A Functional Wetland Typology for Scotland

A Functional Wetland Typology for Scotland
WFD95
July 2009

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Project funders/partners: SNIFFER, SEPA, SNH and Environment Agency

Background to research
Implementing the Water Framework Directive (WFD) in Scotland has involved new regulatory duties for SEPA, in particular through the introduction of the Water Environment (Controlled Activities) (Scotland) Regulations 2005 (CAR). Under CAR, activities including abstractions, impoundments, engineering activities, point discharges and diffuse pollution now require licences. In order to decide whether a licence for a regulated activity should be awarded, SEPA staff must be able to assess whether the proposed activity is likely to affect any nearby waterbodies, including wetlands. Although understanding wetland hydroecology has traditionally been a specialist subject, there is an increasing need for non-specialists within SEPA to be able to identify wetlands, their basic hydrological and ecological characteristics,and their sensitivity to controlled activities, to enable licensing decisions to be made. This “Wetland Typology” has been devised to assist SEPA in that process. In addition to its use in regulation, it is also intended to use the typology to classify wetlands across the whole of Scotland in a wetland inventory.

Objectives of research
The aims of WFD95 included:

To develop a “wetland typology” for Scotland that can be used by non-specialists. The typology should be based on habitats but also incorporate information on landscape setting where relevant. The combination of different identifying features should allow, where appropriate, generic sensitivities to be assigned;
To develop field identification material to allow the wetland typology to be applied in the field by non-ecologists. Field identification should be aided by descriptions of each wetland type and identifying features (‘indicators’).

Key findings and recommendations
The wetland typology for Scotland was developed based on habitats, and the range of wetland types was established primarily by consideration of Phase 1 habitats (JNCC, 2007) and Habitats Directive Annex 1 habitats found in Scotland. Seventeen wetland types (including sub-types) were identified in total, including a variety of coastal, lowland, upland and montane wetlands, as summarised in Table E1. The types are designed to be uniquely identifiable so that choosing between types is as simple as possible. For each wetland type, field indicators have been selected including landscape setting, hydrological features, soil type and vegetation types, that can help to identify the habitat.
Guidance on identifying landscape setting and other wetland features is provided, in addition to identifying habitats, to allow a basic understanding of the function of the wetland.

Field guidance and training materials have been produced to assist non-specialists in carrying out field visits and identifying wetland types. The material includes:

A guidance manual, containing information on the wetland types, landscape settings, indicators, and procedure for carrying out a field assessment;
A field survey sheet, which have four pages of photos and brief descriptions of wetland types and indicators,
A field survey form, to be filled in during a site visit;
A powerpoint presentation introducing the wetland typology and its use in the field. Examples for a number of sites are included;
A “crib sheet”, consisting of a completed field survey form, sketch and photos for Kings Myre SSSI, which will be visited during training sessions.

Table E1 Summary of Wetland Types

Wetland type	Wetland sub-type
1 Wet woodland	1a Bog woodland
1 Wet woodland	1b Other wet woodland
2 Wet Grassland	2a Marshy grassland
2 Wet Grassland	2b Montane grassland
3 Seepage/ flush/ spring	3a Montane flushes
	3b Tufa-forming spring
	3c Other spring
	3d Seepage/ flush
4 Fen	4 Fen
5 Swamp	5 Swamp
6 Reedbed	6 Reedbed
7 Wet heath	7 Wet heath
8 Bog	8a Peat bog
8 Bog	8b Quaking bog
9 Saltmarsh	9 Saltmarsh
10 Dune slacks	10 Dune slacks
11 Machair	11 Machair

Recommendations from the project include:

A contact point for queries should be provided by SEPA to collate feedback as the typology and field guidance are rolled out;
SNH and SEPA should maintain an image library of wetland habitats and species, and ‘shortages’ in the library targeted for collection during field visits;
The applicability of the typology and field guidance, or development of a similar scheme, should be considered for England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Key words: WFD, CAR, wetland, habitat, typology, field guidance

Copies of this report are available from the Foundation, in electronic format on CDRom at £20.00 + VAT or hard copy at £25.00, less 20% to FWR members.
N.B. The report is available for download from the SNIFFER Website