Environment - Wetlands

Tools, Forms, Guidance, and Links for Delineators

• WSDOT Delineation Guidance
• Field Data Forms: Delineation and Rating
• Vegetation Tools
• Soil Tools
• Hydrology Tools
• Delineation Methods
• Templates
• Functions Assessment/Characterization

WSDOT Delineation Guidance 

• WSDOT Guidance on Rapanos Decision
• WSDOT Wetland Delineation Standard Operating Procedures (pdf 42 kb)
• WSDOT Wetlands Guidance on Cultural Resources (pdf 9 kb)
• WSDOT Sensitive Areas Naming Convention (pdf 12 kb)
• WSDOT Guidance on Delineating Wetlands, Streams, and Buffers adjacent to road prisms (pdf 72 kb)
• WSDOT Guidance on Cut Slopes and Wetlands (pdf 70 kb)
• WSDOT Guidance on Buffers Across Roadways (pdf 19 kb)
• WSDOT Guidance on Soil Sampling For Texture and Fertility (pdf 27 kb)
• WSDOT Guidance on Roadside Ditches and the Talent Decision
• WSDOT and Isolated Wetlands (pdf 58 kb)
• Department of Ecology’s Guidance on Buffer Widths (pdf 201 kb)

Field Data Forms: Delineation and Rating 

WSDOT condensed-formatting versions for easy field use and electronic forms in reports.

• Wetland Determination - Data Form (doc 597 kb) Includes form for 1987 Routine; Arid West Region Supplement; and Western Mountains, Valleys and Coasts Region Supplement. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, format modified by WSDOT) (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, format modified by WSDOT)
• Washington State Wetland Rating System short form for Western Washington (doc 272 kb) (Hruby 2004, updated July 2006, format modified by WSDOT).
• Washington State Wetland Rating System short form for Eastern Washington (doc 273 kb) (Hruby 2004, updated July 2006, format modified by WSDOT).

The full version of the Department of Ecology's Wetland Rating System Forms can be found below.

• Washington State Wetland Rating System for Western Washington Revised (pdf 3.5 mb) (Annotated) (Hruby 2004, updated July 2006).
• Washington State Wetland Rating System for Eastern Washington Revised (pdf 2.6 mb) (Annotated) (Hruby 2004, updated March 2007).

WSDOT also applies any applicable county and city wetland rating systems defined in their Critical Areas Ordinances.

Vegetation Tools 

• National list of plant species that occur in wetlands: Northwest (Region 9) (Reed, 1988) and Northwest (Region 9) Supplement (Reed et al., 1993)
• Common plant indicator status list for fieldbook (pdf 577 kb)(WSDOT 2007): Field notebook cheat-sheet of the indicator status of common plants. User Notes (pdf 12 kb)
• Plant Scientific Name Auto Text Formatting Tool (WSDOT 2007): E-mail WSDOT Wetlands Program to receive an auto text file that inserts the scientific name (common name, indicator status, other names, nativity) from designated plant code. Please read instructions on how to install autotext (pdf 25 kb).
• Classification of Wetlands and Deepwater Habitats of the United States (Cowardin et al., 1979)
• A Hydrogeomorphic Classification for Wetlands (Brinson 1993)
• National Wetland Inventory (NWI)

Soil Tools 

• Soil Surveys Online (USDA-NRCS) available for most areas
• Official Soil Survey Descriptions (USDA-NRCS) most current official descriptions for soil surveys.
• County Hydric Soils Lists (USDA-NRCS)
• Field Indicators of Hydric Soils in the United States (Version 6.0; NRCS, 2006)
• Field Book for Sampling and Describing Soils (Version 2.0; NRCS, 2002)
• NRCS Hydric Soils (NRCS)
• NRCS Washington state (NRCS)
• WSDOT Guidance on Soil Sampling For Texture and Fertility (pdf 27 kb)

Hydrology Tools 

• Puget Sound River History Project: Historical information about Puget Sound's lowland rivers and estuaries, including aerial photos, field notes and topographic maps.
• Ground Water and Surface Water - A Single Resource (USGS, 1998)
• Wetlands Research Project Technical Notes: Water-budgeting, installing monitoring wells, etc. See Sections HS: Hydraulics and HY: Hydrology (USACE)
• USGS real-time streamflow data for Washington (USGS)
• Precipitation Data 1961-2005 (Western Regional Climate Center) or 1996-2008 with graphs (University of Washington, NASA, and K-12 Educators)

Delineation Methods: Approved for Washington State 

• Washington State Identification and Delineation Manual (Ecology 1997)
• Corps of Engineers Wetland Delineation Manual (on-line edition)
• Arid West Interim Regional Supplement (Dec. 2006). See the Special Public Notice. Supplement data forms and indicators must be used for wetland delineations submitted to the Corps or Ecology.
• Western Mountains, Valleys, and Coast Interim Regional Supplement (April, 2008). See the Special Public Notice. Supplement data forms and indicators must be used for wetland delineations submitted to the Corps or Ecology.
• Wetland Mitigation in Washington State (2006) Mitigation guidance developed by Ecology, the US Environmental Protection Agency and the US Army Corps of Engineers.  Also known as Joint Guidance.

Templates 

• Wetland and Stream Assessment Report Template (doc 457 kb)
• Generic Scope of Work for Delineation (doc 74 kb)

Functions Characterization/Assessment 

• Wetland Functions Characterization Tool for Linear Projects (pdf 119 Kb) Also known as the Wetland Functions Best Professional Judgment (BPJ) Tool.
• Summary of Functions and Values Form (doc 32 Kb) (Use this form to summarize wetland functions for the BPJ Tool.)
• Washington State Wetland Function Assessment Method (WFAM)(Ecology 1991). Used when specifically required by regulatory agencies.