As you can see, there are a number of regulations that could limit the use of wetlands, even by private landowners. It's not surprising then, as the above article articulates, that businesses, landowners, and congressmen are trying to get around the laws by making the definition of a wetland quite narrow. As the above article suggests, there continues to be fierce debate among legislators and scientists about the definition of a wetland . The debate is propelled, in part, by the issue of whether the criteria that the EPA and Corps use to deliniate wetlands are too lax, too stringent, or not representative at all. Specifically, areas with wetland vegetation that are dry for much of the year often fall in a difficult gray area as to whether or not they are wetlands.
Conservative lawmakers argue that the guidelines lead to classifying too many sites as wetlands.
Some scientists question whether the qualitative soil criteria represent a scientifically sound basis for defining wetlands. Several indicators are available for determining whether a given soil meets the definition and criteria for hydric soils. Soils with histic epipedons are inundated or saturated for sufficient periods to greatly retard aerobic decomposition of the organic surface, and are considered to be hydric soils. When mineral soils emit an odor of rotten eggs, hydrogen sulfide is present. Such odors are only detected in waterlogged soils that are permanently saturated and have sulfidic material within a few centimeters of the soil surface.