Wetland whoopsies: big mistakes benefit wetlands

In the grand scheme of things, it seems that good usually triumphs over evil. The bad guy gets caught. Wetlands end up in the hands of the right people. At least, in these two cases below they do.

Unlawful Dredging in Illinois

After permitting filling and dredging work in a wetland on his property five years ago, an Illinois man is now turning the property over to more responsible owners. For violating the Clean Water Act, a federal judge ordered that Michael Trinski deed the 104 acres of wetland property to a local water management agency and pay a $15,000 civil penalty.  The agency ensures that the property will stay open and accessible. They have plans to turn the land into green space for area residents to enjoy.

Michael Hogan, the man who did the filling and dredging on the property, was ordered to provide the agency with 80 hours of labor on the land he damaged.

Mowing Mishap in Newport News

The city of Newport News, Va. recently purchased 37 acres of land that include a local wetland the city erroneously mowed less than two years ago. The $950,000 purchase will facilitate a new road that will connect two major boulevards, but this will only use 5 acres of the land. The city may not have purchased the remainder of the land if the mowing mistake had not occurred.

In summer of 2010, the city responded to a high weed complaint and had local inmates mow the land. However, they later discovered that they mowed over a protected wetland. The city then became responsible for monitoring the wetlands on the property which could have cost them at least $7,000 a year for several years. City Engineer Everett Skipper said that they city may have bought the remainder of the property anyway to expand its environmental “green space” project.