Don Phillips

S.W. Cole Engineering

6 Liberty Drive

Bangor, ME 04401

(w) 848-5714; (h) 525-0930

FAX 848-2403

Peter Tischbein

E-Pro

41 Anthony Avenue

Augusta, ME 04330

(w) 621-7094

FAX 626-9600

Karen Bolstridge

HC 65; Box 3574

Lincoln, ME 04457

(h) 738-5080

Dale Brewer

Owen Haskell, Inc.

16 Casco St.

Portland, ME 04101-2979

(w) 774-0424

Steve Pelletier

Woodlot Alternatives, Inc.

122 Main St., #3

Topsham, ME 04083

FAX 729-2715

Paul Corey

99 Boutelle Rd.

Bangor, ME 04401

FAX - call first

Cole Peters

Duke Engineering & Services, Inc.

500 Washington Ave.

Portland, ME 04103

(w) 775-4495

FAX 775-1031

Gary Emond

E-Pro

41 Anthony Avenue

Augusta, ME 04330

(w) 621-4479

FAX 626-9600

Steve Walker

Woodlot Alternatives, Inc.

122 Main St., #3

Topsham, ME 04086

(w) 729-1199

FAX 729-2715

David Cowan

Duke Engineering & Services, Inc.

500 Washington Ave.

Portland, ME 04103

(w) 775-4495

FAX 775-1031

The offices of President-Elect, Treasurer, Membership Chair, and Ethics Chair are up for election in 2000. An election will be held at the Wednesday, February 23, 2000 business meeting in Augusta. The slate of candidates is given below. As always, nominations will be accepted from the floor.

President-Elect (1 yr.) - Jim Boyle (Boyle Associates)

Treasurer (2 yr.) - Curt Bohlen (Bates College)

Membership Chair (2 yr) - Karol Worden (Woodlot Alternatives)

Ethics Chair (2 yr) - Alan Haberstock (Kleinschmidt Associates) or Lauren Stockwell (Eco-Analysts)

Wetlands Legislative Update

by Gary Emond

This year was "fairly" quiet on the legislative front until recently. Specifically, the Maine Board of Environmental Protection (BEP) enacted changes to Chapter 305, Permit-By-Rule (PBR) Standards on June 1, 1999, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency promulgated a new set of rules regarding Phase II of their storm water program in October, 1999. And, as most of you are aware, the Army Corps administered state General Programmatic Permit 39 is up for renewal in October of this year.

At the state level, there were numerous changes to the PBR Standards. For the most part, many of the changes went uncontested with the exception of a couple. Section 9, Crossings (utility lines, pipes, and cables), and Section 10, Stream Crossings (bridges, culverts, and fords) were amended with stricter regulations. These changes made projects that involve multiple resource crossings ineligible under PBR, and required that such projects obtain individual permits under the Natural Resources Protection Act. These stricter standards sparked strong protest within the logging industry and forced closer examination of the changes. Currently, the DEP is in the process of changing the new Section 9 and 10 standards back to the way they were prior to June, 1999.

In October, 1999, the EPA enacted Phase II of the storm water program to enhance the control of storm water runoff from small municipalities in urbanized areas and small construction sites. Phase I of the program, which was promulgated in 1990, required that large municipal storm water systems, some industrial activities, and construction sites larger than five acres be permitted. Phase II will require that small municipal storm water systems (serving less than 100,000 customers) and small construction sites ranging from one to five acres obtain NPDES permits by March 10, 2003. The municipalities and construction projects that will be eligible for regulation under Phase II will have to comply with the Phase I rules.

Another major legislative issue that may have implications regarding Section 404 of the Clean Water Act is the renewal of General Permit 39. Currently, the ACOE is developing draft versions and distributing them to various resource agencies. Some of the major changes that are being considered may involve requiring the submittal of project notices to native tribal governments, a section that references vernal pool habitat, and an increase in the lower impact limit that triggers a multiple federal resource agency screening. These and any other potential changes are being closely examined at the regulatory level, and public notices soliciting comments may not be filed for several more months.

Now that I’ve sparked new excitement and revealed to all of you a new dimension to the wonderfully exciting world of environmental legislation, I leave you brimming with anticipation for the annual meeting where I will discuss the above topics in greater detail.

by Dave Cowan

Guidelines for the submittal of data forms and supporting documentation for wetland delineations are now being circulated by Maine DEP. The guidelines are  intended to clarify DEP expectations for wetland delineations performed to meet the requirements of Tier I, Tier II and Tier III application review under NRPA. They were developed following the recommendations of an ad-hoc committee convened by MAWS to address concerns about inconsistencies in delineation documentation, delineation quality, and DEP requirements. The guidelines consist of a cover page (text reprinted below) followed by a copy of the delineation Performance Standards and sample plot forms issued by the New England Army Corps in 1995. A copy of the guidelines is now being included with blank permit applications provided by DEP. For further information contact Bob Stratton at Maine DEP, 287-6114.

The following is intended to clarify wetland delineation and submittal requirements for projects under the Natural Resources Protection Act (38 MRSA, §§ 480-A et seq.) (NRPA) and the Maine Wetland Protection Rules (Chapter 310) (Wetland Rules). A common source of rejected wetland applications has been inadequate delineation materials. The Department hopes that this clarification will enable applicants and consultants to prepare more complete application submittals for regulatory review. Failure to submit necessary information will result in rejection of the application or denial of the proposal. Applicants and consultants may contact the Department prior to application submittal to discuss the following requirements as they pertain to specific sites.

TIER III (full NRPA) applications involving freshwater or coastal wetlands must have wetland boundaries delineated by a qualified wetland professional according to the 1987 Corps of Engineers Wetlands Delineation Manual (Technical Report Y-87-1) as clarified in Performance Standards and Supplemental Definitions for use with the 1987 Corps Manual (August 1, 1995), and Version II of the Field Indicators For Identifying Hydric Soils In New England (New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission, July 1998). The Performance Standards document and delineation sample plot log forms are included in this packet. Delineation sample plot logs including vegetation, soil, and hydrologic data must be submitted with the application and required wetland reports. Sample plots must be located in upland and wetland areas in close proximity to established boundaries in order to document the wetland scientist’s boundary determinations. Ideally, the upland and wetland plot centers should be located within 15 feet of each other. The number and proximity of necessary sample plots is variable depending upon the wetland’s size, complexity, integration with varying wetland types (emergent, scrub-shrub, forested, etc.), and other site specific characteristics, but a minimum of one upland and one wetland plot log must be completed and submitted. Sample plots are typically only necessary to characterize portions of a wetland proposed to be impacted and do not need to encompass entire extensive wetland areas that will not be impacted. Formal delineations must be conducted on each individual wetland and wetland type to be impacted. A site plan must be submitted showing wetland boundaries, types of wetlands, sample plot locations, the proposed impact area and development plan, dimensions of features, streams and other natural resources. In that natural areas are evolving resources, wetland boundary delineations that are more than a few years old or in extremely dynamic wetlands must be validated by a wetland scientist. Because delineations only describe conditions at the wetland boundary, the Wetland Rules (Section 9B) require a Site Characterization Report outlining the overall characteristics of the wetland, including water depths, vegetation, and fauna.

TIER II Freshwater Wetland applications must also have wetland boundaries delineated by a qualified wetland professional according to the information above. Sample plot logs do not need to be submitted with the application. However, the Department may require delineation logs to be submitted on some projects, depending upon the type of resources to be impacted, the amount of proposed impact, or the nature of the proposal.

TIER I Freshwater Wetland applications do not require wetland boundaries to be formally delineated. However, site plans are required that indicate the extent and types of wetlands involved, the proposed impact area and development plan, dimensions of features, streams and other natural resources.

All TIER Wetland applications must demonstrate that proposed wetland impacts have been avoided and minimized to the maximum extent practicable (NRPA 480-X.6, Wetland Rules Section 5). TIER II and III wetland applications must further address this through an Alternatives Analysis (Wetland Rules Section 9). Refer to the 1995 Performance Standards document, the NRPA, and the Wetland Rules for further guidance on wetland data and report requirements.

Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Stewart Fefer, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Project Leader for the Gulf of Maine Coastal Program, has been named the 1999 recipient of the Chuck Yeager Award - a prestigious award presented annually by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to recognize individuals for superior on-the-ground resource conservation achievements. The award is named for American test pilot Chuck Yeager whose career epitomizes scientific and technical achievement. A $20,000 grant accompanying the award will be directed to conservation projects of Fefer’s choice.

According to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Executive Director Amos Eno, "Stewart Fefer has worked tirelessly on behalf of nationally important fish and wildlife resources in coastal Maine. He has developed innovative partnerships with National Wildlife Refuges, state agencies, statewide conservation groups, land trusts and angling clubs to restore and permanently protect coastal nesting islands, coastal wetlands, and rivers harboring Atlantic salmon and other migratory fish."

By integrating the collective strengths of all conservation partners, and by retaining a flexible, voluntary approach to conservation, Fefer has translated his ambitious vision for coastal Maine into thousands of acres of restored and protected habitat for waterbirds, migratory fish, and endangered species. Since 1991, the Gulf of Maine Coastal Program, led by Fefer, has played an active role in partnerships to:

permanently protect 31 coastal nesting islands;

permanently protect 12,500 acres of coastal wetlands, upland buffers, and riparian habitat;

restore nesting seabird habitat on 12 islands;

restore 51 wetlands;

remove five dams that once blocked migratory fish; and

reduce sedimentation to protect spawning and rearing habitat on Atlantic salmon rivers at five sites.

"Together," Fefer acknowledges, "we have protected and restored key habitat that none of us could have protected by working alone."

Fefer has been extremely effective in accessing federal grants and identifying matching non-federal funds. Thanks to Fefer’s vision and leadership, the Gulf of Maine Coastal Program has been a driving force behind four large partnership grants funded through the Natural Fish and Wildlife Foundation - the Atlantic Salmon Collaborative, the Maine Habitat Restoration Partnership, the Maine Wildlife Habitat Initiative, and the Gulf of Maine Seabird Island Restoration Project. In addition, Fefer has coordinated partnerships to successfully implement three large grants and one small grant through the North American Waterfowl Management Plan, seven National Wetland Conservation Grants, and a variety of other grants funded directly through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Casco Bay National Estuary Program, and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. In total, Fefer has leveraged more than $26 million in habitat protection and restoration funding in coastal Gulf of Maine.

Fefer provides and unique and powerful set of skills that have helped him lead and succeed. He combines his considerable knowledge of conservation biology with a lifetime of experience in coastal Maine, a practical knowledge of funding sources, a commitment to work in partnerships, an understanding of the importance of targeted outreach, and a passion to protect and restore our coastal environment, for fish, for wildlife — and for all of us.

Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Two anonymous donors contributed $100,000 a piece to help purchase and protect the Hammond property, a 125 tract of mixed hardwood forest and tidal wetlands in the heart of the Lower Kennebec River - Merrymeeting Bay region. Additional funds from The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (MDIFW) completed the purchase. The State of Maine now owns the Hammond property and MDIFW will protect and manage the property for its fish and wildlife values in perpetuity. This is the latest conservation success story of the Maine Wetlands Protection Coalition, a consortium of federal and state agencies, national and statewide conservation groups, local land trusts, and private landowners.

To date, Coalition members have protected over 2,000 acres, focusing on important habitat for waterfowl, shorebirds, raptors and all nine species of migratory fish found in Maine waters. "The interest of landowners and private citizens, combined with the support of all members of the Maine Wetlands Protection Coalition, has propelled this program," says Will Brune of TNC. While TNC negotiated this most recent purchase on behalf of MDIFW, all nine members of the Coalition have played key roles in the 13 projects competed so far. "All of these lands, which are owned locally or by the state, have been acquired with federal funds from the North American Wetlands Conservation Act, matched with generous contributions from local landowners, private citizens, and Coalition members," explains Ken Elowe, Director of Resource Management for MDIFW.

The expansive tidal marshes of the Lower Kennebec River/Merrymeeting Bay region offer feeding, resting, and wintering grounds for thousands of migratory waterfowl, wading birds, and shorebirds. From upland to wetland, the properties secure vital nesting sites for osprey and bald eagles and feeding habitat for aquatic species such as rare sturgeon and striped bass.

"The natural and scenic values of the lower Kennebec and Merrymeeting Bay are important to a host of people - landowners, duckhunters, birdwaters, kayakers, canoeists, fishermen, and the local business people supported by all the recreational users," says Jack Witham of the Lower Kennebec Regional Land Trust. "As members of the Coalition, we are working to protect this wonderful area before its vital resources are compromised by the increasing development pressures," says Caroline Norden of Maine Coast Heritage Trust.

The acquisition of the Hammond property completes the first phase of the Coalition’s North American Wetlands conservation Act grant requirements. The Coalition has already received additional federal funds for the second phase. Federal funds require local matching funds, and Coalition members plan to continue working in concert with willing landowners to acquire key wetland parcels along the Lower Kennebec and its tributaries. Coalition partners expect to expand habitat protection initiatives to Merrymeeting Bay.

"Together," says Stewart Fefer from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Gulf of Maine Program, "we are accomplishing an ambitious conservation effort, protecting a sizeable corridor of wetland habitat that will support the wetland-dependent fish and wildlife of this region generations to come."

Members of the Maine Wetlands Protection Coalition:

by Dave Cowan and Cole Peters

The number of potentially useful websites out there is truly phenomenal (even for our wet little corner of the web!), so we won’t try to list or evaluate all of them in The Obligate. Nonetheless, listed below are a few standard reference sites that you may want to bookmark if you haven’t already. We also welcome your suggestions, and reviews, of sites you have visited and found either useful or perhaps disappointing. Send to the MAWS editor listed on Page 1.

Environmental Law Institute’s Nat’l Wtld Newsletter Index

www.eli.org/bookstore/nwindex.htm

Hydric Soils Information

www.statlab.iastat.edu/soils/hydric

Society of Wetland Scientists

www.sws.org

US Army Corps of Engineers Waterways Experiment Station

www.wes.army.mil/el/wetlands.html

US Department of Agriculture’s Wetland Science Institute

www.pwrc.usgs.gov/wli/

US Environmental Protection Agency

www.epa.gov/owow/wetlands/wetline.html

US Fish and Wildlife National Wetlands Inventory

www.nwi.fws.gov

and last but not least...MAWS

www.mainewetlands.org

by Dave Cowan

It has truly been years in the making but at long last Flora of the Northeast, A Manual of the Vascular Flora of New England and Adjacent New York, by Dennis W. Magee and the late Harry E. Ahles, was released this past fall. Destined to become a standard for northeastern botanists and naturalists for years to come, this 1,213 page volume includes more than 2,400 range maps and 995 line drawings and was designed to function as both a reference work and a year-round field manual. A particularly attractive feature is the use of vegetative as well as flowering and fruiting characteristics to facilitate identification of specimens outside the flowering season, or on the basis of limited information - circumstances that are often overlooked by more academically-oriented works. Species accounts include information on synonymy, habitats, and range as well as material of interest to the field botanist and naturalist such as wetland indicator status, threatened/endangered listings, wildlife and human food value, and medicinal and poisonous properties.

Work on this flora began back in the 1970s when Ahles, then curator of the University of Massachusetts Herbarium and an instructor in field identification of vascular plants, prepared botanical keys to various plant groups as a teaching aid. After Ahles’ untimely passing in 1981, Magee, a vice president of Normandeau Associates, Inc., Environmental Consultants based in Bedford, NH, took on the work of fashioning the keys drafted by his former teacher and mentor into a finished flora. This consisted of testing, amending and fine-tuning the keys, updating nomenclature and species distributions, preparing maps and overseeing the preparation of illustrations, augmenting the keys with descriptions of families and genera, and writing all other sections that are necessary parts of a finished flora. The single hardcover volume sells for $69.95 and is available from the University of Massachusetts Press, Box 429, Amherst MA 01004.

by Dave Cowan / Wende Mahaney

A publication entitled Managing Common Reed (Phragmites
australis) in Massachusetts - An Introduction to the Species
and Control Techniques was released by the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service in December 1998. Authored by Ralph Tiner, this document may be of interest to individuals involved in wetland management or restoration in New England. For a copy of this publication, or for a copy of the USFWS’ complete "wetland publications list", write to:

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Ecological Services (NWI)

300 Westgate Center Drive

Hadley, MA 01035

by Dave Cowan

The latest conservation plan for Maine wetlands is reportedly creeping its way through the State Planning Office toward final publication, date unknown. A substantially-completed draft was circulated last April and, according to an inside source, few changes are anticipated. Nonetheless, the document appears to be stalled somewhere in the final revision/review or approval process, most likely a victim of staffing limitations and/or more immediate priorities. In the meantime, MAWS members interested in the draft findings and recommendations may be able to obtain a copy of the latest draft from SPO.

by Karen Bolstridge

MAWS is pleased to announce that the new website has been tentatively completed. The site may be visited at www.mainewetlands.org. Please visit the site and let the Executive Committee know of any errors or helpful suggestions.

by Don Phillips

MAWS will be participating in the Finance Authority of Maine (FAME) "College Awareness Program" this spring at three locations around the State of Maine. The purpose of this program is to introduce young students and their families to the importance of education beyond high school. MAWS will be providing at least two members at each exhibit’s "Job Opportunities Booth" to allow students in grades 6, 7, and 8 to interview wetland scientists about how and why we chose our careers.

The first exhibit will be held on May 21 at the University of Southern Maine campus in Gorham. The second will be held on May 25 at the University of Maine campus in Presque Isle, while the third will be held on May 28 at the Augusta Civic Center.

At this time, all three exhibits appear to have enough volunteers from the MAWS ranks, but if you still want to volunteer at any of these locations call Don Phillips at 848-5714.

Vernal Pools of the Northeast: A Symposium Exploring Vernal Pool Science, Conservation, and Education

by Stafford Madison

This two-day symposium will feature ongoing research pertaining to vernal pool habitats and associated fauna; conservation efforts around New England and beyond; and examples of innovative educational programs. Friday March 31 to Saturday April 1, 2000 at the University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI. Cost is $32. For more information, contact Stafford Madison, USEPA, (617) 918-1622, madison.stafford@epa.gov.

All correspondence to MAWS should be sure to include the designation PMB 103 (Private Mail Box 103). The U. S. Postal Service has informed us that our mail will not be delivered without this designation.

Volume 9 of The Obligate is published by Duke Engineering & Services, Inc. (DE&S), 500 Washington Avenue, Portland, ME 04103, 207-775-4495, fax -1031, David Cowan, editor. Minor Revision were made to the document to accommodate website format by Karen Bolstridge. Contributions and commentary are actively sought and encouraged. Please submit via e-mail if possible.