News Environment
Wetlands deregulation in Indiana House’s hands

The Indiana House of Representatives considered a bill to remove the need for permits for the reconstruction of drains that help the state manage its water on March 2. Environmental groups oppose the change stating that removing the need for permits can cause damage to wetlands.

The bill, as written, “provides that a permit is not required from the Indiana Department of Environmental Management for the reconstruction or maintenance of a regulated drain for purposes of the law concerning state regulated wetlands, if the reconstruction or maintenance of a regulated drain occurs within an existing regulated drainage easement under the drainage law.”

The wetlands law in its current form does not stop reconstruction of drains. It has a permit process to ensure that wetlands are preserved to the extent possible and replaced when they can’t be preserved. | READ MORE