HYDROGEOLOGIC EVALUATION OF WETLAND BASINS FOR LAND USE PLANNING1

ABSTRACT: Wetlands occur in a variety of geologic, hydrologic, and topographic settings and exhibit diverse hydrogeologic characteristics. A wetland is more than an organic mat - it is an element in a larger hydrogeologic system. Three distinct but related effects of wetlands are: modifying the character of runoff from a basin, influencing the discharge/recharge relationship with the underlying aquifer, and effecting the potential for ground water development in a wetland dominated basin. An important goal of wetland research is to define the diverse roles that wetlands play in the regional hydrology and to define the geologic, hydrologic, and topographic factors that will allow meaningful distinctions among wetlands. Geologic and hydrologic factors include character and thickness of surficial materials; bedrock type; hydrologic position; permeability of organic layer; transmissivity, quality, and hydrologic connection of wetland related aquifers; ground water outflow; and depth of standing water. Topographic factors are position in the drainage basin, relative size, and absolute size of wetlands. A wetland classification to aid hydrologists and land use planners is proposed using selected factors involving hydrologic position, topographic position, and geologic type.     

湿地综述与新疆湿地研究

湿地(Wetland)是世界上面积最大、分布地域最广泛、生产力最高的景观类型之一,其结构和功能十分独特,对全人类的发展发挥着独特的作用。我国是一个干旱缺水严重的国家,我国西部干旱区水资源与湿地问题突出,对湿地的研究应和"干旱区研究"并行。文中总结了国际与国内对湿地研究与发展状况和趋势,分析了新疆湿地的特征和类型,并提出了新疆湿地存在的问题和一些建议。     

Evaluating the cumulative effects of alteration on New England wetlands

In New England, patterns of glacial deposition strongly influence wetland occurrence and function. Many wetlands are associated with permeable deposits and owe their existence to groundwater discharge. Whether developed on deposits of high or low permeability, wetlands are often associated with streams and appear to play an important role in controlling and modifying streamflow. Evidence is cited showing that some wetlands operate to lessen flood peaks, and may have the seasonal effect of increasing spring discharges and depressing low flows. Wetlands overlying permeable deposits may be associated with important aquifers where they can produce slight modifications in water quality and head distribution within the aquifer. Impacts to wetlands undoubtedly will affect these functions, but the precise nature of the effect is difficult to predict. This is especially true of incremental impacts to wetlands, which may, for example, produce a change in streamflow disproportionate to wetland area in the drainage basin, i.e., a nonlinear effect as defined by Preston and Bedford (1988). Additional research is needed before hydrologic function can be reliably correlated with physical properties of wetlands and landscapes.A model is proposed to structure future research and explore relationships between hydrologic function and physical properties of wetlands and landscapes. The model considers (1) the nature of the underlying deposits (geologic type), (2) location in the drainage basin (topographic position), (3) relationship to the principal zone of saturation (hydrologic position), and (4) hydrologic character of the organic deposit.     

基于生态学研究制定湿地保护策略：以台湾七股湿地为例

制定合理有效的滨海湿地保护法律制度和管理策略,需要我们理解生物多样性、生态功能和生态系统服务之间的相互关系,并正确地评估滨海湿地的脆弱性以及人类活动和环境变化对湿地的影响。然而,当前滨海湿地保护政策制定过程中有关生态及经济评估数据尚显不足。在此,本文以台湾七股滨海区域作为案例,展示了滨海湿地环境保护政策制定过程生态学研究发挥的影响力,并体现出对其他领域和当地居民相互协作的力量整合,最终实现湿地保护的策略。     

ESTABLISHING PRIORITIES FOR WETLAND MANAGEMENT1

Wetlands provide a variety of ecological services, but are attractive sites for many development activities. Between the mid-1950's and mid-1970's about 550,000 acres, or about 0.5 percent, of the vegetated wetlands remaining in the conterminous states were converted to other uses each year. About 80 percent of these losses involved draining and clearing of inland wetlands for agricultural purposes. Recent reductions in national wetland conversion rates are due primarily to declining rates of agricultural drainage and secondarily to government programs that regulate wetlands use. Several governmental policies and programs exist that either encourage or discourage wetland conversions. Section 404 of the Clean Water Act is the major tool for Federal involvement in controlling the conversion of wetlands to other uses. The 404 program, in combination with State regulatory programs, is responsible for reducing annual conversions nationwide by about 50 percent of what is applied for, or 50,000 acres of wetlands per year, primarily through project modifications. Coastal wetlands are reasonably well protected. Inland, freshwater wetlands are generally poorly protected. Efforts to protect wetlands, given a set level of resources, could be improved by categorizing wetlands according to their relative importance and focusing existing wetland programs on high value wetlands.     

