ASWM Services

ONGOING SERVICES

Wetland Breaking News—A monthly summary of wetland and wetland-related activities occurring around the country including national and state news, meetings, new publications, court cases, conferences, and other items of interest. Go to Wetland Breaking News

NEW WEBPAGES 2008—ASWM adds new webpages exploring information on important topics.

	New in 2008:
	w	Local Land Trusts with Wetland Programs
	w	Wetland Mapping
	w	Floodplains
	w	Programmatic General Permits
	w	Wetlands Assessment
	w	Understanding Local, State and Federal Dredge & Fill Permitting Programs

	2007:
	w	Wetlands and Farm Programs
	w	Wetlands and Global Climate Change
	w	Coastal Wetland Dieback
	w	How to Design a Wetlands Education & Regulatory Workshop
	w	How to Hire the Right Wetlands Consultant
	w	State Wetland Delineator Certification Programs

	Conferences and Workshops—ASWM holds workshops and conferences on emerging issues in public policy, science and management.

	Technical Assistance—We receive requests for information from individuals, agencies, nonprofits and commercial interests on a daily basis. Some requests can be answered with an e-mail or a phone conversation. Other requests are more involved such as providing expertise at meetings and forums, assisting with development of workshops and conferences or white papers and other similar projects. For additional services go to Benefits of Membership at: http://www.aswm.org/member/index.htm#benefits

ASWM PROJECTS UNDERWAY

Carabell/Rapanos Supreme Court Decision. ASWM has been working with the states, federal agencies, science, professional, and environmental organizations and other partners to provide information and identify solutions to changes in federal jurisdiction that have occurred following the SWANCC Supreme Court decision in 2001 and the Carabell/Rapanos decision in 2006. These court decisions have made jurisdictional determinations under the Clean Water Act very complicated and have led to three to six month delays in addition to the amount of time already required to process Section 404 permits. In addition uncertainty over Clean Water Act jurisdiction will affect other Clean Water Act programs. ASWM is receiving an increasing number of requests for assistance from a wide range of interest groups and government agencies seeking solutions.

State/Tribal/Federal Coordination Meeting. This conference is scheduled for March 17-19, 2009. ASWM's annual winter meeting will be held at the National Conservation Training Center in Shepherdstown, WV. More information will be added, please check back.

National Wetlands Mapping Standard. ASWM is a member of a committee set up to revise the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (FWS) National Wetlands Inventory (NWI) standard for mapping wetlands to move it into a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) environment and to establish the revised standard as a national standard. Federally-funded wetland mapping projects will be required to use the standard in the future. In addition any new wetland maps developed using the standard can be forwarded to update the national wetland data layer for the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Map http://nationalmap.gov/. Information about the new standard is available on the FGDC wetland subcommittee webpage at http://www.fws.gov/nwi/fgdcwet.html.

National Assessment of Wetlands Condition. EPA is undertaking an assessment of the condition of the Nation's waters. EPA has issued reports on the condition of wadeable streams and coastal waters. It will be issuing reports on lakes, large stream and finally wetlands in 2011. States have been working aggressively on identifying methods for evaluating the quality of the wetlands in their respective states. ASWM is working with states to support the assessment of national condition while ensuring the public understands the continued importance of more detailed state actions to develop information on the quality and quantity of wetlands within the states.

Protection of Vulnerable Wetlands and Aquatic Resources: Improving Knowledge of Land Trusts and Local Government. Local governments and land trusts can protect wetlands and other waters no longer protected under the Clean Water Act with a variety of activities. A number of these organizations are interested in doing something, but lack the knowledge and expertise. Many of the wetlands at risk due to decreased or uncertain CWA jurisdiction are very important to biodiversity, flood storage, endangered species and pollution control. These are functions and services that are consistent with priorities for local government or land trusts. ASWM will hold special sessions at conferences in the Northeast, develop a model wetland/riparian ordinance, and create new webpages to identify ways that local governments and land trusts protect and conserve wetlands that may not be protected under federal or state laws.

Final Mitigation Rule. EPA and the Corps issued a final mitigation rule in March of 2008. Many states have their own mitigation requirements that may or may not be consistent with the Corps' and EPA’s final rule. ASWM is facilitating discussion between the states, the Corps and EPA to assist states in integrating the final rule with their respective state programs.

Wetland Delineation Manual Supplements. The Corps and EPA, along with partners are currently creating and finalizing supplements to the delineation manual used to delineate wetlands. This is a much needed step. However, states need to be informed about the changes and given the opportunity to respond. In addition training is needed for federal and state wetland managers, tribes, local government and many others.


	NEW ASWM SERVICES (not funded currently)

New ASWM Blog: The Compleat Wetlander—ASWM is preparing to launch a blog on wetlands titled “the compleat wetlander" to provide a forum for discussion on current topics.

Expanded ASWM Book Service—ASWM is preparing to expand its book services to provide a comprehensive list of wetland books that can be purchased through Amazon.com

Overhaul of ASWM website—ASWM is seeking funding to update the ASWM website to provide better information, organization and opportunities for topic specific online discussion.

Update of State Program Summaries—ASWM is seeking funding for its state program summaries. Most state summaries have been completed, but some have not and others need to be brought up to date including links to more detailed information on the states’ webpages.


	ASWM PROJECTS PROPOSED (not funded currently)

Streamlining Permitting. In the coming year, permit delays that result from making jurisdictional determinations under the new Carabell/Rapanos guidance will lead to requests to streamline permitting at the state level as well as the federal level (the public does not distinguish between the two). States already are under pressure to make faster permitting decisions. ASWM will work with states, federal agencies, the regulated community and other interested parties to move the discussion beyond simply shortening timelines for processing permits to identify beneficial opportunities to simplify and streamline permitting programs, provide better maps, improve databases, and distribute better information to applicants.

Wetlands and Global Climate Change. In the past year, there has been a dramatic increase in the attention focused on climate change in the U.S. However, there is little information or discussion nationally on how wetland managers should respond to changes in climate. Many states are establishing offices of climate change but these most often address energy conservation issues rather than management of wetlands and other natural resources. ASWM will work with the states to identify opportunities to leverage existing wetland and water programs to respond to climate change including addressing sea level rise, changes and loss of wetlands/waters, and adverse impacts on plant and wildlife populations.

State Programmatic General Permits. Approximately 20 states have State Programmatic General Permits (SPGPs) which have been negotiated with individual Corps Districts. SPGPs delegate authority to the states to issue CWA permits on behalf of the Corps. The states have asked ASWM to provide opportunities for states to compare notes and collaborate and improve the SPGP agreements to give the states more autonomy in decision-making.

Protecting Vulnerable Waters and Improving Compensatory Mitigation: A Report on the Status of Stream Permitting and Mitigation Requirements for Headwater Streams. In the past year the Carabell/Rapanos Supreme Court decision has weakened the ability of the Clean Water Act to protect headwater streams and wetlands. Some states have programs that mitigate permitted activities in streams. Some are just getting started. Others have not begun to think about the issue. ASWM will develop information/training materials summarizing status of state stream permitting and compensatory mitigation programs and identify performance standards.

Strengthening 401 Certification. In 30 states 401 certification under the CWA is the only program states have to condition or deny Section 404 dredge and fill permits. ASWM has been working as a liaison between EPA and the states to support revision of out-of-date EPA guidance. ASWM plans to work with EPA and the states to revise the guidance to include topics currently not covered such as hydropower projects and better guidance on how state laws and regulations that can be applied to conditioning federal permits. After it is published there will be an important opportunity to provide education and training to the states to help them understand the guidance, learn what other states are doing and improve their own 401 certification programs.

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