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WETLAND PROTECTION---REGULATORY FRAMEWORK UNITED STATES ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS Wetlands are defined by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers(Corps)and the U.S.Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)as those areas that are inundated or saturated by surface or ground water at a frequency and duration sufficient to support,and that under normal circumstances do support,a prevalence of vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions. Section 404 of the Federal Clean Water Act regulates discharge of fill material into "waters of the United States," which include wetlands. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must issue a permit for any project which proposes filling of wetlands between one and ten acres.For filling of less than one acre, provided the conditions of Nationwide permit#26 are met,no formal notification is required and a Nationwide Permit may be granted(see below). The Environmental Protection Agency(EPA)has an oversight role, and through an involved process can override a decision by the Corps to issue a permit. Certain activities such as normal farming practices,emergency reconstruction of existing structures, and construction of irrigation ditches are exempt from Section 404 permit requirements. To determine which wetlands are subject to Corps jurisdiction(i.e.,jurisdictional wetlands),a wetlands delineation must be performed. Three criteria are considered: (1)evidence of inundation or saturation by surface or groundwater for at least two weeks during an average rainfall year (hydrology),(2) a prevalence of wetland vegetation(hydrophytes)if the site is undisturbed,and (3)typical wetland(hydric) soils,that is,soils formed under saturated, anaerobic conditions. Generally,riparian areas do no meet the criteria for delineation as a wetland,except for that portion of a stream or river corridor that lies within the line of"ordinary high water." In 1987 the Corps published a manual which standardized the manner in which wetlands were to be delineated nationwide.While the manual was effective in most circumstances,conflicts arose in certain instances when the Corps delineation of a wetland conflicted with that of other federal agencies which had their own wetland definitions. Consequently the Corps,EPA,Soil Conservation Service(SCS) and the U.S.Fish and Wildlife Service(USFWS)in 1989 published a new "unified" method for wetland delineation. Under the 1989 methodology an area meeting the minimum soils criteria and supporting plant species able to survive occasional saturation was considered a jurisdictional.wet]and if the soil, 6 to 18 inches below the surface,showed evidence of saturation for as little as seven consecutive days during the year./1/