Wetlands | National Assessment | Conservation Effects Assessment Project | Technical Resources

The goal of the Wetlands Component of the Conservation Effects Assessment Project (CEAP) National Assessment is to develop a broad collaborative foundation that facilitates the production and delivery of scientific data, results, and information. Findings will routinely inform conservation decisions affecting wetland ecosystems and the services they provide, particularly focusing on the effects and effectiveness of USDA conservation practices and Farm Bill conservation programs on ecosystem services provided by wetlands in agricultural landscapes.

Approach

Objective 1. Conduct regional collaborative investigations.

Objective 2. Build science collaborations as the foundation of CEAP-Wetlands.

Objective 3. Document the scientific knowledge base and gaps in knowledge to understand the effects of conservation practices and programs on wetland ecosystem services.

Objective 4. Analyze NRCS conservation practice and program data to illustrate applications of data to support CEAP-Wetlands research and monitoring activities.

Objective 5. Develop a national wetlands monitoring process to enhance decisions affecting the conservation of wetlands in agricultural landscapes.

Collaborative Studies

Eleven physiographic regions across the conterminous United States currently comprise the primary geographic focus of activities, particularly collaborative studies.

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Thumbnail image of a color map showing the wetlands component assessment regions

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Thumbnail image of a black and white map showing the wetlands component assessment regions

Prairie Pothole Region, November 2008 (PDF; 0.1 MB)
Mississippi Alluvial Valley, November 2008 (PDF; 0.1 MB)
The High Plains, November 2008 (PDF; 0.1 MB)
Central Valley of California/Upper Klamath River Basin (the Upper Klamath River Basin lies within a portion of the Pacific Northwest region), November 2008 (PDF; 0.1 MB)
Gulf-Atlantic Rolling Plain and Coastal Flats (Mid-Atlantic geographic focus), November 2008 (PDF; 0.1 MB)
Gulf-Atlantic Rolling Plain and Coastal Flats (Southeast States focus), November 2008 (PDF; 0.1 MB)
Glaciated Interior Plains, November 2008 (PDF; 0.1 MB)

In addition, collaborative studies are underway in several of these regions to support development of simulation modeling and forecasting capability and investigate remote sensing technologies to capture model data (i.e., the Integrated Landscape Model, ILM) to quantify changes in ecosystem services as a result of conservation practices and programs, climate change and other drivers of ecosystem change. Currently, studies to develop the ILM are underway in the:

Integrated Landscape Monitoring - Prairie Potholes Pilot: Tier II Study Plan, September 2008 (PDF; 1.2 MB)
Mississippi Alluvial Valley (study plan coming in the near future)
Choptank River Watershed (within the Mid-Atlantic geographic focus), November 2008 (PDF; 0.1 MB)

The U.S. Geological Survey is leading the research in the Prairie Pothole Region and Mississippi Alluvial Valley, and the USDA Agricultural Research Service Hydrology and Remote Sensing Lab is leading the Choptank River Watershed study. The goal is to eventually produce modeling, forecasting and data capture capability as part of a nationally-extensive, regionally-specific monitoring process.

More information on the CEAP-Wetlands approach and timeframe of activities is available in the work plan

CEAP Wetlands Work Plan, October 2008 (PDF; 0.5 MB)

Study Plans and Reports

Prairie Pothole Region Study Plan: "Impact of U.S. Department of Interior and U.S. Department of Agriculture Programs on Ecological Services Derived from Restored Prairie Wetlands and Adjacent Grasslands", USGS, May 2004 (PDF; 1.0 MB)
Ecosystem Services Derived from Wetland Conservation Practices in the United States Prairie Pothole Region with an Emphasis on the U.S. Department of Agriculture Conservation Reserve and Wetlands Reserve Programs, February 2008 (0.1 MB)
Effects of Conservation Programs on Amphibians in Seasonal Wetlands of the Prairie Pothole Region's Glaciated Plain: FY 2006 Progress Report, May 2007 (PDF; 1.0 MB)
Effects of Conservation Programs on Amphibians in Seasonal Wetlands of the Prairie Pothole Region's Glaciated Plain: FY 2005 Progress Report, January 18, 2006 (PDF; 1.0 MB)
Study Plan: Effects of Conservation Programs on Amphibians in Seasonal Wetlands of the Prairie Pothole Region's Glaciated Plain, July 2005 (PDF; 0.9 MB)
Interim Report – Assessment of Ecological Services Derived From U.S. Department of Agriculture Conservation Programs in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley: Regional Estimates and Functional Condition Indicator Models. Interim report to NRCS from USGS, March 2008. (PDF; 1.16 MB)
Influence of U. S. Department of Agriculture Programs and Conservation Practices on Ecological Services Provided by Playa Wetlands in the High Plains, September 4, 2007 (PDF; 1.0 MB)
Proposal: Assessing the Effects of USDA Conservation Practices on Wetland Ecosystem Services California’s Central Valley, July 2008 (PDF; 0.4 MB)

Bibliography/Literature Synthesis

Wetlands in Agricultural Landscapes, September 2006.
This bibliography, developed by the Water Quality Information Center at the National Agricultural Library, is a guide to recent scientific literature covering environmental aspects of wetlands in agricultural landscapes. The purpose of the bibliography is to highlight research findings in two main areas: (1) the effect of conservation practices (and other agricultural activities) on wetlands and (2) the environmental effects of wetlands as conservation practices (including constructing and restoring wetlands). The bibliography will also facilitate the identification of knowledge gaps regarding effects of conservation practices on ecosystem services provided by wetlands in agricultural landscapes, and help identify where research is needed.

The Ecological Society of America, the Forest Service, and regional scientists from universities and other federal agencies are well under way in development of volume 1 of a literature synthesis on wetlands in agricultural landscapes. The synthesis brings together published information on the effects of conservation practices and programs on ecosystem services provided by wetlands in agricultural landscapes in eight geographic areas. A non-technical version of the synthesis will be published by the Ecological Society of America. Publication of the documents is expected in 2010.

Technical Resources

Conservation Effects Assessment Project (CEAP)

CEAP National Assessment: Wetlands