Water Quality | Wetlands

Wetlands Enforcement Training

In 2002, EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assistance awarded a State and Tribal Assistance Grant (STAG grant) to NEIWPCC to conduct training of state wetlands regulatory and enforcement staff. STAG grants are intended to enhance the capacity of states and tribes to carry out compliance assurance activities within their jurisdictions. The goal of NEIWPCC's STAG project is to train wetland inspectors in order to improve compliance with state and federal regulations, which will result in enhanced protection of wetlands. Specifically, the training is intended to:

Increase inspectors' understanding of the various federal and state regulations related to wetlands protection, including (but not limited to) Sections 401 and 404 of the Clean Water Act and storm water permitting for construction sites.

Increase inspectors' skill in applying the USACOE 1987 wetlands delineation manual, including delineation methods for challenging environments.

Increase inspectors' knowledge of compliance tools (enforcement actions, management practices to recommend, etc.) and skill in choosing the right tool(s) for each situation.

NEIWPCC has worked with our member states and EPA to develop and present three training modules tailored to states’ needs. The training modules are as follows:

Module I: Advanced Wetland Delineation

Wetland Hydrologic Criteria and Field Indicators

Geology and New England Landscapes

Resource Inventory Maps

Module II: Wetland Delineation at Disturbed and Problem Sites

Delineating Problem Sites

Problem Sites Part II

Module III: Aerial Photo Interpretation and Building a Good Case for Enforcement

Aerial Photo Primer

Sources of Aerial Photography

Geospatial Data Links

Wetlands Delineation for Environmental Assessment