SYMPOSIA  AND  PANEL  DISCUSSIONS
Including those organized by the Association of State Wetland Managers and
The Society for Ecological Restoration
 

Organized by Beth Middleton (beth_middleton@usgs.gov)

Sponsored by the Global Change Ecology Section of SWS

The session will focus on global patterns in wetland function, with speakers who study broad latitudinal patterns in functions such as production, nutrient, and regeneration dynamics.  The overall goal of the symposium is to explore the functional shifts in wetlands at large regional and global scales, and how climate change might alter these functions. (Click here for confirmed speaker list)
 

SYMPOSIUM: USEPA's National Wetland Condition Assessment

Organized by Elizabeth Riley (riley.elizabeth@epa.gov), Michael Scozzafava (USEPA), Chris Faulkner (USPEA), Mary Kentula (USEPA), Virginia Engle (USEPA), Janet Nestlerode (USEPA)

The U.S. EPA anticipates conducting a national survey of wetland condition, with field work scheduled for 2011 and report due out in 2013.  This survey will be one in a series of National Water Quality Assessments carried out by EPA in recent years to provide the public with a better assessment of the condition of the nation’s waterways. Plans for this survey are currently underway.  EPA Office of Water and ORD initiated preliminary design discussions in late 2006 and came to decisions on the sample frame, target population, and reporting units.  In 2008, EPA is hoping to finalize decisions regarding indicators, reference condition, and assessment methods.     

EPA is collaborating with the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to ensure that the National Wetland Condition Assessment effectively complements the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Status and Trends report.  Just as the Status and Trends Report documents trends in the extent of the nation's wetlands, EPA’s survey will establish a baseline assessment of condition for some wetland types.  Together, these reports will offer scientifically defensible information documenting the current status of wetland quantity and quality in the United States.     

To ensure the two studies effectively complement one another, EPA will collaborate with FWS throughout the design and implementation of the national assessment.  Through preliminary design discussions, it has become clear that FWS Wetlands Status and Trends plots offer one of the best sample frame options for a probabilistic national condition assessment.  Compared to other options, the plots provide more contemporary spatial wetlands data and the highest probability of a given point actually being a wetland.  It is especially timely that the Service will complete the next iteration of the wetlands status and trends report in 2010, just prior to commencement of field operations for the national wetland condition assessment in 2011.

The purpose of this session is to engage the Society of Wetlands Scientists in a dialogue regarding current and future plans for the National Wetland Condition Assessment.  EPA will present the current design framework and preliminary considerations on indicators and reference condition.  EPA and FWS will discuss their joint effort to enhance the current population of FWS Status and Trends plots in areas with sparse coverage.  In addition, EPA and State representatives will discuss current wetland assessment pilot projects intended to inform decision making for the national survey.  EPA is hoping the Society can provide technical feedback on decisions that have already been made and insights on decisions to come.  (Click here for confirmed speaker list)
 

Organized by Gary N. Ervin (gervin@biology.msstate.edu) and Jason T. Bried (jbried@tnc.org)
 

Floristic Quality Assessment (FQA) for evaluation of ecological integrity has been tested widely in the Midwestern states of the US, where it initially was developed, but it has seen limited use elsewhere. The FQA index has been described as an attractive management and assessment tool because of the utility of herbaceous plant assemblages as indicators of ecosystem stressors. For example, plants generally respond rapidly to improvement or degradation of ecosystem condition, and they may integrate disturbance at numerous biological scales (from point-source pollutant discharge to non-point source factors such as urbanization and erosion or siltation).  One major drawback of the present FQA approach is that coefficients of conservatism for plant species, which are a major component of FQA, must be developed regionally, but comprehensive regional listings for plant species and their distributions generally are lacking. Research and application also are needed in such areas as mathematically involving exotic species and testing FQA performance in forested wetlands. We propose this symposium as an international forum in which regional findings on the efficacy of FQA as an assessment tool can be synthesized in order to permit 1) determination of whether FQA is a concept that is sufficiently mature to advance the science of wetland ecosystem assessment, and 2) evaluation of whether and how the FQA may be improved upon so as to advance its broader application and conceptual maturity, where needed. (Click here for confirmed speaker list)
 

