- Abstract:
- In order to accomplish its mission of management and protection of valuable natural
resources, the North Carolina Division of Coastal Management (DCM) has developed wetland
inventory and assessment tools that should greatly improve wetland resource management and
planning in the coastal area. Specifically, DCM has developed a wetland Geographic
Information System (GIS) that effectively inventories the type, amount, location and the
functional significance of wetlands located in the 20 counties defined by the Coastal Area
Management Act and an additional 17 counties within the NC Inner Coastal Plain.
-
- DCM's wetland type maps combine the US Fish and Wildlife Service's National Wetland
Inventory (NWI) maps, the Natural Resources Conservation Service's soils surveys, and 1989
and 1994 Landsat TM satellite imagery as well as field reconnaissance data. By using
multiple data sources, DCM has attempted to maximize the strengths of each source, while
minimizing its weaknesses. The resulting wetland type maps show the location, size and
type of wetlands more accurately, clearly and comprehensively than ever before.
-
- In addition to identifying the location and extent of wetlands, DCM's challenge has been
to develop a wetland functional assessment procedure which would provide a meaningful
evaluation of wetland functional significance. Consequently, DCM developed a GIS
functional assessment model commonly known as The North Carolina Coastal Region Evaluation
of Wetland Significance or NC-CREWS.
- NC-CREWS functions in a hierarchical manner, analyzing three primary wetland functions
(Hydrology, Water Quality and Wildlife Habitat), seven wetland subfunctions and 39
landscape and wetland parameters. Wetlands are assigned ratings of Beneficial
Significance, Substantial Significance or Exceptional Significance, depending on how well
they perform the various wetland functions. The relative risk to watershed integrity
posed by the loss of specific wetlands is also measured and labeled "Potential
Risk".
-
- Although the NCCREWS model was developed for the NC Coastal area, it has the potential
of being adapted to other areas. A number of states are already exploring how it
could be used to improve their wetland conservation efforts.
- Purpose:
- These data were created to assist local, state, and federal government agencies and
- others in making resource management decisions and in land use planning.
- Supplemental_Information:
- Because of overall data filesize, the statewide dataset was clipped by
- county. zipped ArcInfo shapefile sizes: (by county, in megabytes):
- Beaufort (/beau_crews) - 8.06
- Bertie (/bert_crews) - 7.22
- Bladen (/blad_crews) - 17.8
- Brunswick (/brun_crews) - 19.2
- Camden (/camd_crews) - 2.01
- Carteret (/cart_crews) - 10.4
- Chowan (/chow_crews) - 1.81
- Columbus (/colu_crews) - 15.5
- Craven (/crav_crews) - 10.7
- Cumberland (/cumb_crews) - 5.48
- Currituck (/curr_crews) - 2.99
- Dare (/dare_crews) - 4.23
- Duplin (/dupl_crews) - 7.64
- Edgecombe (/edge_crews) - 4.22
- Gates (/gate_crews) - 3.16
- Greene (/gree_crews) - 1.64
- Halifax (/hali_crews) - 5.55
- Hertford (/hert_crews) - 3.59
- Hyde (/hyde_crews) - 4.88
- Johnston (/john_crews) - 5.89
- Jones (/jone_crews) - 5.40
- Lenoir (/leno_crews) - 3.46
- Martin (/mart_crews) - 4.22
- Nash (/nash_crews) - 3.81
- New Hanover (/newh_crews) - 3.88
- Northampton (/nort_crews) - 4.21
- Onslow (/onsl_crews) - 13.1
- Pamlico (/paml_crews) - 5.81
- Pasquotank (/pasq_crews) - 2.14
- Pender (/pend_crews) - 16.1
- Perquimans (/perq_crews) - 2.38
- Pitt (/pitt_crews) - 5.87
- Sampson (/samp_crews) - 9.85
- Tyrrell (/tyrr_crews) - 3.34
- Washington (/wash_crews) - 2.30
- Wayne (/wayn_crews) - 4.86
- Wilson (/wils_crews) - 3.84
