The inaugural National Summit for Gateway Communities -- held on December 11-13, 2018, at the National Conservation Training Center (NCTC) in Shepherdstown, West Virginia -- celebrated the role of gateway communities in the stewardship of America's public lands and identified opportunities to help them thrive. Presentations and other items from this event can be found on this page. Any questions about how to become involved in this or similar programs or suggested edits and additions to the contents of this page can be sent to Margarita Carey (mcarey@conservationfund.org).

National Gateway Communities Summit

Additional Resources:

LINK to GroundWorkUSA YouTube playlist (associated with Plenary 4)

Presentations and resources related to the Fundamentals of Water Quality Markets and Trading

PRESENTATIONS:

Setting Baseline & Who Can Trade:

Managing Risk & Uncertainty:

How do you know credits are real?:

Susan Payne, Maryland Department of Agriculture

Legal Considerations for Trading:

Facilitating Water Quality Trading Market Design & Development:

Improving Water Quality Trading Programs Over Time:

RESOURCES:

BBNA, “EPA Once Again Urged by Alliance To Authorize States to Carry Out Trading” 164 DEN A-10, Aug. 25, 2014 (Copyright 2014 by Bloomberg BNA. Reproduced with permission) (PDF)
Clean Water Act, Section 404 (33 U.S.C. Sec. 1344). (PDF)
Collins and Larry: “Caring for Our Natural Assets: An Ecosystem Services Perspective” USDA, Forest Service, October 2007. (PDF)
Council on Environmental Quality, NEPA regulations, 40 C.F.R. Parts 1500 through 1508. (PDF)
Defense Department, authority to participate in wetland mitigation and conservation banks, 10 U.S.C. Secs. 2694b and 2694c (PDF)
Department of the Interior, “A Strategy for Improving the Mitigation Policies and Practices of The Department of the Interior,” April 2014. (PDF)
Department of the Interior, Secretarial Order No. 3330 “Improving Mitigation Policies and Practices of the Department of the Interior” Oct. 31, 2013. (PDF)
DOT, Federal Highway Administration, Mitigation of Impacts to Wetlands and Natural Habitat regulations, 23 C.F.R. Part 777. (PDF)
Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). Abstracts Related to Water Quality Trading. (PDF)
Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). Case Studies of Water Quality Trading Being Used for Compliance with Nutrient NPDES Permit Limits, December 2013. (LINK) (PDF)
Endangered Species Act,
a. Sec. 7 (16 U.S.C. Sec. 1536) (PDF)
b. Sec. 10 (16 U.S.C. Sec. 1539) (PDF)
Environmental Law Institute. 2005 Status Report on Compensatory Mitigation in the United States. Washington, DC, 2006. (PDF)
EPA Compensatory Mitigation for Losses of Aquatic Resources, 40 C.F.R. Part 230, Subpart J. (PDF)
EPA Sulfur Dioxide Allowance System, 40 C.F.R. 73. (PDF)
Executive Order 13563—Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review, Jan. 18, 2011. (PDF)
Executive Order 13604—Improving Performance of Federal Permitting and Review of Infrastructure Projects, March 28, 2012. (PDF)
Executive Order 13186. Responsibilities of Federal Agencies to Protect Migratory Birds, signed Jan. 10, 2001 (Sec. 3(e)(2) restore and enhance the habitat of migratory birds, as practicable). (PDF)
Federal Land Policy and Management Act (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (PDF)
The Freshwater Trust. BasinScout: Watershed Restoration Methodology, Info Sheet. (PDF)
The Freshwater Trust. Water Quality Trading: Program Overview, Info Sheet. (PDF)
Forest Trends, Ecosystem Marketplace Initiative. Gaining Depth: State of Watershed Investment 2014 Report: (LINK) (PDF)
Forest Trends, The Katoomba Group and UNEP. “Payments for Ecosystem Services: Getting Started – A Primer.” 2008 (PDF)
Kiesecker, Joseph M, et. al. “Development by Design: blending landscape-level planning with the mitigation hierarchy.” Front. Ecol. Environ. Doi: 10.1890/090005, 2009. (PDF)
Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board and Nevada Division of Environmental Protection. “Lake Clarity Crediting Program Handbook: For Lake Tahoe TMDL Implementation”, August 2015. (PDF)
Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board and Nevada Division of Environmental Protection. “Lake Tahoe TMDL Program Management System Handbook: Guiding Efforts to Restore Lake Tahoe’s Historic Clarity”, December 2014. (PDF)
LaRocco, Gina L.; Deal, Robert L. “Giving credit where credit is due: increasing landowner compensation for ecosystem services” USDA, Forest Service, 2011. (PDF)
Madsen, Becca et al. “Update: State of Biodiversity Markets.” Washington, DC. Forest Trends. 2011. (PDF)
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act - As amended 2007. (PDF)
Maillett and Simon: “Characteristics of Existing Federal Conservation Banks” USFWS Discussion Paper, September 2007. (PDF)
Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, as amended (16 U.S. C. 1361). (PDF)
McKenney, Bruce and Joseph M. Kiesecker, “Policy Development for Biodiversity Offsets: a Review of Offset Frameworks,” Environmental Management 45:165, 2010. (PDF)
