"Wetland" means lands within the coastal zone which may be covered periodically or permanently with shallow water and include saltwater marshes, freshwater marshes, open or closed brackish water marshes, swamps, mudflats, and fens.

(1) Measure 100 feet landward from the upland limit of the wetland. Wetland shall be defined as land where the water table is at, near, or above the land surface long enough to promote the formation of hydric soils or to support the growth of hydrophytes, and shall also include those types of wetlands where vegetation is lacking and soil is poorly developed or absent as a result of frequent and drastic fluctuations of surface water levels, wave action, water flow, turbidity or high concentrations of salts or other substances in the substrate. Such wetlands can be recognized by the presence of surface water or saturated substrate at some time during each year and their location within, or adjacent to, vegetated wetlands or deep-water habitats. For purposes of this section, the upland limit of a wetland shall be defined as:

(A) the boundary between land with predominantly hydrophytic cover and land with predominantly mesophytic or xerophytic cover;
(B) the boundary between soil that is predominantly hydric and soil that is predominantly nonhydric; or
(C) in the case of wetlands without vegetation or soils, the boundary between land that is flooded or saturated at some time during years of normal precipitation, and land that is not.

(2) For the purposes of this section, the term “wetland” shall not include wetland habitat created by the presence of and associated with agricultural ponds and reservoirs where:

(A) the pond or reservoir was in fact constructed by a farmer or rancher for agricultural purposes; and
(B) there is no evidence (e.g., aerial photographs, historical survey, etc.) showing that wetland habitat pre-dated the existence of the pond or reservoir. Areas with drained hydric soils that are no longer capable of supporting hydrophytes shall not be considered wetlands.