Virginia Coastal Program: 2000 Coastal Grant Project Description and Final Summary
Project Task:
FY2000 Task 95
Grantee:
Virginia Institute of Marine Science
Project Title:
Nontidal Wetlands Regulatory Program: Compensation Review & Draft Monitoring Protocol
Project Description as Proposed:
The 2000 Virginia General Assembly passed comprehensive legislation to stop the ditching and draining of nontidal wetlands (known as Tulloch Ditching) and to create a nontidal wetland regulatory program. DEQ is required to develop regulations and general permits by January 2001. This fast track necessitates background information be collected and wetlands resources be inventoried as quickly as possible. This project will assist in data collection through review of the federal ACOE permit program. These wetland permits will be reviewed to determine the types of wetlands that were impacted, their location, any required mitigation, and level of compliance. Wetlands will be inventoried, probably through the acquisition of satellite imagery. This approach is consistent with the recommendation of the multistate Chesapeake Bay Program and will build upon all inventory work previously done to date in the Commonwealth through the National Wetland Inventory program.Protocols for an accounting system will have to be developed to explain what the inventory finds and what regulatory, voluntary, and preservation programs have achieved towards the Commonwealth's goal of net gain of wetland resources.
Federal Funding:
$58,775
Project Contact:
Carl H. Hershner, 804.684.7387
Project Status:
Grant Closed
Final Product Received:
Project Summary Provided by Grantee:
Project
Scope:
This project is part of a continuing series of projects designed
to develop and implement monitoring and analysis protocols to support
the new nontidal wetlands management program in the Commonwealth
of Virginia. This particular project was designed to review the
status of wetlands creation efforts in the mid-Atlantic region,
develop a protocol for monitoring wetlands created as compensation
for permitted impacts, and begin data collection. Future work will
continue development of the data base, evaluate the monitoring protocol
and develop and implement an analytical protocol to inform setting
of the compensation ratios used in the regulatory program's general
permits.
Results:
A review of extant monitoring and analysis protocols was undertaken.
The objective was to identify critical elements, and to search for
an approach that would be easily implemented with the very limited
resources available to the regulatory program. Absent an approach
that meets all programmatic requirements we designed a monitoring
program that requires a minimum data set (hydrology, vegetative
cover, non-native/invasive species, surrounding land use). We also
took an existing monitoring protocol, updated it and developed it
for use with handheld computers. This is intended to serve as a
more comprehensive data set, against which we can test the utility
of the minimal data set.
We initiated data collection to populate the new data base. This effort is now continuing under a new grant.
Form C end
Disclaimer: This project summary provides the federal dollars initially awarded to the grantee. Due to underexpenditure or reprogramming of grant funds, this figure may change. For more information on the allocation of coastal grant funds, please contact Laura McKay, Virginia Coastal Program Manager, at 804.698.4323 or email: Laura.McKay@deq.virginia.gov
A more detailed Scope of Work for this project is available. Please direct your request for a copy to Virginia.Witmer@deq.virginia.gov
