cover page of Toolkit

Annoucing the Alliance's latest publication working towards providing a better Bay for future generations: Restoring Virginia’s Wetlands - A Citizen’s Toolkit.

This Toolkit, prepared in partnership with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), through a grant award from the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Wetlands Program Development Grants initiative, promotes the voluntary protection, enhancement, restoration and creation of wetlands on private as well as public lands within the Commonwealth of Virginia.

The ToolKit guides viewers through the background information necessary to understand wetland functions and values. It provides useful information to Virginia’s landowners, both private and public, on the status of wetlands, various options for the use and management of their wetlands, current regulatory protection as well as voluntary efforts, and technical and financial resources for protection, enhancement, restoration and creation projects. Included within the ToolKit are basics regarding wetland identification, types and classification as well as a section discussing types of wetland monitoring.

Obtaining A Copy of the Toolkit

The publication is best viewed in downloadable PDF format (See Publication Section below), as it contains bookmarks and many useful hyperlinks to other websites. The Toolkit may be downloaded from the DEQ’s website at DEQ Wetlands

Project Background

Wetlands are areas where water covers the soil, or is present either at or near the surface of the soil all year or for varying periods of time during the year, including during the growing season(http://www.epa.gov/owow/wetlands/what/definitions.html). Wetlands are vital ecosystems with a great range of biodiversity. They provide many crucial functions and values such as fish and wildlife habitat, natural flood control, water quality improvements, and opportunities for education and aesthetic appreciation to name a few.

Since the 1780s, Virginia has lost a significant number of its tidal and nontidal wetlands. During the period from 1956 to 1977, Virginia is estimated to have lost 63,000 acres of coastal and inland wetlands primarily due to conversions to other uses. Annual losses have been estimated at as much as 3,000 acres per year (Tiner, 1987). In a follow-up report for the period from 1982 to 1989, losses were reported at 21,000 acres for the Chesapeake Bay Drainage alone (Tiner, 1994).

Through a grant funded by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watersheds and in partnership with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) , the Alliance is working towards reversing a portion of these wetland losses by aiding the restoration efforts underway in Virginia’s portion of the Chesapeake Bay through the education and utilization of its citizenry. The development of a Virginia Citizen Wetland Education, Outreach, and Monitoring Program for the Chesapeake Bay Region will be developed through this existing partnership.

The success of wetland restoration in Virginia relies on voluntary efforts. Public education is critical for this restoration to occur. The public education and outreach project component of the Virginia Citizen Wetland Education, Outreach and Monitoring Program will strongly support the Clean Water Action Plan to slow the rate of wetlands loss nationwide and help toward the national net goal of at least 100,000 new acres of wetlands each year by the year 2005.

Concurrently, the public outreach effort will assist in the achievement of the 6,000-acre Chesapeake Bay 2000 Agreement commitment and the overall 10,000-acre statewide restoration commitment by providing education and tools to Virginia’s citizenry and local governments in order to implement their own wetland restoration/creation projects.

Through this grant, the Alliance developed training materials for the purpose of educating citizens and local governments how to identify potential restoration sites within their own watersheds and how to obtain technical and financial assistance to implement wetland restoration or creation projects within Virginia.

The Alliance coordinated 4 workshops held during 2003 and 2004 across Virginia, specifically in Richmond, Northern Virginia, Tidewater, and Roanoke. The main purpose of these workshops was to encourage voluntary wetland restoration and enhancement on private and public lands through the education of Virginia citizens on available technical and financial opportunities.

These training workshops included a diverse mix of participants from various public and private organizations including leaders of natural resource associations, soil and water conservation districts, planning districts, and organizations including watershed, civic, non-profit, land trust, state, federal, and local governments. Additionally, there were a number of private landowners who attended the workshops that were interested in a wetland creation, restoration or enhancement project on their land.

Each workshop included material covering the following agenda items:

• Defining Wetland Restoration and Enhancement and the Tools Available for Identification of Sites With Restoration Potential
• Technical and Financial Assistance Available for Voluntary Wetland Restoration and Enhancement Within Virginia
• Case Studies of Voluntary Wetland Activities in Virginia
Sample Workshop Agenda