{Brief}ly Speaking about why wetlands don’t always look wet. SEH’s Ashley Mack breaks down what actually defines a wetland, how scientists identify them, and why seasonal conditions can make them easy to overlook. From avoiding project surprises to navigating permitting and minimizing impacts, this episode explores what developers, municipalities, and property owners should know before making assumptions about what’s happening on a site.
Mollie (Host)
Welcome to {Brief}ly Speaking, the SEH podcast that cuts straight to the chase. We tackle big topics in architecture, engineering, and construction with quick expert insights. No fluff, just the essentials. Let's dive in. When most people hear the word wetland, they picture standing water, cattails, or maybe a marsh-filled area with ducks. But many wetlands don't look wet at all. Some are wooded areas, others look like meadows, low spots in a field, or even patches of land that appear dry for a majority of the year. Yet these areas can still meet the regulatory definition of a wetland and play an important part in water quality, flood storage, habitat, and project permitting. Misunderstanding what qualifies as a wetland can lead to surprises during development, infrastructure projects, and environmental reviews. Today, we're exploring why wetlands aren't always covered in water, how they're identified, and what project owners should know before making assumptions about what's happening on their site. Joining me today is Ashley Mack, a natural resources scientist at SEH who specializes in wetland delineations, environmental permitting, and mitigation. She helps clients identify wetlands early, navigate regulatory requirements, and avoid costly surprises during project planning. So Ashley, welcome to {Brief}ly Speaking.
Ashley (Guest)
Hi. Thanks for having me.
Mollie (Host)
So let's go ahead and just start with the biggest misconception. We hit on this in the intro already, and it's kind of the whole topic we're going to be talking about here. But why do so many people assume a wetland has to have visible water?
Ashley (Guest)
I think it's partly the names. You know, it's a wetland. We think it's going to be wet. Like you said, a lot of people picture something like a swamp, a bog, cattail marsh, you know, areas that are pretty wet throughout the year. But there are a lot of wetlands that are only visibly wet for, you know, a much shorter period of time, and those can really surprise people.
Mollie (Host)
Yeah, the context clues with naming does not work here, but you make a good point that it is just can be wet for part of the year and then part of the year it's dry. So if standing water isn't required, what actually defines a wetland then?
Ashley (Guest)
Yeah, it's kind of a long wordy technical description that defines it, but basically it's an area that's wet enough, long enough, that it supports wetland adapted vegetation. It's kind of the short answer for that.
Mollie (Host)
So I could see as an outsider from the environmental science world how that could be confusing and that could make it harder for them to define this. Can you explain the three indicators wetland scientists use when determining whether an area is a wetland?
Ashley (Guest)
Yeah, for sure. So those three indicators are soils, hydrology, and vegetation. So for soils, we look to see if they show evidence of wet conditions, things like accumulation of organic matter like peat or color changes in the soil due to like wet or low oxygen conditions. Hydrology can be the obvious stuff like standing water, but they can also be things like watermarks or sediment deposits on trees in a flood zone. So they can be things that show up even when it's in a dry period. And then vegetation is based on whether the majority of the plants are ones that prefer to grow in wet conditions or not.
Mollie (Host)
And so you're physically going out, taking samples, looking at these sites and then running tests, right?
Ashley (Guest)
Yeah, so the usual way we go out is: go out and look at a site and then we take like sample points, you know, kind of in the areas we suspect is wetland. and then go further like upslope and into an area we suspect is upland. So we kind of make like a transect to define that boundary between the wetland and the upland.
Mollie (Host)
When you're getting this data, you said that there were kind of some limits so that it has to be met to be defined as a wetland. If an area only has one of the few that need to be met, it doesn't define as a wetland then, right? It has to have all of the criteria.
Ashley (Guest)
Correct. It has to have all three but there are some instances where you can have like disturbance. So if an area has been like cleared of vegetation you might have to use you know professional judgment with the other two indicators or if you're in you know a severe drought that might affect the hydrology.
Mollie (Host)
That's good to know then too. It's not like a landowner or developer can just walk out, look for these typical indicators and say, nope, it's not, or yes, it is. There's some also background intuitive pieces that you're looking for, kind of the loopholes that you might know about that could help either be a wetland or not be a wetland. So that's good to know. Now you talked about kind of a drought there, and I think that will play into our next question, but why do some wetlands appear dry for much of the year?
Ashley (Guest)
So a lot of wetlands get their water primarily from precipitation, so rain and snow rather than groundwater so you're going to get a lot of variation based on you know just normal seasonal snow melt and rainfall patterns. So if you're visiting in the spring you're probably going to see some standing water but late in the summer things have just naturally dried up and the water is mostly gone. So as long as it meets those requirements that we were discussing, it's still a wetland even if it's dried up later in the year.
Mollie (Host)
So do those seasonal changes affect when you typically go visit a site?
