INDEX:

---EDITOR'S NOTE--

---EDITOR'S CHOICE---

·	Cases Before High Court Could Redefine Limits of Federal Power to Protect Public
·	Corps Begins Public Input Process on Regional Supplements
·	GAO Reports Highlight Weak Protection Of Wetlands

---NATIONAL UPDATES---

·	USGS Reports Preliminary Wetland Loss Estimates from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita
·	NRCS Announces $1.7 Billion For Voluntary Conservation Programs On Working Lands
·	Bush Admin To Pull Back Support For Great Lakes Restoration Plan
·	Appeals Court Orders More Water for Klamath Salmon
·	Environmental Impact Statement Approves Mountaintop Mining

---LEGISLATIAVE NEWS---

·	Bush Admin Plans To Gut Critical Habitat For Red-Legged Frog
·	Chesapeake Bay Reauthorization Bill
·	US Senate Backs Oil Drilling in Alaskan Refuge

---STATES NEWS---  

·	Florida DOT Has Long Tried To Replace Wetlands It Destroys When It Builds Roads, With Little Success
·	MI: Just Released: Preliminary Wetland Inventories
·	VA: Wetlands Data Viewer from the Virginia Institute of Marine Science
·	Wisconsin Wetlands Association Releases Tax Guide For Wetland Landowners
·	October 2005 Massachusetts Wetlands Restoration Update
·	NJ: Wetland Renewal and Landfill Closure Funded with Natural Resource Damage Settlements
·	In Mississippi, Army Engineers Under Fire For Wetlands Project
·	FL: 47 Groups Oppose Shift In Wetlands Permitting
·	MN: Rare Wetland Raises Restoration Hopes
·	Louisiana Wants Illinois Mud as Building Block for Devastated Marshes
·	NY: Long Coming, New Paltz Likely To Vote On Wetlands Law
·	WA: Mukilteo Told To Toughen New Wetlands Rules
·	Georgia Joins List of States Forming Public-Private Wetlands Restoration Partnership
·	OR: Land-Use Ruling Puts Issue Back At Square One
	NJ: Pine Barrens Wetland Released from Farm Duty, Returns to Nature
·	EPA Proposes Modification To Plan Allowing NYC To Avoid Filtering Water Supply

---PUBLICATIONS AND RESOURCES---

·	Welcome To The November 2005 Edition Of The Playa Post!
·	Free Land Conservation/Water Protection CD-ROM Available from LGEAN
·	Louisiana's Voice of The Wetlands Project Releases New CD
·	Deforestation Doesn't Trigger Floods, U.N. Report Claims
·	Wetlands Satellite Mapping Scheme Yielding First Results
·	EPA’s Watershed Academy Hosted Low Impact Development Webcast
·	CWP Releases Manual 2 of the Urban Subwatershed Restoration Series
·	New EPA Website: Watershed Assessment of River Stability & Sediment Supply
·	New Web Site: Great Lakes Observing System
·	Partnership For The Delaware Estuary Launches New Website
·	New Science Study: Mangroves Shielded Communities Against Tsunami
·	New Atlantic Coast Joint Venture Website

---POTPOURRI---

·	Hydrilla's Resistance to Herbicide Gives Scientists a New Challenge
·	MD DNR Monitoring and Non-tidal Assessment Division is Hiring
·	Job Opening: Restoration Ecology
·	Invasive Plant Found in Alaska
·	Chemical Communiqué of Weed-Attacking Beetle Deciphered
·	Snakehead Fish Invade Potomac River and Tributaries

---MEETINGS AND CONFERENCES---

For a rolling calendar of meeting, conferences, and other events visit the ASWM calendar.

