Dear Wetlanders,

The past month has been another busy one for regulatory rollbacks, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s final Clean Water Act Section 401 rule and the White House Council on Environmental Quality’s final National Environmental Protection Act rule. The legal battles on these new rules as well as the new Navigable Waters Protection Rule are heating up. You can find stories on about these new rules in the National News Section of this month’s edition of Wetland News Digest. There has also been a lot of action in the courts regarding significant pipeline projects such as the Dakota pipeline and Keystone. And in a surprising turn of events, the U.S. House of Representatives Appropriations Committee voted to block the Trump Administration’s “secret science” rule. In Editor’s Choice, however, I have chosen to highlight a few stories touting the benefits of nature-based solutions for climate change, including storm surge protection, clean water provision, flood attenuation, habitat, outdoor recreation, etc. The Association of State Wetland Managers has long advocated for the use of nature-based solutions and it’s encouraging to see so much progress and focus on this topic. And I think we could all use a little positivity and inspiration these days! I hope you enjoy this month’s edition of Wetland News Digest and wish you all the best for the remainder of the summer season.

Best regards,

Marla J. Stelk

Editor

Wetland News Digest

Monthly News Digest of the Association of State Wetland Managers July 2020

Ed

ito

r’s N

ote

⧫ Resources/Publications

⧫ Potpourri

⧫ Calendar of Events

⧫ Index

IN THIS ISSUE ⧫ Editor’s Choice

⧫ National News

⧫ State and Tribal News

⧫ Wetland Science News

All photos by ASWM

2 | WND

Editor’s Choice

Nature-Based Flood Mitigation Can Help Mississippi River Farmers By Maggie Gonzalez and Samantha Kuzma – World Water Resources Institute – July 6, 2020 The 2019 flooding of the Mississippi, Missouri and Arkansas Rivers in the United States impacted 19 states and caused $20 billion in losses. Waters in Baton Rouge, Louisiana stayed above flood levels for 211 days, longer than any flood in its recorded history. The long-lasting flood kept farmers from harvesting food, put construction projects on hold, and halted barge traffic on the Mississippi River from March through June, leaving approximately 6.3 million tons of grains (worth almost $1 billion) unshipped. Read more here. Nature makes water-treatment systems; we turn it into plumbing By Tom Horton – Bay Journal News – Delmarva Now – June 27, 2020 Photographer Dave Harp and I began our cool, April morning paddle (kayaks 6 feet apart, of course) down one of the Chesapeake’s biggest ditches, 120 feet wide, stretching for miles and designed to usher rainfall with superb efficiency from nearly 100,000 acres of Maryland and Delaware farmland. A landscape of corn and soybeans and poultry could not exist without it, nor the thousands of miles of smaller ditches that feed it. Though it’s far from the Bay, deep in the interior of the Delmarva Peninsula, you could run a cabin cruiser down it. Read more here. 3 keys for scaling nature-based solutions for climate adaptation By Jonathan Cook – GreenBiz – June 17, 2020 In Indonesia, climate change is already a pernicious threat. More than 30 million people across northern Java suffer from coastal flooding and erosion related to more severe storms and sea level rise. In some places, entire villages and more than a mile of coastline have been lost to the sea. The flooding and erosion are exacerbated by the destruction of natural mangrove forests. Read more here. Unlocking Nature’s Potential By Helen Finlay and Hugo Rosa Da Conceicao – SDG Knowledge Hub – June 11, 2020 The world is facing multiple, interdependent global crises, where dislocation in one area can ripple through and impact many others. COVID-19 comes just as the public was beginning, slowly, to come to terms with the climate crisis and its far-reaching implications. The pandemic highlights how interconnected we are, and how impossible it is to disentangle the problems we all face in a globalized world. Holistic approaches to these problems are needed and they are needed fast. Nature-based Solutions (NbS), an umbrella term to describe a wide array of ecosystem-based actions that incorporate the natural environment to mitigate climate change and ensure ecosystem sustainability, has grown in prominence in recent years as potentially being such an approach. Read more here.

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Communications Strategies and Lessons Learned for Wetland Programs

Thursday, August 20, 2020 - 3:00pm-5:00pm

Presenters:

Building Capacity to Protect and Manage Wetlands through the Development of State Wetland Associations

Held Wednesday, June 24, 2020

Presenters:

A Certificate of Participation to be used toward Continuing Education Credits will be available for th is

webinar. Free Certificates of Participation are a benefit of ASWM membership. Non-Members who

request a certificate will be charged a processing fee of $25.00. You will have up to 60 days to retrieve

your certificate. Certificates are not available for viewing recorded webinars. More Information can be

found here.

Brittany Haywood

Delaware Department of

Natural Resources and

Environmental Control

RECORDED ASWM: WETLAND REGULATORY CAPACITY BUILDING PROJECT WEBINAR SERIES

UPCOMING ASWM: WETLAND REGULATORY CAPACITY BUILDING PROJECT WEBINAR SERIES

Laura Lapierre

Vermont Department

of Environmental

Conservation

Mary Ann Tilton

New Hampshire

Department of

Environmental Services

Erin O'Brien

Wisconsin

Wetlands Association

Rick Savage

Carolina Wetlands

Association

Kim Matthews

Carolina Wetlands

Association

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4 | WND

National News

Standing Rock seeks to keep Dakota Access shutdown order in place By Army R. Sisk The Bismarck Tribune – July 21, 2020 The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe is asking a panel of federal judges to keep in place a lower court’s ruling ordering the Dakota Access Pipeline to shut down while the decision is appealed, saying the pipeline’s continued operation exposes the tribe to “catastrophic risks.” Read more here. Trump finalizes rollback of bedrock environmental law NEPA By Rebecca Beitsch – The Hill – July 15, 2020 The White House finalized its rollback of one of the nation’s bedrock environmental laws Wednesday, with President Trump calling the law the “single biggest obstacle” to major construction projects. Critics say the rollback will gut the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which for 50 years has required the government to weigh environmental and community concerns before approving pipelines, highways, drilling permits, new factories or any major action on federal lands. Read more here. Outdoor Recreation and Conservation Advocates Challenge EPA Rule Granting Industry Priority Over State, Public in Clean Water Decisions Contact: Andrew Hawley – Caltrout News – July 13, 2020 Citing breathtaking levels of overreach, conservation, fishing, and paddling advocates today filed a complaint in federal court challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) final rule effectively sidelining the role the states and the public have long played in permitting decisions affecting clean water. The new rule guts the Clean Water Act’s Section 401 provisions, which for nearly 50 years have provided for states’ and authorized Tribes’ self-determination in permitting for a wide array of projects requiring federal approval within their borders. The rule also suppresses state and Tribal public participation processes that moor U.S. water policy in the harbor of democracy. Read more here. 350 facilities skip reporting water pollution under temporary EPA rule By Rachel Frazin – The Hill – July 10, 2020 More than 350 facilities nationwide have taken advantage of a temporary Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule that lets companies forgo monitoring their water pollution during the pandemic. Environmentalists are raising alarms over the number of facilities that aren’t monitoring their pollution levels, saying the damage could last well beyond the Aug. 31 expiration date of the temporary policy. Read more here.