SYMPOSIUM: Disassembly of Coastal Ecosystems in the Face of Global Change: Implications for Conservation, Management, and Restoration

Organized by Loretta Battaglia (lbattaglia@plant.siu.edu) and Bill Platt (btplat@lsu.edu)

Coastal transitions from marine to terrestrial habitats are jeopardized by two large-scale ongoing changes.  First, sea-level rise is occurring rapidly, perhaps more rapidly than many species can respond, and rates of rise in sea level are predicted to accelerate in the future.  Second, anthropogenic modifications of the landscape are chronic, and these are likely to continue unabated into the future, especially on the landward end of coastal transitions.  Thus large and permanent changes are occurring at both seaward and landward ends of coastal transitions.

What are the dynamics of disassembly and reassembly along coastal transitions as environments change? As seaward boundaries are "chipped away" by the sea and seaward ecosystems are disassembled, species might shift inland, toward the terrestrial ecosystems of coastal transitions. Limited reassembly might thus occur landward, provided that species can migrate landward faster than sea level rises.  Such migration depends on not just the ability to disperse landward, but also on the capability for colonization of landward ecosystems.  Anthropogenic changes in land use are likely to compromise the ability of coastal transition species to colonize landward areas. 

Ecological concepts are needed that explore the mechanisms by which species migrate with sea level rise, and particularly in the modern landscape with anthropogenic barriers that are both physical and political.  We propose a symposium for the 2008 SWS annual meeting where speakers will discuss implications of these changes for conservation, restoration, and management of these imperiled coastal transition communities.  (Click here for confirmed speaker list)
 

SYMPOSIUM: Perceptions, Problems, and Plans for Wetland Reclamation in the Canadian Oil Sands

Organized by Clara Qualizza (qualizza.clara@syncrude.com), Dale Vitt (dvitt@plant.siu.edu), and Kel Wieder

Sponsored by the Peatlands Section of SWS and PeatNet

Wetlands cover about 40% of the natural landscape of the western Canadian boreal forest.  These wetlands are long-term carbon sinks and currently sequester carbon at an estimated rate of 23 g/m²/yr.  Additionally, they provide habitat for wildlife and play a role in the hydrologic budget of the region.  Oil sands underlie over 140,000 km² of land surface in northern Alberta and northwestern Saskatchewan.  About 2800 oil sands lease agreements are in place in Alberta, covering a total land area of about 44,000 km².  A number of processes are used to recover bitumen, however, open pit mining and steam injection are among the most common.  Open pit mining has occurred over the past 40 years and reclamation of previously mined areas is required by current leasing agreements with the Alberta government.  Fine sediments, saline surface waters, disturbed hydrologic regimes, and continental boreal climatic conditions make reclamation of wetlands a challenge.  Active research programs that address stakeholder concerns and environmental issues have been funded by industry and organized by joint government-stakeholder committees.  These research efforts have produced data relevant to wetland issues and reclamation.  This symposium will address the issues and progress that has been made in wetland reclamation over the extensive oil sands landscape of Canada's western boreal forest.    (Click here for confirmed speaker list)
 

Organized by Mark Walbridge (mark.walbridge@ars.usda.gov)

Agricultural ecosystems often occur in complex landscapes that include wetland ecosystems. Similarly, agricultural scientists seeking to reduce the export of nutrients and other pollutants from agricultural lands, often natural wetlands, constructed wetlands, riparian buffers, or nutrient removal technologies that mimic natural wetlands as components of best management practices and/or nutrient control strategies.  The goals of this symposium is to highlight wetlands research conducted by agricultural scientists for the broader wetland science community, and to foster interactions between agricultural and wetland scientists.  (Click here for confirmed speaker list)
 

