First Mitigation Bank approved on Colorado's Front Range in 20 Years

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Nov 19, 2019, 13:10 ET

DENVER, Nov. 19, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- The approval of the Big Thompson Confluence Mitigation Bank is the first Mitigation Bank approved on Colorado's Front Range in 20 years. With accelerated development around the state of Colorado, this Bank offers a proactive and innovative solution to the protection of sensitive habitats and ecological resources. Mitigation banks produce credits by preserving environmentally sensitive land or creating new wildlife habitat. The Big Thompson Confluence Mitigation Bank itself is located at the confluence of the Big Thompson River and the South Platte River in Weld County, Colorado. The 72.4 - acre restoration site will offset impacts to both streams and wetlands with a service area that covers a large portion of Colorado's Front Range. The bank owner and operator, Westervelt Ecological Services is pleased to bring the first mitigation option of its kind in the USACE Omaha District approved after the 2008 Mitigation Rule. The bank is also the first in the state of Colorado to offer a stream offset mechanism using the new (and out for public comment) Stream Quantification Tool (SQT) and Colorado Mitigation Procedures (COMPS). The Bank will provide watershed level ecological benefits and offsets for impacts to wetlands and streams.