14.28.455 Wetland mitigation banks and in-lieu fee.
A. Credits from a wetland mitigation bank may be approved for use as compensation for unavoidable impacts to wetlands when:
1. The bank is approved by the city, the Department of Ecology, or the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
2. The city determines that the wetland mitigation bank provides appropriate compensation for the authorized impacts; and
3. The proposed use of credits is consistent with the terms and conditions of the bank’s certification.
B. Replacement ratios for projects using bank credits shall be consistent with the replacement ratios specified in the bank’s certification.
C. Credits from a certified wetland mitigation bank may be used to compensate for impacts located within the service area specified in the bank’s certification. In some cases, bank service areas may include portions of more than one Water Resource Inventory Area (WRIA) for specific wetland functions.
D. To aid in the implementation of off-site mitigation, the city may develop an in-lieu fee program. This program shall be developed and approved through a public process and be consistent with federal rules, state policy on in-lieu fee mitigation, and state water quality regulations. An approved in lieu-fee program sells compensatory mitigation credits to permittees whose obligation to provide compensatory mitigation is then transferred to the in-lieu program sponsor, a governmental or nonprofit natural resource management entity. Credits from an approved in-lieu fee program may be used when the following apply:
1. The approval authority determines that it would provide environmentally appropriate compensation for the proposed impacts; and
2. The mitigation will occur on a site identified using the site selection and prioritization process in the approved in-lieu fee program instrument; and
3. The proposed use of credits is consistent with the terms and conditions of the approved in-lieu fee program instrument; and
4. Land acquisition and initial physical and biological improvements of the mitigation site must be completed within three years of the credit sale; and
5. Projects using in-lieu fee credits shall have debits associated with the proposed impacts calculated by the applicant’s qualified wetland scientist using the method consistent with the credit assessment method specified in the approved instrument for the in-lieu fee program; and
6. Credits from an approved in-lieu fee program may be used to compensate for impacts located within the service area specified in the approved in-lieu fee instrument. (Ord. 1449 §5, 2014; Ord. 1215 §16, 2003).