CRS-61 



have been developed that address project planning, engineering considerations, 

 development of the site as habitat, and costs. Little information is available 

 yet on what functional values are found in the created wetlands, how their 

 functional values compare to those in nearby "natural" wetlands, and how 

 quickly they develop the ecosystem characteristics of nearby wetlands. 47 / 



WETLAND CENSUS— MEASURING CHANGE 



Large-scale conversions of wetlands to other uses started in the 19th 

 century, encouraged by the Swamp Lands Acts of 1849, 1850, and 1860. Quani- 

 tative knowledge of the changes derives from various surveys. The two most 

 recent national surveys were conducted by the U.S. F.ish and Wildlife Service. 

 The earlier one was completed in 1954. 48 / The survey found 75.2 million 

 acres of wetlands, under the definitions used. About 90 percent of the total 

 was classified as inland freshwater. 49 / The classification system used in 

 this survey, which contained 20 categories, became the basis for locating 



47 / Some research has been completed on benthic fauna. For examples, see: 

 H. H. Allen, et al. Habitat Development Field Investigations: Bolivar Penin- 

 sula, Marsh and Upland Habitat Development Site, Galveston, Texas; Technical 

 Report D-778-15. Vicksburg, U.S. Army Engineers Waterways Experiment Station, 

 1978. 67 p. More recently, the Fish and Wildlife Service, Office of Biological 

 Services, published proceedings of a workshop entitled "Rehabilitation and 

 Creation of Selected Coastal Habitats" (FWS/OBS-80/27 ) which contains a number 

 of articles on creating marshes. 



48 / U.S. Department of the Interior. Wetlands of the United States, 

 p. 5-7. The study estimated that a minimum of 45 million acres, more than 

 35 percent of the national total during the Colonial period, had been lost. 

 Some States have more recently updated figures on wetlands loss, but the inven- 

 tory now underway will provide the next national set of figures. In an unre- 

 lated activity, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has determined that approxi- 

 mately 148 million acres of wetlands are subject to their regulatory program, 

 including 67.2 million acres in Alaska. 



49 / U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineer Institute for Water Resour- 

 ces. Impact Analysis of the Corps Regulatory Program. Draft. Washington, 

 November 1981. p. 106. A recent assessment by the Corps of wetlands subject 

 to Federal regulatory programs estimated that 15 percent, or 11.5 million 

 acres of wetlands (excluding Alaska) were coastal. 



