National Wetlands Inventory

Emergency Wetlands Resources Act - National Wetlands Inventory, 16 U.S.C. §3901 and §§3931-3932. The Emergency Wetlands Resource Act requires the National Wetlands Inventory Program (NWI) to map wetlands of the nation, digitize the maps, archive and distribute the data, and produce a 10-year national wetlands status and trends report to Congress.

Organizations receiving financial assistance must be experienced in image-interpretation for wetlands and for arid western riparian for targeted ecosystems using National standards (Cowardin et al. 1979 and Wetlands Mapping Standard 2009); in wetlands mapping or delivery research or technologies, or in supporting activities (e.g. mapping standards training or analysis) for wetlands mapping; or have the project-specific imagery or ancillary data needed for wetlands mapping. Based on Agency need, financial assistance, in general, is available to qualified Americans, profit or nonprofit corporations or institutions, domestic organizations, and Federal, State, Tribal, Territorial, and local agencies.

The American public, and Federal, State, Tribal, Territorial, and local agencies, profit and nonprofit corporations or institutions benefit from having wetlands geospatial data to help inform decision making for clean water, fish and wildlife conservation, wetlands conservation, landscape-level planning, as well as urban and rural, infrastructure planning and construction, and energy development.

The Service funds projects based on changing national program priorities.

Awards are approved by the program based on the applicant’s past submission of standard compliant wetland data according to the Federal Geospatial Data Committee and, when applicable, past performance.

30 days.