Backyard Wetland Resources

Funders

The Backyard Wetland Conservation Webcast series could not have been possible without the generous support of our donors.

Bureau of Land Management – www.blm.gov/

Center for Transportation and the Environment – http://itre.ncsu.edu/cte/

US Fish and Wildlife Service – www.fws.gov/

USDA Forest Service – www.fs.fed.us/

Wetland Friendly Backyards

Our first webcast introduces the concept of backyard conservation and explores the ways you can transform your backyard, schoolyard or business property with wetland- and wildlife-friendly landscaping techniques.

Conservation-Friendly Landscaping for Homeowners

The Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay – Bayscapes Program publications, and other resources: www.allianceforthebay.org/

The Biodiversity Partnership, OR - Oregon Conservation Incentives Programs: www.biodiversitypartners.org/

Chesapeake Conservation Landscaping Council - This coalition is made up of individuals and organizations dedicated to researching, promoting, and educating the public about conservation-based gardening and landscaping practices in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. Click here for a good conservation landscaping list serve and an upcoming "green landscaping" conference: http://www.chesapeakelandscape.org/.

Habiscapes, ID – Can help you create a plan to incorporate and install native plants, shrubs and trees to encourage local wildlife into your community and your own backyard: http://habiscapes.net/

Landscape Water Conservation – Xeriscape: http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/xeriscape/xeriscape.html

National Audubon Society - Audubon at Home Program: http://www.audubon.org/bird/at_home/index.html

National Wildlife Federation – NWF’s Backyard Wildlife Habitat can help you get started on making your backyard more wildlife-friendly: http://www.nwf.org/habitats Find out how to get your community certified as a Community Wildlife Habitat site: http://www.nwf.org/backyardwildlifehabitat/community.cfm Learn more about Hidden Springs, ID, a planned community that is one of only 14 communities currently certified as a NWF Community Wildlife Habitat site: http://hiddensprings.com/

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency - Mid-Atlantic Region Green Landscaping: http://www.epa.gov/reg3esd1/garden/

Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, VA - Native Plants for Conservation, Restoration, and Landscaping: http://www.dcr.state.va.us/dnh/native.htm

Conservation-Friendly Landscaping for Businesses

Department of Natural Resources, WI – The Construction and Long Term Storm Water Management is a photo essay designed to show some methods used to control erosion before, during and after construction and to review some long term storm water management methods installed prior to your business operations: http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/permitprimer/stormwater/constessay3.html

In Business Magazine - Dedicated to helping innovative individuals grow sustainable enterprises that improve our quality of life and environmental goals: http://www.jgpress.com/inbusiness/index.html

U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) – the nation’s foremost coalition of leaders from across the building industry working to promote buildings that are environmentally responsible, profitable and healthy places to live and work: http://www.usgbc.org/

Conservation-Friendly Landscaping for Schools

EcoSchool Design – lists information and resources for schoolyard wildlife habitat projects, and provides case studies showing what other schools have done to improve their grounds for wildlife: http://www.ecoschools.com/Wildlife/Wildlife_wSidebar.html

National Wildlife Federation – Learn how to get involved in the Schoolyard Habitats program: http://www.nwf.org/backyardwildlifehabitat/programoverview.cfm

Oberlin College, OH - Ecological Design at Oberlin College’s Lewis Center: http://www.ecocitycleveland.org/ecologicaldesign/%20greenbuilding/oberlin_college.html

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – Find out how to create wildlife habitat on school grounds: http://www.fws.gov/chesapeakebay/schoolyd.htm

Composting

BioCycle: Journal of Composting & Organics Recycling - America’s foremost magazine on composting and organics recycling: http://www.jgpress.com/biocycle.htm

MasterComposter.com – a clearing house for information and resources about composting: http://www.mastercomposter.com/

Virginia Cooperative Extension – provides the answers to some frequently asked questions about compost: www.ext.vt.edu/pubs/compost/452-231/452-231.html

Raingardens

Chesapeake Ecology Center - To obtain copies of their rain garden and xeriscape publication: “Ecoscaping Back to the Future…Restoring Chesapeake Landscapes (Native Plant Rain Gardens and Xeriscapes)” by Zora Lathan and Thistle A. Cone, click here: http://www.chesapeakeecologycenter.org/ (Cost is $15).

