| The Coastal Barriers Resources Act (CBRA) was the result of the realization by Congress that coastal barrier land masses were a tremendously valuable natural resource and that because of their inherent vulnerability to erosion and storms, they were not well-suited to development. In the past, federal activities and programs had subsidized and permitted development of some coastal barrier land masses that had resulted in threats to human health, life, and property; loss of natural resources; and massive amounts of federal spending for clean-up and repair in the aftermath of powerful storms. In order to both protect coastal barrier habitats and minimize the wasteful expenditure of federal funds, the CBRA was passed in 1982 to identify undeveloped coastal barrier land masses and restrict federal funding for such areas.
The CBRA is administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The statute established the John H. Chafee Coastal Barrier Resources System (System), which consisted of undeveloped coastal barrier land masses that were identified by the Secretary of the Interior and depicted on maps. The maps are reviewed at least once every five years to make adjustments to land masses within the System whose dimensions have changed because of natural forces. The owner of an undeveloped coastal barrier land mass may request that the Secretary add the land mass to the System. In determining whether a land mass is undeveloped, the CBRA directs the Secretary of the Interior to consider the development density in terms of buildings per unit area; whether there are roads to the buildings; and whether there is a water supply, electric service, and a wastewater disposal system for the buildings.
Under the CBRA, with certain exceptions, no new expenditures may be made nor financial assistance granted by the federal government for any purpose on land masses in the System, including the construction of buildings, roads, airports, boat landings, bridges, causeways, or erosion control systems. Some exceptions are made for erosion control expenditures where a structure is under immediate threat. In addition, no new federal flood insurance may be provided for new construction or improvements within specially designated areas. The CBRA is described as a free-market approach to conservation because, other than the restriction on the use of federal funds, the CBRA makes no restrictions on the private development of areas within the System. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates that the CBRA has saved United States taxpayers more than one and a quarter billion dollars through 2002. Copyright 2010 LexisNexis, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. |