PROGRAM HERITAGE NATURAL Wetland Ecosystem Conservation Priorities for Washington State. An Update of Natural Heritage Classification, Inventory, and Prioritization of Wetlands of High Conservation Value. Prepared for WASHINGTON U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 10 Prepared by F. Joseph Rocchio, Rex C. Crawford, and Rebecca Niggemann December 31, 2015 Natural Heritage Report 2015-05 Wetland Ecosystem Conservation Priorities for Washington State. An Update of Natural Heritage Classification, Inventory, and Prioritization of Wetlands of High Conservation Value. Washington Natural Heritage Program Report Number: 2015-05 December 31, 2015 Prepared by: F. Joseph Rocchio, Rex C. Crawford, and Rebecca Niggemann Washington Natural Heritage Program Washington Department of Natural Resources Olympia, Washington 98504-7014 . ON THE COVER: Photograph by: Joe Rocchio Table of Contents Page Table of Contents ............................................................................................................................ ii Figures............................................................................................................................................ iv Tables .............................................................................................................................................. v Acknowledgments.......................................................................................................................... vi 1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................. 1 1.1 Project Overview ............................................................................................................... 3 1.2 Project Scope ..................................................................................................................... 4 1.3 Products and Outputs ......................................................................................................... 4 2 Methods........................................................................................................................................ 6 2.1 Natural Heritage Methodology .......................................................................................... 6 2.2 Element Occurrence vs. Wetland of High Conservation Value ........................................ 6 2.3 Prioritizing Conservation of Wetland & Riparian Vegetation Types: The Conservation Status Rank ........................................................................................................ 9 2.4 Wetland & Riparian Definitions ...................................................................................... 11 2.5 Ecological Classification of Native Wetland & Riparian Vegetation of Washington -- A New Classification Framework for Washington’s Wetland Vegetation .............................................................................................................................. 12 2.6 Updating Existing and Searching for New Wetlands of High Conservation Value ...................................................................................................................................... 16 2.7 Level 1 Ecological Integrity Assessment Model Development ...................................... 23 2.8 Developing the Floristic Quality Assessment Method .................................................... 25 2.9 Identifying Reference Standard Wetlands ....................................................................... 28 3. Results/Discussion .................................................................................................................... 30 3.1 Ecological Classification of Native Wetland & Riparian Vegetation of Washington: A Summary of Types ...................................................................................... 30 3.2 Conservation Status Ranks Assignments......................................................................... 30 ii 3.3 Field Surveys of Existing and New Wetlands of High Conservation Value ................... 36 3.4 WHCV Deleted from WNHP’s Biotics Database ........................................................... 36 3.5 Level 1 EIA Results ......................................................................................................... 37 3.6 FQA Results..................................................................................................................... 41 3.7 EcoObs Database ............................................................................................................. 42 3.8 Preliminary List of Reference Standard Wetlands .......................................................... 42 4.0 Summary ................................................................................................................................. 46 4.1 Contributions to Advancing Wetland Conservation ........................................................ 46 4.2 Limitations of Data .......................................................................................................... 46 4.3 Outreach & Information Transfer .................................................................................... 47 5.0 Next Steps ............................................................................................................................... 49 Literature Cited ............................................................................................................................. 50 Appendix A: Natural Heritage Methodology ............................................................................... 59 A.1 Natural Heritage Methodology ....................................................................................... 59 A.2 Elements of Biodiversity ................................................................................................ 60 A.3 Element Conservation Status Rank................................................................................. 62 A.4 Element Occurrences ...................................................................................................... 64 A.5 Element Occurrence Ranks (Ecological Integrity Assessment Rank) ............................ 65 Appendix B: Ecological Classification of Native Wetland & Riparian Vegetation of Washington (December 2015 Version) ........................................................................................ 68 Appendix C: Level 1 EIA GIS Protocol Development ................................................................. 69 Appendix D: Field Forms ............................................................................................................. 77 Appendix E: EcoObs Database ..................................................................................................... 86 Appendix F: Potential Number of Wetland Reference Standard Sites for Washington ............... 87 iii Figures Page Figure 1. Global Conservation Status Ranks of Washington Wetland Plant Associations .................................................................................................................................. 35 Figure 2. State Conservation Status Ranks of Washington Wetland Plant Associations ............. 35 Figure 3. Distribution of Plant Association-Based Wetlands of High Conservation Value in Washington..................................................................................................................... 38 Figure 4. Wetlands of High Conservation Value Deleted and Retained in WNHP’s Information System ....................................................................................................................... 39 Figure 5. Predicted Locations of Wetlands with Excellent Ecological Integrity in Washington ................................................................................................................................... 40 Figure 6. Correlation of Mean C vs. Human Stressors. Groupings are Ecological Systems ......................................................................................................................................... 43 Figure 7. Potential Reference Standard Sites in the Central Puget Lowlands. ............................. 45 iv Tables Page Table 1. Distribution of Rare Plants (i.e. considered Endangered, Threatened, or Sensitive by the Washington Natural Heritage Program) by Wetland Type. Note: Some species occur in more than one wetland type) ...................................................................... 2 Table 3. Decision Matrix to Determine Ecosystem Element Occurrences (e.g. Tracking Guidelines) ...................................................................................................................... 7 Table 5. Stressor Impact Ratings and Scores ................................................................................ 23 Table 6. Level 1 EIA Metrics Used for This Project .................................................................... 24 Table 7. Conversion of Level 1 Raw Values to EIA Ranks ......................................................... 24 Table 8. Western Washington Floristic Quality Assessment Panel Members .............................. 27 Table 9. Eastern Washington Floristic Quality Assessment Panel Members ............................... 28 Table 10. Summary of Types in the Ecological Classification of Native Wetland & Riparian Vegetation of Washington .............................................................................................