Field Guides & Tools
The following is a partial list of relevant tools for delineating and classifying wetlands. CDOT does not endorse any private companies.
Regional Supplements to the Corps of Engineers Wetland Delineation Manual:
- Arid West Regional Supplement Manual and Data Form (form in Appendix C)
- Western Mountains, Valleys, and Coast Regional Supplement Manual and Data Form (form in Appendix C)
- Great Plains Regional Supplement Manual and Data Form (form in Appendix C)
National Wetland Plant List
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), as part of an interagency effort with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), developed the National Wetland Plant List (NWPL) that is updated often. The NWPL is used to determine whether the hydrophytic vegetation parameter is met when conducting wetland determinations under the Clean Water Act and the Wetland Conservation Provisions of the Food Security Act. The list must be used in any wetland delineation performed.
Other Helpful Tools:
- CDOT - Wetland Data Procedures- Instructions for using GPS to collect wetland boundaries for CDOT projects
- Colorado Natural Heritage Program (CNHP) resources
- Colorado Wetland Information Center - The most complete collection of wetland resources in Colorado
- Colorado Wetland Inventory - Colorado's improved NWI maps
- Colorado Wetlands Mobile App - The App contains wetland plants, maps, and wetland types.
Wetland Plant Guides
- CNHP Wetland Plant Field Guides:
- NRCS PLANTS Database
- USDA Field Guide to Intermountain Rushes
- USDA Field Guide to Intermountain Sedges
- How to Plant Willows and Cottonwoods for Riparian Restoration, USDA Technical Note 23, 2007
- Gwen Kittel's Colorado Willow Key
Wetland Soil Guides
- NRCS Technical References for Soils
- Field Indicators of Hydric Soils in the United States, NRCS Version 8.2, 2018
- Colorado Hydric Soils List (choose 'Colorado' in dropdown list)
- National Association of Wetland Managers - Hydric Soils Online Training Series
