ecological integrity assessments of headwater wetlands associated

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Ecological Integrity Assessment of Headwater Wetlands Associated with Spring Monitoring Sites Kathleen Strakosch Walz (Wetland Ecologist) [email protected] Jason Beury (Asst Ecologist) & Gemma Milly (Asst Botanist) NJDEP State Forestry Service Office of Natural Lands Management Natural Heritage Program NJ Water Monitoring Council Meeting May 19, 2016

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Page 1: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated

Ecological Integrity Assessment of Headwater Wetlands Associated

with Spring Monitoring Sites

Kathleen Strakosch Walz (Wetland Ecologist) [email protected]

Jason Beury (Asst Ecologist) & Gemma Milly (Asst Botanist) NJDEP State Forestry Service

Office of Natural Lands Management Natural Heritage Program

NJ Water Monitoring Council Meeting May 19, 2016

Page 2: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated

Headwater Wetlands at 8 Spring Sites

2015: Spring Brook Cabin

Big Spring Shurts Road Valley Crest Paint Island

Indian Lady Hill Crystal Springs

2016:

Mount Misery Blue Hole

Spring Brook Stokes SF

Mt Misery Blue Hole

Page 3: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated

Spring Site Information SPRING CLASSIFICATION AND CHARACTERIZATION STUDY ABIOTIC BIOTIC SAMPLES

# SPRING NAME TWP COUNTY HEADWATER TO RIVER

GEOLOGY GROUNDWATER EMERGENCE WQ

Fish / Amph

Macro inverts

Veg (EIA)

1 Big Spring - Whittingham

Fredon Twp Sussex Pequest River Allentown Dolomite

limnocrene 1 1

2 Crystal Spring Laurel Springs

Camden North Branch Big Timber Creek

Vincentown Formation (Glauconite)

limnocrene 1 1 1

3 Indian Lady Hill Spring

Neptune Monmouth Hollow Brook Cohansey Formation

hillslope 1 1 1

4 Mount Misery Blue Hole

Pemberton Burlington Mount Misery Brook

Cohansey Formation, Eolian Deposits

limnocrene (1) (1)

5 Paint Island Spring

Millstone Twp

Monmouth Toms River Lower Member Kirkwood Formation, Alluvium

helocrene

1 1 1

6 Shurts Road Spring

Franklin Twp

Warren Musconetcong River

Allentown Dolomite

rheocrene 1 1 1 1

7 Spring Brook Cabin Stokes

Sandyston Twp

Sussex Big Flat Brook Moraine Deposits rheocrene (1) 1 1

8 Valley Crest Spring

Clinton Twp Hunderdon South Branch Raritan River

Leithsville Formation, Alluvium

hillslope 1 1 1 1

8 3 5 8

Page 4: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated

Ecological Integrity Assessment Metrics

LANDSCAPE Contiguous Natural Cover Land Use Index

BUFFER Perimeter With Natural Buffer Width of Natural Buffer Condition of Natural Buffer

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

VEGETATION Native Plant Species Cover Invasive Nonnative Plant Species Cover Native Plant Species Composition Vegetation Structure Woody Regeneration Coarse Woody Debris

HYDROLOGY Water Source Hydroperiod Hydrologic Connectivity

SOIL / SUBSTRATE Soil Condition Surface Water Turbidity/Pollutants Algal Growth

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

SIZE Comparative Size (Patch Type) Change In Size

EIA Site Scorecard Example:

Page 5: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated

Human Stressor Index (HSI) Stressor IMPACT

Calculator

Stressor SCOPE Pervasive =

4 Large = 3 Restricted

= 2 Small = 1

Stressor SEVERITY

Extreme = 4 VERY HIGH

= 10 High = 7

Medium = 4

Low = 1

Serious = 3 High = 7 High = 7 Medium =

4 Low = 1

Moderate = 2

Medium = 4 Medium = 4 Low = 1 Low = 1

Slight = 1 Low = 1 Low = 1 Low = 1 Low = 1

HSI Site Score HSI Site Rating

3.5-4.0 Very High

2.5-3.4 High

1.5-2.4 Medium

0.5-1.4 Low

0.0-0.4 Absent

Stressor Checklist (AA & Buffer) • Development • Recreation • Vegetation • Natural Disturbance • Soils • Hydrology

Multi-step Process → HSI Rating 1. Stressor Scope and Severity = Impact 2. Sum of Impact Scores 3. Impact Score Weighting 3. HSI Site Rating

SUM OF Stressor IMPACTS -- Score & Rating by MEF (Buffer, Veg, Soils, Hydro)

Buffer Sum Score:

Buffer Rating

Point:

AA Veg Sum Score:

AA Veg Rating Point:

AA Soil Sum Score:

AA Soil Rating Point:

AA Hydro Sum Score:

AA Hydro Rating Point:

HSII Total SITE RATING:

TOTAL (Site) HSI: Multiply each MEF Impact Rating by the following weights then sum them to calculate the HSII Rating.

