In the case of wetlands for which permits were sought, the Army Corps of Engineers has identified at least 26 properties over which it no longer had jurisdiction. One of those 26 wetlands was filled as soon as the landowner was notified that neither the DNR nor the Corps nor a Dane County agency had jurisdiction over the prairie pothole in question. Dennis Chaptman of the Journal Sentinel staff, reporting from Madison, contributed to this report. Wetlands adjacent to lakes and streams are spawning and nursery areas for many fishes. They also are home to aquatic insects, amphibians and other species that make up the food chain on which fish rely.
Wetlands retain floodwaters and protect shorelines from erosion.
Wisconsin has lost almost half of its original 10 million acres of wetlands to urbanization, agriculture, ditching and dredging, and increased water withdrawals. The U.S. Supreme Court rules that the federal Clean Water Act does not allow the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to regulate wetlands not connected to interstate waterways. That decision wipes out the jurisdiction on which Wisconsin law bases state Department of Natural Resources authority over wetlands. The Republican-controlled Assembly votes to impose a moratorium on wetland development through July 1. Two days later, the Assembly adjourns without taking action on the Senate bills.