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.~ :~- <br />l~~ ~~y <br />~ U ~ E N E <br />~~~~I~~ ~l~~B(1~ ~3'~~~ <br />A ",vis~uN £~F ~u8;.;'~ wCr ~s <br />~aao Rflos~v~~r ec~~ <br />[EIGENE, QRE~it4N 97402 <br />j54i ~ b62-4600 <br />FAK (5~1) bs2-~18~2 <br />'t~~h'W.EUGENE ~R.6~YIPAR~~ <br />~~~~s t~r~~ U-~tt~ ~~a~~ ~tar~~s~~~ <br />PARK ~rER~TIt~~;S <br />u~~~~ ~o~~s~~`: <br />NA~URP,! Rc~SOUR~~S <br /> <br />TO: Kurt Cory, Public Works Director <br />FROM: Trevor Taylor, Natural Areas Restoration Supervisor <br />CC: Johnny Medlin, Parks and Open Space Division Director <br />Eric Wold, Natural Resources Section Manager <br />DATE: September 17, 2008 <br />SUBJECT: Three policy issues related to City's wetlands mitigation bank <br />Purpose <br />The purpose of this memo is to describe three policy issues related to the City's <br />~ wetland mitigation bank, to provide you with a recommendation on each issue, and <br />to seek your endorsement of these recommendations. The three issues are: <br />1. Should the City continue to operate a wetland mitigation bank? <br />2. Should the City's wetland mitigation bank continue to service projects <br />outside Eugene's urban growth boundary? <br />3. Should the City increase the price for wetland mitigation credits? <br />Issue 1: Should the City continue to operate a wetland mitigation bank? <br />The WEW Mitigation Bank currently has the capacity to generate and se1182 <br />credits~: After restoration work at Coyote Prairie and sale of existing credits, the <br />bank will need to purchase another site if it is to continue operation. Similarly, over <br />the past 14 years that the WEW Mitigation Bank has been operating, 15 other private <br />mitigation banks have emerged in the Willamette Valley and several others are in the <br />process of developing prospectuses. Thus, the question of whether the WEW <br />Mitigation Bank should plan to continue operation and compete within a growing <br />private market is relevant. It is our contention that it should plan to continue <br />operating for several reasons. <br />First, the Oregon Economic Community Developmenot Department (OECDD) ~~2. <br />forecasts that there will be a demand for over EA8'c~red~ts in the ~ t~en years ~~ ~~D <br />compared to a total s p ly (i.e., all existing banks) of over 466cre~its. Of those they ~ <br />attribute almost 3 e its to the City of Eugene's bank. Thus, although the private / <br />wetland mitigation banking industry is growing, a substantial shortfall in credit <br />availability is anticipated. Second, there are a substantial number of projects planned <br />or anticipated within the WEW Plan boundary and within the UGB that will still <br />require mitigation. Third, the WEW Mitigation Bank is located in an area designated <br />as high priority for conservation by a coalition of organizations including The Nature <br />Conservancy, among others. It is mapped in the Oregon State <br />' Considering the existing credit balance (-40 credits) and potential future credits yet to be generated at <br />Coyote Prairie (-42 credits), the proposed pricing structure calculations are based on the 82 credits <br />currently available to the WEW Mitigation Bank. <br />Page 1 <br />