Landscape Analysis Tools for Prioritizing Wetland and Stream Restoration and Protection

November 2013
A Handbook for Prioritizing Wetland and Stream Restoration and Protection Using Landscape Analysis Tools (2013), provides states, tribes, and local governments with information about the range of tools used by wetland programs across the country to prioritize wetlands and streams for restoration and protection. The handbook is intended to help guide the development, establishment, and refinement of approaches for identifying restoration and protection priorities. The strategic identification of high-value conservation and restoration sites can help to efficiently prioritize opportunities for compensation to offset permitted impacts to wetland and stream resources as well as voluntary non-regulatory protection and restoration efforts. Our research draws from interviews and the review of available documentation for 30 wetland and stream programs, comprising a total of 115 prioritization tools. These programs and tools represent a broad continuum of geospatial methods and data currently used in the U.S. to identify wetland and stream restoration or protection priorities at watershed or landscape scales. Click here to explore this project online.