MWAC Past Newsletter
July 25, 2008
USACOE Public Notice on Supplement to Wetland Delineation Manual
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District, announces the availability of the Draft Northcentral and Northeast Regional Supplement to the 1987 Wetland Delineation Manual (Environmental Laboratory 1987). This draft was developed by regional expert delineators with input from state and Federal agencies, academia and other local experts. It is being peer reviewed by a panel of independent scientists, the report from which will be available upon request. This draft is also being field tested by interagency teams of state and Federal agencies to determine the clarity and ease of use of the document and whether its use will result in any spatial changes in wetland jurisdiction for Clean Water Act Section 404 purposes.
We are specifically seeking public input, including scientific information/data, on the proposed hydrology, soils and vegetation indicators and data collection procedures in this draft document. Reviewers may wish to field test this manual as part of the public comment procedure. The protocol for this testing is to perform wetland delineations using both the 1987 Wetland Delineation Manual and this draft regional supplement on the same data points. Reviewers should include data sheets from the manual and draft supplement, maps indicating data collection points (upland and wetland) and a completed questionnaire for each delineation point. The testing protocol and questionnaire can be accessed at
http://www.lre.usace.army.mil/functions/rf/html/ctny/200800801900.pdf and the draft may be located at http://www.usace.army.mil/cw/cecwo/reg/reg_supp.htm.
Comments must be submitted by September 19, 2008, to Ms. Jennifer McCarthy
(CECW-CO), U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 441 G. Street, NW, Washington DC
20314-1000 or by e-mail to 1987Manual@usace.army.mil.
NEW PROTOCOLS FOR MEASURING, TRACKING CONDITION OF COASTAL WETLANDS
From Michigan Coastal News, Summer 2008: http://www.michigan.gov/documents/deq/deq-ess-clm-mcn-summer08_240717_7.pdf
The health of Great Lakes coastal wetlands influences the region’s well-being in various ways. Coastal wetlands help maintain the quality of near-shore waters used for recreation, industry, and public water supplies. They buffer shorelines from erosion damage, and retain sediments that otherwise reduce depth for navigation in harbors and boating channels. By providing breeding and feeding habitat for many sport fish, waterfowl, and non-game wildlife species, the wetlands also help fuel the tourism-based economic engines of many coastal communities. Despite their importance, no basin-wide mechanism had been established for assessing the condition of coastal wetlands and monitoring year-to-year changes – until this spring.
In March, the Great Lakes Coastal Wetland Consortium finalized the Great Lakes Coastal Wetlands Monitoring Plan. The document’s release caps almost seven years of research and development efforts by the Consortium’s scientific and policy experts, drawn from key U.S. and Canadian federal, state, and provincial agencies, nonprofit organizations, universities, and other stakeholder groups, including the MDEQ and Michigan Natural Features Inventory. The Consortium completed this complex task under the aegis of the Great Lakes Commission, with major funding from the U.S. EPA Great Lakes National Program Office.
The building blocks of the monitoring plan are five sets of indicators addressing major components of coastal wetland condition, specifically, vegetation, invertebrates, fish, amphibians and birds, and landscape context. The plan prescribes a suite of standard measurements and data collection protocols for assessing each set of indicators. An overall sampling design details the selection, number, type, and location of the wetland sites monitored for indicator condition. Adherence to the sampling design ensures that the indicator monitoring results from one coastal area will be readily comparable to results from a different part of the Great Lakes, and that same-site indicator results will be comparable from year to year – a prerequisite for discerning trends in wetland health.
Wetland management agencies and organizations operating in the Great Lakes are invited to adopt the coastal wetland monitoring plan, or adapt it to existing monitoring programs. In Michigan, the MDEQ is encouraging the use of the protocols in Areas of Concern. The plan is available at www.glc.org/wetlands. For information on application of the plan in Michigan, contact Tracy Collin, MDEQ Coastal Wetland Ecologist, at (517) 241-4506, or collint@michigan.gov.
CORPS REISSUANCE OF NATIONWIDE PERMITS AND REGIONAL CONDITIONS IN MI
On July 15, 2008, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced the reissuance of the Nationwide Permits (NWPs) and Final Regional Conditions in Michigan. The Corps proposed renewing the 44 Nationwide Permits that have been in effect for the last 5 years and expired in March 2007. The USACE also proposed to expand NWPs by adding 6 new Nationwide Permits. Coastal states, including Michigan, had the opportunity to limit the scope of the NWPs applicable in their coastal zones in order to ensure that federal permitting of activities is consistent with their coastal zone waters and natural resources protection objectives. The Michigan Coastal Management Program reviewed the proposed reissuance and modifications for consistency with the Coastal Management Program and the MDEQ made a determination on Section 401 Water Quality Certification consistency.
The Nationwide Permits and Regional Conditions in Michigan can be accessed at http://www.lre.usace.army.mil/functions/rf/html/ctny/20061028200.pdf.
WETLANDS 2008
Wetlands and Global Climate Change
September 16-18, 2008
Field Trips on September 15th & 18th
Workshops on September 19th
Doubletree Hotel & Executive Meeting Center
Portland-Lloyd Center, Portland, Oregon
Register for Wetlands 2008 by August 1 to receive the discounted early registration rate and a one-year membership with the Association of State Wetland Managers. Current members will have their membership extended another year. The purpose of this symposium is to identify opportunities and cooperative strategies for managing wetlands and water resources in response to climate change while meeting the ongoing challenges of conserving and protecting wetlands. Wetlands 2008 will be held at the Doubletree Hotel and Executive Meeting Center in Portland, Oregon.
For symposium information, please see: http://www.aswm.org/calendar/wetlands2008/index.htm
Registration: EARLY REGISTRATION DEADLINE IS AUGUST 1
http://www.aswm.org/calendar/wetlands2008/registration_2008.htm
For further information please contact Laura at laura@aswm.org or (207) 892-3399.