Swampbuster implementation: Missed opportunities for wetland protection

Excerpt

THE breadth and scope of the swampbuster program make it the cornerstone of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's wetland protection efforts. Given the overwhelming role of agriculture in wetland drainage, it is critical that the program operate in a manner that effectively protects wetlands. Our analysis of the program, as well as that of others (5), shows that wetland protection could be significantly enhanced by modifying the “commenced” exemption provision, improving enforcement, and reforming the administrative appeals process. These three elements represent the major stumbling blocks that prevent the swampbuster program from playing a major role in achieving the president's goal of no net loss of wetlands.

Of the freshwater wetlands lost between the 1950s and the mid-1970s, about 98 percent were converted for agricultural use (4). To slow the loss of 450,000 wetland acres each year, Congress enacted the swampbuster provision as part of the Food Security Act of 1985. This law prohibits any person who drains a wetland and plants an agricultural commodity from receiving any of a …