Get Involved Early

To be effective, wetlands advocates need to know what wetlands disturbing activities are being planned and what to do about them.

Know where the wetlands are in your community

These websites offer online maps of wetlands and shoreline ecosystems, as well as current and future conditions

• Fish and Wildlife Service's wetlands mapper

• Virginia Department of Environmental Quality's Coastal GEMS

• Virginia Institute of Marine Science

  • Tidal Marsh Inventory

  • ADAPT VA natural resources data portal with future conditions

Call your locality's planning or environmental department

Use the phone directory/internet to find your local department of planning.  In most localities, the environmental staff will be within the planning department.

Watch for land use changes

Rezoning notices can be found posted on the property and in classified sections of your local newspaper.

Look out for wetlands disturbing activities in your neighborhood

Read “public notices” and “legal announcements” of local and state agencies in your daily paper.
 
Watch the regulatory section of the Corps of Engineers Norfolk District Office’s website to learn about plans that would harm tidal wetlands in your area. NOTE: you will probably have only two to four weeks to submit your comment on the application.