EDITOR'S NOTE

Hello Everyone

As anticipated I am working again after delivering a healthy baby boy on Labor Day. The challenge is keeping him healthy: we already brought him to urgent care to have a translucent tick smaller than a poppy seed removed from his arm, and we fight a continuous battle with his six-year-old sister to keep him from being jostled, mauled, dragged and squeezed.  It is a challenge to balance her desire to be an involved, helpful and generally loving big sister and our desire to keep the baby alive and unharmed. In fact, sometimes I wonder if she has multiple personalities: she is so loving and kind for days on end until I trust her again and leave her alone with him. Almost immediately the baby starts wailing and she runs to the other room looking sheepish. After much scolding, time out, and even a spanking it finally took an extreme threat to get her complete attention: I would call the police if she bit or otherwise hurt him again. The look on her face was priceless as she pondered out loud whether she would go to jail. Of course not, I assured her, but the police officer would certainly talk to her about being more careful. Since then she’s been on her best behavior. He just might make it to his first birthday in one piece, yet! There is some really big news regarding the Supreme Court’s review of two wetland cases, and many people were thoughtful enough to send articles and items my way. Special thanks to our contributors this edition, including Ralph Tiner, USFWS; Peg Bostwick, MI Dept. of Environmental Quality; Ralph Spagnolo, EPA; Catherine Garra, EPA; Earle Cummings, California; Ellen Kracauer Hartig, Columbia University; Tom Biebighauser, USFS; Rick Gitar, Fond du Lac Reservation Office of Water Protection; and James Robb, Indiana Dept. of Environmental Management. Keep ‘em coming! Today is Election Day so please, don’t forget to vote. Wishing you all well, Jennifer Brady-Connor Editor, Wetland Breaking News

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Cases Before High Court Could Redefine Limits of Federal Power to Protect Public

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to review two Clean Water Act cases that could prompt yet another examination of the limits of Congress' power to protect the public. Both cases -- Carabell v. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 391 F.3d 704 (6th Cir. 2005), http://www.ca6.uscourts.gov/opinions.pdf/04a0417p-06.pdf and United States v. Rapanos, 376 F.3d 629 (6th Cir. 2004) http://www.ca6.uscourts.gov/opinions.pdf/04a0239p-06.pdf  -- address whether the Clean Water Act extends federal protection over wetlands with less than simple connections to waterways that are protected under the CWA. In the course of addressing these issues, the Supreme Court could potentially address a much larger question than a straightforward interpretation of the Clean Water Act: it could speak to the scope of Congress's power under the Commerce Clause to remedy public harms. Published on 10/18/2005 http://www.ombwatch.org/article/articleview/3136/1/225 ADDITIONAL ARTICLES ON THIS SUBJECT: Washington Post “Court to Rule on Federal Regulation of Wetlands” http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/11/AR2005101101647.html  Detroit Free Press “High court to hear 2 Mich. wetlands cases” http://www.freep.com/news/mich/wetlands12e_20051012.htm  The New York Times, “Supreme Court Takes Up 2 Cases Challenging Powers of U.S. Regulators to Protect Wetlands” http://www.grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=5880  Environmental News Service, “Environmental Lawyers Wary Of Supreme Court Nomineee Alito” http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/oct2005/2005-10-31-05.asp}

Corps Begins Public Input Process on Regional Supplements Ralph Tiner, USFWS, writes ”… The Corps has published two regional supplements to its manual that are out for review and comment.  You might want to add a note re: this in your next newsletter and encourage wetland scientists to submit comments. If you have questions contact Katherine Trott, Senior Project Manager, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers HQ, (202) 761-5542, fax (202) 761-1685.” http://www.usace.army.mil/inet/functions/cw/cecwo/reg/reg_supp.htm  Thanks, Ralph!

