IN GEORGIA THERE ARE A TOTAL OF 160+ MITIGATION BANKS:
- 120+ Active Banks which includes:
80+ Commercial
15+ GA Department of Transportation
Georgia Power Company Owned Banks
Single User Banks
Combination Banks (private & public) - 5+ Sold Out Commercial Banks
- 20+ Sold Out “In-Lieu-Fee” Banks
- 20+ Pending Banks
SO EXACTLY HOW MUCH OF GEORGIA HAS BEEN RESTORED AND PROTECTED THROUGH MITIGATION BANKING?
- 45,500+ acres of land protected in perpetuity
- 265+ miles of stream restored and preserved
- 21,300+ acres of wetland and upland buffer restored and preserved
- In addition, there are 20+ mitigation bank projects pending approval. That’s an additional 13,500+ acres consisting of an additional 36+ miles of stream restoration and preservation and 7,000+ acres of wetland restoration and preservation to be accomplished in the next few years!
COMPARED TO OTHER CONSERVATION ACTIVITIES
- Georgia Department Of Natural Resources
The Georgia DNR owns 440,000 acres of protected lands.
Mitigation banking in Georgia is equivalent to 13.5% of DNR owned lands. - Conservation Tax Credits
- The Georgia Land Conservation Program funds and jointly administers the state’s Conservation Tax Credit Program in partnership with DNR and DOR.
Tax credits are available to donors of both fee-title lands and easement-restricted lands that are determined to have significant conservation values. Since 2007, the tax credit program has incentivized the protection of 164,265 acres through the certification of 413 conservation donations. In 2012, DNR certified 70 donations covering 48,131 acres.
MITIGATION BANKING IN GEORGIA IS EQUIVALENT TO 37.5% OF THE GEORGIA LAND CONSERVATION PROGRAM.
In summary, mitigation banking in Georgia has achieved significant land conservation at essentially ZERO COST to taxpayers