(CRAM) For Wetlands User's Manual Version 5.0.2

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California Rapid Assessment Method for Wetlands v. 5.0.2 – Chapter 1 Depressional wetland, Gualala River watershed, Mendocino County 8 Joshua N. Collins
2.0 Overview California Rapid Assessment Method for Wetlands v. 5.0.2 – Chapter 2 CHAPTER 2: KEY TERMS, CONCEPTS, ASSUMPTIONS, AND DEVELOPMENTAL PROCESS CRAM uses standardized definitions for key terms, including “wetland,” “disturbance,” “stress,” and “condition.” CRAM is based on basic assumptions about functional relationships between condition and function or ecological service, and about the spatial relationships between stress and condition, as explained below. 2.1 Key Terms Assessment Area (AA). An AA is the portion of a wetland that is the subject of a CRAM assessment. Multiple AAs might be needed to assess large wetlands. Rules for delineating an AA are presented in Section 3.5. Stress. Stress is the consequence of anthropogenic events or actions that measurably affect conditions in the field. The key stressors tend to reduce the amount of wetlands, or they significantly decrease the quantity and/or quality of sediment supplies and/or water supplies upon which the wetlands depend. Gradients of stress result from spatial variations in the magnitude, intensity, or frequency of the stressors. Disturbance. Disturbance is the consequence of natural phenomena, such as landslides, droughts, floods, wildfires, and endemic diseases that measurably affect conditions in the field. Condition. The condition of a wetland is the states of its physical and biological structure and form relative to their best achievable states. Buffer. The buffer for a wetland consists of its adjoining lands including other wetland areas that can reduce the effects of stressors on the wetland’s condition. Landscape Context. The landscape context of a wetland consists of the lands, waters, and associated natural processes and human uses that directly affect the condition of the wetland or its buffer. Ecological Services or Beneficial Uses. These are the benefits to society that are afforded by the conditions and functions of a wetland. Key ecological services for many types of wetlands in California include flood control, shoreline and stream bank protection, groundwater recharge, water filtration, conservation of cultural and aesthetic values, and support of endemic biological diversity. Attribute. Attributes are categories of metrics used to assess wetland condition as well as buffer and landscape context. There are four CRAM attributes: Buffer and Landscape Context, Hydrology, Physical Structure, and Biotic Structure. Metric. A metric is a measurable component of an attribute. Each metric should be field-based (Fennessy et al. 2004), ecologically meaningful, and have a dosedependent response to stress that can be distinguished from natural variation across a stressor gradient (Barbour et al. 1995). 9
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