Organized by Colleen Charles (colleen_charles@usgs.gov) and Steve Faulkner (sfaulkner@usgs.gov)

Climate change affects ecosystems as well as human populations.  Future climate change predictions differ in different parts of the U.S.  It is believed that most areas will continue to warm, with some areas warming more than others.  It is difficult to predict which parts of the U.S. and North America will become wetter or drier, but increased precipitation and evaporation are expected with potential changes in ecosystems across the landscape.  The middle parts of the U.S. are expected to have drier soils and northern regions such as Alaska are expected to experience the greatest warming.  Wetlands are found in all of these landscapes and provide many goods and services such as fisheries productivity, wildlife habitat, water quality, groundwater recharge, flood attenuation, carbon sequestration, and important stopover areas for migrating waterfowl.  Wetlands may well be the sentinels for potential threshold changes in the landscape in a changing climate effecting water availability in a spatial and temporal scale.  This symposium will provide a broad overview of climate change and the effects on wetlands as sustainable ecosystems and the implications for adaptation and mitigation to cope with changing landscapes.  Regional examples will be presented to illustrate the on-going science to address climate change questions.  (Click here for confirmed speaker list)
 

SYMPOSIUM:  The USDA Conservation Effects Assessment Project – Wetlands Component: Developing the Scientific Framework to Improve Decisions Affecting Wetland Ecosystems in U.S. Agricultural Landscapes

Organized by S. Diane Eckles (diane.eckles@wdc.usda.gov)

Between 2002 and 2006 more than $1 billon in federal funds were spent to continue support of the USDA-administered Wetlands Reserve Program and more than $15 million was spent in FY 2005 alone to support wetland conservation under the Farmable Wetlands Program. The ability to credibly document the results of this investment is challenging.  A science-based, collaborative approach is needed to routinely produce results that decision-makers and conservation stakeholders can use to improve and ensure wetlands conservation on agricultural landscapes. The USDA Conservation Effects Assessment Project – Wetlands Component (CEAP-Wetlands) is designed to 1) Provide science-based data, results and information to inform conservation decisions affecting wetlands and the ecosystem services they provide; and 2) Develop a broad collaborative foundation that facilitates the production and delivery of scientific data, results and information on the effects of USDA conservation practice and program implementation.  This 2-session symposium will feature presentations that are intended to inform scientists, decision-makers, restoration practitioners, resource managers and interested parties about CEAP-Wetlands and the results or status of scientific investigations and analyses underway.  (Click here for confirmed speaker list)
 

SYMPOSIUM:  The Role of Ecosystem Restoration in Mitigating Climate Change

Organized by Ryan Szuch (rszuch@environcorp.com) and Scott Luchessa (sluchessa@environcorp.com)

Sponsored by the Global Change Ecology Section of SWS

Organized by Jeanne Christie (jeanne.christie@aswm.org) and the Association of State Wetland Managers
 

2008 will be a year of change in wetland and water policy at the state, tribal and national levels. The state/federal coordination symposium organized by the Association of State Wetland Managers will cover important revisions in federal and state wetland policy where the application of sound science will be critical to the delivery of balanced programs to protect the public’s interest in clean water.  Topics will include: upcoming changes in federal wetland policy, the wetlands delineation manual supplements, climate change, the new Federal Geographic Data Committee wetland mapping standard, opportunities for streamlining permitting, discussion on the  new federal mitigation rule, implementation and revisions to the Carabell/Rapanos guidance  and strengthening the states’ role in implementing the Clean Water Act.  The symposium is designed to facilitate discussion among state and tribal wetland program managers, federal agencies, scientists and other wetland professionals to prepare for the challenges ahead.

