County Mulls Stricter Wetlands Rehab Rules

 

 

 

Study says seeding is effective; "vegetated mat" best method but also most expensive

 

Jackson Hole News, March 27, 2002
By Melissa Davidson

 

Teton County is considering tighter rules for revegetating excavated gravel sites and ponds in an effort to provide better habitat for waterfowl.

 

Results from a wetlands revegetation study could provide the basis for the county to change its generic regulation, Teton County Planning Director Bill Collins said.

 

The county requirement today states a site "will be reseeded with indigenous plants." But the study, conducted by Intermountain Aquatics Inc. of Driggs, Idaho, and a Montana State University scientist, indicates that seeding is an ineffective way to reestablish wetlands.

 

Jeffrey Klausmann, Intermountain Aquatics project manager, presented the study's findings to the Teton County Board of Commissioners on Monday. Wetlands are key habitat for waterfowl and other wildlife, but their ecology is fragile; different plants grow at different depths and are used by different species.

 

A "vegetated mat" is the most expensive but most effective method to revegetate wetlands areas, Klausmann said. A vegetated mat is made of plants grown in a nursery and rooted in coconut fiber.

 

The mats are expensive, with considerable labor and transportation costs, Klausmann said. Mats cost about $10,000 per acre, according to the study.

 

The vegetated mats should be considered for special uses where high investment is justified, especially in vulnerable areas, such as along dikes, eroding banks and drainage ways subject to high water levels, Klausmann said. Seeding may be effective for establishing some wetland grasses but not for sedges, the study states.

 

The county has specific requirements on the contouring and shaping of ponds but doesn't recommend specific and effective replanting methods. The county issues between 50 to 60 pond permits a year, Collins said.

 

"The study provides information that could lead to amending the county's regulations, but whether we decide to propose an amendment to revegetation standards has yet to be determined," Collins said.

 

County planner Tiffany Campbell said she was surprised to find out Teton County, with its "fragile and valuable resource," did not have any revegetation standards. She said eventually Teton County will have to do something about the lax regulations, especially as more people build "Disneyland water park ponds" without any regard for habitat.

 

The recommendations come after the county applied for a grant to investigate wetlands rehabilitation. It allowed Intermountain Aquatics Inc. and Paul Hook from Montana State University to compare seven methods for revegetating sedge-dominated rocky mountain wetlands near Jackson.