National Association of Conservation Districts, “Markets, Trading and Credits: New Opportunities for Conservation Districts” Spring 2009. (PDF)
National Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) (PDF)
National Marine Fisheries Service regulations, 50 C.F.R. Parts 222. (PDF)
The National Network on Water Quality Trading. Building a Water Quality Trading Program: Options and Considerations, 2015. (LINK) (PDF)
The National Network on Water Quality Trading. Building a Water Quality Trading Program: Options and Considerations, 2015, Executive Summary. (LINK) (PDF)
The National Network on Water Quality Trading. Building a Water Quality Trading Program: Options and Considerations – Sector Summaries:
a. Agriculture Community Focus Summary by American Farmland Trust (PDF)
b. Environmental Community Focus Summary by Environmental Law and Policy Center (PDF)
c. State Perspectives by the Association of Clean Water Administrators (PDF)
d. NACWA Perspectives on Water Quality Trading (PDF)
e. Trading Practitioner Focus Summary by Troutman Sanders (PDF)
The National Network on Water Quality Trading, National Network Overview, June 10, 2015. (PDF)
NOAA Catch Share Policy, 2010. (PDF)
NRCS & USFWS, “Partnership Agreement Between the US Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service and the US Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service and Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies”, April 2007. (PDF)
Presidential Memorandum—Modernizing Federal Infrastructure Review and Permitting Regulations, Policies and Procedures, May 17, 2013. (PDF)
Presidential Memorandum—Transforming Our Nation’s Electric Grid Through Improved Siting, Permitting and Review, June 7, 2013. (PDF)
Section 314(b) of the 2004 National Defense Authorization Act (Pub. L. 108–136) [authorizing USACE regulations for onsite, offsite and in-lieu fee mitigation] (PDF)
U.S. EPA. Water Quality Trading Assessment Handbook: Can Water Quality Trading Advance Your Watershed’s Goals?, EPA 841-B-04-001, November 2004. (LINK) (PDF)
U.S. EPA. Water Quality Trading Policy, Office of Water, January 13, 2003. (PDF)
U.S. EPA. Water Quality Trading Program Fact Sheets, Appendices to Water Quality Trading Toolkit for Permit Writers, EPA 833-R-07-004, Published August 2007, Updated June 2009. (PDF)
U.S. EPA. Water Quality Trading Toolkit for Permit Writers, EPA 833-R-07-004, Published August 2007, Updated June 2009. (PDF)
EPA & USDA, “Partnership Agreement Between the US Department of Agriculture and the US Environmental Protection Agency Regarding Water Quality Trading”, November 2013. (PDF)
Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act (16 U.S.C. 661 et seq.) (PDF)
USFWS “Conservation Banking: Incentives for Stewardship” July 2009 (PDF)
USFWS “Guidance for Establishment, Use, and Operation of Conservation Banks” issued May 8, 2003, 68 Fed. Reg. 24753. (PDF)
USFWS, “Mitigation Policy,” 46 Fed. Reg. 7643, Jan. 23, 1981 [in process of being updated]. (PDF)
USFWS. Programmatic Formal Consultation for US Army Corps of Engineers 404 Permitted Projects that May Affect Four Endangered Plant Species on the Santa Rosa Plain, California. 1998 (PDF)
USFWS. Programmatic Formal Consultation on Issuance of 404 Permits for Projects with Relatively Small Effects on Listed Vernal Pool Crustaceans Within the Jurisdiction of the Sacramento Field Office, California. 1996. (PDF)
USFWS, Strategic Habitat Conservation: Landscape Conservation Cooperatives Fact Sheet, July 2012. (PDF)
USACE. Model “Operational Guidelines for Creating or Restoring Wetlands that are Ecologically Self-Sustaining” for Aquatic Resource Impacts Under the corps Regulatory Program Pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act. Memorandum to the Field. Oct. 29, 2003. (PDF)
USACE “National Wetland Mitigation Banking Study: Technical and Procedural Support to Mitigation Banking Guidance” IWR Technical Paper WMB-TP-2, December 1995. (PDF)
USACE Wetland Compensatory Mitigation Regulations, 33 C.F.R. Part 332. (PDF)
USDA, Natural Resources Conservation Service, “Natural Resources Credit Trading Reference,” October 2011. (PDF)
Woodward, Richard T. and Ronald A. Kaiser. Market Structures for U.S. Water Quality Trading. Review of Agricultural Economics 24(2): 366-383, 2011. (LINK) (PDF)
Working Lands Investment Partners LLC, “Environmental Credit Markets: An Investment Primer” October 2009. (PDF)
World Resources Institute, “Current and Potential Roles for Government in Facilitating Water Quality Markets”. (PDF)
World Resources Institute, “How Can Conservation Programs Effectively Interact with Environmental Markets?” (PDF)

Web Resources:

Further Reading:

Fiorino, Daniel J. The New Environmental Regulation. 2006
Klein, Christine A., Zellmer, Sandra B. Mississippi River Tragedies: A Century of Unnatural Disasters. 2014.
Water Environment Federation. Advances in Water Quality Trading as a Flexible Compliance Tool, P150004, 2015. Request for reprint.
Zellmer, Sandi B., Laitos, Jan G. Principles of Natural Resources Law. 2014.

