Wright County, MN- Vatten Wetland Bank Project

CHALLENGE

Moore staff assisted a landowner in restoring about 80 acres of wetland and 40 acres of native grassland in Wright County, MN to establish a wetland mitigation bank. Evaluation showed that a County drainage ditch and drain tile had removed hydrology from a large shallow wetland, converting the area to cropland. To restore wetland function and develop the mitigation bank, several constraints needed to be addressed, including maintaining drainage for neighboring cropland and coordinating the partial abandonment of a County drainage system.

SOLUTION

Moore conducted site investigations to document existing drainage conditions and completed a topographic survey to capture property boundaries and key elevations. Using this data, staff performed detailed hydrologic analyses of pre‑project and post‑restoration conditions to design a plan that restored wetland hydrology without affecting drainage on neighboring properties. To address project constraints, Moore facilitated a land trade to expand the restoration area, designed an embankment to prevent wetland encroachment, executed flowage agreements with adjacent landowners, and assisted with the partial abandonment of a County drainage ditch. After resolving these issues, Moore completed the restoration design, which included a sheet pile weir, tile breaks, ditch blocks, and a stabilized outlet structure. A vegetation establishment and management plan was also developed to reestablish native vegetation within the restored wetlands and surrounding upland buffers.

OUTCOME

The project was constructed and seeded in November 2024, with Moore providing oversight to ensure all work adhered to the approved restoration plans. Monitoring during 2025 confirmed that hydrologic conditions and vegetation response matched the intended design, successfully restoring wetland function across the site. The completed restoration re‑established high‑quality wetlands and native prairie that now provide valuable ecological benefits, including wildlife habitat, flood storage, and improved water quality within the watershed.

The project also generated marketable wetland mitigation credits, creating an ongoing economic benefit for the landowner by allowing credits to be sold to others needing to offset authorized wetland impacts. Vegetation surveys in 2025 documented strong native species recovery, with more than 70 native species observed within the restored wetlands and over 50 native species present in the native prairie areas, demonstrating a robust and healthy plant community.