Last revised: August 2008

Wetlands and Water Quality

Scope: This is a selected list of information sources relating to water quality and wetlands. Use the main UM Libraries portal to locate the catalog and other useful resources, such as Research Port. For additional subject sources, consult the Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences and Chesapeake Bay guides.

In this guide, a multidisciplinary approach has been emphasized, ranging from biology, chemistry, and civil engineering to legal issues surrounding the study of wetlands. The focus includes water contamination or pollution in wetlands, and the use of wetlands as water purifiers. Email the subject area specialist at sgagnon (@umd.edu) or call (301)405-9098 for more information.

Locating References Using the Catalog

The search box below will open the Catalog and launch your search in a new window.

Or, try a subject search in the catalog using this convenient automatic search link, wetlands.

Use these terms to locate materials in other databases, such as BIOSIS Previews, a periodical index that can be searched in the same manner as the online catalog. For more specific searching instructions, please Ask Us!

return to top

The following sources may help you begin your research, or direct you to other sources of information.

McKee, Karen L. and Baldwin, Andrew H. Disturbance Regimes in North American Wetlands. In Walker, Lawrence R. (ed.), Ecosystems of Disturbed Ground (Ecosystems of the World 16). Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1999.
Location: McKeldin Stacks
Call Number: QH545.A1E2824 1999
Studies wetland systems as they are disturbed by natural events. Extensive references.

McKinnon, Christopher. The Value of Wetlands. Beltsville, Md.: Rural Information Center, National Agricultural Library, 1993.
Location: Government Documents
Call Number: SUDOC A 17.29:26
Provides a selected list of publications and resources on the social and economic value of wetlands.

Leitch, Jay A. Wetland Economics, 1989-1993: A Selected, Annotated Bibliography. New York, N.Y.: Garland, 1995.
Location: McKeldin Reference Stacks
Call Number: QH75.L44 1995
An update of the 1989 edition listed below. Concentrates on England, North America and Europe. Economic and social values as opposed to a "hard science" approach. Includes Subject and Author indexes.

return to top

Directories

Water Quality

World Environmental Directory: North America. Silver Spring, Md.: Publishers, Inc., 1989. 5th ed.
Location: McKeldin Reference Stacks
Call Number: TD173.5.W6 1989
Includes people, government and private agencies, institutions and databases useful for environmental research.

Wetlands

Bingham, Gail H. Issues in Wetlands Protection: Background Papers Prepared for the National Wetlands Policy Forum.
Location: McKeldin Folio
Call Number: QH76.I76 1990

Wetlands in Danger: A World Conservation Atlas. New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, 1993.
Location: McKeldin Reference Stacks
Call Number: G1046.G3W4 1993
Full color atlas with photographs, maps, and descriptions of wetlands around the world.

return to top

Encyclopedias

Allaby, Michael. Dictionary of the Environment. 3rd ed. New York, N.Y.: Washington University Press, 1989.
Location: McKeldin Reference Stacks, Engineering Library Stacks, Engineering Reference
Call Number: QH540.4.A44 1989
Includes relevant agencies and acronyms as well as current terminology.

Parker, Sybill P. McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Environmental Science. 2nd ed. New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill, 1980.
Location: McKeldin Reference Stacks
Call Number: QH540.4.M3 1980
Short articles on various environmental topics including estuarine oceanography, water pollution, fertilizers, and many others. Some articles include bibliographies.

Soil Conservation Society of America. Resource Conservation Glossary. Akeney, Ia., 1982.
Location: McKeldin Stacks
Call Number: S922.S6
Useful glossary of terms frequently used in the literature of ecology.

Veatch, J. O., and C. R. Humphrys. Water and Water Use Terminology. Kaukauna, Wisc.: Thomas Printing and Publishing, 1966.
Location: Engineering Library Reference, Engineering Library Stacks
Call Number: TD392.V36

Van der Leeden, Frits. The Water Encyclopedia. Chelsea, Mich.: Lewis Publishers, 1990.
Location: Engineering Library Reference
Call Number: TD351.V36 1990
Information on water quality, water pollution control, and water resources management. Many statistics.

return to top

General Books on Wetlands and Water Quality

Cheremisinoff, Paul N., Nicholaus P. Cheremisinoff, and Su Ling Cheng. Civil Engineering Practice. Volume 5, Water Resources/Environment.
Location: Engineering Library Reference
Call Number: TA145.C58 1987 Vol.5
Covers the management of wetlands and water supply, irrigation, and a good chapter on the use of wetlands for wastewater treatment.

Hunt, Constance E. Down by the River: The Impact of Federal Water Projects and Policies in Biological Diversity. Washington, D.C.: Island Press, 1988.
Location: McKeldin Stacks
Call Number: QH545.W33H86 1988
Information on effects of public policy on river ecosystems-includes bibliography and chapter notes.

