The Supreme Court decision that eliminated protection for as many as 1 million acres of Wisconsin s wetlands is beginning to have its impact in Wisconsin. This means that these wetlands can be, and are being, filled without the need for a permit. The ruling by the Supreme Court on a case involving the federal Clean Water Act affected isolated wetlands those wetlands that are not contiguous with navigable waterways. Isolated wetlands include prairie potholes, kettles, coastal swales, and some bogs in Wisconsin. Since the state s jurisdiction over wetlands is linked to federal jurisdiction, where the federal government lost its authority, so too did the state.
Isolated wetlands are presently unprotected in Wisconsin, as well as in many states.
This is considered by many to be THE largest conservation issue for many years in the state. The state Senate acted quickly to try to repair the damage by passing a status quo wetland protection bill, SB 37, in mid-February. The bill, unfortunately, has languished in the more conservative Assembly, where special interests have influenced lawmakers. The development and agri-business industries see the lost protection for wetlands as an opportunity to weaken wetland laws in the state. Instead of status quo protection, they are lobbying hard for much-diminished protection for our state s wetlands.