Ashley (Guest)
Not really. We visit during the growing season, so basically spring to fall instead of during the winter. But we take into account the normal precipitation conditions for that time of year and kind of the normal seasonal changes. So we can visit pretty much any time during the growing season and just take that into account.
Mollie (Host)
What challenges can this whole process create for developers, municipalities, or property owners who are evaluating land for a project?
Ashley (Guest)
Most people recognize that an area with constant standing water is going to present some challenges just practically, if not from a regulatory perspective. But if you're looking at a piece of land that's dry when you're going out there, it can be pretty easy to overlook and you can get pretty far into your planning process before you realize you're even dealing with the wetland. So it's really helpful to get someone to evaluate the site early on so you know what you're dealing with.
Mollie (Host)
Yeah, and that actually plays perfectly into my next question here is, Why is it risky to assume that an area isn't a wetland simply because it appears dry during a site visit? What are some of those outcomes that could happen?
Ashley (Guest)
Like I said, seasonal variations, drought conditions, and wetland types that just are dry for part of the year can all be a little tricky to identify if you don't know what you're looking for. And that can cause problems when you're months into planning a project and then you realize that you're going to have to deal with wetland permitting issues down the road.
Mollie (Host)
There are quite a bit of nuances in determining if a wetland is a wetland or if an area is not a wetland. When should a project team consider bringing in a wetland specialist like yourself?
Ashley (Guest)
Definitely if there's any known or suspected wetlands as well as lakes or creeks which are often you know associated with wetlands on the fringes; it would be a good idea to have someone take a look. But even in cases where you don't necessarily know of one, a quick you know desktop review from a wetland specialist can help identify any areas that might need a field review that could be you know a suspect wetland area.
Mollie (Host)
If there's surrounding areas that have kind of that vegetation that we talked about, other streams, ponds, that could be a clue that this area might be a wetland. But in general, you can even just look online, like you said, right, and kind of get an idea for it. and then determine if a site visit would even be necessary.
Ashley (Guest)
Yeah, we can't always, you know, say for sure from a desktop review if a wetland is present or what the boundaries are, but a lot of times we can get a good idea of like, yeah, there's probably one out here or no, there's probably not. So that can help, you know, even just really early on in the process.
Mollie (Host)
Yeah, kind of those foundational pieces of it. Are there ways to avoid or minimize impacts to wetlands without completely changing a project's goals? So say a developer wants to work on a site. They find out that it is a wetland. What are ways to avoid or minimize impacts to wetlands without completely changing that project?
Ashley (Guest)
Yeah, there's definitely ways to avoid or minimize wetland impacts. A lot of times some relatively minor changes, you know, to project layouts or designs can make a big difference. And that's also why it's really helpful to start thinking about wetlands early. It's much easier to make these changes, you know, early on in the design process before you're, you know, at like 90% plans and now you suddenly realize you need to change your like development layout or something like that.
Mollie (Host)
Yeah, early is better, always, to figure out situations ahead of time. And so you, as someone who has done field work, you've been out, you've done these delineations. I'm just curious, what are some common surprises or lessons learned that you've encountered when conducting these studies?
Ashley (Guest)
I think just partially how unobtrusive they can be. People can have wetlands that they see on a daily basis that they don't even recognize as wetlands. And then on a more positive note, I think that more and more people are beginning to recognize and value them. In the past, I think a lot of wetlands are just kind of seen as like useless junk land we can't do much with, but people are starting to recognize them for their value. And like you said in the intro, you know, wildlife habitat, water quality, flood control, erosion control. So that's nice to see.
Mollie (Host)
Yeah, they really do have a lot of benefits and I feel like municipalities developers immediately hear a wetland and kind of think of the negative. But the flood control piece of it, like you were talking about, can be huge, especially in today's day and age with sustainability and all of that. So I'm glad you hit on some of the positives there of them too, because they kind of have a negative connotation sometimes.
Ashley (Guest)
Yeah, it's unfortunate. Yeah, people think wetland and oh no, it's going to be trouble. But yeah, they are really beneficial to the landscape as well.
Mollie (Host)
So wetlands do so much more than hold water. They filter pollutants, reduce flooding, support wildlife, and play an important role in the health of our communities. The challenge is that many of them don't fit the picture most people have in their minds. Understanding that wetlands can exist without visible water is often the first step towards better planning, fewer project surprises and smoother permitting processes. Thanks for joining us for this episode of {Brief}ly Speaking. And if you enjoyed today's conversation, please subscribe and stay tuned for more quick insights on the topics that's shaping the architecture, engineering, and construction world today. Until next time, I'm Mollie Sabo, and this has been {Brief}ly Speaking.
Ashley Mack is a Natural Resources Scientist at SEH specializing in wetland delineations, environmental permitting, and mitigation planning. She helps clients identify environmental constraints early, navigate regulatory requirements, and develop practical solutions that support project goals. Ashley brings field experience and technical expertise in wetland science, natural resource assessments, and environmental compliance.