By Melissa Yearick, USC Wetland Team
We were pleased to host a wetland delineation training in partnership with The Wetland Trust (TWT) and Dr. Michael Losito in early August. The training took place at the TWT Wetland Field Station in New Berlin, NY and included three full days of office review and field work.
The training included a thorough review of the US Army Corps wetland determination data sheet, and the 3 components necessary to complete wetland delineations with emphasis on tools needed to evaluate wetland vegetation and soils. Training attendees learned about wetland vegetation, the wetland indicator status ranking system and walked through using Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide and Newcomb’s unique key system. This field guide is targeted to the Northeastern US, and is an excellent tool for identifying flowering plants including herbs, vines and shrubs. In addition, trainees learned the procedures for evaluating soil layers, colors and accurately estimating redox features. Soils field time was spent calibrating our vision to accurately estimate percentages, practicing soil pits and recording layer data. Other training topics included a history of wetland regulations and tools for evaluating wetland quality before the training ended in a full field delineation.
Thanks to all who attended, to The Wetland Trust for providing the perfect facility, and to Dr. Losito for the introduction to wetland science and regulation and for leading an excellent training.
To learn more, contact us at wetlandteam@u-s-c.org or view online resources. The US Army Corps of Engineers Buffalo District has many wetland delineation tools on their website. Visit the site for a variety of wetlands and waters definitions and references. Happy wetlanding everyone!
Project Details
DATE:
July 31 to Aug 2, 2019
PARTNERS:
The Wetland Trust and Dr. Mike Losito
PROJECT TYPE:
Wetland Delineation Training
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