Wetlands Overview

At least 36 federal agencies, to varying degrees, conducted wetlands-related activities during fiscal years 1990 through 1997. These activities included acquiring, regulating, restoring, enhancing, mapping, inventorying, delineating, and conducting research relating to wetlands. Six agencies--the Army Corps of Engineers, the Department of Agriculture's Farm Service Agency and the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Department of Interior's Fish and Wildlife Service, the Department of Commerce's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the Environmental Protection Agency--were the primary agencies involved in and responsible for implementing wetlands-related programs. These six agencies accounted for more than 70 percent of the funding and 65 percent of the staffing associated each year with such activities. The consistency and reliability of wetlands acreage data reported by the federal agencies are questionable. Although resource inventories maintained by the Fish and Wildlife Service and the Natural Resources Conservation Service have both reported that the rate of wetlands loss has declined, the inventories' estimates are not completely consistent. Consequently, a single set of wetlands acreage numbers that could be used to evaluate the progress made in achieving the goal of "no net loss" of the nation's remaining wetlands is unavailable. In addition, officials from each of the agencies have questioned the estimates made by the other, and officials from the Environmental Protection Agency have expressed concern about the estimates of both inventories.

GAO noted that: (1) at least 36 agencies conducted wetlands-related activities during FY 1990 through FY 1997; (2) the total funding associated each year with the agencies' efforts ranged from about $508 million in FY 1990 to about $787 million in FY 1997; (3) staffing associated with the agencies' activities during this period ranged from about 3,271 full-time-equivalent staff-years in FY 1993 to about 4,308 full-time-equivalent staff-years in FY 1997; (4) six agencies were primarily involved in and responsible for implementing wetlands-related programs; (5) these six agencies accounted for more than 70 percent of the funding and 65 percent of the staffing associated each year with such activities; (6) the consistency and reliability of wetlands acreage data reported by the federal agencies are questionable; (7) the Fish and Wildlife Service and the Natural Resources Conservation Service maintain resource inventories that provide estimates of the nation's remaining wetlands acreage, annual rates of wetlands gains and losses, and the primary cause(s) for losses; (8) although both inventories have reported that the rate of wetlands loss has declined, the inventories' estimates are not completely consistent; (9) a single set of wetlands acreage numbers that could be used to evaluate the progress made in achieving the goal of no net loss of the nation's remaining wetlands is not available; (10) officials from each of the agencies have questioned the estimates made by the other, and the Environmental Protection Agency has expressed concern about both inventories; (11) the agencies' current reporting practices do not permit the actual accomplishments of the agencies to be determined; (12) since 1989, several interagency groups have attempted to improve wetlands data; (13) because their efforts have not resolved these problems, the administration recently announced new efforts to improve wetlands data; (14) in May 1998, the administration issued a plan to accomplish a key action--the development of a single wetlands status and trends report; and (15) as of June 10, 1998, details have not yet been developed on how the other actions announced by the administration will be accomplished.

Recommendations

Our recommendations from this work are listed below with a Contact for more information. Status will change from "In process" to "Open," "Closed - implemented," or "Closed - not implemented" based on our follow up work.

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