The Sumpter Township planning commission has been considering a new Wetland Bank Ordinance, with discussions about the matter taking place in both the June and July meetings of the commission.
A wetland bank, sometimes called a mitigation bank, is a wetland area managed to offset ecological damage caused by a development project somewhere else. When the habitats are restored, the bank generates “credits” that developers or farmers can purchase to fulfill legal compensatory mitigation requirements.
Matthew Oddy, Sumpter Township trustee and liaison to the planning commission, says that when a mitigation bank was done on Judd Road in 2024, there was “no real process” to follow.
The township placed a moratorium on the banks so that the planning commission can formalize that process as a township ordinance.
Oddy noted that Sumpter Township has the highest concentration of wetlands of any municipality in Wayne County, and nobody can “create a wetland on wetlands,” so that means turning “prime property” into wetlands and reducing the available tax base in the community.
“We end up housing the wetlands and don’t get the benefit of tax base,” Oddy said.“This is a great start to have control over what happens and not allow the state to do whatever it wants whenever it wants.”
The Wetland Bank Ordinance will return to the Aug. 13 Planning Commission meeting that will include a public hearing. After the public hearing, the commission will make
their recommendation for the Board of Trustees. Deputy Clerk Samantha Herman said the earliest meeting that the comission’s recommended decision will most likely be placed on
is the Aug. 25 agenda.
In other Sumpter planning news, the commission:
- Considered a site plan for 50637 Bemis, the former site of Mount Hermon Missionary Baptist Church. The planning commission requested several corrections
including replacing invasive species with native ones in the landscaping plan. - Discussed a moratorium on data centers. Oddy said a 205-acre site on Bemis is under consideration.