Vegetation changes over time in Prairie Pothole Region reference wetlands.

Periodic assessments of reference condition wetlands are needed to determine changes over time; however, they are rarely conducted. The vegetation from past assessments, 1998 to 2004, was compared to 2016 assessments of 12 reference wetlands in the Missouri Coteau sub-ecoregion of the Prairie Pothole Region using nonmetric multidimensional scaling and permutational multivariate analysis of variance. Analyses indicated the vegetation in the 2016 assessments trended away from the abundance of native highly conservative species as found during the 1998 to 2004 assessments. Instead, the 2016 plant communities trended towards lower abundance of the same native conservative species and higher abundance of non-native species. Both the average coefficient of conservatism values and floristic quality index values significantly declined, supporting the interpretation that reference wetlands were moving towards plant communities with lower abundance of highly conservative species. The assumption that reference wetlands in the Prairie Pothole Region will change little over time is challenged by these findings. Vegetation in refence wetlands within the Prairie Pothole Region is no longer resembles past monitoring and is trending towards a distinct vegetation composition. Future management will need to consider the potential of reference wetlands' vegetation composition moving away from a historic baseline and how this may impact future wetland assessment, especially when vegetation is compared to reference conditions.

Using a vegetation index to assess wetland condition in the Prairie Pothole Region of North America.

Wetlands deliver a suite of ecosystem services to society. Anthropogenic activities, such as wetland drainage, have resulted in considerable wetland loss and degradation, diminishing the intrinsic value of wetland ecosystems worldwide. Protecting remaining wetlands and restoring degraded wetlands are common management practices to preserve and reclaim wetland benefits to society. Accordingly, methods for monitoring and assessing wetlands are required to evaluate their ecologic condition and outcomes of restoration activities. We used an established methodology for conducting vegetation-based assessments and describe a case study consisting of a wetland condition assessment in the Prairie Pothole Region of the North American Great Plains. We provide an overview of an existing method for selecting wetlands to sample across broad geographic distributions using a spatially balanced statistical design. We also describe site assessment protocols, including vegetation survey methods, and how field data were applied to a vegetation index that categorized wetlands according to ecologic condition. Results of the case study indicated that vegetation communities in nearly 50% of the surveyed wetlands were in very poor or poor condition, while only about 25% were considered good or very good. Approximately 70% of wetlands in native grasslands were categorized as good or very good compared to only 12% of those in reseeded grasslands (formerly cropland). In terms of informing restoration and management activities, results indicated that improved restoration practices could include a greater focus on establishing natural vegetation communities, and both restored and native prairie wetlands would benefit from enhanced management of invasive species.

Escherichia coli levels and microbial source tracking in stormwater retention ponds and detention basins.

Little is known about the spatial and temporal changes that occur with Escherichia coli in urban stormwater systems. The goal of this project was to assess E. coli in urban stormwater detention basins and retention ponds, not connected to the sewer system, to determine temporal and spatial differences and evaluate the sources of E. coli utilizing microbial source tracking (MST). Surface water quality was sampled at three detention basins and five retention ponds during major storm events in the summers of 2018 and 2019. One week after each storm, groundwater and surface water were sampled. The MST samples were taken from storm events and normal flows, for both surface and groundwater. E. coli levels were higher during rain events in both detention basins and retention ponds and infrequently met a recreational standard. E. coli in groundwater was pervasive and infrequently met a recreational standard. The MST analysis found sewage, dog, human, and bird markers during storm events and sewage and bird markers during regular flows. PRACTITIONER POINTS: Rain events had significantly more E. coli than during normal flows in both retention ponds and detention basins. E. coli in groundwater was ubiquitous and fluctuates over time. Microbial source tracking (MST) found bird, dog, human, and sewage markers present during all storm events analyzed.

Assessment of water quality in ponds across the rural, peri-urban, and urban gradient.

The Prairie Pothole Region is one of the most wetland rich areas of the world and has experienced intense disturbance from increased agricultural demands and urban sprawl. This study assessed ponds across the urban gradient for the first time in the region to determine the impacts of urbanization on water quality. Thirty ponds (ten rural, ten peri-urban, and ten urban) were randomly selected and compared based on land use type and the impervious to pervious surface ratio within 1.6 km of each pond. Water quality samples were taken monthly in 2015 and 2016, across 3 and 6 months respectively. Assessment included chemical and physical parameters, which were compared spatially across the gradient and temporally between sampling periods. Results indicate disturbance from urbanization negatively impacts water quality. Spatially across the gradient, rural pond water quality was significantly different from both peri-urban and urban ponds, whereas peri-urban and urban pond water quality was not significantly different. Temporally, differences between water quality parameters and sampling periods indicate that surrounding land use, land cover, and precipitation influence parameter concentrations across the urbanization gradient. Information from this study is useful to water professionals dealing with urban development and sprawl that continue to impact water and natural habitat.

The challenges of conducting environmental research on privately owned land.

Accessing research sites is an integral part of a research in the world today. Researching sites on privately owned lands creates unique challenges when compared to conducting research on government or publicly owned land. This study explores different methods for obtaining landowner information, permission to sample privately owned sites, and assesses the time it takes to obtain permission for randomly selected study sites. During the study, researchers contacted 390 landowners to obtain permission to sample wetlands on privately owned lands. A variety of methods were used to contact landowners and determine which methods were most effective for obtaining permission. Methods included face-to-face discussion, phone calls, and mailed response letters. It took approximately 9 months to obtain landowner information, contact landowners, and obtain permission to sample sites. The most effective method for obtaining permission to sample sites was through face-to-face discussions with landowners. Overall, it took a longer period of time to obtain permission for the survey than it did to sample sites. Information from this study can be used by anyone conducting research on private land to better estimate the time it will take to obtain permission to sample sites and to estimate the most effective way to obtain permission based on project finances and available personnel.