Wetlands are ecologically important to our environment and as
such have become an important issue in northeastern Minnesota,
especially with the increase in development. For that reason, we
have two Wetland Delineators on our staff. The Federal Clean
Water Act and the State of Minnesota Wetland Conservation Act,
enforced through local governments, control wetland impacts.
Local officials require that wetlands be identified and mapped
prior to approval of divisions of land or if wetlands are to be
altered through activities such as road building. The
identification of wetlands can be difficult as certain types of
wetlands can be deceiving. To qualify as wetland an area has to
meet 3 criteria: it has to have hydrology (the presence of
water), hydrophytic (water tolerant) vegetation and hydric soils
(saturated soils have certain characteristics), so often what
doesn't appear as wetland actually is. Test plots must be done
and soil samples taken to confirm the presence of wetland. The
wetland must then be mapped