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Committee votes to block Trump's 'secret science' EPA rule By Niv Elis – The Hill – July 10, 2020 The House Appropriations Committee on Friday voted to block a controversial Trump Administration transparency rule that the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) own independent board of science advisers criticized. "This rule would place new crippling limits on what studies can be utilized when EPA crafts new regulation," said the amendment's sponsor, Rep. David Price (D-N.C.), citing a slew of experts and scientific associations. Read more here. Nearly $20 Million in 2020 NOAA Funding Recommended for Great Lakes Habitat Restoration NOAA Fishers – July 8, 2020 NOAA Fisheries is recommending nearly $20 million in Great Lakes Restoration Initiative funding. It will support new and existing multi-year partnerships to implement seven projects to restore shoreline, fish passage, and wetlands. These efforts will restore habitat and improve resilience in degraded Great Lakes ecosystems. Read more here. Supreme Court Won’t Block Ruling to Halt Work on Keystone XL Pipeline By Adam Liptak – The New York Times – July 6, 2020 The Supreme Court on Monday rejected a request from the Trump administration to allow construction of parts of the Keystone XL oil pipeline that had been blocked by a federal judge in Montana. But the court temporarily revived a permit program that would let other oil and gas pipelines cross waterways after only modest scrutiny from regulators. Read more here Energy companies abandon long-delayed Atlantic Coast Pipeline By Erin Cox and Gregory S. Schneider – The Washington Post – July 5, 2020 The two energy companies behind the controversial 600-mile Atlantic Coast Pipeline on Sunday abandoned their six-year bid to build it, saying the project has become too costly and the regulatory environment too uncertain to justify further investment. The natural-gas pipeline would have tunneled under the Appalachian Trail on its way from West Virginia through Virginia and into North Carolina, building an energy infrastructure proponent that would attract economic development to the region. Read more here.

EPA Announces $6 Billion in New Funding for Water Infrastructure Projects

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency – July 14, 2020 Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA) announced the 2020 notice of funding availability under its Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program, including funding for the new State infrastructure financing authority WIFIA (SWIFIA) program. These funding

programs accelerate investment in critical water infrastructure through innovative and flexible financing that can support diverse projects in both large and small communities. This year’s funding will provide up to $6 billion to support $12 billion

in water infrastructure projects while creating more than 35,000 jobs and improving public health and environmental protection in communities across the country. Read more here. For more information about WIFIA and this funding

announcement, visit here.

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GOP irked as $14 billion for water systems became $40 billion By Jessica Wehrman – Roll Call – June 29, 2020 When House Democrats released a massive $1.5 trillion infrastructure bill covering everything from schools to broadband to wastewater on June 22, Republicans were dismayed — and not just because they’d had little input on the package. Instead, they say, the 2,309-page measure ignores previous agreements between Republicans and Democrats on items that both sides had lauded just months ago. Key among those agreements: the October 2019 House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s bipartisan vote to advance a bill that would reauthorize the Clean Water State Revolving Fund. That measure included $14 billion for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund — the primary vehicle for the federal government to steer money to wastewater infrastructure. Read more here. Who's suing over Trump's WOTUS rule? Pamela King and Hannah Northey – E&E News – June 24, 2020 Opponents of the Trump administration's new definition of which waterways and wetlands are protected under the Clean Water Act have lined up in court to make their grievances known. Don't expect clarity on the rules anytime soon. The Trump administration's Navigable Waters Protection Rule is already on hold in one state — Colorado — and could still be frozen by any one of the various federal judges who are now examining the regulation. Unlike lawsuits over Clean Air Act rules, which land in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, Clean Water Act challenges can be heard in any of the nation's nearly 100 federal district courts. Outside the courtroom, President Trump's ability to win a second term in office will also affect whether his new definition of waters of the U.S., or WOTUS, survives. Read more here. California and EPA Tussle Over Water-Quality Protections By Matthew Renda – Courthouse News Service – June 18, 2020 A federal judge denied a coalition of 18 states and 2 major cities a preliminary injunction Friday, which would have prevented the Trump administration from removing protections from temporary streams, wetlands, ponds and other small water bodies. Read more here. Senate passes major conservation package By Anthony Adragna – Politico – June 17, 2020 The Senate passed the most significant conservation legislation in decades on Wednesday, clearing a package to secure steady funding for public lands that came together only after the popular bipartisan measure got a lift from election year politics. Read more here. Funding available for wetland mitigation program By Ashley Langreck – Agri News – June 10, 2020 The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the availability of $5 million to be used nationally for wetland mitigation banks. The funding, which is available through the Wetland Mitigation Banking Program, is to help conservation partners establish or develop mitigation banks to assist agricultural producers maintain eligibility for USDA programs. Read more here.

7 | WND

Large-scale Wetland Restoration that Harnesses the Power of Natural Infrastructure for Water Quality Improvement in Agricultural Landscapes

Wednesday, September 30, 2020 3:00pm-4:30pm

Presenters:

Wetland Drainage in the United States: An Update on the Status of Drainage and New Restoration Findings

Wednesday, November 18, 2020 3:00pm-4:30pm

Presenter:

An Introduction to the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act: Understanding Its Relationship with Wetlands

Held Wednesday, May 27, 2020

Presenter:

UPCOMING ASWM: MEMBERS’ WEBINAR SERIES

Owen Steel

Ducks Unlimited

Canada

Tom Biebighauser

Wetland Restoration and

Training

Naomi Edelson

National Wildlife Federation

A Certificate of Participation to be used toward Continuing Education Credits will be available for this

webinar. Free Certificates of Participation are a benefit of ASWM membership. Non-Members who

request a certificate will be charged a processing fee of $25.00. You will have up to 60 days to retrieve

your certificate. Certificates are not available for viewing recorded webinars. More Information can be

found here.

