Wetland Wednesday
May 27, 2020
Just in time for summer, the brand new Final 2018 National Wetland Plant List was published in the Federal Register on May 18, 2020. It is also effective on this same date for all new wetland delineations submitted to the Corps after May 18th. If you have already submitted a permit or new Jurisdictional Determination request prior to May 18th, you do not need to resubmit and can continue to refer to the 2016 list for your project. Subsequent projects would require the 2018 list. Yes, it is the 2018 list and it is now 2020. It’s not a typo.
The changes to the list are subtle and public comments were few. However, there have been some clarifications and updates to the taxonomy. The main focus of the update is the changes for some of the plant wetland indicator status from the 2016 list and add a few plants that were missing from the list. The taxonomic changes are not enumerated in the Federal Register. They mostly follow the 2016 taxonomy, but there are some changes. The following is the list of indicator changes:
| Species | Region | 2016 Rating* | Final 2018 Rating |
| Aristida palustris | AGCP | NOL | FACW |
| Artemisia dracunculus | AW | NOL | FACU |
| Artemisia dracunculus | WMVC | NOL | FACU |
| Bromus nottowayanus | MW | NOL | FACU |
| Bromus nottowayanus | NCNE | NOL | FACU |
| Delairea odorata | AW | NOL | FAC |
| Delairea odorata | WMVC | NOL | FAC |
| Dichanthelium wrightianum | AGCP | NOL | FACW |
| Epilobium brachycarpum | AW | NOL | FAC |
| Epilobium brachycarpum | WMVC | NOL | FAC |
| Hymenocallis latifolia | AGCP | FACW | FACU |
| Hymenocallis latifolia | CB | FACW | FACU |
| Hymenocallis occidentalis | AGCP | OBL | FACW |
| Hymenocallis occidentalis | EMP | OBL | FAC |
| Hymenocallis occidentalis | GP | FACW | FACW |
| Hymenocallis occidentalis | MW | OBL | FAC |
| Ilex opaca | AGCP | FAC | FAC |
| Iva axillaris | AW | FAC | FACU |
| Iva axillaris | WMVC | FAC | FACU |
| Liriodendron tulipifera | AGCP | FACU | FACU |
| Liriodendron tulipifera | EMP | FACU | FACU |
| Penstemon rydbergii | AW | FACU | FACU |
| Penstemon rydbergii | WMVC | FACU | FACU |
| Polymnia canadensis | EMP | NOL | FACU |
| Polymnia canadensis | MW | NOL | FACU |
| Polymnia canadensis | NCNE | NOL | FACU |
| Quercus michauxii | AGCP | FACW | FACW |
| Tussilago farfara | NCNE | FACU | FACU |
| Verbena brasiliensis | AGCP | NOL | FACU |
| Verbena brasiliensis | EMP | NOL | FACU |
| Verbena brasiliensis | MW | NOL | FACU |
| Verbena incompta | AGCP | FACW | FACU |
| Verbena incompta | EMP | FACW | FACU |
| Verbena incompta | MW | FAC | FACU |
*NOL = “Not On List” and indicates proposed additions
OBL—almost always occur in wetlands
FACW—usually occur in wetlands, but may occur in non-wetlands
FAC—occur in wetlands and non-wetlands
FACU—usually occur in non-wetlands, but may occur in wetlands
UPL—almost always occur in non-wetlands
A complete list of all the changes can be downloaded from the Corps National Wetland Plant list website. The 2018 is now the current list that should be used so be sure to update any software or field guides that you may have. It is important to note that only the species whose indicator has changed has been listed in the Federal Register notice. Species name changes are incorporated in the published list and are not so easily found. Do not try to use the 2016 list with just the Federal Register Notice as the only update.
Important Note: There is an Excel spreadsheet on the NWPL website of the proposed rating changes. It is not current with the Federal Register notice and includes species that have not appeared in the Final notice. The list above is current with the Federal Register Wetland Plant list notice.