Regional Outlook presentations and resources related to Water Quality Markets

CHESAPEAKE BAY REGION:

PRESENTATIONS:

RESOURCES:

BBNA, “Maryland Close to Launching ‘Gold Standard' Nutrient Trading Program, State Official Says,” 182 DEN A-10, Sept. 19, 2014 (Copyright 2014 by Bloomberg BNA. Reproduced with permission.) (PDF)
Branosky, Evan, Cy Jones, and Mindy Selman. “Comparison Tables of State Nutrient Trading Programs in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed” World Resources Institute, May 2011. (PDF)
Chesapeake Bay Commission. “Nutrient Credit Trading for the Chesapeake Bay: An Economic Study.” May 2012. (PDF)
Chesapeake Bay Program, “Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement”. 2014. (PDF)
Code of Virginia. Chesapeake Bay Watershed Nutrient Credit Exchange Program, Title 62.1. Waters of the State, Ports and Harbors, Chapter 3.1. State Water Control Law, Article 4.02. (PDF)
Code of Virginia. Nutrient credit use and additional offsite options for construction activities, Title 62.1. Waters of the State, Ports and Harbors, Chapter 3.1. State Water Control Law, § 62.1-44.15:35. (PDF)
Ecosystem Services Working Group, “Ecosystem Services Working Group Final Report”. October 2011. (PDF)
Executive Order 13508—Chesapeake Bay Protection and Restoration, May 12, 2009. (PDF)
Local Government Advisory Committee and Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay. “Our Waters, Our Towns: Local Governments’ Role in the Watershed Implementation Plans.” 2011. (PDF)
National Water Quality Trading Alliance, Memo on the Draft Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement, March 17, 2014. (PDF)
Nobles, Alicia L., Hillary D. Goldstein, Jonathan L. Goodall, G. Mitchell Fitch. Virginia Center for Transportation Innovation & Research. Investigating the Cost-Effectiveness of Nutrient Credit Use As an Option for VDOT Stormwater Permitting Requirements, VCTIR 15-R9, August 2014. (LINK)(PDF)
Ribaudo, Marc, Jeffrey Savage, and Marcel Aillery, “An Economic Assessment of Policy Options to Reduce Agricultural Pollutants in the Chesapeake Bay” USDA, Economic Research Service Report No. 166, June 2014. (PDF)
Sample Nutrient Credit Assignment Agreement. (PDF)
Slater, James E., Jr. and Glenn D. Edwards. Case Study: Effective Forest Banking: Forest Conservation in Carroll County, Maryland, from A Sustainable Chesapeake: Better Models for Conservation, The Conservation Fund. (PDF)
Virginia Department of Transportation. The Purchase of Nutrient Credits to address Post-Construction Water Quality Reduction Requirements for Construction Activities, Instructional and Informational Memo, OT IIM-LD-251.2, January 2015. (PDF)
World Resources Institute. Comparison and Effectiveness of Chesapeake Bay Nutrient Trading Program Policies, USDA Office of Environmental Markets, 2014. (PDF)

Web Resources:

Chesapeake Bay TMDL
The Conservation Exchange
Maryland Nutrient Trading Program
Pennsylvania Nutrient Trading Program
US Environmental Protection Agency Region 3, Chesapeake Bay TMDL: Technical Memoranda on State Trading and Offset Programs *click on “Bay Trading and Offset Activities”
World Resources Institute, Comparison Tables of State Nutrient Trading Programs in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed (2011)

GREAT LAKES REGION:

PRESENTATIONS:

RESOURCES:

Fox P Trade. Project Overview and Application Packet Fact Sheets, Adapting and Applying Water Quality Tracking in the Lower Fox Watershed, August 2015. (PDF)
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. A Water Quality Trading How To Manual: Guidance on developing a water quality trading strategy based on protocols specified in “Guidance for Implementing Water Quality Trading in WPDES Permits”, Guidance Number: 3400-2013-03, 2013. (LINK) (PDF)
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Guidance for Implementing Water Quality Trading in WPDES Permits, Guidance Number: 3800-2013-04, 2013 (LINK) (PDF)
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Water Quality Trading Factsheet, 2013. (LINK) (PDF)

Web Resources:

American Farmland Trust, Improving the Health of the Ohio River (Ohio River Basin WQT Project)
Chicago Wilderness, Biodiversity Recovery Plan – Climate Change Update
Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), Ohio River Basin Water Quality Trading Project
Great Lakes Commission, Fox River Phosphorus Trading Program
Great Lakes Protection Fund, Reducing Phosphorus Loads from Agriculture: Creating a Pay-for-Performance Program Using Field-Specific Information, Dr. Jonathan Winsten, Winrock International Institute for Agricultural Development.
Great Lakes Sediment and Nutrient Reduction Program
Lake Erie Nutrient Targets Workgroup Summary / Interim Joint Action Plan
Ohio River Basin, Water Quality Trading Project
US Environmental Protection Agency, Great Lakes National Program Office
The Wetland Initiative, Water Quality Trading and Nutrient Farming
Wisconsin DNR, Water Quality Trading

