetland policy: USA

Abstract

United States wetland policy has developed over the past four decades. Prior to the 1970s, government policy largely reflected the view of wetlands as unproductive swampland that posed a nuisance to human health, promoting drainage and repurposing for agriculture. Concern about wetland loss emerged only after its negative impacts to fish and waterfowl became apparent. Lack of restriction on wetland conversion leads to the loss of more than 50% of total wetland acreage in the contiguous United States over a 200-year period ending in 1980. In 1972, the US Congress passed the Clean Water Act, amending an existing law to create what remains the lynchpin of federal wetlands policy. As understanding of the importance of wetlands grew, a broad range of other federal legislation and programs advancing wetlands protection emerged. By 1987, the NGO Conservation Foundation convened a cross-sectoral forum leading to recommendation that national policy be guided by the goal of "no net loss" that was partially successful in reducing the rate of wetland loss but which did not account for regional differences and impacts on wetland functionality.