To view the members' webinar, please

login on the ASWM Home Page, then

navigate to the Members Wetland

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Brian Page

Ducks Unlimited

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8 | WND

State and Tribal News

CA: Filling Trump Void, California Steps in to Protect Birds, Wetlands By Julie Cart – Lost Coast Outpost – June 19, 2020 On a foggy November morning, the 900-foot container ship Cosco Busan was lumbering through San Francisco Bay when it struck a support tower for the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. The collision gouged out a long scrape on the ship’s side, sending 54,000 gallons of sludgy petroleum billowing into the bay. Heavy fuel oil slathered across 150 square miles, an estimated 7,000 birds died, as much as 30% of herring spawn died and 200 miles of coastline in five counties had to be cleaned up. Read more here. CO: Environmentally protective rule for Colorado’s water remains in place By Colleen Flynn – Fox 31 2 News – June 20, 2020 The U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado granted the State of Colorado a stay on enforcing changes to the federal Waters of the United States rule. The federal government will need to continue to use the more environmentally protective rule for the time being. Read more here. KS: Kansas fishing, hunting license sales spike amidst coronavirus pandemic By Josh Rouse – The Hutchinson News – June 19, 2020 The coronavirus pandemic has taken a toll on the state of Kansas, both health-wise and economically. However, it appears as though there is one industry in Kansas that has seen a sharp uptick since the pandemic began — the outdoors industry. According to the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism, the state between March 1 and June 1 of this year sold nearly 100,000 residential fishing licenses — 99,777 to be precise — up drastically from the 2019 numbers from that same time frame (63,266). Residential hunting licenses sold actually decreased slightly from 2019 to 2020, falling from 2,338 to 2,147. However, there was a sharp spike in residential combo hunting/fishing licenses, up to 11,049 in 2020 from 8,870 in 2019. Read more here. MD: 438 Acres of Private Land Get Permanent Protection at Blackwater Refuge By Meg Walburn Viviano – Chesapeake Bay Magazine – June 23, 2020 438 acres of the Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA) at Taylors Trail Sand Ridge in Wicomico County will now be permanently protected thanks to a partnership between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), The Nature Conservancy, and Chesapeake Conservancy. Read more here.

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MD: Ecological engineering works to prevent erosion By Kathy Knotts – Bay Weekly – June 16, 2020 Two new shoreline restoration projects funded by the Anne Arundel County Department of Public Works Watershed Protection and Restoration Program (WPRP) means protection for the Bay and another step toward reaching the county’s federal pollution reduction permits. The award of $3.016 million to Hanover-based BayLand Consultants & Designer, Inc., and sub-contractor, Shoreline Design, LLC, of Edgewater will be used to restore 2,875 feet of shoreline. Read more here. MA: Charles River Conservancy, Northeastern University announce floating wetland project Wicked Local Cambridge – June 24, 2020 The Charles River Conservancy and Northeastern University’s department of civil and environmental engineering, in partnership with Foth, an engineering consulting firm, and the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, have announced the installation of a floating research wetland in the Charles River designed to explore an ecological approach to further improve water quality. Read more here. MN: In Minnesota, A Thirty-Year Biological Survey Nears Completion By Cinnamon Janzer – Belt Magazine – June 19, 2020 On a spring morning in 1994, Hannah Texler, a plant ecologist with Minnesota’s Department of Natural resources, hiked across a steep bluff in southern Minnesota. Midway through her trip, surrounded by towering sugar maple, basswood, and red oak trees, a flash of crimson caught her eye. The color belonged to a plant whose long, broad evergreen leaves struck her as unusual, so Texler collected a sample. Later that evening, book in hand, she identified it as a plantain-leaved sedge, an endangered species that hadn’t been spotted in the state since 1903. Read more here. OH: Wetland to replace one historic reservoir in Oberlin, sidestepping ODNR By Jason Hawk – The Chronicle – June 19, 2020 A reservoir will be mostly drained to become a new wetland full of trees, birds, turtles and other life, City Council decided earlier this week. Generations of Oberlin residents have enjoyed hiking and birdwatching around two Morgan Street reservoirs. But maintenance problems there nearly two years ago drew the attention of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, which lowered the hammer and demanded repairs that could have cost in the $1 million range. Read more here. OH: Ground broken in Seneca County for Ohio's first H2Ohio wetland restoration By Vicki Johnson – The Advertiser-Tribune – June 17, 2020 Seneca Parks' Fruth Wetland Tuesday became the first project in the state to break ground using H2Ohio grant funds. The project is funded by $309,000 grant from the H2Ohio program, a joint effort by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Ohio Department of Agriculture and Ohio Environmental Protection Agency and other partners. The local project is part of a statewide program to create, restore and enhance wetlands in targeted areas. Read more here.

10 | WND

PA: Pennsylvania Reaching Out to Landowners about the Benefits of Streamside Buffers

Contact: Christina Novak – PA Media – July 17, 2020 Today, Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn announced “Buffer My Stream,” a program to encourage 10,000 Pennsylvania landowners with streams on their property to improve water quality and lessen erosion by planting native trees and shrubs along the water’s edge. DCNR is committing $1.5 million to streamside buffer plantings this year. The department is leading the effort involving many partners from all levels of government and many non-profits who also plant and fund streamside buffers. Read more here.

PA: EPA Provides $3.84 Million For Pennsylvania Efforts to Reduce Ag-Related Pollution In Chesapeake Bay Watershed

PA Environmental Digest Blog – July 15, 2020 On July 15, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reallocated $3.84 million to support priority actions in Pennsylvania to reduce agricultural-related pollutants impacting local waters and the Chesapeake Bay. EPA redirected portions of Pennsylvania’s Chesapeake Bay funding from previous fiscal years to help apply the funds more quickly and efficiently to the commonwealth’s efforts to reduce excess nutrients and sediment affecting the Bay and local streams and rivers. Read more here.

VA: Globally rare Shenandoah Valley sinkhole ponds protected at Virginia’s newest natural area preserve

Contact: Julie Buchanan – Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation – July 9, 2020 A 350-acre site in Augusta County that has long been a priority for conservation is now protected as the Lyndhurst Ponds Natural Area Preserve. Located near the community of Lyndhurst, the new preserve protects globally rare Shenandoah Valley sinkhole ponds and a variety of rare plants and animals. Read more here.

VA: $100M in funding approved for Hampton Roads water improvement projects

Augusta Free Press – July 9, 2020 The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, in partnership with the Virginia Resources Authority, has closed a loan with Hampton Roads Sanitation District to finance $100 million of their Capital Improvement Plan and Sustainable Water Infrastructure for Tomorrow (SWIFT) Program. The first and largest of its kind for Virginia’s Clean Water Revolving Loan Fund program, the loan will help fund – over the next 20 years – the state’s largest suite of water quality improvement projects. Read more here.