MISSISSIPPI RIVER AND GULF COAST REGION:

PRESENTATIONS:

RESOURCES:

Perez, Michelle, Sara Walker, and Cy Jones. Nutrient Trading in the MRB: A Feasibility Study for Using Large-Scale Interstate Nutrient Trading in the Mississippi River Basin to Help Address Hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico, World Resources Institute, March 2013. (PDF)
Ren, W., H. Tian, B. Tao, J. Yang, S. Pan, W.-J. Cai, S. E. Lohrenz, R. He, and C. S. Hopkinson, Large increase in dissolved inorganic carbon flux from the Mississippi River to Gulf of Mexico due to climatic and anthropogenic changes over the 21st century, J. Geophys. Res. Biogeosci., 120, 724–736, doi:10.1002/2014JG002761, 2015. (PDF)
Tao, B., H. Tian, W. Ren, J. Yang, Q. Yang, R. He, W. Cai, and S. Lohrenz, Increasing Mississippi river discharge throughout the 21st century influenced by changes in climate, land use, and atmospheric CO2, Geophys. Res. Lett., 41, 4978–4986, doi:10.1002/2014GL060361, 2014. (PDF)
Tian, H. et al., Climate extremes dominating seasonal and interannual variations in carbon export from the Mississippi River Basin, Global Biogeochem. Cycles, 29, doi:10.1002/ 2014GB005068, 2015. (PDF)
Wabash River Watershed Water Quality Trading Feasibility Study - Final Report. 2011. Prepared by the Conservation Technology Information Center for USEPA Targeted Watershed Grant WS-00E71501-0. (LINK)(PDF)

Web Resources:

An Integrated Terrestrial-Coastal Ocean Observation and Modeling Framework for Carbon Management Decision Support Collaboration
Mississippi River Basin/Gulf Hypoxia Structured Decision Making Workshop 2014
US Environmental Protection Agency, Stream Facility
World Resources Institute, Water Quality Targeting

PACIFIC NORTHWEST AND CALIFORNIA REGION:

PRESENTATIONS:

RESOURCES:

Clean Water Services. The Tualatin River Watershed: Balancing People, Nature, and Water, Info Sheet. (PDF)
Envirotech Publications, Inc. The Water Report, May 15, 2014. Water Quality & Temperature Trading in the Tualatin Basin. Laura Porter, Bruce Roll, Raj Kapur, and Anil Devnani, Clean Water Services (Hillsboro, Oregon)] (PDF)
The Freshwater Trust. Rogue River Basin Riparian Restoration Program, Info Sheet. (PDF)
Tree for All. Info Sheet. (PDF)
Willamette Partnership and The Freshwater Trust. Draft Regional Recommendations for the Pacific Northwest on Water Quality Trading, Multi-State Agency Guidance for Water Quality Trading: Joint Regional Water Quality Trading Agreement (69-3A75-12-255) August 2014, Third Draft. (PDF)

Web Resources:

Economics presentations and resources related to Water Quality Markets

PRESENTATIONS:

Credit Pricing & Accounting

Uncertainty & Thin Markets

Addressing Risk & Liability

Lydia Olander, Duke University

Program Cost & Social Conditions

Dan Fiorino, American University

Linkages to Other Markets & Stacking

RESOURCES:

