By Will Walker – ASWM – September 2011

In 2010 the Association of State Wetland Managers (ASWM) set out to take a snapshot of the status of wetland mapping in the United States.  ASWM staff produced documents summarizing the age and extent of wetland maps for each state using the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s  National Wetlands Inventory (NWI) dataset from January 2010.   These documents were forwarded to state contacts with a request for information about additional mapping efforts that might not appear in the NWI.  The project concluded in December, with 35 of the 50 states responding to inquiries.  These responses as well as discussions with a handful of other states were compiled into a website with available information summarized on a state-by-state basis.  Nationwide, wetland maps are badly in need of improvement and updating. To read more and for full article, click here.