WA: Whatcom Land Trust to buy, protect wetland near creek

U.S. News – Associate Press – June 9, 2020 The Washington Department of Ecology has partnered with Whatcom Land Trust on a conservation project that would protect coastal wetland and the fish and wildlife who depend on it. The Whatcom Land Trust has received a $915,000 grant to buy and protect wetland along California Creek, The Bellingham Herald reported. The grant is expected to go toward a $1.3 million plan to buy four pieces of land along the creek that is a major tributary to Drayton Harbor near Blaine. Read more here.

WA: Stream, wetland restoration beginning at Keller Farm

Redmond Reporter – June 8, 2020 The city of Redmond purchased the 83-acre Keller Farm property in 2015 from the Keller family to create a large environmental restoration project, known as a wetland mitigation bank. The Keller Farm Wetland Mitigation Bank will be constructed this summer and planted in the fall and winter. In coordination with the wetland bank, the city will be constructing log jams in Bear Creek this summer to improve salmon habitat and plant 3-acres of stream buffer. Read more here.

11 | WND

Data Management for Assumption of the 404 Program

Held Wednesday, June 17, 2020 Presenters:

RECORDED ASWM: SECTION 404 ASSUMPTION PROJECT WEBINAR SERIES

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on State Wetland Programs and Early Adaptations

Held Wednesday, June 10, 2020

Presenters:

Andy Robertson Saint Mary's University

Eric Metz Oregon

Department of State Lands

Heather Mason

Florida Department of Environmental

Protection

Chad Fizzell, Michigan

Department of Environment,

Great Lakes, and Energy

Anne Garwood Michigan

Department of Environment,

Great Lakes, and Energy

VIEW RECORDING OF THE SECTION 404 ASSUMPTION WEBINAR HERE

VIEW RECORDING ON THE HOT TOPICS WEBINAR HERE

Brenda Zollitsch Association of State Wetland

Managers

Patrick Ryan New Jersey

Department of Environmental

Protection

Audra Martin NEIWPCC

Department of Natural

Resources

Stacia Bax Missouri

Department of Natural

Resources

RECORDED ASWM: HOT TOPICS WEBINAR

12 | WND

Wetland Science News

River plants counter both flooding and drought to protect biodiversity NIOZ – July 14, 2020 'Water plants are a nuisance in streams, blocking the flow. You should remove them'. This notion has for many years determined how streams were managed to prevent flooding during high rainfall events. Research by NIOZ scientist Loreta Cornacchia, published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, in cooperation with Utrecht University and British and Belgian partners, shows how vegetation in streams can actually buffer water levels, by adjusting vegetation cover. By adapting the patterning of plant clumps to changes in discharge, river plants can both counter flooding as well as prevent drying out, thereby protecting biodiversity. Cornacchia: ‘They provide a natural buffer against hydrological changes.’ Read more here. Chesapeake’s grasses hard hit by heat, high flows in 2019 Karl Blankenship – Bay Journal – July 8, 2020 Overwhelmed by record high flows and warm temperatures, the Chesapeake Bay’s vast underwater meadows last year suffered their largest drop since surveys began, with acreage plummeting at least 33% from 2018. But the declines were not uniform throughout the Bay. Underwater grass beds in many fresh and low-salinity areas of the Chesapeake and its tidal tributaries held their own, while beds in mid– and high-salinity areas suffered the brunt of the impact. Read more here.

The Story Behind a Uniquely Dark, Wetland Soil Kaine Korzekwa – American Society of Agronomy – July 6, 2020 When it comes to soils, proper identification is key. Identification allows scientists to determine the story behind the soil: how it formed, how it behaves in different scenarios, and how valuable it may be to certain plants and animals. Read more here.

New Study Finds Coal-Tar-Sealant Is the Major Source of PAH Contamination in Great Lakes Tributaries SETAC Globe – July 2, 2020 Runoff from pavement with coal-tar-based sealant is the most likely primary source of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, or PAHs, found in the majority of streambed sediments of Great Lakes tributaries, according to a study published in Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. PAHs are a group of chemicals found in crude oil and coal and occur as a byproduct of burning. PAHs can have harmful effects to organisms in the environment under certain conditions. So, it is important to understand their sources, distribution and magnitude in the Great Lakes Basin. Read more here.

Wetland Events

Water Family

Fest & Center’s

Annual Native Plant Sale

Ocean View, DE September 26, 2020

So.Many.Birds. Cape May, NJ October 15-18,

2020

‘Ding’ Darling Day

Sanibel, FL October 18, 2020

Wings Over

Water Wildlife Festival

Outer Banks, NC October 20-25,

2020

13 | WND

Human activity on rivers outpaces, compounds effects of climate change By Lois Yoksoulian – Illinois News Bureau – June 19, 2020 The livelihoods of millions of people living along the world’s biggest river systems are under threat by a range of stressors caused by the daily economic, societal and political activity of humans – in addition to the long-term effects of climate change, researchers report. A new paper by University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign geology and geography professor Jim Best and University of Southampton professor Stephen Darby takes a big-picture approach to review the health and resiliency of the world’s large river systems, their deltas and their vulnerability to extreme events. Read more here. Bay's dead zone expected to be smaller this year By Karl Blanenship – Bay Journal – June 18, 2020 Scientists are expecting this year’s Chesapeake Bay “dead zone” to be slightly less than its long-term average — but a wide swath of the Bay will still be off-limits to most aquatic life during July, when conditions are expected to be at their worst. In all, scientists expect about 1.37 cubic miles of the Bay, or 11% of its total volume, to suffer from hypoxia — or low oxygen — this summer. But in July, that is expected to swell to 1.9 cubic miles or about 16% of the Bay. Read more here. As the climate changes, protecting more land will not necessarily preserve more biodiversity By Cara Giaimo – Anthropocene Magazine – June 24, 2020 Imagine you are an American pika, living on a mountain peak in Crater Lake National Park. The park is great: full of tasty grass and wildflowers, and (for now) protected from drilling, hunting and development. But the park is getting warmer, and you don’t like hot weather — if you get too hot for even a few hours, you might die. As the years pass, where will you and your descendants go? Across the world, protected areas—from national parks to wildlife sanctuaries — keep countless creatures safe from immediate anthropogenic threat. But we can’t bar climate change. Read more here. Clean water ponds boost rare wetland plants, study reveals Contact: Alistair Keely – University of York – June 10, 2020 Digging ponds in the countryside can deliver unprecedented gains for nature, according to a study involving the University of York. The nine-year project found that creating 20 clean water ponds on farmland increased wetland plant species by more than a quarter (26%). The project found that rare plants almost trebled, while species that had gone extinct in the area returned. Read more here.