Rain Gardens of West Michigan – Includes detailed garden plans, step-by-step instructions for rain garden installation, resources, and information: http://www.raingardens.org/

Rain Barrels

Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay – Rain Barrels: A Capital Idea in Capturing and Reusing Roof Runoff: http://www.acb-online.org/pubs/projects/deliverables-145-4-2004.pdf

Rain Barrel Guide – how to use rain barrels for water collection: http://rainbarrelguide.com/

Reducing Pesticide/Fertilizer Use

Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay – Integrated Pest Management – A Homeowner’s Guide: http://www.acb-online.org/pubs/projects/deliverables-89-1-2003.pdf

Beyond Pesticides – works with allies in protecting public health and the environment by identifying the risks of conventional pest management practices and promoting non-chemical and least-hazardous management alternatives: http://www.beyondpesticides.org/about/mission.htm

GreenRoofs.com – A clearinghouse for the latest news and information about green roofs: http://www.greenroofs.com/

Porous Pavement

Managing Stormwater – Provides information, resources, and links to more information about porous pavement: http://www.greenworks.tv/stormwater/porouspavement.htm

Gardening/Horticulture

American Association of Botanical Gardens and Arboreta - Dedicated to promoting people's appreciation and understanding of the irreplaceable value of plants. http://www.aabga.org/

American Horticultural Society – Founded in 1922, AHS is one of the oldest national gardening organizations in the country: http://www.ahs.org/

Audubon Pennsylvania – Landscaping for a Healthy Planet: http://www.envirolandscaping.org/

Garden Centers of America - purpose is to ensure the long-term success and sustainability of independent retail garden centers of North America by being the primary forum for information, education and training that promotes the exchange of ideas, profitability and positive consumer awareness of the individual member firms: http://www.gardencentersofamerica.org/

Garden Club of America – mission is to stimulate the knowledge and love of gardening, to share the advantages of association by means of educational meetings, conferences, correspondence and publications, and to restore, improve, and protect the quality of the environment through educational programs and action in the fields of conservation and civic improvement: http://www.gcamerica.org/

The Gardeners of America/Men’s Garden Club of America – mission is to promote gardening education and related environmental issues to its membership and the gardening public through charitable, educational and scientific means: http://www.tgoa-mgca.org/

Garden Smart - a unique, exciting, informative television gardening program broadcast on local Public Broadcasting stations (PBS) throughout the United States. http://www.gardensmart.tv/index.php

The GreenMan Show, Montgomery County D.E.P., MD – Learn how to recreate natural ecosystems that help soil capture and filter rain water and prevent pollution runoff and erosion. From simple rain barrels to elaborate rain gardens, Rainscapes are a wonderful mix of innovative approaches which help conserve our natural resources while creating habitat areas full of beauty and life. http://www.rainscapes.org/

The Healthy Landscapes Project, RI - a collaborative effort with URI Cooperative Extension Programs and the Town of North Kingstown, aimed at generating and delivering an Extension education program aimed at pollution prevention best management practices (BMPs) in the home landscape. http://www.healthylandscapes.org/

National Garden Clubs, Inc. - provides education, resources and national networking opportunities for its members to promote the love of gardening, floral design, civic and environmental responsibility: http://www.gardenclub.org/

Native Plants

APATH - Audubon Protecting Animals Through Habitat: Native Plants in the Creation of Backyard, Schoolyard, and Park Habitat Areas - a comprehensive guide to developing a wildlife habitat garden, whether at home, work, the community park or the local schoolyard. APATH guides the reader through the progressive stages of planning a habitat garden and developing an understanding of wildlife needs. A detailed list of Pennsylvania native plants useful to wildlife is provided, along with helpful hints and techniques. APATH can be purchased through the Audubon PA office ($10.00). Call (717) 213-6880 or send a check payable to “Audubon Pennsylvania” to: Audubon Pennsylvania, 100 Wildwood Way, Harrisburg, PA 17110.