Business for Social Responsibility (BSR). “The Quiet Revolution in Expectations of Corporate Environmental Performance: Emerging Trends in the Uptake of Ecosystem Services.” April 2012. (PDF)
Chan, Kai, Lara Hoshizaki, Brian Klinkenberg. “Ecosystem Services in Conservation Planning: Targeted Benefits vs. Co-Benefits or Costs?” PLoS ONE: Sept 2011. (PDF)
Christianson, Laura, John Tyndall, Matthew Helmers. Financial Comparison of Seven Nitrate Reduction Strategies for Midwestern Agricultural Drainage, Water Resources and Economics, 2-3, 2013, pp. 30–56. (PDF)
Climate Action Reserve, “Nutrient Management Project Protocol Credit Stacking Subcommittee Meeting #1 Memo” July 12, 2011. (PDF)
Cooley, David and Lydia Olander. Stacking Ecosystem Services Payments: Risks and Solutions, Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions Working Paper, NI WP 11-04, September 2011. (PDF)
Doyle, Martin W. et al, “Optimizing the Scale of Markets for Water Quality Trading” September 2014. (PDF)
EcoAgricultural Partners and USDA Office of Environmental Markets. Farm of the Future Case Study Series: April 2011: a. “Big River and Salmon Creek Forests (Northern California)” (PDF) b. “Buck Island Ranch (Northern Everglades, Florida)” (PDF) c. “Mudford Farm (Chesapeake Bay, Maryland)” (PDF) d. EcoAgricultural Partners and USDA Office of Environmental Markets. “Sacramento River Ranch (Yolo County, California)” (PDF) e. “The Watson Partners Farm (Minnesota River Basin and the Southern Minnesota Beet Sugar Cooperative)” (PDF)
Ertimur, Yonca, Jennifer Francis, Amanda Gonzales, and Katherine Schipper. Financial Reporting for Cap-and-Trade Emissions Reduction Programs, Duke University, December 2009. (PDF)
Faeth, Paul. “Fertile Ground: Nutrient Trading's Potential to Cost-Effectively Improve Water Quality” World Resources Institute, May 2000. (PDF)
Fox, Jessica, Royal C. Gardner, and Todd Maki. “Stacking Opportunities and Risks in Environmental Markets” Environmental Law Reporter, 41 ELR 10121, February 2011. (PDF)
Gardner, Royal C. and Jessica Fox. "The Legal Status of Environmental Credit Stacking", 40 Ecology L.Q., 2013. (LINK)(PDF)
Hartwell, Ray, Bruce Aylward, Sue Lurie, Sally Duncan, Katrina Van Dis, “Ecosystem Service Market Development: The Role and Opportunity for Finance” March 2010. (PDF)
Hook, Patrick W. and Spencer T. Shadle, “Navigating Wetland Mitigation Markets: A Study of Risks Facing Entrepreneurs and Regulators.” December 2013. (PDF)
Layne, Valerie, “Layering Multiple Credit Types in Mitigation Banks” National Wetlands Newsletter, Vol. 33, Issue 1, 2011. (*starts on p. 8) (PDF)
Murray, B. and T. Vegh. Incentivizing the Reduction of Pollution at Dairies: How to Address Additionality When Multiple Environmental Credit Payments Are Combined, NI WP 15-01. Durham, NC: Duke University, 2015. (LINK)(PDF)
Niemi, E., Lee, K., Raterman, T. “Net economic benefits of using ecosystem restoration to meet stream temperature requirements.” ECONorthwest. (PDF)
Rees, Gwendolen and Dr. Kurt Stephenson. Transaction costs of nonpoint source water quality credits: Implications for trading programs in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, USDA, Office of Environmental Markets, November 2014. (PDF)
Ribaudo, Marc, LeRoy Hansen, Daniel Hellerstein, and Catherine Greene, “The Use of Markets to Increase Private Investment in Environmental Stewardship” USDA, Economic Research Service Report No. 64, September 2008. (PDF)
Robertson, Morgan, Todd K BenDor, Rebecca Lave, Adam Riggsbee, JB Ruhl, and Martin Doyle. "Stacking Ecosystem Services", Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 2014; doi:10.1890/110292. (PDF)
Scarlett, Lynn and James Boyd, “Ecosystem Services: Quantification, Policy Applications, and Current Federal Capabilities” Resources for the Future, March 2011. (PDF)
Shortle, James, David Abler, Zach Kaufman, Kate Zip. Implications of Lags in Pollution Delivery for Efficient Agricultural Waste Load Allocations and the Design of Water Quality Trading Programs, Washington, DC: USDA, 2014. (PDF)
Smith, M., de Groot, D., Perrot-Maîte, D. and Bergkamp, G. (2006). “Pay – Establishing payments for watershed services.” IUCN, 2008. (PDF)
Suter, J.F., Spraggon, J.M. and G.L. Poe, Water Quality Trading Experiments: Thin Markets and Lumpy Capital investments, GWF Discussion Paper 1328, Global Water Forum, Canberra, Australia, 2013. (LINK)(PDF)
Suter, J.F., Spraggon, J.M. and G.L. Poe. Thin and Lumpy: An Experimental Investigation of Water Quality Trading, Paper presented at the Agricultural & Applied Economics Associations 2011 AAEA & NAREA Joint Annual Meeting, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, July 24- 26, 2011. (LINK)(PDF)
Tiedemann, Rob, Ph.D., Hal Anderson, Integrated Watershed Solutions, Inc. North Alkali Drain Water Quality Improvement Pilot Project, Project Summary and Report of Preliminary Results, Prepared for Members of the Board of Directors, Lower Boise Watershed Council, Inc. January 6, 2015 (PDF)
Walker, Sara and Mindy Selman, “Addressing Risk and Uncertainty in Water Quality Trading Markets”. World Resources Institute, February 2014. (PDF)
White, Wayne and Jemma Penelope, “Stacking and Unstacking: The Economics, the Conservation, and the Conversation,” National Wetlands Newsletter, Vol. 35, Issue 2, 2013. (PDF)

Web Resources:

Chattanooga's Water Quality Fee *see "Rainwater Management Guide: Resource Rain" and "Credit & Incentive Manual"
District Department of the Environment, Stormwater Retention Credit Trading Program
Ecosystem Valuation: Dollar-based Ecosystem Valuation Methods
Harvard University, Conservation Finance Forum
US Environmental Protection Agency, National Center for Environmental Economics

Tools and Technology presentations and resources related to Water Quality Markets

PRESENTATIONS:

Conservation Practice Evaluation

EnviroAtlas

Information Resources & Training

Amelia Letnes, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Tools for Trading

RESOURCES:

Boyd, James and Lisa Wainger, “Measuring Ecosystem Service Benefits: The Use of Landscape Analysis to Evaluate Environmental Trades and Compensation,” Resources for the Future, April 2003. (PDF)
Environmental Incentives. “Road RAM User Manual, V2: Road Rapid Assessment Methodology”, Nevada Division of Environmental Protection, May 2015. (PDF)
Geospatial Platform. “Federal Geographic Data Committee Launches New Geospatial Website” [Press Release]. (PDF)
Great Lakes Commission. Point To Nonpoint Water Quality Trading Checklist Template (LINK)(PDF)
Kieser and Associates. A Scientifically Defensible Process for the Exchange of Pollutant Credits under Minnesota’s Proposed Water Quality Trading Rules. Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. June 2009. (PDF)
NEPAssist Fact Sheet (PDF)
RIBITS: Credit Classifications (PDF)
RIBITS: Finding Credits (PDF)
RIBITS: Getting Started with RIBITS (PDF)
RIBITS: Understanding the RIBITS Credit Ledger (PDF)
RIBITS: Utilizing RIBITS Reporting Tools (PDF)
Richardson et al. “Integrated stream and wetland restoration: a watershed approach to improved water quality on the landscape.” Ecol. Engineering 37: 25-39. 2011. (PDF)

Web Resources:

An Integrated Terrestrial-Coastal Ocean Observation and Modeling Framework for Carbon Management Decision Support: Collaboration Site
Chesapeake Bay Nutrient Trading Tool
Federal Highway Administration, Adaptation Resources
Federal Highway Administration, Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment Pilot Program
Federal Highway Administration, Eco-Logical Environmental Review Toolkit
Federal Highway Administration, Energy and Emissions Reduction Policy and Analysis Tool (EERPAT)
Federal Highway Administration, INVEST (Infrastructure Voluntary Evaluation Sustainability Tool)
Federal Highway Administration, Linking Planning and NEPA
Federal Highway Administration, Surface Transportation Environment and Planning Cooperative Research Program (STEP)
Federal Highway Administration: Transportation and Climate Change Clearinghouse
Georgetown Climate Center, Adaptation Clearinghouse
GeoSpatial Platform
Invasive Species Monitoring, Water Sampling for Zebra Mussels using Aerial Water Sampling UAV Video
Nebraska Intelligent MoBile Unmanned Systems (NIMBUS) Lab
Transportation for Communities – Advancing Projects through Partnerships
Transportation Research Board, Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP 2)
US Environmental Protection Agency: National Atlas for Sustainability
US Environmental Protection Agency, NEPAssist
US Federal Government, Data.gov
US Fish & Wildlife Service, National Conservation Training Center, Climate Change
World Resources Institute, Water Quality Trading Work

Stormwater presentations and resources related to Water Quality Markets

PRESENTATIONS:

RESOURCES:

American Rivers. “Funding Green Infrastructure in Pennsylvania: Funding the Future of Stormwater Management.” (PDF)
American Rivers. “Weathering Change: Policy Reforms that Save Money and Make Communities Safer.” (PDF)
Arrandale, Tom. “The Price of Greening Stormwater.” Governing. April 2012. (PDF)
Branosky, Evan. From Gray to Green: Stormwater Trading in Washington D.C. District Department of the Environment, River Network, River Voices, pp. 7-8, 2015. (PDF)
District Department of the Environment, Stormwater Retention, Credit Trading & RiverSmart Rewards (brochure), 2014. (PDF)
EPRI. Butler County Board of Commissioners, from Case Studies of Water Quality Trading Being Used for Compliance with National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Permit Limits, EPRI, 2013, Section 3. (PDF)
Fowler, Lara B., Matthew B. Royer, and Jamison E. Colburn. Addressing Death by a Thousand Cuts: Legal and Policy Innovations to Address Nonpoint Source Runoff, Choices Magazine, 3rd Quarter 2013. (LINK) (PDF)
The GreenSeams Program. “Preserve Guide 2001-2010 Ten Years in Review.” (PDF)
Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD). “Fresh Coast Green Solutions: Weaving Milwaukee’s Green and Grey Infrastructure into a Sustainable Future.” (PDF)
PLANYC and NYC Environmental Protection. “New York City Green Infrastructure Plan: A Sustainable Strategy for Clean Waterways.” (PDF)
Plevan, Andrea, Megan Burke, Jared Oswald, James Klang, and Joanna Allerhand. Pollutant Suitability Evaluation for a Water Quality Credit Trading Program in the Central Big Sioux Watershed, Moody County Conservation District. Topical Report RSI-2388, October 2013. (PDF)
Seters, Tim Van, Christy Graham, Lisa Rocha (Toronto and Region Conservation) and Mariko Uda, Chris Kennedy (University of Toronto, Department of Civil Engineering). Assessment of Life Cycle Costs for Low Impact Development Stormwater Management Practices: Final Report, 2013. (LINK) (PDF)
Talberth, John, Erin Gray, Evan Branosky and Todd Gartner. “Insights from the Field: Forests for Water.” World Resources Institute Issue Brief 9: Feb 2012. (PDF)
US Environmental Protection Agency. Integrated Municipal Stormwater and Wastewater Planning Approach Framework, Memorandum, May 2012. (LINK) (PDF)
Valderrama, Alisa and Larry Levine. Financing Stormwater Retrofits in Philadelphia and Beyond. Natural Resources Defense Council, February 2012. (LINK) (PDF)
Valderrama, Alisa, Lawrence Levine, Eron Bloomgarden, Ricardo Bayon, Kelly Wachowicz, Charlotte Kaiser. Issue Brief - Creating Clean Water Cash Flows: Developing Private Markets for Green Stormwater Infrastructure in Philadelphia. NRDC, EKO Asset Management Partners, The Nature Conservancy. Funded by a grant from: Rockefeller Foundation, February 2013. (LINK) (PDF)
Wainger, Lisa A. and James S. Shortle, Local Innovations in Water Protection: Experiments with Economic Incentives, Choices Magazine, 3rd Quarter 2013. (LINK) (PDF)
Willamette Partnership, Pinchot Institute for Conservation, and World Resources Institute, In It Together: A How-To Reference for Building Point-Nonpoint Water Quality Trading Programs - PART I, 2012. (LINK) (PDF)

