You love the property. It's lushly vegetated and quite expansive. There's even a nice stream that runs down the middle of it. Why then, can't you build a beautiful home on this property?

The answer might be because there are wetlands all over this property. Wetlands are frequently marshy kinds of property that are characterized by their soils and their vegetation. There are certain kinds of plants that just grow in wetlands.

Wetlands are protected by both the state and federal governments. They are special resources used to cleanse water that enters our underground aquifers and they provide a recharge area for our underground aquifers. It is from these aquifers that we draw much of the drinking water in this country.

In addition, wetlands provide unique habitats for many species, some of which are threatened and endangered. They are important and they need to be preserved.

A bad thing happens when wetlands disappear. Flooding often results because of all of the impervious surface that is created and the inability of the surface water to recharge into the ground. In addition, water quality deteriorates and wildlife disappears.

So let's go back to that perfect piece of property that has wetlands all over it. Can you do nothing at all except pay taxes and watch birds?

Maybe and maybe not. There are instances where there isn't anything that you can do with the property except pay taxes and watch birds. And it's best to know that before you buy the property. Once you buy it, then you own this bird watching sanctuary.

But there are other instances where you can, usually on a very limited basis, fill wetlands. Often, there are general permits that are available at the local and federal level; that will allow a limited amount of filling. Sometimes you can fill for utilities. Sometimes you can fill for roads. Sometimes you can fill for other narrow purposes.

There are other occasions where there aren't general permits that are available and instead rather intricate and sometimes difficult to obtain individual permits must be obtained.

Let's say for example that an entire property is perfectly developable except a small patch of wetlands right in the middle of the property. If the wetlands can't be disturbed, the entire expanse of mostly non-wetlands becomes worthless. Sometimes, the government will actually allow you to fill these wetlands -- for a price.

You have to mitigate the damage by contributing money to a wetlands special fund or by doing something else. Or the government will make you recreate wetlands elsewhere, and when it does this it usually makes you recreate a larger amount of wetlands than you destroyed. We've seen three-to-one ratios.

Don't think that you can fill wetlands when nobody is looking. There are very hefty penalties for this kind of illegal activity.

Wetlands serve an important function. But their presence does not mean that development dreams go out the window. Sometimes wetlands render a property undevelopable. Sometimes not. It simply depends on the quality of the wetlands, the amount of wetlands, the applicable laws in effect, and often whether any feasible alternatives exist.

Published: July 22, 2004

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Stuart Lieberman, Esq. writes about environmental issues. He was a New Jersey Deputy Attorney General assigned to the State Department of Environmental Protection from 1986 to 1990. Currently he is a shareholder in the environmental law firm of Lieberman & Blecher, P.C., located in Princeton, New Jersey. Stuart can be reached at slieberman@liebermanblecher.com.