GAO Reports Highlight Weak Protection Of Wetlands

The Michigan Wetlands Action Coalition Newsletter, A Bi-Weekly Publication. 10/21/05. The General Accounting Office (GAO) released two reports this September evaluating the US Army Corps of Engineers effectiveness in administering Section 404 of the Clean Water Act.   One report, “Corps of Engineers Does Not Have an Effective Oversight Approach to Ensure That Compensatory Mitigation is Occurring,” http://www.gao.gov/highlights/d05898high.pdf reported that the USACE does little to monitor mitigation projects required of developers.  The GAO looked at seven of the Corps’ 38 districts which account for more than two-thirds of mitigation projects nationwide.  Of the 152 permits that required mitigation, the USACE only inspected 23 of the cases and only received 21 required reports on the status of wetlands from developers.  The GAO recommended that the Corps develop specific guidance for how mitigation is to be carried out, as well as establish clear goals for the number of inspections and monitoring reports to ensure that an effective oversight programs is in place to achieve the goal of no net loss of wetlands. The second report, “Corps of Engineers Needs Better Support of Its Decision for Not Asserting Jurisdiction,” http://www.gao.gov/highlights/d05870high.pdf found that the agency is permitting the destruction of wetlands without explaining why the Corps did not assert jurisdiction.  The Corps generally documents its rationale for asserting jurisdiction over waters and wetlands, but fails to provide similar documentation when determining nonjurisdiction.  The percentage of files that contained no rationale whatsoever ranged from 12 to 49 percent and the remaining files contained only partial rationales.  The report states that the Corps is generally not asserting jurisdiction over isolated, intrastate, nonnavigable waters using its remaining authority due to the Supreme Court SWANCC decision.  The GAO recommends that the Corps require detailed explanations for nonjurisdictional decisions and finalize guidance with the EPA to better determine jurisdictional authority which would hopefully provide protection to wetlands not currently protected. Visit the Michigan Wetlands Action Coalition online at http://www.glhabitat.org/mwac/

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NATIONAL UPDATE

USGS Reports Preliminary Wetland Loss Estimates from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita

USGS news release, 11/1/05. Hurricanes Katrina and Rita transformed some 100 square miles of marsh to open water in southeastern Louisiana, according to preliminary estimates by U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) based on an analysis of Landsat satellite data from September and October. Future observations of Landsat imagery over the upcoming year will allow scientists at the USGS National Wetlands Research Center (NWRC) in Baton Rouge and Lafayette, La., to determine how much of the loss is permanent and how the marsh recovers. Although this early analysis of wetlands does not take into account some marsh recovery, indications are that much of the loss may be permanent. Some of the new areas of open water will likely become new lakes. http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/article.asp?ID=1409

NRCS Announces $1.7 Billion For Voluntary Conservation Programs On Working Lands

USDA News Release. LITTLE ROCK, Ark., Oct. 14, 2005-Agriculture Deputy Secretary Chuck Conner today announced the release of nearly $1.7 billion in fiscal year 2006 funding for voluntary conservation farm bill programs on working lands. Through cooperative conservation, USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) will help farmers and ranchers make sound conservation decisions that improve soil, water, air and wildlife habitat on privately owned working lands. Fiscal year 2006 allocations include $1.345 billion in financial assistance and $337 million for technical assistance for NRCS voluntary conservation programs. States will receive additional money after Congress makes final funding decisions through the fiscal year 2006 appropriations process. Key voluntary conservation programs and allocations include $1 billion for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and $245 million each for the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) and the Conservation Security Program (CSP). Additional information on conservation programs is available at: http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs.

Bush Admin To Pull Back Support For Great Lakes Restoration Plan

Policy News from ESA's Public Affairs Office, 10/14/05. “The Bush Administration plans to withdraw its support for a $20 billion plan to restore and protect the Great Lakes, according to a draft report obtained by the Chicago Tribune … Under the original plan released by a special restoration task force, Great Lakes states would get a $20 billion boost to upgrade sewer systems, battle invasive species and clean up contaminated sediments … But the draft report says that federal spending on the Great Lakes should remain ‘within current budget projections.’ ‘The federal government will consider the [Great Lakes] plan an advisory document only, and will weigh its recommendations against all other competing priorities within the federal budget,’ the report states.” http://www.esa.org/pao/PolicyNewsUpdate/pn2005/10142005.php#bush