生态文明视域下河北沿海地区湿地农业发展转型研究

基于生态文明建设视域,分析了河北沿海地区湿地农业发展现状,指出目前存在天然湿地面积逐年减少、抵御自然灾害能力降低、水资源及环境条件恶化、湿地功能发挥受到限制等主要问题,阐释了湿地农业发展转型的必要性,提出实现湿地农业持续发展,必须推动其增长方式向依靠科学技术和科学管理转型,生产方式向依靠基础设施和技术装备转型,经营方式向适度规模经营转型,农产品向多品种、高品质转型,发展方式向多次产业融合转型。     

Public acquisition versus private stewardship for wetland protection: an evaluation of the St Lawrence valley national wildlife refuge,USA

Private stewardship can be an efficacious strategy for wetland protection in areas not subject to development pressure, provided landowners are environmentally conscious and a safety net of regulations has been enacted. Public acquisition is better directed toward areas undergoing rapid land‐use change. The St Lawrence Valley National Wildlife Refuge proposed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service was ill‐advised, because wetlands are not being converted to other uses, landowners are engaging practices that promote and enhance wildlife, and wetlands are protected from serious losses by state regulations. A less costly and less contentious role for governmental agencies in such situations is to initiate and support activities of private landowners.     

Integrating objectives and scales for planning and implementing wetland restoration and creation in agricultural landscapes

Traditionally, wetland management strategies have focused on single familiar objectives, such as improving water quality, strengthening biodiversity, and providing flood control. Despite the relevant amount of studies focused on wetland creation or restoration with these and other objectives, still little is known on how to integrate objectives of wetland creation or restoration at different landscape scales. We have reviewed the literature to this aim, and based on the existing current knowledge, we propose a four step approach to take decisions in wetland creation or restoration planning. First, based on local needs and limitations we should elucidate what the wetland is needed for. Second, the scale at which wetland should be created or restored must be defined. Third, conflicts and compatibilities between creation or restoration objectives must then be carefully studied. Fourth, a creation or restoration strategy must be defined. The strategy can be either creating different unipurpose wetlands or multipurpose wetlands, or combinations of them at different landscape scales. In any case, in unipurpose wetland projects we recommend to pursue additional secondary objectives. Following these guidelines, restored and created wetlands would have more ecological functions, similar to natural wetlands, especially if spatial distribution in the landscape is considered. Restored and created wetlands could then provide an array of integrated environmental services adapted to local ecological and social needs.     

Anthropogenic effects on the biodiversity of riparian wetlands of a northern temperate landscape

Land uses such as forestry and agriculture are presumed to degrade the biodiversity of riparian wetlands in the northern temperate regions of the United States. In order to improve land use decision making in this landscape, floral and faunal communities of 15 riparian wetlands associated with low-order streams were related to their surrounding land cover to establish which organismal groups are affected by anthropogenic disturbance and whether these impacts are scale-specific. Study sites were chosen to represent a gradient of disturbance. Vascular plants of wet meadow and shrub carr communities, aquatic macro-invertebrates, amphibians, fish and birds were surveyed, and total abundance, species richness and Shannon diversity were calculated. For each site, anthropogenic disturbances were evaluated at local and landscape scales (500, 1000, 2500 and 5000 m from the site and the site catchment) from field surveys and a geographic information system (GIS). Land use data were grouped into six general land use types: urban, cultivated, rangeland, forest, wetland and water. Shrub carr vegetation, bird and fish diversity and richness generally decrease with increasing cultivation in the landscape. Amphibian abundance decreases and fish abundance increases as the proportions of open water and rangeland increases; bird diversity and richness increase with forest and wetland extent in the landscape. Wet meadow vegetation, aquatic macro-invertebrates, amphibians and fish respond to local disturbances or environmental conditions. Shrub carr vegetation, amphibians and birds are influenced by land use at relatively small landscape scales (500 and 1000 m), and fish respond to land use at larger landscape scales (2500, 5000 m and the catchment). Effective conservation planning for these riparian wetlands requires assessment of multiple organismal groups, different types of disturbance and several spatial scales.1998 Academic Press     