Hook, D. D., ed. The Ecology and Management of Wetlands. Portland, OR: Timbre Press, 1988.
Location: McKeldin Stacks
Call Number: QH541.5.M3E26 1988 v.1. Ecology of wetlands -- v.2. Management, use and value of wetlands
A symposium that includes the water quality values of wetlands.

Wilson, J. G., and W. Halcrow. Estuarine Management and Quality Assessment. New York, N.Y.: Plenum, 1985.
Location: Engineering Library Stacks
Call Number: QH75.A1E88 1985
Includes information on computer modeling, environmental impact, and many technical reports on responsible uses of wetlands.

Michaelis, W., ed. Estuarine Water Quality Management: Monitoring, Modelling, and Research. Berlin, Ger. and New York, N.Y.: Springer-Verlag, 1990.
Location: Engineering Library Stacks
Call Number: TD365.E77 1990

American Society for Testing and Materials. Manual on Water. Edited by C. E. Hamilton. Philadelphia: American Society for Testing and Materials, 1978.
Location: Engineering Library Reference and Engineering Library Stacks
Call Number: TD353.A6 1978
A basic introduction to water quality monitoring, sediment delivery, water flow, and water treatment.

Maryland Nontidal Wetlands - Task Force - Final Report. Annapolis, Md.: Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Water Resources Administration, 1988.
Location: Maryland Room
Call Number: MD FOLIO QH76.5.M3M37 1988

Wigham, Dennis F. Wetland Ecology and Management: Case Studies. Boston, MA: Kluwer Academic, 1990.
Location: McKeldin Stacks
Call Number: QH541.5.M3W464 1990

Mitsch, William J. Wetlands. 3rd ed. New York, N.Y.: John Wiley, 2000.
Location: McKeldin Stacks
Call Number: QH104.M57 2000

return to top

Government Documents

The following titles are listed with SuDocs numbers, as they are arranged in the Government Documents Unit [4th floor of McKeldin Library].

United States. Superintendent of Documents. Monthly Catalog of U. S. Government Publications. 1895 - ., with cumulative index 1900-1971.
Location: Government Documents
Call Number: Z.1223.A18
Electronic Access: [http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/locators/cgp/]
Includes publications of all federal agencies. The CD-ROM version of this publication is especially useful for easy subject access.

Status of Wetlands Science: Hearing Before the Subcommittee on Public Environmental Protection of the Committee on Environment and Works. U. S. Senate. 102d Congress, 1st Session, April 9, 1991.
Location: Government Documents
Call Number: Y4.P96/10:s.hrg 69
A good introduction to the study of several types of wetlands, and issues surrounding them, includes a useful bibliography.

Status of the Nation's Wetlands and Laws Related Thereto: Hearings Before the Subcommittee on Water Resources of the Committee on Public Works and Transportation. U. S. House of Representatives, 101st Congress, 1st and 2nd Sessions. March 30, 1990.
Location: Government Documents
Call Number: Y4.p 96/11.101-69

FAO Conservation Guides #14. Watershed Management. New York, N.Y.: Food and Agriculture Organization, United Nations, 1977. Location: Government Documents
Call Number: FAO 3.C76.14
Contains information on watersheds and watershed management throughout the world.

return to top

Indexes and Abstracting Services

Aquatic Sciences and Fisheries Abstract (ASFA). 1971- . UM only
Continues Aquatic Biology Abstracts, 1969-1971 (McKeldin Reference QH90.A63) and Aquatic Sciences and Fisheries Abstracts, 1971-1977 (McKeldin Reference QH90.A64).
Location: McKeldin Periodical Stacks, Online (1978- )
Call Number: QH90.A641
Packaged within CSA Biological and Medical Sciences databases and including citations covering marine aquatic organisms and the aquatic environment. Over 5,000 journals and a variety of other documents are indexed. Each issue contains author, subject, taxonomic and geographic indexes which are cumulated annually. UM only:

Bibliography of Agriculture [AGRICOLA UM only]
Location: McKeldin Reference Stacks, Online
Call Number: Z5073.U572
Monthly index of over 2,000 sources, including books, journals, proceedings, pamphlets and government documents. Includes personal and corporate author indexes. When searching the electronic version of this database, AGRICOLA, it is helpful use the category code (CC=350) for wetlands.

Biological Abstracts (BIOSIS Previews). Bi-Weekly, 1926 - . UM only
Location: McKeldin Reference (Latest year), McKeldin Stacks, Networked Resources
Call Number: QH301.B37
Coverage includes virtually all aspects of the biological sciences. Each issue contains author, biosystematic, generic, concept, and subject indexes which are cumulated semi-annually. Searchable as BIOSIS Previews (1989-Present) on the UM Libraries' Home Page under Electronic Resources/UM Databases/Agriculture/Life Sciences.

Digital Dissertations. Monthly, 1861 - . UM only
Location: McKeldin Reference, Networked Resources
Call Number: Z5055.U5A53
Provides comprehensive coverage of both doctoral and master theses from American (and some non-American) colleges and universities.