Appeals Court Orders More Water for Klamath Salmon

SAN FRANCISCO, California, October 18, 2005 (ENS) – “Today the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the Bush administration's water diversion plan for the Klamath River because it fails to protect threatened Klamath River coho salmon. A coalition of commercial fishermen and conservation groups, joined by the Yurok and Hoopa Valley Tribes, filed the lawsuit against the National Marine Fisheries Service and the federal Bureau of Reclamation in September 2002 because the agencies' 10 year plan failed to leave sufficient water in the river for salmon and relied on future, speculative actions from the states of California and Oregon to make up for the missing water. The court sided with the fishing and conservation groups, finding the government's plan illegal because it failed to provide adequate water flows for coho salmon until eight years into the 10 year plan … “  http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/oct2005/2005-10-18-09.asp#anchor3

Bush Administration EIS Approves Mountaintop Mining

WASHINGTON, DC, October 28, 2005 (ENS) - Today federal and state agencies released the final version of a programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on mountaintop removal coal mining. The final report endorses the coal mining method that cuts off the tops of mountains to get at coal seams, then dumps the mountaintops into valley streams below … Unlike a project EIS, a programmatic EIS is not a blueprint for actions on a site-specific basis. This programmatic EIS clarifies lines of responsibility among the agencies responsible for administering the Clean Water Act (CWA) and the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA) … The final programmatic EIS is online at: http://www.epa.gov/region3/mtntop/index.htm”  http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/oct2005/2005-10-28-09.asp#anchor2

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LEGISLATIVE NEWS

Bush Admin Plans To Gut Critical Habitat For Red-Legged Frog

Daily Grist, 04 Nov 2005 . “The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has proposed slashing critical habitat for California's threatened red-legged frog by over 80 percent, from 4.1 million to 737,912 acres. Why, you ask? It seems protecting the beleaguered amphibian just costs too darn much: The agency says projected economic losses of nearly $500 million over the next 20 years outweigh benefits to the frog. But two economists who consulted with the FWS say they were instructed not to calculate the economic upsides of preserving such habitat -- cleaner drinking water, revived outdoor tourism, and higher real-estate values for homes abutting open space. Instead, they were told to insert wording from the White House's Office of Management and Budget stating that it wasn't feasible to "monetize" such benefits. The administration has voided 16.4 million acres of critical-habitat designation since 2001.”  http://www.grist.org/news/daily/2005/11/04/ U SFWS web page: http://www.fws.gov/sacramento/ea/news_releases/2005%20News%20Releases/CRLF_re-pCH_2005_NR.htm

Chesapeake Bay Reauthorization Bill

Northeast-Midwest Weekly Update -- 31 October 2005. “Rep. Wayne Gilchrest (R-MD), a co-chair of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Task Force, introduced the Chesapeake Bay Restoration Enhancement Act of 2005 (H.R. 4126).  The bill has 16 original cosponsors, including the Task Force's other three chairs and ten of its members.  The bill amends section 117 of the Clean Water Act and reauthorizes the Chesapeake Bay Program for five years.  The bill focuses on increasing support to local governments in the region, requiring more accountability by federal and state agencies, and expanding the Small Watershed Grants program to $10 million.  Contact:  Peter Marx at the Northeast-Midwest Institute (202/464-4008).”

US Senate Backs Oil Drilling in Alaskan Refuge

World Environment News - November 4th, 2005 from Planet Ark. WASHINGTON – “The US Senate Thursday voted to allow oil drilling in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), narrowly rejecting a Democratic attempt to strike the plan from a budget bill. Drilling supporters said developing the refuge's 10.4 billion barrels of crude would raise $2.4 billion in leasing fees for the government, reduce US reliance on foreign oil imports and create thousands of American jobs …” http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/33309/story.htm

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STATES NEWS

Florida DOT Has Long Tried To Replace Wetlands It Destroys When It Builds Roads, With Little Success