Plant_Natives_ACTION_PLAN.pdf Environmental Concern, Inc. – In partnership with Chesapeake College, EC is offering an 8-hour course taught by certified horticulturalists entitled Native Plants in the Landscape - Homegrown in the USA. Contact Chesapeake College for more information and to register at http://www.chesapeake.edu/ or call 410-228-4360 ext 5850.

Native Plant Societies of the United States & Canada – find out how to contact the Native Plant Society in your region: http://www.newfs.org/nps.htm

Native Plants for Wildlife Habitat and Conservation Landscaping - is available on-line from the US Fish & Wildlife Service and can be found at: http://www.nps.gov/plants/pubs/chesapeake/toc.htm

Native Plants of the Northeast. A Guide for Gardening and Conservation - by Donald J. Leopold, Ph.D., Faculty of Environmental and Forest Biology, SUNY-ESF 1 Forestry Drive, Syracuse, NY 13210; ph: 315-470-6784; fax: 315-470-6934; email: djleopold@esf.edu; website: http://www.esf.edu/efb/faculty/leopold.htm

The Native Plant Study Group – Includes identification information, invasive plants information, and links to other native plant sites: http://www.nativeplant.org/

North American Native Plant Society – Includes general information on native plants, where to purchase native plants, bog gardens, and more: http://www.nanps.org/.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - The USFWS BayScapes program promotes landscaping for the benefit of people, wildlife and the Chesapeake Bay. This page gives information about native plants in this region, and has links to their plant guide as well as a list of nurseries: http://www.fws.gov/chesapeakebay/bayscapes.htm

Video Footage from Webcast:

Wetlands Stewardship: A Call to Action – Produced by the Izaak Walton League, this 28-minute video serves as a companion to the Handbook for Wetlands Conservation and Sustainability.  The video can be used to motivate citizens, educators, planners, government, business leaders, and students to participate in the conservation of our nation's wetland resources.  The video demonstrates the importance of wetlands to the environment and shows activities that have been initiated in communities across the country. Order your copy from McDonald and Woodward Publishing Company: http://www.mwpubco.com/.

After the Storm – If you would like to order a free copy of the video, please call the National Service Center for Environmental Publications (NSCEP) at 513-489-8190 or 800-490-9198 or send an email to ncepimal@one.net. (When ordering, please refer to EPA document number: EPA 840-V-04-001)

Greenman Show – A digital library of this award-winning show, broadcast by County Cable Montgomery, will soon be available. Currently, you can view current and video archives up to two weeks old of the GreenMan Show by clicking here: http://greenmanshow.com/

Reining In the Storm: One Building at a Time – To order, fill out this form and send (with a check for $10) to the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation: http://www.dcr.virginia.gov/forms/DCR199-168.pdf Or you can go to DCR’s stormwater management web page and click on "Publications/Downloads:” http://www.dcr.virginia.gov/sw/stormwat.htm

Stormwater Management from a Watershed Perspective – This satellite broadcast was produced by Washington State University and an archived videostream can be seen here: http://caheinfo.wsu.edu/video/other.html To order a CD version, please contact Jan Seago at seagoj@wsu.edu

Backyard Wetland Conservation Webcast Series:

Wetland Wonderlands

Do you have a wetland on your property? If so, how can you protect or restore it? If not, how do you build one? This second Webcast in our Backyard Wetland Conservation series will introduce you to the many benefits provided by wetlands and what you can do to ensure their presence and health in your community.

