ABSTRACT
The mosaic of vegetation and the animals that inhabit it determines the ecological values of a treatment marsh. Quantification of those values begins with a census of what occupies the wetland, including plants, animals, birds, and reptiles. When wetlands are used to reduce pollutant concentrations and peak stormwater flows, ecological benefits can be achieved. This chapter summarizes those benefits of wetlands used for pollution control and recommends design features to optimize these benefits. Restored and created wetlands could then provide an array of integrated environmental services adapted to local ecological and social needs. Ecological majors are required to take courses in basic chemistry, statistics, biological and wildlife science, taxonomy, plant and mammalian ecology. The mosaic of vegetation and the animals that inhabit it determines the ecological values of a treatment marsh. Ecological value is the superposition of value categories upon descriptive metrics. In other words, a system may be found to be quantitatively diverse, but include several undesirable species.
