The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Wetlands Program Development Grants (WPDG), funded under 104(b)(3) of the Federal Clean Water Act, has provided funding for many of MassDEP’s innovative projects. These projects enhance and support the Wetlands Program’s goals to assess our state’s wetlands conditions/health through monitoring, research, mapping and to develop science-based regulations, policies and guidance. WPDG’s have also provided initial resources for permit related electronic tools and technical assistance to local officials, applicants, and the general public. The projects listed here, although found elsewhere on MassDEP’s website, demonstrate the depth and breadth of projects resulting from this collaborative effort.
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Massachusetts’ Valuable Coastal Floodplains – An Outreach Initiative – 2021- 2022 WPDG
Project Description, Objectives and Tasks: This grant was recently awarded to MassDEP in Summer 2021. In preparation for and to support the upcoming wetlands regulation revisions that will incorporate new performance standards for Land Subject to Coastal Storm Flowage (LSCSF), also known as the coastal floodplain, and to enable better public understanding of the purpose and goals of protecting that wetlands resource area, MassDEP will produce an outreach-curriculum package focused on reaching a wide public audience. The outreach deliverables will be facilitated by specialists in GIS and Marketing overseen by MassDEP and MCZM staff.
The project tasks and products consist of three interrelated components that will include GIS/ESRI StoryMap showcasing up to six MA coastal floodplain locations in developed, semi-developed, and undeveloped areas, with photographs, including some from before and after past storm events that show the impacts to structures, infrastructure, and natural landforms, for each location. In addition, brochures and infographics will be produced that describe coastal floodplain functions and how they support storm damage prevention, flood control and the state’s climate resiliency effort (e.g., “Rules of Thumb for Protecting the Coastal Floodplain”).
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Facilitating River and Stream Crossings Improvements in Massachusetts - 2019-20 WPDG
Project Description, Objectives and Tasks: This grant involved the development of tools that will help facilitate wetland permitting of river and stream crossing replacement projects to improve aquatic organism passage (AOP) for fish and wildlife statewide and promote resiliency for future flood flows. Many roadway crossings of rivers and streams in Massachusetts are undersized resulting in substantial impacts to fish and wildlife movement and to the survival of organisms and their populations. Additionally, undersized structures lack the resiliency needed to withstand large floods and potential changes in flood flows. This grant is a partnership between MassDEP, USGS, and UMass-Amherst.
There are two projects within this grant: 1) A guidance for local and state regulating authorities and applicants explaining how to apply the wetland regulations and facilitate wetland permitting of river and stream crossing replacements that improve fish and wildlife passage. 2) A feasibility study for the creation of a web-based tool that includes a statewide hydraulic model to determine the optimal replacement crossing structure size that balances maximum habitat connectivity, structural resiliency, and minimizing negative impacts from downstream flooding and property damage. UMass was responsible for Project 1 to develop a simple guidance. USGS conducted the feasibility analysis that supported moving forward with the project.
Following the presentation of results, a concurrent but separately funded task began that includes development of a prototype web based hydraulic tool for a pilot basin. This tool is intended to assist applicants with sizing culverts to be resilient and meet aquatic organism passage standards to the maximum extent practicable.
A feasibility study for developing a statewide hydraulic modeling tool for preliminary culvert designs at stream crossings in Massachusetts (usgs.gov)
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Inland and Coastal Wetlands of Massachusetts: Status and Trends
This report assess the status and trends of wetland resources statewide from 1990 to 2017, using five main data sources. March 2019.
Inland and Coastal Wetlands of Massachusetts: Status and Trends
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Stormwater Management – 2017 WPDG
MassDEP convened an Advisory Committee (AC) to solicit public comment and participation from numerous governmental agencies, development community organizations, environmental organizations, consultant firms, municipalities, and municipal planning associations in preparation for updating the Massachusetts Stormwater Handbook and the Massachusetts Wetlands Protection Act stormwater regulations. All the information is located within the Stormwater Management section will be reorganized to provide a “one-stop” resource for municipalities and MassDOT as they work to comply with the MS4 and TS4 requirements.
https://www.mass.gov/guides/info-details/massachusetts-stormwater-management-updates-advisory-committee
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Wetland Replacement in Massachusetts – 2011 WPDG
This study of wetland replacement was initiated in 2011 to evaluate the success of wetland replacement projects in Massachusetts after the release of the 2002 Massachusetts Inland Wetlands Replication Guidelines. It examines a wide range of wetlands replacement areas that were built as mitigation between 2004 and 2008 in Massachusetts.
YouTube
Wetlands Monitoring & Assessment – 2009-2021
See "Wetlands Monitoring & Assessment" link in Table of Contents on this page.
Hydraulic Assessment of Seven Stream Crossings – 2014 WPDG
Hydraulic Assessment of Existing and Alternative Stream Crossings Providing Fish and Wildlife Passage at Seven Sites in Massachusetts
Mapping and Protecting Vulnerable Wetlands and Stormwater Management Planning Project
These maps show where each community's vulnerable wetlands are located relative to developed sites, so that they can better determine and plan the appropriate placement for, and type of, stormwater-control options to better protect these resources and reduce phosphorus loading to the Charles River. 2011 WPDG.
https://wwww.mass.gov/guides/mapping-and-protecting-vulnerable-wetlands-and-stormwater-management-planning-project
MassDEP's Wetlands Circuit Rider Program
Circuit riders provide technical, administrative, and regulatory assistance to conservation commissions, municipal boards, and consultants, in implementing the provisions of the Wetlands Protection Act. This successful program was developed through an early WPDG grant in the 1990’s and was eventually incorporated into the statewide Wetlands Protection program.
https://www.mass.gov/info-details/massdeps-wetlands-circuit-rider-program