Should We Be Wary of Mitigation Banking? Evidence Regarding the Risks Associated with this Wetland Offset Arrangement in Florida
2017
Levrel, Harold | Scemama, Pierre | Vaissière, Anne-Charlotte | centre international de recherche sur l'environnement et le développement (CIRED) ; Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (Cirad)-École des hautes études en sciences sociales (EHESS)-AgroParisTech-École nationale des ponts et chaussées (ENPC)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) | Aménagement des Usages des Ressources et des Espaces marins et littoraux - Centre de droit et d'économie de la mer (AMURE) ; Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer (IFREMER)-Université de Brest (UBO EPE)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) | Laboratoire Montpelliérain d'Économie Théorique et Appliquée (LAMETA) ; Université Montpellier 1 (UM1)-Université Paul-Valéry - Montpellier 3 (UPVM)-Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques (Montpellier SupAgro)-Université de Montpellier (UM)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier (Montpellier SupAgro)
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Show more [+] Less [-]English. This paper describes and analyzes the risks associated with using mitigation banking for the conservation of wetlands in Florida in the United States. First, we attempt to identify and summarize the main ecological and socio-economic risks regarding mitigation banking that have been discussed in previous studies. Then we analyze the institutional responses adopted by US regulators to limit these risks. We have used empirical evidence including interviews and data analysis to assess the effectiveness of these responses. Our main findings are that the recent regulatory responses adopted to face risks associated with mitigation banking seem to be more effective than what is often assumed. These responses are underpinned by the emergence of a hybrid mode of governance that combines market characteristics and regulatory constraints, and which contributes to enforcing wetland compensation in Florida. However, we also observed some risks inherent in this system, in particular the redistribution of ecosystem services, as the distance between impact sites and compensation sites seems to have increased in Florida in the last several years. In addition, the question is still pending regarding whether or not No Net Loss of wetlands is really achieved through mitigation banking.
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