Web Resources:

American Society of Landscape Architects: Stormwater Case Studies
From Forests to Faucets Partnership
International Stormwater BMP Database
Trauth, Kathleen M. and Yee-Sook Shin. Implementation of the EPA's Water Quality Trading Policy for Storm Water Management and Smart Growth, Journal of Urban Planning and Development, 131(4): 258-269, 2005.
US Environmental Protection Agency, National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES): Stormwater Program Overview
US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water: Green Infrastructure Federal Regulatory Programs
US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water: Green Infrastructure Policy Guides

Water Quantity presentations and resources related to Water Quality Markets

PRESENTATIONS:

RESOURCES:

Amundsen, Ole M., Will Allen, and Kris Hoellen. Green Infrastructure Planning: Recent Advances and Applications, PAS Memo, May/June 2009. (LINK) (PDF)
Buranen, Margaret. Milwaukee Goes Green and Grey for Stormwater Management, Stormwater Journal, May 2012. (LINK) (PDF)
Hrobar, Jessica. Innovative Program Connects Wastewater Utilities and Nature, Water World, v. 4, Issue 4, (undated). (LINK) (PDF)
Leonard Rice Engineers, Inc. Holistic Approach to Sustainable Water Management in Northwest Douglas County, Colorado Water Conservation Board, January 2007. (LINK) (PDF)
Mammoth Trading, “About Us”. (LINK) (PDF)
NOAA. Resilient Land and Waters Initiative, Tranche 1, April 21, 2015. (LINK) (PDF)
Oregon State University. Oregon’s Water Markets, Institute For Water And Watersheds And Institute For Natural Resources, April, 2012 (LINK) (PDF)

Web Resources:

Bartholic, Jon F., and Sandra S. Batie. Restoring Great Lakes Basin Waters Through the Use of Conservation Credits and Integrated Water Balance Analysis System, Michigan State University, Institute of Water Research, January 2005.
Great Lakes Governors and Premiers. Water Management Resources including Great Lakes—St. Lawrence River Basin Sustainable Water Resources Agreement.
Great Lakes Restoration Initiative
Lake Tahoe TMDL Program Resources
Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District Greenseams Program
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. Columbia Basin Water Transaction Program
NY State Department of Environmental Conservation. The History of Great Lakes Water Quantity Management: A Limited Supply
US Environmental Protection Agency. Community-Based Water Resiliency
US Environmental Protection Agency. Water Security Homepage
US Environmental Protection Agency. Why Green Infrastructure?

Water Quality Markets: Resources

In 2015 the USDA and EPA cosponsored the National Workshop on Water Quality Markets. This event was hosted by the Robert B. Daugherty Water for Food Institute at the University of Nebraska and coordinated by The Conservation Fund. The Workshop highlighted recent progress in water quality trading across the country with an emphasis on policy, resources, and tool development. The compendium of resources associated with this program - organized by theme - is available below.

Trading Fundamentals VIEW

Resources on core elements and major aspects of water quality markets and trading programs

Regional Outlook VIEW

Resources on existing water quality trading activities across the United States, highlighting the below regions:

Chesapeake Bay Region
Great Lakes Region
Mississippi River Basin and Gulf Coast Region
Pacific Northwest & California Region

Economics VIEW

Resources on analysis and insights into water quality markets, economic trends, and supply and demand as well as on other water market types, including watershed services, water rights, and links to species and habitat markets

Tools and Technology VIEW

Resources on tools, underlying science, and emerging technologies employed by various programs as well as opportunities and challenges for broader use in the field of water quality

Stormwater VIEW

Resources on a cross-section of existing and emerging stormwater trading programs, examine regulatory drivers for stormwater offsets, and explore different stormwater trading program designs

Water Quantity VIEW

Resources on legal, economic, business, and regulatory aspects of water quantity trading for managing ecological and transboundary stream flow impacts in complex regulatory regimes

More Information:

Please contact Chris Hartley, USDA Office of Environmental Markets (chartley@oce.usda.gov | 202-690-0832 ) OR Katie Allen, The Conservation Fund's Conservation Leadership Network (kallen@conservationfund.org | 304-876-7925) with any questions or to suggest additional resources.

logos1

In partnership with the US Army Corps of Engineers, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the US Fish & Wildlife Service, The Conservation Fund's Conservation Leadership Network (CLN) offers an annual training course for members of Interagency Review Teams (IRTs) on Mitigation Banking & In-Lieu Fee Programs. The course is designed to increase the effectiveness of IRTs in reviewing proposed 3rd party mitigation and overseeing their operation.