14 | WND

Resources and Publications

Report by American Rivers: Rivers as Economic Engines: Investing in clean water, communities and our future By Fay Hartman and Amy Kober – American Rivers – June 2020 An answer to our nation’s current economic downturn is flowing through cities, towns, fields and forests across the nation. A new report, “Rivers as Economic Engines: Investing in rivers, clean water, communities and our future” presents a vision for positive, transformational change. The report by American Rivers makes the case for boosting federal water infrastructure and river restoration spending and suggests a framework for equitable investment that will strengthen communities nationwide. American Rivers called on Congress to invest $500 billion over ten years in water infrastructure and river restoration. Download report here. Coastal Restoration Toolkit Coastal Restoration Toolkit Restore America’s Estuaries and NOAA Restore America’s Estuaries and NOAA launched Coastal Restoration Toolkit, a new website that provides resources and project examples for both citizen-driven and organizational coastal restoration projects. Divided into five topic areas (Flooding, Coastal Erosion, Water Quality, Invasive Species, and Wildlife Habitats), the Toolkit includes project examples, tools and resources, contacts, funding sources, and permitting information. The Toolkit is a launching point for developing solutions to coastal restoration opportunities that community members see in their local communities. Learn more here.

EPA’s How’s My Waterway How's My Waterway was designed to provide the general public with information about the condition of their local waters based on data that states, federal, tribal, local agencies and others have provided to EPA. Water quality information is displayed on 3 scales in How’s My Waterway; community, state and national. More recent or more detailed water information may exist that is not yet available through EPA databases or other sources. Learn more here. Incorporating Multiple Benefits into Water Projects: A Guide for Water Managers By Sarah Diringer, Heather Cooley, Morgan Shimabuku, et. al. – Pacific Institute – June 2020 Adapting to climate change, coupled with the need to address aging infrastructure, population growth, and degraded ecosystems, requires significant investment in natural and built water systems. These investments present a significant opportunity to support not only water, but to provide economic, social, and environmental benefits. By considering co-benefits, water managers can increase funding through collaborative partnerships and co-funding opportunities, build partnerships, and garner public support. Download Guidebook here.

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2019 State of U.S. High Tide Flooding with a 2020 Outlook NOAA – July 2020 Sea level rise flooding of U.S. coastlines is happening now, and it is becoming more frequent each year. Evidence of a rapid increase in sea level rise related flooding started to emerge about two decades ago, and it is now very clear. This type of coastal flooding will continue to grow in extent, frequency, and depth as sea levels continue to rise over the coming years and decades. Observations from NOAA’s national tide gauge network calibrated to the national set of coastal flood thresholds used by local emergency managers are tracking this phenomenon. NOAA’s National Ocean Service calls such flooding high tide flooding (HTF), and its cumulative toll is damaging to subsurface and ground-level infrastructure and is disrupting lives and livelihoods. Read report here. Managed Retreat Toolkit Georgetown Climate Center Managed retreat, or the voluntary movement and transition of people and ecosystems away from vulnerable coastal areas, is increasingly becoming part of the conversation as coastal states and communities face difficult questions on how best to protect people, development, infrastructure, and coastal ecosystems from sea-level rise, flooding, and land loss. Georgetown Climate Center’s new Managed Retreat Toolkit combines legal and policy tools, best and emerging practices, and case studies to support peer learning and decision-making around managed retreat and climate adaptation. Learn more here.

16 | WND

Grants ⧫ Jobs GRANTS

NRCS easement programs restoration and stewardship assistance USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service; Applications due August 3, 2020. Opportunity No. USDA-NRCS-TN-WRP-ACEP-WRE

Coastal Program - Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Grant U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Applications due September 30, 2020. Opportunity No. F20AS00043

JOB OPPORTUNITIES

Assistant Professor, Applied Environmental Biology Department of Biological & Environmental Sciences Western Connecticut State University Apply by July 31, 2020 Regional Engineer Ducks Unlimited, Inc. Grand Island, NE office or Central KS area Apply by August 7, 2020 Stewardship & Education Program Director Friends of the Mississippi River Apply by July 24, 2020 Soil Conservationist USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service 4 vacancies in the following locations: Crookston, MN-1 vacancy; Slayton, MN-1 vacancy; Willmar, MN-1 vacancy; Windom, MN-1 vacancy; Apply by July 31, 2020 Deputy Regional Administrator, Region II Federal Emergency Management Agency New York, NY Apply by August 3, 2020 Watershed Restoration Specialist MidCoast Watersheds Council Newport, OR Apply by August 5, 2020 EPA Aquatic Ecosystems Research Fellowship U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Corvallis, OR Ref. Code: EPA-ORD-CPHEA-PESD-2020-02 Apply by August 17, 2020 - 2 positions 3:00:00 PM Eastern Time Zone

Wetland Scientist – Senior Level Soundview Consultants Gig Harbor, WA EPA Program Development and Jurisdiction Branch Research Opportunity U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Washington, DC Ref. Code: EPA-OW-OWOW-2020-0006 Apply by August 17, 2020 3:00:00 PM Eastern Time Zone

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Potpourri

Developing a shared understanding of watershed-based hydrologic restoration Wisconsin Wetlands Association – July 10, 2020 Watershed-based hydrologic restoration is one of the most effective and important ways to address water management concerns in Wisconsin, however its practice is not yet widespread in our state. WWA wants to change that. If, as a community, we can do work that addresses degraded hydrology—the root cause of most of our water challenges—we will be more successful in responding to our water management challenges in Wisconsin. Read more here. Walton Family Foundation Expands its Investment in Forest and Wetland Restoration in the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley PRNewswire – July 8, 2020 The Walton Family Foundation has awarded The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) $1.25 million to restore, enhance and protect the sensitive forest, wetland, and aquatic habitats in the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley. NFWF and its partners have leveraged this funding to generate an additional $30 million in matching federal funds. NFWF, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and International Paper awarded eight grants through the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley Restoration Fund (LMAV Fund). Read more here.

Litigators hone new tools for environmental justice cases Pamela King – E&E News – June 26, 2020 When it struck down a permit for a compressor station along an embattled natural gas pipeline earlier this year, a federal appeals court admonished Virginia regulators that environmental justice is not simply a "box to be checked." But for communities facing harm from a polluting facility or an unfair policy, raising a successful legal challenge over those injustices is no easy feat. Read more here. Lessons Learned from 35 Years of AOC Restoration By Andrew Blok – Environmental Monitor – June 24, 2020 This spring, palm warblers, rose-breasted grosbeaks, tree swallows and great blue herons fill Muskegon Lake Nature Preserve with their songs or stately presence. In 1997, the preserve was a dump. The community partnerships and restoration efforts that turned a dump in one corner of Muskegon Lake in west Michigan into a haven for plants, wildlife and recreational fishers ran parallel to other efforts around the lakeshore and the Great Lakes since 1985. Read more here.

