Jurisdictional waters of the United States Wetlands Assessment Analysis and Delineation

Due to the character of the original source materials and the nature of batch digitization, quality control issues may be present in this document. Please report any quality issues you encounter to digital@library.tamu.edu, referencing the URI of the item.Includes bibliographical references: p. 21.To improve and develop my professional skills, a wetland assessment and delineation was performed for Lakewood Heights, a proposed residential subdivision consisting of 133 hectares, more or less, located in northeast Harris County, Texas. The subject property was evaluated for its content of jurisdictional wetlands, based on U.S. Army corps of Engineers criteria, using interpretation of historical aerial photography, topographic maps, hydrology indicators, and data gathered from site reconnaissance activities. The identified wetland areas were delineated as accurately as possible, based on available information, and were mapped on a survey plat of the property. These areas were contrasted with surrounding uplands, which were mapped as well. Broad scale mapping of soil types by the SCS appears to have been moderately accurate. Through site reconnaissance activities, I verified the scs soil mapping, identified previously unmapped hydric soils, and evaluated and documented vegetation communities that further delineated wetland/upland boundaries. By employing the methods outlined in the 1987 Corps of Engineers Delineation manual that call for evaluations of hydric soils, hydrology indicators, and hydrophytic vegetation, I concluded that approximately 14.68 hectares of the subject property were jurisdictional wetlands. The remaining 118.32 hectares were classified as upland (non-wetland). The wetland delineations made on the subject property were approached in a conservative manner, taking into account transitional or overflow areas which are sometimes hard to define. Those areas which appeared adjacent to a saturated or inundated wetland within the same hydrologic and hydrophytic vegetation regime were included in wetland boundaries. This method of delineation, in my opinion, provides the highest reliability for, even under varying seasonal circumstances, those areas that would appear as jurisdictional waters of the United states. upon completion of the field assessment, the data were assembled into a technical report and presented to the client for his use. we discussed my findings, reviewed the methodology used to determine that wetlands did, in fact, exist on the property and examined land management options, including u.s. Army Corps of Engineers permit procedures