By CRAIG PITTMAN and MATTHEW WAITE, St. Petersburg Times. 11/6/05. “Last week, Gov. Jeb Bush unveiled a plan to spend $3-billion to speed up roadbuilding to keep up with the state's booming population. The money, the first part of a plan that will cost $10-billion in state and federal money over the next decade, is being spent in the name of growth management. But it also will destroy thousands of acres of wetlands. The Department of Transportation will spend millions to try to make up for the destruction. But the DOT has spent millions on similar projects in recent years that did little to offset damage. The DOT destroys more wetlands than any other state agency … ” http://www.sptimes.com/2005/11/06/State/They_can_build_roads_.shtml

MI: Just Released: Preliminary Wetland Inventories

Michigan Wetlands Action Coalition newsletter, A Bi-Weekly Publication. Friday November 4, 2005.  “Preliminary wetland inventories are now available for 61 counties in the state of Michigan.  The purpose of the wetland inventory is to provide potential and approximate locations of wetlands and wetland conditions. It is intended that the inventories be used as one tool in planning for development, open space designations, zoning, etc. as a way to protect wetland resources. The maps are not intended to be used to determine the specific locations and jurisdictional boundaries of wetland areas subject to regulation under Part 303. Only an on-site evaluation performed by the DEQ in accordance with Part 303 can be used for jurisdictional determinations. The DEQ has a Wetland Assessment Program to assist property owners with identifying the location of any wetlands on their property and whether the wetlands are regulated. “Preliminary wetland inventory maps for 61 counties are available in pdf format from the Center for Geographic Information website. http://www.michigan.gov/cgi/0,1607,7-158-12540_13817_22351-58858--,00.html “Paper copies of these preliminary wetland inventory maps can be ordered with a Request for Preliminary Wetland Inventory Maps Form. http://www.deq.state.mi.us/documents/deq-glm-water-wetland-wetlandmapform.pdf ‘The Center for Geographic Information website includes downloadable GIS data for 26 preliminary wetland inventory maps. http://www.mcgi.state.mi.us/mgdl/?rel=thext&action=thmname&cid=3&cat=Preliminary+Wetland+Inventory ”

VA: Wetlands Data Viewer from the Virginia Institute of Marine Science

10/20/05. The Wetlands Data Viewer tool allows users to obtain National Wetland Inventory (NWI) statistics for any hydrologic unit in Virginia. Localities are divided by county or municipality. The Center for Coastal Resources Management (CCRM) provides this tool and these data with the understanding that it is not guaranteed to be correct or complete. The interactive mapping tool allows extreme flexibility and freedom in mapping. Conclusions drawn from data sets compiled are the sole responsibility of the user. http://ccrm.vims.edu/disclaimer_wetlandsdataviewer.html

Wisconsin Wetlands Association Releases Tax Guide For Wetland Landowners

The Wisconsin Wetlands Association, a state-wide non-profit organization dedicated to wetland protection and education, has released a new publication, What Does it Cost to Own a Wetland? A Guide to Property Tax Assessments on Wetlands and Other Privately Owned Wisconsin Conservation Lands. The guidebook is designed to help landowners anticipate the property tax consequences of wetland restoration decisions and to ensure that the wetlands they currently own were properly assessed and taxed. The guide will also help natural resource professionals answer landowner questions about the tax implications of wetland restoration and other stewardship decisions, questions land managers cite as "on the top of the list" when consulting with landowners about new projects. The guidebook was produced as part of a larger Wisconsin Wetlands Association initiative to encourage the state to provide more economic incentives for conservation activities on private lands. Copies of What Does it Cost to Own a Wetland? can be downloaded for free (as a PDF file) at http://www.wiscwetlands.org/WWA%20Wetland%20Tax%20Guide.pdf or call WWA at 608-250-9971.

October 2005 Massachusetts Wetlands Restoration Update

A new update has been posted on the WRP web site http://www.mass.gov/czm/wrp/education/currentupdate.htm that provides information on: