Vn. EXISTING AND EMERGING SOURCES OF DATA TO AID 401 

 CERimCATION AND STANDARDS DECISION MAKERS 



According to a number of State program managers, more data on wetland 

 functions, or "uses," would greatly assist the certification process. Wetland ecosystems 

 not only perform a wide variety of functions but do so in varying degrees. Public 

 agencies and private applicants currently employ a number of assessment methods such 

 as the Wetlands Evaluation Technique and the Habitat Evaluation Procedure to 

 determine what functions or uses exist in a particular wetland system.^ In many States, 

 however, water quality certification reviewers lack the resources to perform even a 

 simple assessment of a wetland's boundaries, values and functions. Information about 

 the location and types of wetland systems, and of the functions they may perform (such 

 as flood storage, habitat, pollution attenuation, nutrient uptake, and sediment fixing) 

 would aid standard writers in developing appropriate uses and criteria for wetlands, and 

 allow 401 certification ofBcials to conduct a more thorough review. 



Several States already have extensive knowledge of their wetland resources, and 

 data gathering efforts are also being undertaken by EPA, the VS. Fish and Wildlife 

 Service and other agencies.^ Although these efforts to inventory and classify wetlands 

 have not been dosely tied to the 401 certification process in the past, these existing 

 data can be valuable sources of information for 401 certification reviewers. It is 

 important to remember, however, that wetland boundaries for regulatory purposes may 

 differ fiom those identified by National Wetland Inventory maps for general inventory 

 purposes. The EPA, Corps of Engineers, Fish and Wildlife Service, and Soil 

 Conservation Service have adopted a joint manual for identifying and delineating 

 wetlands in the United States. The manual win be available in June, 1989.^ 



There are several programs that offer technical support for 401 certification 

 decisions. For example, approximately forty States have worked with the Nature 

 Conservancy to establish "natural heritage programs," which identify the most critical 

 spedes, habitats, plant communities, and other natural features within a State's 

 territorial boundaries. Most States now have a State natural heritage office to 

 coordinate this identification program. Inventory efforts such as the natural heritage 

 program could give 401 certification managers some of the information they need to 

 limit or prohibit adverse water quality impacts in important wetland areas. Specifically, 

 the inventory process can identify existing wetland uses in order to maintain them. The 

 information may also be used in identifying wetlands for Outstanding Resource Waters 

 designation.^' 



The Fish and Wildlife Service maintains a Wetlands Values Data Base which 

 may be very useful in identifying wetland functions and in designating wetland uses for 

 water quality standards. The data base is on computer and contains an annotated 

 bibliography of sdentific literature on wetland functions and values.^ Several States 



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