Wetland Protection/Land Conservation

Izaak Walton League of America – Read a Handbook for Wetlands Conservation and Sustainability or watch the video Wetland Stewardship: A Call to Action to learn about wetland ecology, functions and values, project ideas, and monitoring strategies. Visit http://www.mwpubco.com/ and click on titles, then Izaak Walton League of America.

Environmental Law Institute – advances the dialogue on wetland science, law and policy through its Wetlands Program: www2.eli.org/research/wetlands.htm Check out the free online newsletter National Wetlands On the Web at www2.eli.org/nwn/nww/login/index.cfm

Land Trust Alliance – General information on land protection options and links to local land trusts. http://www.landtrustalliance.org/

US Environmental Protection Agency – Find wetland programs, regulations and contacts in your region: www.epa.gov/owow/wetlands/regions.html Check out the EPA’s downloadable series of wetlands fact sheets: www.epa.gov/owow/wetlands

Wisconsin Wetlands Association – The Wetland Restoration Handbook for Wisconsin Landowners provides a wealth of information to individuals interested in restoring degraded wetland acreage on their property. www.wiscwetlands.org/restoration.htm

Upper Susquehanna Coalition – The USC is actively involved in restoring and protecting wetland habitat in the Upper Susquehanna watershed. Learn more about their wetland program at www.u-s-c.org/html/wetlandprogram.htm.

Wetland Permits/Regulations

Construction Industry Compliance Assistance – Use the State Wetlands Information Tool (SWIFT) to find out how your state regulates wetlands, and click on the link to the primary wetlands information page of each state: www.cicacenter.org/swift.html

Building a Wetland/Establishing Vegetation

POW! The Planning of Wetlands – Comprehensive guide to planning for and creating small wetlands on school grounds. Purchase from Environmental Concern. http://www.wetland.org/.

Washington State Department of Ecology - Preparing for West Nile Virus Needn’t Harm the Environment: www.ecy.wa.gov/news/2003news/2003-046.html

Vernal Pools

A Guide to Creating Vernal Pools – Written by Thomas Biebighauser and published by the USDA Forest Service in cooperation with Ducks Unlimited, Inc., and the Izaak Walton League of America. An order form for a hard copy of the report is available at www.fs.fed.us/r8/boone/resources/ or http://herpcenter.ipfw.edu/outreach/VernalPonds/VernalPondGuide.pdf

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency – The Mid Atlantic Integrated Assessment (MAIA) has released its new publication, An Introduction to Mid-Atlantic Seasonal Pools. Download a copy at www.epa.gov/maia/.

The Vernal Pool Association – Provides information about vernal pool ecology and a list of resources for more information: www.vernalpool.org/vernal_1.htm

Vernal Pools: Natural History and Conservation – Written by Elizabeth A. Colburn, this is the first book-length synthesis of the natural history, ecology, and conservation of the seasonally wet pools that occur throughout the formerly glaciated region of eastern North America. Available from McDonald and Woodward Publishing Company: http://www.mwpubco.com/

Bog Gardens

Botanique – This specialized carnivorous plant nursery has a step-by-step guide to creating a bog garden in your backyard: www.pitcherplant.com/bog_making.html

Brooklyn Botanical Garden – Provides an excerpt from The Natural Water Garden, by C. Colston Burrell, that describes bog ecology, backyard bog construction, and bog plant propagation: www.bbg.org/gar2/topics/design/handbooks/watergarden/8.html

GardenWeb – Join a discussion forum on bog gardens: forums.gardenweb.com/forums/bog/

Rainy Side Gardeners – A guide to building a simple bog garden: http://www.rainyside.com/archives/bog_garden.html

Wetland Wildlife

Bat Conservation Society - mission is to teach people the value of bats, to protect and conserve critical bat habitats, and to advance scientific knowledge through research. http://www.batcon.org/

National Audubon Society - Audubon at Home Program: www.audubon.org/bird/at_home/index.html

National Wildlife Federation: Find out how to get involved in FrogWatch USA, a volunteer frog monitoring program: www.nwf.org/frogwatchUSA/

Backyard Wetland Conservation Webcast Series:

Organization and Agency Listing

The following list is an inventory of some of the numerous organizations and agencies that can provide you with more detailed information about how you can support conservation goals in your backyard and in your community.

The Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay - Builds and fosters partnerships to protect and to restore the Chesapeake Bay and its waterways: http://www.allianceforthebay.org/ Publications: www.acb-online.org/pubs.cfm

Alliance for Sustainable Communities - Motivates partnerships among citizens, business, schools, and government to help realize social, economic and environmental needs of the community: http://www.beinginplace.org/

American Fisheries Society – mission is to improve the conservation and sustainability of fishery resources and aquatic ecosystems by advancing fisheries and aquatic science and promoting the development of fisheries professionals. http://www.fisheries.org/

American Planning Association - Represents 37,000 practicing planners, officials, and citizens involved with urban and rural planning issues who strive to encourage planning that will meet the needs of people and society more effectively: http://www.planning.org/

American Rivers – A national non-profit conservation organization dedicated to protecting and restoring healthy natural rivers and the variety of life they sustain for people, fish, and wildlife: http://www.americanrivers.org/

• Catching the Rain: A Great Lakes Resource Guide for Natural Stormwater Management: http://amr.convio.net/site/DocServer/CatchingTheRain.pdf?docID=163
• Where Rivers Are Born, The Scientific Imperative for Defending Small Streams and Wetlands: http://amr.convio.net/site/DocServer/WhereRiversAreBorn1.pdf?docID=182

American Society of Landscape Architects – The national professional association representing landscape architects: http://www.asla.org/. Find a landscape architect: http://online.asla.org/scriptcontent/index_find_firm.cfm.

Association of Partners for Public Lands – A partnership of over 80 organizations that are working to enhance public understanding, appreciation, and stewardship of America's natural and cultural heritage: http://www.appl.org/

Association of Professional Landscape Designers – APLD is devoted to advancing the profession of landscape design, including the broadening of the field’s scope to include management of the environment: www.apld.com/

Association of State Wetland Managers – Promotes and enhances protection and management of wetland resources, to promote application of sound science to wetland management efforts and to provide training and education for our members and the public: http://www.aswm.org/

Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE) - an international alliance of 23 independently operated local business networks with more than 4,000 members dedicated to building Local Living Economies: www.livingeconomies.org/ BALLE newsletter archives: http://www.livingeconomies.org/

Center for Watershed Protection - provides local governments, activists, and watershed organizations around the country with the technical tools for protecting some of the nation’s most precious natural resources: our streams, lakes and rivers: http://www.cwp.org/

Chesapeake Bay Foundation – Founded in 1967, CBF is the largest conservation organization dedicated solely to saving the Chesapeake Bay watershed: http://www.cbf.org/

Chesapeake Bay Program – CBP is a regional partnership that directs and conducts the restoration of the Chesapeake Bay, bringing together members of various state, federal, academic and local watershed organizations to build and adopt policies that support Bay restoration: www.chesapeakebay.net/

Environmental Education Association of Washington, WA – a professional association for environmental educators and stakeholders dedicated to increasing the awareness of and support for environmental education in the state of Washington: www.eeaw.org/

Environmental Law Institute – Provides information services, advice, publications, training courses, seminars, research programs and policy recommendations to engage and empower environmental leaders the world over: www2.eli.org/index.cfm

Florida Native Plant Society, FL – Promoting the preservation, conservation, and restoration of the native plants and native plant communities of Florida: www.fnps.org/

General Federation of Women’s Clubs – One of the world’s largest and oldest women’s volunteer service organizations: http://www.gfwc.org/.

The Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) – Uses principles of “new localism” to propose a set of new rules that builds community by supporting humanly scaled politics and economics: www.newrules.org/

International City/County Management Association - Provides technical and management assistance, training, and information resources to its members and the local government community: www.icma.org. Also runs the Local Government Environmental Assistance network at http://lgean.org/.