This symposium consists of six sessions, as follows (see the schedule for times and rooms):

Thursday, 29 May

ASWM: Changes in Federal Water Policy

ASWM: Wetland Delineation Manual

ASWM: Streamlining Permitting

ASWM: Wetlands and Water Resource Mapping

Friday, 30 May

ASWM: Strengthening the State's Role in Implementing Section 404 of the Clean Water Act

ASWM: State Programmatic General Permits
 

Organized by James McCulley (jim@jcmenv.com)

How many people remember the proposed Wetland Manual revisions in 1991?  How about the 1989 Wetland Delineation Manual?  This was a time when the credibility of the regulatory practices regarding wetlands was routinely challenged.  At the request of Congress, the National Research Council formed a committee that would study the scientific basis for the characterization of wetlands.  This committee was formed in 1993 and included representatives from academia, business, and environmental groups.  This committee met at various locations throughout the country, went into the field, and had many roundtable discussions before issuing their report in 1995.  This report, "Wetlands: Characteristics and Boundaries," is probably on many people's bookshelves and is a valuable reference document.  This panel discussion will include a review of the crucial issues, a recap of interesting discussions, a glimpse into the process, and a question and answer session of the 15th year anniversary of the formation of the committee.  

Panelists and their topics are:

Fred Bosselman Professor of Law, Kent State University

Mark Brinson, Professor, Department of Biology, East Carolina university

James McCulley, JCM Environmental

William Mitsch, Distinguished Professor of Environment and Natural Resources at Ohio State University and Editor-in-Chief of Ecological Engineering, the Journal of Ecosystem Restoration

Wayne Skaggs, William Neal Reynolds Professor and Distinguished University Professor, North Carolina State University

Margaret Strand, Partner, Venable LLP, Washington, DC

PANEL DISCUSSION: Coastal Habitat Restoration and Climate Change – Priorities for the Future

Organized by Jennifer Wallace (Jenni.Wallace@noaa.gov), Kristin Rusello (NOAA), Ellen  Cummings (US ACOE), Susan Mangin (USFWS), Greg Colianno (USEPA), Percy Magee (NRCS)

The intent of this panel is to broaden the restoration community’s and policymakers’ understanding of climate change impacts on coastal habitat restoration and protection.  As coastal impacts related to climate change increase, agencies and organizations that restore habitat must take into account a range of future scenarios (higher sea level, warmer ocean temperatures, etc.) and be strategic about funding and locating new projects.  In addition, a dialogue on restoration techniques and methodologies, taking into account resiliency and the effects of climate change on habitat restoration projects, needs to occur. 

Four panelists representing federal, state, and non-governmental organizations with expertise in habitat restoration, research, or policy-making will provide insight into the prioritization of coastal habitat restoration in the face of climate change. Panelists will discuss current knowledge, research gaps and needs, and ideas for new criteria for planning, siting, and monitoring coastal habitat restoration projects that take climate change into account.

The Estuary Restoration Act (ERA) of 2000 established restoration of estuaries as a national priority, and set an ambitious goal of restoring one million acres of estuarine habitat by the year 2010.  The federal agencies (Army Corps of Engineers, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Environmental Protection Agency, Fish and Wildlife Service and Natural Resource Conservation Service) with responsibility to implement the Act have a critical role in protecting and restoring coastal and estuarine habitat with partners across the country.  The discussions during this panel will help inform ERA agencies on how best to prioritize habitat restoration of estuaries nationwide.

Panelists and their topics are:

Virginia Burkett, Chief Scientist for Global Change Research, U.S. Geological Survey - Climate Change: Implications for Coastal Ecosystems and their Restoration

Kevin Knuuti, Engineering Division Chief, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - Climate Change and Coastal Wetlands: New Research and Policy Changes

Gwen Shaughnessy, Coastal Hazard Planner, Maryland Department of Natural Resources - Climate Change Planning in Maryland: Developing a Strategy to Reduce Vulnerability

Jeff DeBlieu, Climate Change Learning Networks leader, the Nature Conservancy - Adapting to (and living with) Sea-level Rise

PANEL DISCUSSION: Forum on Ethics: The Role of Ethics and the Professional Wetland Scientist

Organized by: Jim Perry (jperry@vims.edu), Jim Wiggins and Royal Gardner

Webster's New World Dictionary defines the term "ethics" as a system or code of morals of a particular person, group, or profession.  A society adopts morals to guide its members' conduct, or behavior, in a way that sustains the society.  Many professional societies do the same.  When the Society of Wetland Scientists first came into being, one of the more important things that they did was to codify a Code of Ethics.  The Code designed to assure that members of the Society meet a level of moral conduct that leads to an ethically fair, reasonable, and academically sound basis for the practice of wetland science and management.  With that in mind, the SWS Professional Certification Program (SWS-PCP) adopted a similar Code of Ethics, and established an Ethics Committee to oversee potential violations of the Code.  This Code was designated to assure that those individuals certified by SWS-PCP as Professional Wetland Scientists or as Wetland Professionals in Training meet that level.  The purpose of this forum is to continue a discussion of the role of ethics in the SWS-PCP community that began at the Sacramento meeting in 2007.  The Forum will include a representative from the academic, consulting, development, legal, and regulatory communities.  presentations will discuss the formation of the SWS-PCP ethics criteria and standing rules, the importance of ethics criteria to the business and regulatory community, and the legal ramifications involved in enforcing ethics complaints and penalties.  Audience participation and questions will be encouraged.

Panelists  are:

Dr. James Perry, Secretary-General SWS-PCP, Professor of Marine Science, Virginia Institute of Marine Science

Mr. Jim Wiggins, President, ASTI

Ms. Kimberly Connor, Esq., Associate Professor of Law, University of South Carolina School of Law

Mr. Steve Martin, Corps Institute for Water Resources, ℅U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Norfolk, Virginia

PANEL DISCUSSION: Global Climate Change and the Future Direction of Wetland Restoration - New Perspectives from SER

Organized by: Kevin Erwin (KLErwin@environment.com) and Sasha Alexander (sasha@ser.org) and the Society for Ecological Restoration

Climate change can be expected to act in conjunction with a range of other stressors, many of which, depending on the region, are a concern for wetlands and their water resources.  Wetland systems are vulnerable and particularly susceptible to changes in both the quantity and quality of water supply.  It appears that climate change will have its most pronounced effect on wetlands through alterations in hydrological regimes - specifically, the nature and variability of the hydroperiod and the number and severity of extreme events.  As the underlying fundamentals of wetland ecosystems and mega-watersheds continue to experience change, restoration scientists and practitioners have begun to re-examine the concepts of planning, goals, and wetland management.  The effects of climate change probably will be exacerbated by other human-induced stressors such as unsustainable development and agricultural conversion to increase the loss, degradation and transformation of wetlands around the world.  As a result, important provisioning and regulating services provided by both coastal and interior wetlands are being threatened as never before.  In the future, wetland restoration may become a critical management tool to mitigate the impacts of climate change by replacing lost ecosystems and providing buffers to damaged ecosystems.  The Society for Ecological Restoration (SER) International is now in the process of revisiting a number of important concepts and paradigms for ecological restoration in the face of global climate change and other anthropogenic disturbances. The intent of this panel is to address the role of restoration and adaptive management techniques in promoting ecosystem resilience given the increased levels of stress and uncertainty due to climate change and unrelenting human pressures.  The panel will feature short presentations, case studies, and audience participation.

Panelists are:

Keith Bowers, President of Biohabitats, Inc. and Vice Chair of the Society for Ecological Restoration

Kevin L. Erwin, President and Principal Ecologist, Kevin L. Erwin  Consulting Ecologist, Inc.

William J. Platt, Professor of Ecology and Conservation Biology, Louisiana State University

William J. Mitsch, Distinguished Professor of Environment and Natural Resources at Ohio State University and Editor-in-Chief of Ecological Engineering, the Journal of Ecosystem Restoration