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Two-Thirds of Americans Think Government Should Do More on Climate By Alec Tyson and Brian Kennedy – Pew Research Center – June 23, 2020 A majority of Americans continue to say they see the effects of climate change in their own communities and believe that the federal government falls short in its efforts to reduce the impacts of climate change. At a time when partisanship colors most views of policy, broad majorities of the public – including more than half of Republicans and overwhelming shares of Democrats – say they would favor a range of initiatives to reduce the impacts of climate change, including large-scale tree planting efforts, tax credits for businesses that capture carbon emissions and tougher fuel efficiency standards for vehicles, according to a new Pew Research Center survey. Read more here. COVID opportunities: Countries investing in a post-pandemic green recovery By Daniel Martins – The Weather Network – June 22, 2020 The pandemic has been a serious blow to the world economy, but as things get underway again, some countries are in the early stages of making the reset a green one. The COVID-19 pandemic briefly paused the global economy. But, amid the crisis, there have been mounting calls to act in the face of the emergency. For many, this is an opportunity to reset the economy, introduce green infrastructure, and “launch sustainable stimulus packages focused on clean energy technologies,” as the International Energy Agency put it in March. Read more here.

NMEBC will run from August 17-19, 2020 and continue with timely content and active engagement through November including:

▪ Live Streamed Panels ▪ On-Demand Content ▪ Live Q&A with Presenters

Exclusive Rate for ASWM Local, State & Tribal Government Members to Attend the 2020 National Mitigation and Ecosystem Banking Conference.

ASWM is pleased to be a co-supporter of the 2020 National Mitigation and Ecosystem Banking Conference (NMEBC) to be held August 17-21, 2020 in Boise, Idaho. ASWM State, Local and Tribal Government members can take advantage of an exclusive all-inclusive rate, including field trips and pre-conference workshops, to the NMEBC.

To register, just go here and select the State & Local Govt/Nonprofit/University category. Please note you must be a local, state or tribal government employee and a member of ASWM to get this exclusive discount.

If you are not a member of ASWM, membership information can be found here.

NMEBC IS NOW VIRTUAL

August 17-19, 2020

AND

THROUGH NOVEMBER

▪ Virtual Chats with Experts, Sponsors, Exhibitors

▪ Added Networking opportunities and more.

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Calendar of Events

WEBINARS 2020 JULY

July 22, 2020

5:45 pm EDT

Massachusetts Association of Conservation Commissions (MACC) Webinar: Fundamentals Unit 102 Wetlands Protection Act: Fundamentals, Process & Procedures

July 28, 2020

2:00 pm EDT

Native Lands Stewardship Webinar: GIS Mapping in Indigenous Communities

July 29, 2020

3:00 pm EDT

New Jersey Higher Education Partnership for Sustainability Webinar: Reframing the Climate Conversation: Telling the Story to Bring About Productive Climate Action

July 30, 2020

11:00 am EDT

Society of Ecological Restoration Webinar: An Introduction to the SER International Principles and Standards for the Practice of Ecological Restoration

SEPTEMBER

September 30, 2020

3:00 pm EDT

Association of State Wetland Managers Webinar: Large-scale Wetland Restoration that Harnesses the Power of Natural Infrastructure for Water Quality Improvement in Agricultural Landscapes

NOVEMBER

November 18, 2020

3:00 pm EDT

Association of State Wetland Managers Webinar: Wetland Drainage in the United States: An Update on the Status of Drainage and New Restoration Findings

MEETINGS 2020 JULY

July 26-31, 2020

Virtual/Denver, CO

North American Congress for Conservation Biology (NACCB 2020): Crossing Boundaries: Innovative Approaches to Conservation

AUGUST August 3-6, 2020 Virtual

ESA Annual Meeting: Harnessing the Ecological Data Revolution

August 19, 2020

Virtual

Invasive Species Council of BC: Invasive Species Research Mini-Symposium

August 17-19, 2020

Virtual

National Mitigation & Ecosystem Banking Conference: Investing in the Environment

August 31- September 4, 2020 Location: TBA

Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) Inaugural National Tribal & Indigenous Climate Conference

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SEPTEMBER September 8-11, 2020

Virtual

Floodplain Management Association 2020 Annual Conference

September 9-13, 2020 Tulcea, Romania

5th International Conference Water Resources and Wetlands

September 15-17, 2020 Online

2020 Great Lakes Commission Annual Meeting

September 16-20, 2020 Orlando, FL

Ducks Unlimited 83rd annual National Convention

September 22-24, 2020 Pikeville, KY

Kentucky Association of Mitigation Managers Annual Conference

September 24, 2020 Sacramento, CA

Water Education Foundation: 2020 Water Summit

September 27- October 1, 2020 Louisville, KY

Wildlife Society’s Annual Conference

September 29- October 1, 2020 Virtual

Restore America’s Estuaries: 2020 Summit: The National Coastal and Estuarine Summit

OCTOBER October 6-8, 2020

Virtual

NAISMA (North American Invasive Species Management Association) Annual Conference

October 13-17, 2020 Virtual

NAAEE 49th Annual Conference

October 22-24, 2020 Estes Park, CO

6th Life Discover – Doing Science Biology Education Conference: Pushing Past Barriers: Ecological Science for All

October 26-27, 2020

Rangeley, ME

Maine Mountain Collaborative Symposium: Climate Change in Maine’s Mountains

October 30- November 1, 2020 Shepherdstown, WV

Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay: 15th Annual Chesapeake Watershed Forum

NOVEMBER

November 2020

Virtual

AWRA 2020 Annual Water Resources Conference

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DECEMBER

December 1-3, 2020 Novi, Michigan

Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy: Great Lakes Water Infrastructure Conference

December 1-17, 2020 Online

AGU Fall Meeting: Shaping the Future of Science Abstract deadline: July 29, 2020

December 7-11, 2020 San Francisco, CA

AGU Fall Meeting: Shaping the Future of Science

December 13-15, 2020 Stanford University

Stanford, CA

CMWR 2020 Biennial Conference: Data, Models, Data-driven Models, and Their Use in Decision-Making

TRAINING/WORKSHOPS 2020 JULY July 23-31, 2020

Virtual

Delaware Introduction to Living Shoreline Design Training

AUGUST August 3, 2020

Online

Swamp School Online Course: Wetland Monitoring Techniques

August 3, 2020

Online

Swamp School Online Course: Stream Restoration: Part 1: Stream Physics Other dates offered.

August 3, 2020

Online

Swamp School Online Course: Online Wetland Basic Delineation Training Other dates offered.

August 12-13, 2020

Portage, WI

Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Basic Wetland Delineation Refresher Course

August 14, 2020

Maysville, WA

Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Beginners Plant ID for Wetland Delineation (2020)

August 17-21, 2020

Marysville, MA

Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Basic Wetland Delineation

August 31- September 4, 2020

Shepherdstown, WV

The Conservation Fund Training Course: Mitigation Banking and In-Lieu Program Interagency Review Teams (For federal and state regulators)

SEPTEMBER September 9, 2020 Reid State Park Georgetown, ME

Maine Association of Wetland Scientists: 2020 Soils and Natural Resource Identification Workshop

September 10-11, 2020 Charleston, SC

Duncan & Duncan Wetland and Endangered Species Training: Identification of Grasses, Sedges, and Rushes

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September 14, 2020

Online

Swamp School Online Course: Principles of Wetland Design

September 14, 2020

Online (14 weeks)

Swamp School Online Course: Certified Wetland Botanist

September 14-15, 2020 San Diego, CA

Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Riparian Habitat Restoration for the Arid Southwest

September 21-25, 2020 Portage, WI

Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Basic Wetland Delineation

September 28, 2020 Portage, WI

Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Beginners Plant ID for Wetland Delineation (2020)

September 28- October 2, 2020

St. Michaels, MD

Environmental Concern, Inc.: Basic Wetland Delineation

September 29-30, 2020 Portage, WI

Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Basic Wetland Delineation Refresher Course

OCTOBER October 2-3, 2020

St. Michaels, MD

Environmental Concern, Inc.: Evaluating Hydric Soils in the Field

October 5, 2020

Online

Swamp School Online Course: Certified Hydric Soils Investigator

October 5, 2020

Online

Swamp School Online Course: Functional Mitigation Design for Dam Removals

October 15-16, 2020

Houston, TX

Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Basic Wetland Delineation Refresher Course

October 20-23, 2020

Basking Ridge, NJ

Rutgers Office of Continuing Professional Education Course: Methodology for Delineating Wetlands

NOVEMBER November 2, 2020 Online

Swamp School Online Workshop: Living Shoreline Design

November 5, 2020

Shoreline, WA

Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Demystifying Wetland and In-Water Permitting in Washington State (2020)

November 9-11, 2020

St. Michaels, MD

Environmental Concern, Inc.: Winter Woody Plant ID

November 10-11, 2020

Charleston, SC

Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Basic Wetland Delineation Refresher Course

November 17-18, 2020 Atlanta, GA

Duncan & Duncan Wetland and Endangered Species Training: Advanced Hydric Soils, Atypical Wetlands, and Hydrology (Coastal Plain or Piedmont)

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DECEMBER December 7, 2020

Online

Swamp School Online Course: Wetland Monitoring Techniques

December 9-10, 2020

Portage, WI

Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Problematic Delineation Seminar (2020)

24 | WND

Index

EDITOR ’S CHOICE

⧫ Nature-Based Flood Mitigation Can Help Mississippi River Farmers ⧫ Nature makes water-treatment systems; we turn it into plumbing ⧫ 3 keys for scaling nature-based solutions for climate adaptation ⧫ Unlocking Nature’s Potential

NATIONAL NEWS

⧫ Standing Rock seeks to keep Dakota Access shutdown order in place ⧫ Trump finalizes rollback of bedrock environmental law NEPA ⧫ EPA Announces $6 Billion in New Funding for Water Infrastructure Projects ⧫ Outdoor Recreation and Conservation Advocates Challenge EPA Rule Granting Industry Priority Over State,

Public in Clean Water Decisions ⧫ 350 facilities skip reporting water pollution under temporary EPA rule ⧫ Committee votes to block Trump's 'secret science' EPA rule ⧫ Nearly $20 Million in 2020 NOAA Funding Recommended for Great Lakes Habitat Restoration ⧫ Supreme Court Won’t Block Ruling to Halt Work on Keystone XL Pipeline ⧫ Energy companies abandon long-delayed Atlantic Coast Pipeline ⧫ GOP irked as $14 billion for water systems became $40 billion ⧫ Who's suing over Trump's WOTUS rule? ⧫ California and EPA Tussle Over Water-Quality Protections ⧫ Senate passes major conservation package ⧫ Funding available for wetland mitigation program

STATE AND TRIBAL NEWS

⧫ CA: Filling Trump Void, California Steps in to Protect Birds, Wetlands ⧫ CO: Environmentally protective rule for Colorado’s water remains in place ⧫ KS: Kansas fishing, hunting license sales spike amidst coronavirus pandemic ⧫ MD: 438 Acres of Private Land Get Permanent Protection at Blackwater Refuge ⧫ MD: Ecological engineering works to prevent erosion ⧫ MA: Charles River Conservancy, Northeastern University announce floating wetland project ⧫ MN: In Minnesota, A Thirty-Year Biological Survey Nears Completion ⧫ OH: Wetland to replace one historic reservoir in Oberlin, sidestepping ODNR ⧫ OH: Ground broken in Seneca County for Ohio's first H2Ohio wetland restoration ⧫ PA: Pennsylvania Reaching Out to Landowners about the Benefits of Streamside Buffers ⧫ PA: EPA Provides $3.84 Million For Pennsylvania Efforts to Reduce Ag-Related Pollution In Chesapeake

Bay Watershed ⧫ VA: Globally rare Shenandoah Valley sinkhole ponds protected at Virginia’s newest natural area preserve ⧫ VA: $100M in funding approved for Hampton Roads water improvement projects ⧫ WA: Whatcom Land Trust to buy, protect wetland near creek ⧫ WA: Stream, wetland restoration beginning at Keller Farm

25 | WND

WETLAND SCIENCE NEWS

⧫ River plants counter both flooding and drought to protect biodiversity ⧫ Chesapeake’s grasses hard hit by heat, high flows in 2019 ⧫ The Story Behind a Uniquely Dark, Wetland Soil ⧫ New Study Finds Coal-Tar-Sealant Is the Major Source of PAH Contamination in Great Lakes Tributaries ⧫ Human activity on rivers outpaces, compounds effects of climate change ⧫ Bay's dead zone expected to be smaller this year ⧫ As the climate changes, protecting more land will not necessarily preserve more biodiversity ⧫ Clean water ponds boost rare wetland plants, study reveals

RESOURCES/PUBLICATIONS ⧫ Report by American Rivers: Rivers as Economic Engines: Investing in clean water, communities and our future ⧫ Coastal Restoration Toolkit ⧫ EPA’s How’s My Waterway ⧫ Incorporating Multiple Benefits into Water Projects: A Guide for Water Managers ⧫ 2019 State of U.S. High Tide Flooding with a 2020 Outlook ⧫ Managed Retreat Toolkit

