Appendix 2: Method and Outcomes of Wetland Delineation Boffa Miskell Ltd | Waihi North Project: Freshwater Ecological Assessment | Wetland delineation The NPS-FM specifies a set of protocols to have regard to in cases where it is uncertain whether a feature meets the definition of a wetland, including specific tools to assess the presence of hydrophytic vegetation and hydric soil indicators (hydrological characteristics are intended as a further assessment tool, however protocols are yet to be developed). A summary of the stepwise “hydrophytic vegetation determination” (wetland evaluation) protocol is set out in Figure 2-1. Vegetation composition and tolerance of wetland environments is the main component of the step-by-step evaluation, and follows a scoring system that classifies plant species recognised as occurring in or around New Zealand wetland systems according to fidelity to wetland, as follows: • obligate wetland (OBL: occurs almost always in wetlands), • facultative wetland (FACW: occurs usually in wetlands), • facultative (FAC: equally likely in wetlands or non-wetlands), • facultative upland (FACU: usually in non-wetlands), or • obligate upland (UPL: almost always in non-wetlands). These classifications are assigned a numeric “wetland indicator status rating”, allowing calculations of overall wetland species dominance, as well as a “Prevalence Index” score, based on canopy percentage cover estimates of individual species. The plants used in the classification comprise exotic as well as native species, and include common pasture grasses (e.g., Yorkshire fog, Mercer grass, tall fescue, creeping bent) and pasture weeds such as creeping buttercup, soft rush, birds-foot trefoil etc. Hence, it is to be expected that areas of low-lying, seasonally wet grazing land will score as wetlands using the protocol outlined above. Figure 2-1. Wetland delineation hierarchy (from MFE 2020).
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjE2NDg3