MassDEP Wetlands Program Education and Outreach

View education materials prepared by the MassDEP Wetlands Program, including YouTube videos, factsheets, outreach materials, and the WPA 101 Library.

WPA 101 Library

Below is a collection of presentations in PDF for use by Conservation Commissions, staff, consultants, and the general public to better understand the Massachusetts Wetlands Protection Act at MGL Ch 30, section 40 and the Regulations at 310 CMR 10.00. This collection of presentations was developed by many MassDEP analysts in the Wetlands Program over 25 years.

WPA 101 Library
1	Introduction to the MA WPA: Act and Regulations*
2	Introduction to the MA WPA: Administration*
3	Introduction to the MassDEP Stormwater Standards*
4	Application of the MassDEP Stormwater Standards*
5	Introduction to the MA WPA: Coastal Resource Areas (Overview)*
6	10.25 Land Under the Ocean & 10.26 Designated Port Areas*
7	10.27 Coastal Beaches*
8	10.28 Coastal Dunes*
9	10.29 Barrier Beaches*
10	10.30 Coastal Banks and 10.31 Rocky Intertidal Shores*
11	Introduction to the MA WPA: Inland Resource Areas (Overview)*
12	10.54 Bank and 10.56 Land Under Water*
13	10.55 BVW*
14	10.57 Land Subject to Flooding*
15	10.58 Riverfront Area*
16	Signing up for eDEP (Commissions)
17	Signing up for eDEP (Applicants)
18	Using eDEP for OOCs & ORADs
19	Using eDEP for RDAs & DOAs
20	Using eDEP to file an NOI
21	Basic BVW Delineation*
22	BVW Delineation*
23	Agricultural Exemptions & Limited Projects*
24	Review of Forest Cutting Plans*

* In process

Questions? Please contact your MassDEP Wetlands Circuit Rider.

Other Education and Outreach Materials

• Factsheet: Summary of 2014 Revisions to Wetlands, Waterways, and Water Quality Certification Regulations

  Revisions to Massachusetts' Wetlands, Waterways, and Water Quality Certification regulations to streamline permitting procedures while maintaining environmental protection. Revised October 2014.

• Municipal Compliance Fact Sheet: Wetlands

  What municipal officials need to know about wetlands protection and permitting requirements.

• Protecting Wetlands in Massachusetts

  What are wetlands, and how MassDEP works to protect them from pollution and loss - an overview of the Wetlands Program and how it works with communities and other interests.

• Wetlands: Our "Common Wealth"

  What wetlands are, their importance to the environment and economy, and what we can all do together to preserve and protect them.

• 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.

• Wetlands & Waterways Presentations and Fact Sheets

  Wetlands- and Waterways-related presentations and other materials from workshops, conferences, and meetings.

• Rivers Protection Act Q&A

  Answers to frequently asked questions about the Massachusetts Rivers Protection Act of 1996.

• Wetlands Replication Study

  Report of a 1998 study on wetland replication in 44 Massachusetts towns.

• 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.

• Inland and Coastal Wetlands of Massachusetts: Status and Trends

  This report assesses the status and trends of wetland resources statewide from 1990 to 2017, using five main data sources. March 2019.

• Response to Eastern Equine Encephalitis Virus Mosquito Control Aerial Spray Events 2024: A Summary of the Surface Water Quality Sampling Operations

  This report summarizes MassDEP’s pre- and post-spray monitoring of public water supplies (PWS) as well as post-spray monitoring of non-PWS surface water bodies in conjunction with the emergency response to the Eastern Equine Encephalitis virus mosquito control aerial spray events initiated by MDAR and MADPH in August of 2024. 

YouTube

• How to Identify Zones in the Land Subject to Coastal Storm Flowage (LSCSF) from FEMA Maps
  Rebecca Haney, Coastal Geologist with the MA Office of Coastal Zone Management, Nate Corcoran, Coastal Policy Analyst with the MassDEP Wetlands Program, and Mia McDonald, Training, Outreach & Circuit Rider Coordinator for MassDEP Wetlands present on the FEMA coastal flood zone definitions, how to identify the coastal flood zones in the FEMA Flood Hazard Layer viewer, and provide tips for delineating (or reviewing delineation of) flood zones on site plans. Please email [e-mail] if you would like a PDF of the slides or to have this presentation in your community.
   
• Shore of Change: Coastal Floodplain Resilience 
  Through a 2021 EPA WPWG Grant, MassDEP produced an 8-minute video on the coastal floodplain. The video includes interviews of residents in the coastal floodplains and shows their history and connection to the coastal floodplains and why they value protecting.
   
• Permitting Ecological Restoration Projects under the Wetlands Protection Act
  MassDEP revised the wetlands regulations to encourage wetland restorations to support ecological connectedness and resilience, adaptation to sea level rise, and flood and storm damage protection for private property and public infrastructure. The regulatory process and procedures are explained in this video. (2013 Wetlands Program Development Grant)
   
• The Wetlands Stream Crossing Standards
  
  The Massachusetts Stream Crossing Standards were incorporated into the wetlands regulations to support resilience to stream crossing infrastructure and to help maintain ecosystem integrity for fish and wildlife passage and to promote stream continuity. This video explains the standards for wetland resources that can also help to mitigate riverine flooding due to larger and more frequent storms. (2013 Wetlands Program Development Grant)
   
• Stream Crossing Catastrophe
  
  This video illustrates how an undersized stream crossing can damage roadways that potentially affect public safety and local economies where the crossing serves as a major thoroughfare.
   

• Vulnerable Wetlands (2011 Wetlands Program Development Grant):
  MassDEP received Wetland Program Development grants from the U.S. EPA to create YouTube videos and training for MS4 communities on how to develop and use GIS maps as stormwater management planning tools.

  Vulnerable Wetlands Part 1: What they are and why they are important

  Vulnerable Wetlands Part 2: Stormwater and Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs)

  Vulnerable Wetlands Part 3: Headwater streams and vernal pool clusters

  Vulnerable Wetlands Part 4: GIS maps - vulnerable wetlands index and subwatershed of interest

  Vulnerable Wetlands Part 5: GIS Maps - subwatershed of interest series

  Vulnerable Wetlands Part 6: 10 rules of thumb to protect and restore vulnerable wetlands

Wetlands Circuit Rider Program

Wetlands circuit riders help consultants and municipal officials meet the requirements of the Wetlands Protection Act.

MassDEP's Wetlands Circuit Rider Program