Impacts of Adjacent Land Use and Isolation on Marsh Bird Communities

Over the next half century the human population is expected to grow rapidly, resulting in the conversion of rural areas into cities. Wetlands in these regions are therefore under threat, even though they have important ecosystem services and functions. Many obligate marsh-nesting birds in North America have shown declines over the past 40 years, and it is important to evaluate marsh bird community response to increased urbanization. We surveyed 20 coastal marshes in southern Ontario, Canada, and found that obligate marsh-nesting birds preferred rural over urban wetlands, generalist marsh-nesting birds showed no preference, while synanthropic species showed a trend towards increased richness and abundance in urban marshes. The Index of Marsh Bird Community Integrity (IMBCI) was calculated for each wetland and we found significantly higher scores in rural compared to urban wetlands. The presence of a forested buffer surrounding the marsh was not an important factor in predicting the distribution of generalists, obligates, synanthropic species, or the IMBCI. More isolated marshes had a lower species richness of obligate marsh-nesters and a lower IMBCI than less isolated marshes. Based on our results, we recommend that urban land use is not the dominant land use within 1000 m from any wetland, as it negatively affects the abundance and richness of obligate marsh-nesters, and the overall integrity of the avian community. We also recommend that all existing wetlands be conserved to mitigate against isolation effects and to preserve biodiversity.     

FORESTED WETLANDS IN EASTERN CONNECTICUT: THEIR TRANSITION ZONES AND DELINEATION1

ABSTRACT: The delineation of inland wetlands requires close field examination of the biological and physical gradients (transition zones) between wetlands and bordering uplands. As part of a study on the detection and delineation of inland wetlands in eastern Connecticut by remote sensing techniques, this effort was designed to investigate vegetation distribution and composition and selected physical and chemical properties of the soils of wetland to upland transition zones in deciduous wetland forests. Field research was conducted during the growing season of 1975 within a test area consisting of the 45 mi² Town of Mansfield, Connecticut. Changes in vegetation composition and structure, soil pH, and soil water content were determined along line transects extended over wetland to upland transition zones. Differences in soil pH occurred along the transects but were of such magnitude that they probably have little impact on plant distribution. There were significant changes in soil water content along the wetland to upland gradients. Discriminant analysis applied to statistical “index of abundance” data describing vegetation distribution among the various zones (wetland, transition, upland) showed which plant species best distinguish wetlands from uplands. Of the criteria studied, vegetation composition and distribution, soil water content, and relief are the most useful criteria for delineating deciduous wetland forests.     

Investigating biodiversity trajectories using scenarios – Lessons from two contrasting agricultural landscapes

Agriculture is the major land use at a global scale. In addition to food production, multifunctionality of landscapes, including values and ecosystem services like biodiversity, recreation and culture, is now focus for management. This study explores how a scenario approach, involving different stakeholders, may help to improve landscape management for biodiversity conservation. Local farmers and executives at the County Administrative Board were invited to discuss rural development and conditions for farmland biodiversity in two Swedish landscapes. The potential biodiversity for three future land use scenarios for the two landscapes was discussed: nature conservation, outdoor recreation and energy production, and compared with current and historical landscapes in each region.Analyses of habitat areas, connectedness and landscape diversity suggested that the energy and recreation scenarios had a negative impact on farmland biodiversity, whereas the nature conservation scenario, the current and historically reconstructed landscapes had a higher potential for biodiversity. The farmers appreciated the nature conservation scenario, but also the energy production scenario and they highlighted the need of increased subsidies for management of biodiversity. The farmers in the high production area were less interested in nature quality per se. The executives had similar opinions as the farmers, but disagreed on the advantages with energy production, as this would be in conflict with the high biodiversity and recreational values. The local physical and socio-economical conditions differ between landscapes and potentially shaped the stakeholders emotional attachment to the local environment, their opinions and decisions on how to manage the land. We stress the importance of incorporating local knowledge, visions and regional prerequisites for different land uses in conservation, since site and landscape specific planning for biodiversity together with a flexible subsidy system are necessary to reach the conservation goals within EU.     

Predicting Sustainable Ground Water to Constructed Riparian Wetlands: Shaker Trace,Ohio, USA

Water isotopy is introduced as a tool to design, locate, and select storm water best management practices for the prediction of sustained ground water inflows to prospective constructed wetlands. A primer and application of the stable isotopes, ¹⁸O and ²H, are discussed for riparian wetland restoration areas among an agricultural landscape in southwestern Ohio. Conventional piezometric measurements were ambiguous in identifying groundwater mounding across a transect which includes numerous agricultural tile drains. Instead evaporative potential data represented by δ¹⁸O values indicated a well delineated zone for prospective constructed wetlands. All successful constructed wetland areas thus far at Shaker Trace are represented by ground water with depleted δ¹⁸O values below −9.0‰ VSMOW. Such areas of sustainable ground water inflow could either be due to perched units at depth or simply the result of an increased flow gradient.     