_____ x 0.3 = _____ x 0.3 = _____ x 0.1 = _____ x 0.3 = HSI Total Score:

ONSITE (AA) HSI (Vegetation, Soil, Hydrology) _____ x 0.4 = _____ x 0.2 = _____ x 0.4 = HSI Onsite Score:

ABIOTIC HSI (Buffer, Soil, Hydrology) _____ x 0.4 = _____ x 0.2 = _____ x 0.4 = HSI Abiotic Score:

Page 6: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated

Spring Brook Cabin (Stokes SF) EIA

WETLAND CONDITION: GOOD (B) Landscape Context: Excellent (A) Vegetation: Fair (C) Hydrology: Excellent (A) Soils: Excellent (A)

HUMAN STRESSOR INDEX RATING: MEDIUM AA: invasive plants, deer browse Buffer: gravel road and culvert, invasive species

Wetland Type: Freshwater Marsh, Wet Meadow & Shrubland; HGM: Slope

Floristic Diversity: 77 plant species (4 invasive) 77% relative native cover

Page 7: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated
Page 8: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated

Shurts Road Spring EIA Wetland Type: Freshwater Marsh, Wet Meadow & Shrubland;

HGM: Slope Floristic Diversity: 91 plant species (8 invasive)

64% relative native cover

WETLAND CONDITION: FAIR (C) Landscape Context: Poor (C) Vegetation: Fair (D)

Hydrology: Good (B) Soils: Excellent (A)

HUMAN STRESSOR INDEX RATING: MEDIUM AA: invasive species Buffer: invasive species, road, residential, runoff, dike, culvert

Page 9: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated
Page 10: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated

Valley Crest Spring EIA Wetland Type: Freshwater Marsh, Wet Meadow & Shrubland;

HGM: Slope Floristic Diversity: 61 plant species (4 invasive)

91% relative native cover

WETLAND CONDITION: FAIR (C) Landscape Context: Poor (D) Vegetation: Good (B) Hydrology: Good (B) Soils: Excellent (A)

STRESSOR INDEX RATING: HIGH AA: invasive species, trash, groundwater extraction Buffer: invasive species, agriculture, roads, runoff

Page 11: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated
Page 12: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated

Big Spring (Whittingham) EIA Wetland Type: Flooded & Swamp Forest

HGM: Slope Floristic Diversity: 78 plant species (3 invasive)

96% relative native cover

WETLAND CONDITION: EXCELLENT (A) Landscape Context: Excellent (A) Vegetation: Excellent (A) Hydrology: Excellent (A) Soils: Excellent (A)

STRESSOR INDEX RATING: LOW AA: invasive species Buffer: invasive species

High moss diversity

Page 13: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated
Page 14: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated

Indian Lady Hill Spring EIA Wetland Type: Flooded & Swamp Forest; HGM: Slope

Floristic Diversity: 49 plant species (0 invasive) 100% relative native cover

WETLAND CONDITION: Good (B) Landscape Context: Fair (C) Vegetation: Excellent (A) Hydrology: Excellent (A) Soils: Excellent (A)

STRESSOR INDEX RATING: MEDIUM AA: none Buffer: invasive species, trash/dumping, roads, runoff, flow obstruction

Page 15: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated
Page 16: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated

Paint Island Spring EIA Wetland Type: Flooded & Swamp Forest; HGM: Slope

Floristic Diversity: 80 plant species (10 invasive) 58% relative native cover

Vernal water star-wort

WETLAND CONDITION: FAIR (C) Landscape Context: Poor (C) Vegetation: Poor (D) Hydrology: Good (B) Soils: Excellent (A)

STRESSOR INDEX RATING: VERY HIGH AA: invasive species, deer browse (no regen) Buffer: invasive species, herbivory, trash/dumping, residential, lawns, road, runoff, flow obstruction (culvert under road)

Page 17: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated
Page 18: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated

Crystal Springs at Laurel Spring EIA Wetland Type: Freshwater Marsh, Wet Meadow &

Shrubland; HGM: Slope Floristic Diversity: 40 plant species (6 invasive)

57% relative native cover

Invasive Kudzu Pueraria montana

WETLAND CONDITION: FAIR (C) Landscape Context: Poor (D) Vegetation: Poor (D) Hydrology: Good (B) Soils: Good (B)

STRESSOR INDEX RATING: Very High AA: invasive species, deer browse Buffer: invasive species, herbivory, trash/dumping, residential, lawns, road, runoff, flow obstruction (culvert under road), trails, engineered channel

Page 19: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated
Page 20: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated

Mount Misery Blue Hole (2016)

Page 21: Ecological Integrity Assessments of Headwater Wetlands Associated

Spring Site Ecological Integrity Scores

SPRING CLASSIFICATION AND CHARACTERIZATION STUDY

# SPRING NAME TWP COUNTY

HEADWATER TO RIVER

GEOLOGY GROUND WATER

EMERGENCE EIA Score

1 Big Spring -

Whittingham Fredon Twp Sussex Pequest River Allentown Dolomite limnocrene A

4 Mount Misery

Blue Hole Pemberton Burlington

Mount Misery Brook

Cohansey Formation, Eolian Deposits

limnocrene (A)

3 Indian Lady Hill

Spring Neptune Monmouth Hollow Brook Cohansey Formation hillslope B

7 Spring Brook Cabin Stokes

Sandyston Twp

Sussex Big Flat Brook Moraine Deposits rheocrene B

2 Crystal Spring Laurel Springs Camden North Branch Big

Timber Creek

Vincentown Formation

(Glauconite) limnocrene C

5 Paint Island

Spring Millstone Twp Monmouth Toms River

Lower Member Kirkwood Formation,

Alluvium helocrene C

6 Shurts Road

Spring Franklin Twp Warren

Musconetcong River

Allentown Dolomite rheocrene C

8 Valley Crest

Spring Clinton Twp Hunderdon

South Branch Raritan River

Leithsville Formation, Alluvium

hillslope C