POTPOURRI ⧫ Developing a shared understanding of watershed-based hydrologic restoration ⧫ Walton Family Foundation Expands its Investment in Forest and Wetland Restoration in the Lower Mississippi

Alluvial Valley ⧫ Litigators hone new tools for environmental justice cases ⧫ Lessons Learned from 35 Years of AOC Restoration ⧫ Two-Thirds of Americans Think Government Should Do More on Climate ⧫ COVID opportunities: Countries investing in a post-pandemic green recovery

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

WEBINARS

July

⧫ Massachusetts Association of Conservation Commissions (MACC) Webinar: Fundamentals Unit 102 Wetlands Protection Act: Fundamentals, Process & Procedures

⧫

⧫ Native Lands Stewardship Webinar: GIS Mapping in Indigenous Communities

⧫ New Jersey Higher Education Partnership for Sustainability Webinar: Reframing the Climate Conversation: Telling the Story to Bring About Productive Climate Action

⧫ Society of Ecological Restoration Webinar: An Introduction to the SER International Principles and Standards for the Practice of Ecological Restoration

September

⧫ Association of State Wetland Managers Webinar: Large-scale Wetland Restoration that Harnesses the Power of Natural Infrastructure for Water Quality Improvement in Agricultural Landscapes

26 | WND

November

⧫ Association of State Wetland Managers Webinar: Wetland Drainage in the United States: An Update on the Status of Drainage and New Restoration Findings

MEETINGS

July

⧫ North American Congress for Conservation Biology (NACCB 2020): Crossing Boundaries: Innovative Approaches to Conservation

August

⧫ Ecological Society of America Annual Meeting: Harnessing the ecological data revolution

⧫ Invasive Species Council of BC: Invasive Species Research Mini-Symposium ⧫ National Mitigation & Ecosystem Banking Conference: Investing in the Environment ⧫ Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) Inaugural National Tribal & Indigenous Climate

Conference

September

⧫ Floodplain Management Association 2020 Annual Conference ⧫ 5th International Conference Water Resources and Wetlands ⧫ 2020 Great Lakes Commission Annual Meeting ⧫ Ducks Unlimited 83rd annual National Convention ⧫ Kentucky Association of Mitigation Managers Annual Conference ⧫ Water Education Foundation: 2020 Water Summit ⧫ Wildlife Society’s Annual Conference ⧫ Restore America’s Estuaries: 2020 Summit: The National Coastal and

Estuarine Summit

October

⧫ NAISMA (North American Invasive Species Management Association) Annual Conference

⧫ NAAEE 49th Annual Conference ⧫ 6th Life Discover – Doing Science Biology Education Conference: Pushing

Past Barriers: Ecological Science for All ⧫ Maine Mountain Collaborative Symposium: Climate Change in Maine’s

Mountains ⧫ Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay: 15th Annual Chesapeake Watershed Forum

November

⧫ AWRA 2020 Annual Water Resources Conference

December

⧫ Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy: Great Lakes Water Infrastructure Conference ⧫ AGU Fall Meeting: Shaping the Future of Science ⧫ CMWR 2020 Biennial Conference: Data, Models, Data-driven Models, and Their Use in Decision-Making

27 | WND

TRAININGS/WORKSHOPS

July

⧫ Delaware Introduction to Living Shoreline Design Training

August

⧫ Swamp School Online Course: Wetland Monitoring Techniques ⧫ Swamp School Online Course: Stream Restoration: Part 1: Stream Physics ⧫ Swamp School Online Course: Online Wetland Basic Delineation Training ⧫ Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Basic Wetland Delineation Refresher Course ⧫ Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Beginners Plant ID for Wetland Delineation (2020) ⧫ Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Basic Wetland Delineation ⧫ The Conservation Fund Training Course: Mitigation Banking and In-Lieu Program Interagency Review Teams

September

⧫ Maine Association of Wetland Scientists: 2020 Soils and Natural Resource Identification Workshop ⧫ Duncan & Duncan Wetland and Endangered Species Training: Identification of Grasses, Sedges, and Rushes ⧫ Swamp School Online Course: Principles of Wetland Design ⧫ Swamp School Online Course: Certified Wetland Botanist ⧫ Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Riparian Habitat Restoration for the Arid Southwest ⧫ Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Basic Wetland Delineation ⧫ Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Beginners Plant ID for Wetland Delineation (2020) ⧫ Environmental Concern, Inc.: Basic Wetland Delineation ⧫ Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Basic Wetland Delineation Refresher Course

October

⧫ Environmental Concern, Inc.: Evaluating Hydric Soils in the Field ⧫ Swamp School Online Course: Certified Hydric Soils Investigator ⧫ Swamp School Online Course: Functional Mitigation Design for Dam Removals ⧫ Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Basic Wetland Delineation Refresher Course ⧫ Rutgers Office of Continuing Professional Education Course: Methodology for Delineating Wetlands

November

⧫ Swamp School Online Workshop: Living Shoreline Design ⧫ Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Demystifying Wetland and In-Water Permitting in Washington State ⧫ Environmental Concern, Inc.: Winter Woody Plant ID ⧫ Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Basic Wetland Delineation Refresher Course ⧫ Duncan & Duncan Wetland and Endangered Species Training: Advanced Hydric Soils, Atypical Wetlands, and

Hydrology (Coastal Plain or Piedmont)

December

⧫ Swamp School Online Course: Wetland Monitoring Techniques ⧫ Wetland Training Institute, Inc. Course: Problematic Delineation Seminar (2020)

28 | WND

The Association of State Wetland Managers' Wetland News Digest (WND) is a

monthly compilation of wetland-related stories and announcements submitted by

readers and gleaned from listservs, press releases and news sources from

throughout the United States. WND chronicles the legislative, national, state and

tribal news relevant to wetland science, policy, practice and law. It also links to new

publications, tools and resources available to wetland professionals as well as

events and training opportunities for those working in water resources and related

fields. Wetland News Digest (formerly “Wetland Breaking News”) has been

published for over fifteen years and ASWM has been a nationally recognized resource for information on wetland

science and policy since 1983.

The items presented in Wetland News Digest do not necessarily reflect the views of the editor or of the Association of State Wetland Managers. Send your news items, comments, corrections, or suggestions to mailto:news@aswm.org. "WETLAND NEWS DIGEST" Compiled by William Dooley, Policy Analyst and Edited by Marla Stelk, Executive Director; Laura Burchill and Sharon Weaver, Assistant Editors, Association of State Wetland Managers, 32 Tandberg Trail, Ste. 2A, Windham, ME 04062. Telephone: 207-892-3399; Fax: 207-894-7992.

Send your news items, events, comments, corrections, or suggestions to news@aswm.org