9th INTECOL International Wetlands Conference

9th INTECOL International Wetlands Conference: Wetlands in a Complex World, June 3-8, 2012, in Orlando, Florida
 
http://conference.ifas.ufl.edu/INTECOL/
 
http://conference.ifas.ufl.edu/INTECOL/flyer.pdf
 
We are pleased to announce the Society of Wetland Scientists and the Greater Everglades Ecosystem Restoration Conference will meet in conjunction with INTECOL 9, and their presentations on planning, policy and science will be integrated into the program. We welcome our colleagues to this premier event – the largest wetlands conference in the world.
 
See Agenda at:
http://conference.ifas.ufl.edu/INTECOL/Agenda.pdf
 
Jane Awl will present on the 2011 NSDI CAP project titled "Wetland Mapping Standard Implementation, Outreach and Training Materials."
 
Date: Tuesday, June 5, 2012
Time: 10:40am
Session: (48) Wetlands: Extension/Outreach
Title: Jane Awl, Modernizing U.S. National Standards for the Classification and Mapping of Wetlands
Abstract: http://www.certain.com/system/accounts/register123/uofflaifas/events/events/1201a/UserFiles/awl.doc

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Modernizing U.S. National Standards for the Classification and Mapping of Wetlands
 
Jane Awl(1), Bill O. Wilen(2), Lawrence R. Handley(3) and John M. Galbraith(4)
 
1 Wetland Mapping Consortium (WMC), Knoxville,TN, USA
2 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Wetlands Inventory, Arlington, VA, USA
3 U.S.Geological Survey, National Wetlands Research Center, Lafayette, LA, USA
4 Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
 
This presentation will explore the status of the U.S. Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) 1996 National Wetlands Classification Standard, and 2009 NationalWetlands Mapping Standard. The Wetland Mapping Consortium, formed in 2009 in partnership with the Association of State Wetland Managers (ASWM) and VirginiaTech, is assisting in the maintenance and implementation of the nationalwetlands standards through the development of discussion groups, webinars, training, collaborative tools, and other online resources concerning the technical issues related to wetlands inventory mapping and remote sensing.  
 
The Wetlands Classification Standard is based on "Classification of Wetlands and Deepwater Habitats of the United States" by L.M. Cowardin, V. Carter, F.C. Golet, and E.T. LaRoe, which was published by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1979 (FWS/OBS-79/31, 131pp.). A maintenance review of the Wetlands Classification Standard was initiated in 2010 by the FGDC Wetlands Subcommittee. The wetlands classification standard has been newly re-formatted and updated to be consistent with more recent FGDC standards. How these changes may affect the users of the wetlands standards will be discussed.
 
A key issue identified in the implementation planning for the Wetlands Mapping Standardwas the lack of nationally-accepted conventions for creating wetland site names and other stable unique identifiers (such as numbers and codes) to allow individual wetland sites to be more effectively tracked, monitored and reported on over time. Such conventions are needed to enhance system interoperability between federal agencies, states, tribes, and contracted partners, in order to facilitate data sharing at a national scale. Additionally, capabilities for associating wetland geographic data with other data sets (such as water quality and monitoring data) may be enhanced, expanding the possibilities for analysis.The affected wetland science community may benefit from the increased availability of wetland information for analyzing and identifying solutions to management, conservation and protection issues for wetlands and other water resources. This technical challenge is being investigated in coordination with the maintenance review of the Wetlands Classification Standard and prior to the next maintenance review cycle for the Wetlands Mapping Standard (so more information may be available when the Mapping Standard is updated). The development of technical guidance on this issue will be discussed.
 
Contact Information: Wetland Mapping Consortium (WMC), 422 East Oak Hill Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37917, USA, Phone: 865-607-3149, Fax: 865-637-5713, Email: jane.awl@earthlink.net