- Property owner near Camas, Washington fined $71,800 for unauthorized building on wetlands, damaging protected land.
Owning property doesn’t necessarily mean you can do whatever you want on it. One homeowner learned first-hand the consequences of unauthorized building on his property near Camas, Washington, that ultimately compromised the surrounding wetlands.
In a press release by the Washington State Department of Ecology, the Department issued a hefty fine of $71,800 to property owner Chad Williams for damaging protected land and failing to restore and mitigate the damages.
According to the press release, the city approved Williams’ construction plans, but Williams also needed a permit from the Department of Ecology to begin construction — a critical step he neglected. Without the Department’s authorization, he cleared the plants on his wetlands property and covered the wetland with dirt to build a house, a driveway, and an outdoor shop…