Conservation of biodiversity within Canadian agricultural landscapes: Integrating habitat for wildlife

Industrialized agriculture currently substitutes many of the ecological functions of soil micro-organisms, macroinvertebrates, wild plants, and vertebrate animals with high cost inputs of pesticides and fertilizers. Enhanced biological diversity potentially offers agricultural producers a means of reducing the cost of their production. Conservation of biodiversity in agricultural landscapes may be greatly enhanced by the adoption of certain crop management practices, such as reduced pesticide usage or measures to prevent soil erosion. Still, the vast monocultures comprising the crop area in many Canadian agricultural landscapes are often of limited conservation value, thus the inclusion of appropriate wildlife habitat in and around arable lands is a fundamental prerequisite for the integration of wild species within agricultural landscapes. This review of current literature considers the potential for non-crop areas within agricultural landscapes to be reservoirs of agronomically beneficial organisms including plants, invertebrates, and vertebrate species. Non-crop habitats adjacent to crop land have been identified as significant for the maintenance of plant species diversity, for the conservation of beneficial pollinating and predatory insects, and as essential habitat for birds. A key component for enhancement of biodiversity is the reintroduction of landscape heterogeneity by (1) protection and enhancement of key non-crop areas, (2) smaller fields and farms, and (3) a greater mixture of crops, through rotation, intercropping and regional diversification. The benefits of increased biodiversity within arable lands are reviewed for various species groups. In the Canadian context, any serious attempt to derive significant agronomic benefit from increased biodiversity will require considerable changes in the agricultural programs and policies which shape mainstream industrialized agriculture. The problems of crop depredation by vertebrate species, weed and insect competition, which still represent significant impediments to the creation and proper management of wildlife habitat, are also discussed.     

Land use in Korean tidal wetlands: impacts and management strategies

The coastal landscapes in southwestern Korea include a diverse array of tidal wetlands and salt marshes. These coastal zones link the ecological functions of marine tidal wetlands and freshwater ecosystems with terrestrial ecosystems. They are rich in biological diversity and play important roles in sustaining ecological health and processing environmental pollutants. Korean tidal wetlands are particularly important as nurseries for economically important fishes and habitats for migratory birds. Diking, draining, tourism, and conversion to agricultural and urban uses have adversely affected Korean tidal wetlands. Recent large development projects have contributed to further losses. Environmental impact assessments conducted for projects affecting tidal wetlands and their surrounding landscapes should be customized for application to these special settings. Adequate environmental impact assessments will include classification of hydrogeomorphic units and consideration of their responses to biological and environmental stressors. As is true worldwide, Korean laws and regulations are changing to be more favorable to the conservation and protection of tidal wetlands. More public education needs to be done at the local level to build support for tidal wetland conservation. Some key public education points include the role of tidal wetlands in maintaining healthy fish populations and reducing impacts of nonpoint source pollution. There is also a need to develop procedures for integrating economic and environmental objectives within the overall context of sustainable management and land uses.     

Wetland boundary and land-use planning in southern Ontario,Canada

There is a general lack of understanding of wetland processes and a general paucity of scientific research to predict the effects of development on wetland boundary. This paper presents the results of a survey of wetland managers as to how they delineate wetland boundaries, define compatible land uses, and restrict land uses adjacent to wetland boundaries. A major finding from the survey is that 75% of land-use planners and wetland managers failed to identify any compatible land use or restricted land use for development proposals that may affect provincially significant wetlands. The government agencies overwhelmingly lack adequate methodologies and/or criteria to delineate and protect wetland boundaries. The paper closes with a plea to consider dynamic hydrological factors in land-use planning.     

Does Wetland Location Matter When Managing Wetlands for Watershed‐Scale Flood and Drought Resilience?