Kentucky Waterways Alliance, KY – Dedicated to strengthening community and governmental stewardship for the restoration and preservation of Kentucky's water resources: www.kwalliance.org/

The Land Institute – purpose is to develop an agricultural system with the ecological stability of the prairie and a grain yield comparable to that from annual crops, termed Natural Systems Agriculture: http://www.landinstitute.org/ An interview with founder Wes Jackson, from In Context #42, Fall 1995: www.context.org/ICLIB/IC42/Jackson.htm

Land Trust Alliance – national convener, strategist and representative of more than 1,500 land trusts across America, promoting voluntary private land conservation to benefit communities and natural systems: http://www.landtrustalliance.org/  

Low Impact Development Center - a non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of Low Impact Development technology. Low Impact Development is a new, comprehensive land planning and engineering design approach with a goal of maintaining and enhancing the pre-development hydrologic regime of urban and developing watersheds: http://www.lowimpactdevelopment.org/ Urban design tools: www.lid-stormwater.net/

Monocacy and Catoctin Watershed Alliance, MD – A mutual, collaborative effort among individuals and organizations desiring to work together to improve the health of the Monocacy and Catoctin watersheds: www.watershed-alliance.com/index.htm

National Association of Conservation Districts – the voice of our nation’s 3,000 conservation districts and 17,000 men and women who serve on their governing boards. Working with landowners, other organizations and agency partners, districts have helped protect our soil, water, forest, wildlife and other resources for over 60 years: http://nacdnet.org/

National Audubon Society – Mission is to conserve and restore natural ecosystems, focusing on birds, other wildlife, and their habitats for the benefit of humanity and the earth's biological diversity: http://www.audubon.org/

National Wildlife Federation - Working to protect America's wildlife since 1936, NWF inspires Americans to protect wildlife for our children's future: http://www.nwf.org/

Pennsylvania Native Plant Society, PA – Headquartered in State College, PA, PNPS is a clearinghouse of information for regional native plants, and research on how the health of native plant communities can be used as a water quality indicator. They provide a link to a downloadable form so that you can conduct a Floristic Quality Assessment Index (FQAI) study in your own watershed: http://www.pawildflower.org/

River Network – Information, resources and services for grassroots river and watershed conservation groups: www.rivernetwork.org/.

The Riverways Program, MA - Promoting the restoration and protection of the ecological integrity of the Commonwealth's watersheds, rivers, streams and adjacent lands: www.mass.gov/dfwele/river/about/index.htm www.mass.gov/dfwele/river/volunteer/tools.htm#stormwater www.mass.gov/dfwele/river/resources/presentations.htm

Rocky Mountain Institute – an entrepreneurial nonprofit organization that promotes market-oriented solutions to foster the efficient and restorative use of resources to make the world secure, just, prosperous, and life-sustaining: www.rmi.org/

Sierra Club – America's oldest grassroots environmental organization, Sierra Club inspires citizens to work together to protect their communities and the planet: http://www.sierraclub.org/

Society of Wetland Scientists – A non-profit organization founded to promote wetland science and the exchange of information related to wetlands: http://www.sws.org/

Stormwater: The Journal for Surface Water Quality - Free publication written for the professional involved with surface storm water quality issues, protection, projects and programs: http://www.stormh2o.com/

Wildlife Habitat Council – A nonprofit group of corporations, conservation organizations, and individuals dedicated to restoring and enhancing wildlife habitat: http://www.wildlifehc.org/

Wisconsin Wetlands Association, WI - Wisconsin Wetlands Association is dedicated to the protection, restoration and enjoyment of wetlands and associated ecosystems through science-based programs, education and advocacy. www.wiscwetlands.org/

Backyard Wetland Conservation Webcast Series:

Funders

Bureau of Land Management – http://www.blm.gov/
Center for Transportation and the Environment – http://itre.ncsu.edu/cte/
US Fish and Wildlife Service – http://www.fws.gov/