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O3/15/2001 14: 47 FAX 6514528940 MENDOTA HGTS MN ZOO'S Dakota County(MN)Wetland Assessment. Monitoring, and Awareness Project, Revision 4, June 5, 1998 Page 13 of 50 TV. USERS OF STUDY DATA A. Local officials and citizens: Results obtained by citizen volunteers using the citizen protocol will be compared with results from a technical,professional assessment using the citizen protocol as well as the more technical protocol. Cities can then determine which approach would be most useful under which circumstances to fill the different needs of local units of government. The goal of the WHEP is to evaluate the methods used by citizens and not to perform in-depth evaluations of individual wetlands. If use of the citizen protocol method proves valid, the citizen protocol can be used as one way to establish baseline data on depressional wetlands when assessing local wetland health. B. Feedback to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (WCA): The WHEP builds on a previously US EPA funded project, Wetland Testing Assessment Project#CD985060-01. That project was designed to determine what information obtained by trained citizen volunteers gathering biological (invertebrates and vegetation) data about wetland health would be useful to local units of government when making decisions about local wetlands. The WHEP will use citizen and technical wetland assessment protocols developed by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency_ All data collected during the WHEP will be forwarded to MPCA for their use in establishing protocol for monitoring depressional wetlands such as those found in the North Central Hardwood Forest Ecoregion of Minnesota MPCA and • other state and national agencies and organizations can use the data to further evaluate the concept of a citizen volunteer monitor approach to large-scale wetland assessment. C. How the data will not be used: The data will not be used specifically for state and local regulatory purposes. The protocol is designed to provide a tool for basic assessment of wetland health, not for supporting regulatory decisions. This information could be helpful but would not be definitive when considering regulatory decisions based on the Clean Water Act 404/401 permit program, the Minnesota Wetland Conservation Act permit program, and local water planning.