By KEVIN WALKER

Michigan Correspondent

LANSING, Mich. — Former Gov. Rick Snyder signed into law a controversial wetlands reform bill as part of a flurry of legislation the Michigan legislature passed during its 2018 lame-duck session.

Senate Bill 1211 was signed Dec. 28 and is now Public Act 631 of 2018. The act removes development protections on some smaller wetlands. The Michigan Farm Bureau (MFB), for one, was in favor of the original legislation, with environmental groups such as the Michigan League of Conservation Voters opposed.

Last month a spokesman for the National Wildlife Federation said S.B. 1211 and some similar legislation would have “direct negative impacts on the fish and wildlife which sustain our hunting and fishing lifestyle and economy in Michigan.”

At the time Matt Smego of the MFB described the legislation as “valuable from the standpoint of agriculture,” in that it would help clarify state and federal jurisdictional boundaries. Last week, he reiterated the MFB's support for the legislation, and said that in advance of its passage more than 200 members sent more than 2,300 emails to legislators and Snyder expressing support for the bill.

Smego added the new law clarifies what kinds of small, isolated wetlands the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) can regulate.

According to a summary of the legislation, S.B. 1211 modifies notification requirements for violations of the state's wetlands laws, changes the definition of an inland lake to be greater than five acres, modifies the definition of a stream and makes other changes generally seen as weakening wetlands protections.

S.B. 1211 also requires the state's DEQ to consider costs, existing technology and logistics when evaluating alternatives for farm and forest road construction. The bill would also award legal fees to the prevailing party, other than the state, in a civil action.

According to some reports, the bill as originally written would have allowed development on as many as 550,000 acres of wetlands and 4,200 of Michigan's 11,000 lakes. Although the legislation was reportedly changed so that fewer wetlands would lose protections, the exact extent of those changes was unclear.

Michigan Clean Water Action, an environmental group, stated more than 230 bills were introduced after the 2018 election. The group condemned S.B. 1211 and other pieces of water-related legislation.

“During the 2018 election, water was consistently one of the top issues on voters' minds,” said Mary Brady-Enerson, director of Michigan Clean Water Action. “They came to the polls in record numbers and elected leaders who promised to champion our Great Lakes and environment.

“During lame-duck, unaccountable lawmakers and corporate lobbyists worked hand-in-hand to gut protections to those same resources that Michigan voters overwhelmingly supported greater protection for in November.”

In her late December statement, Brady-Enerson called on the outgoing governor to veto all of the “devastating” water-related bills. According to a House Fiscal Agency analysis, S.B. 1211 is scheduled to take effect in late March, 90 days after its enactment.