Wetland protection and restoration strategies that are designed to promote hydrologic resilience do not incorporate the location of wetlands relative to the main stream network. This is primarily attributed to the lack of knowledge on the effects of wetland location on wetland hydrologic function (e.g., flood and drought mitigation). Here, we combined a watershed‐scale, surface–subsurface, fully distributed, physically based hydrologic model with historical, existing, and lost (drained) wetland maps in the Nose Creek watershed in the Prairie Pothole Region of North America to (1) estimate the hydrologic functions of lost wetlands and (2) estimate the hydrologic functions of wetlands located at different distances from the main stream network. Modeling results showed wetland loss altered streamflow, decreasing baseflow and increasing stream peakflow during the period of the precipitation events that led to major flooding in the watershed and downstream cities. In addition, we found that wetlands closer to the main stream network played a disproportionately important role in attenuating peakflow, while wetland location was not important for regulating baseflow. The findings of this study provide information for watershed managers that can help to prioritize wetland restoration efforts for flood or drought risk mitigation.     

Capturing LiDAR‐Derived Hydrologic Spatial Parameters to Evaluate Playa Wetlands

The digital elevation model data from traditional stereo photogrammetric methods are inadequate in providing accurate vertical parameters to feed hydrologic models for low‐lying, extremely flat areas. High‐resolution light detection and ranging (LiDAR) data provide the robust capability of capturing small variations in low‐relief playa wetlands. The Rainwater Basin in south‐central Nebraska includes a complex of seasonally shallow playa wetlands that attract millions of migratory waterfowl every spring and fall. This research focuses on the development of a procedure with applicable protocols to produce LiDAR‐derived three‐dimensional wetland maps and to extract the critical surface parameters (i.e., watershed boundaries, flow direction, flow accumulation, and drainage lines) for playa wetlands. The topo‐hydrologic conditions of playa wetlands were evaluated at the watershed level. The results show that in the Rainwater Basin, 70.7% of the historic hydric soil footprints identified in the Soil Survey Geographic (SSURGO) database were not functioning as topographically depressional wetlands. This finding was confirmed by a recent five‐year Annual Habit Survey showing that 69.8% of the historic hydric soil footprints did not function during the spring migratory bird seasons between 2004 and 2009. The majority of playa wetlands' topographic conditions have been substantially changed and the SSURGO data cannot fully reflect current topographic reality in the Rainwater Basin.     

Community Structure and Quality After 10 Years in Two Central Ohio Mitigation Bank Wetlands

We evaluate two 10-year-old mitigation bank wetlands in central Ohio, one created and one with restored and enhanced components, by analysis of vegetation characteristics and by comparison of the year-10 vegetation and macroinvertebrate communities with reference wetlands. To assess different measures of wetland development, we compare the prevalence of native hydrophytes with an index of floristic quality and we evaluate the predictability of these parameters in year 10, given 5 years of data. Results show that the mitigation wetlands in this study meet vegetation performance criteria of native hydrophyte establishment by year 5 and maintain these characteristics through year 10. Species richness and floristic quality, as well as vegetative similarity with reference wetlands, differ among mitigation wetlands in year 1 and also in their rate of change during the first 10 years. The prevalence of native hydrophytes is reasonably predictable by year 10, but 5 years of monitoring is not sufficient to predict future trends of floristic quality in either the created or restored wetland. By year 10, macroinvertebrate taxa richness does not statistically differ among these wetlands, but mitigation wetlands differ from reference sites by tolerance index and by trophic guild dominance. The created wetland herbivore biomass is significantly smaller than its reference, whereas detritivore biomass is significantly greater in the created wetland and smaller in the restored wetland as compared with respective reference wetlands. These analyses illustrate differences in measures of wetland performance and contrast the monitoring duration necessary for legal compliance with the duration required for development of more complex indicators of ecosystem integrity.     

WETLAND DESIGN METHODS FOR RESIDENTIAL WASTEWATER TREATMENT1

ABSTRACT: Constructed wetlands have recently gained popularity as an alternative method for wastewater treatment. This paper compares two design methodologies currently used for constructed wetlands; Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) methods. A discussion of parameters for both methods is given and a wetland treatment system is designed for an individual residence with typical BOD5 loads and flow rates. Calculation results revealed significant discrepancies in the required constructed wetlands volume, and thus detention time, stemming from inherent differences in the design methodologies. The EPA method relies heavily on plug flow kinetics, and is therefore sensitive to changes in the reaction rate constant and media porosity. Conversely, TVA determines the surface area by sizing in accordance with a recommended hydraulic loading criterion and is affected only by the hydraulic flow rates. This study concluded that a constructed wetland is a viable option under design considerations that are not favorable for traditional on-site wastewater treatment methods. However, it is recommended that conservative values for flow and loading rates be assumed to assure complete treatment for either of the design methods.