Resources and presentations from the June 2019 course offering -- organized by session -- are available for download below. Also available for download are the Course Agenda (pdf) and Resource List (pdf). For information about this and other CLN course offerings, see the Upcoming Courses & Events page.

Session 1: Overview Materials (zip file)
Session 2: IRTs/MBI Documentation Materials (zip file)
Session 3: Site Selection Materials (zip file)
Session 4: Site Protection Materials (zip file)
Session 5: Business of Banking Materials (zip file)
Session 6: Service Area Materials (zip file)
Session 7: In-Lieu Fee Materials (zip files) Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3
Session 8: Short-Term Financial Assurance Materials (zip file)
Session 9a: Wetland Crediting Materials (zip files) Part 1 | Part 2
Session 9b: Stream Crediting Materials (zip files) Part 1 | Part 2
Session 10: Performance Standards/Credit Release Materials (zip file)
Session 11: Conservation Banking/Joint Banking Materials (zip file)
Session 12: Long-Term Management/Stewardship Financing Materials (zip file)
Session 13: Oversight & Compliance Materials (zip file)
Session 14: Dispute Resolution Materials (zip file)
RIBITS Session Materials (zip file)
Class Exercise Materials (zip file)

This 8-part webinar series being offered from October 2020 – February 2021 is designed to provide an introduction to foundational topics related to conservation banking for endangered species and habitat recovery, as well as joint authority programs that mitigate for impacts to wetlands and streams.

Conservation banking is a tool to conserve endangered, threatened, and other at-risk species and their habitat that reduces risks associated with and increases the success of compensatory mitigation.

HOW TO VIEW WEBINARS

This series is intended for anyone interested in learning more about conservation and joint authority mitigation banking. We encourage people to view all of the webinars to gain a comprehensive understanding of conservation banking and how all the topics relate to each other.

Click on the "VIEW MATERIALS" button for each webinar listed below to access materials including presentations, speaker bios, speaker contact information, resources, and the webinar recording.

SERIES WEBINARS

WEBINAR #1: The Market & Regulatory Drivers for Conservation Banking

This webinar provides an overview of environmental markets and the drivers for Conservation Banking as a market-based tool.

VIEW MATERIALS

WEBINAR #2: Banking Perspectives: The Business of Buying & Selling Credits

This webinar provides an overview of the business of compensatory mitigation banking with insight into the risks that factor into the decision to sponsor a bank.

VIEW MATERIALS

WEBINAR #3: Setting the Stage for Success: Strategic Site Selection & Durable Site Protection Mechanisms

This webinar provides an overview of regulatory guidance for selecting mitigation sites and reviews the suite of site protection mechanisms needed to minimize risk and create durable and successful mitigation banks.

VIEW MATERIALS

WEBINAR #4: Operation & Management of Banks: The Role of Mitigation Review Teams & Banking Partners

This webinar provides an overview of the roles and responsibilities of the mitigation review team (MRT) and other banking partners during the instrument development, implementation, and management phases of a bank.

VIEW MATERIALS

WEBINAR #5: Service Area & Credit Determination: Balancing Ecological & Economic Factors

This webinar provides a nuts and bolts review of how the type and number of credits are determined for a bank and how the extent of the service area is determined.

VIEW MATERIALS

WEBINAR #6: Long-Term Management & Stewardship: Roles & Requirements for the Bank After it Closes

This webinar discusses the roles and responsibilities of bank sponsors and long-term stewards in developing and implementing management plans and the stewardship funding mechanism(s) needed to ensure continued mitigation compliance.

VIEW MATERIALS

WEBINAR #7: Alternatives to Conservation Banking (Part I) – Emerging Applications of Multiple Authority Mitigation

This webinar features a survey of emerging applications of multiple authority mitigation to support the recovery of species and habitats in new and exciting ways.

VIEW MATERIALS

WEBINAR #8: Alternatives to Conservation Banking (Part II) – Programmatic Approaches To Mitigation

This webinar includes an in-depth look at programmatic approaches such as In-Lieu Fee (ILF) programs and how they are different than banks and when to use them.

VIEW Materials

THANK YOU TO OUR PARTNERS

This webinar series is sponsored by the US Fish & Wildlife Service, US Department of Agriculture, and Federal Highway Administration with supporting partnership from the Bureau of Land Management, US Army Corps of Engineers, NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service, and the Ecological Restoration Business Association.

National Summit for Gateway Communities

Additional Resources: