Performing a wetland delineation during the initial phases of development is vital to project advancement. The regulatory fines for unmitigated wetland impacts can be extremely expensive and impede progress. With nearly 30 years of experience in delineating wetlands and long-term professional interactions with the Corps of Engineers’ staff biologists and project managers, our delineations are trusted and accurate.
The United State Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) define wetlands as: Those areas that are inundated or saturated by surface or ground water at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and that under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions (The USACE (Federal Register 1982 and the Environmental Protection Agency EPA; Federal Register 1980). Wetlands generally include swamps, marshes, bogs, and similar such areas. According to the Corps of Engineers Wetland Delineation Manual (Technical Report Y-87-1), except in certain rare situations, evidence of a minimum of one positive wetland indicator from each of the following parameters: hydrology, soil, and vegetation, must be found in order to make a positive wetland determination.
Often areas delineated as wetlands lack one of the above parameters, resulting in protecting upland, non-wetland areas. It is our goal to help your project by accurately delineating true wetlands and avoiding upland areas that may possess only one or two of the necessary wetland qualifiers.