Ecological Abstracts. Monthly. 1974 - .
Location: McKeldin Periodical Stacks, latest 5 years in McKeldin Reference
Call Number: QH540.E27
Covers 600 journals, books, and conference proceedings on all ecological topics, organized by subject, including marine, tidal, and freshwater ecology. Contains subject and author indexes.

Ecology Abstracts 1982 - . UM only
Location: McKeldin Periodicals (1980-1996)
Call Number: QH540.A661 Continues Applied Ecology Abstracts, 1975-1979.
Coverage is the broad area of the interactions between living organisms and their environment. Over 5,000 journals as well as other sources are indexed.

Environment Abstracts. 1971 - .
Location: McKeldin Periodical Stacks
Call Number: GF1.E553
Provides access to books, periodical and newspaper articles, and conference proceedings. Contains a cumulated index.

EIS, Digests of Environmental Impact Statements. 1971 - .
Location: McKeldin Periodical Stacks
Call Number: TD194.5.E171
An index to environmental impact statements, with abstracts. These are often difficult to find through other sources.

Environmental Periodicals Bibliography. 1972 - .
Location: McKeldin Periodical Stacks
Call Number: Z7171.E6
Compiled from over 600 environment related periodicals. Includes a separate annual index. Organized by broad subject headings, such as marine and freshwater resources.

Government Reports Announcement and Index. Bimonthly.
Location: Engineering Library Reference
Call Number: Z916.B473
Especially useful for locating EPA publications, this title provides access to publications available through the National Technical Information Service [NTIS]. These are often not published or distributed through other channels, and include conference proceedings, technical reports, manuals, databases, software, and other types of publications. In the subject index, look under "Environmental Pollution and Control" and "Ocean Technology and Engineering." Keyword, author and corporate author indexes are available for each volume.

Index to Scientific Reviews. Twice per year. 1974-1982, 1986 - .
Location: Chemistry Library bound periodicals. 1987 - .
Call Number: Z7403.I42 1987 FOLIO
The major source for finding literature reviews. Over 3,000 journals and other review publications, including books, are indexed. Each issue has 4 indexes: author, permuterm subject, corporate, and research front specialty.

Pollution Abstracts. Bimonthly. 1970 - . UM only
Location: McKeldin Reference Stacks, Engineering Reference, Online
Call Number: TD172.P65
Covers waste treatment, freshwater pollution, other relevant subjects. Over 2,500 journals, conference proceedings and government reports are indexed. Includes author indexes.

SciFinder Scholar.
Location: On computers in the Chemistry and Engineering and Physical Sciences Libraries. UM only
Comprehensively indexes the literature in chemistry, biochemistry, chemical engineering, and related sciences. SciFinder Scholar is the online version of Chemical Abstracts.

Water Resources Abstracts. 1968 - . UM only
Location: EPSL Periodicals (1968-1991)
Call Number: GB661.S4
Indexes literature on water-related topics covering the characteristics, conservation, control, pollution, treatment, use and management of water resources. Abstracts journals, books, conference proceedings, and technical reports.

return to top

Internet Resources

World Wide Web Sites and Documents
A Sampling of sites and documents.

Chesapeake Bay Trust, a private, nonprofit grantmaking organization created by the Maryland General Assembly. National Estuary Program: A Collaborative Approach to Protecting Coastal Water Quality, a Congressional Research Service Report. National Wetlands Inventory (NWI), from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Society of Wetland Scientists, a "community of scientists; conservationists; consultants; federal, state, and local managers; and other wetland aficionados." Water Quality Information Center, at the National Agricultural Library, part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Water Words Dictionary, providing definitions for water-related terms, maintained through the State of Nevada, Division of Water Resources. Wetland Issues (2001), from the Congressional Research Service. Wetland Science, from the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), part of the USDA. Wetlands and Agriculture: Private Interests and Public Benefits, from the Economic Research Service (ERS), part of USDA. A World in Our Backyard: A Wetlands Education and Stewardship Program, from the inter-governmental New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission.

return to top

Periodicals

All journals listed are peer reviewed and research oriented. But because this topic is often in the news, it may be appropriate to include news-oriented and popular periodicals in your research.

Coastal Management. Quarterly. 1987- .
Location: McKeldin Periodical Stacks, Online UM only
Call Number: HT392.C61

Estuaries. Quarterly.
Location: McKeldin Periodical Stacks
Call Number: QH540.5.E8.E8

Ecology Law Quarterly.
Location: McKeldin Periodical Stacks
Call Number: K5.C6

Environmental Conservation
Location McKeldin Periodical Stacks, Online UM only
Call Number: QH540.E6
Electronic Access: [http://www.journals.cambridge.org/journal_environmentalconservation]

Journal of Soil and Water Conservation. Bimonthly.
Location: McKeldin Periodical Stacks
Call Number: S622.S6

Land and Water Law Review. Semi-annual. 19666-1991
Location: McKeldin Periodical Stacks
Call Number: K12.A5

Marine Pollution Bulletin. Monthly.
Location: Engineering Library Periodical Stacks, Online UM only
Call Number: GC1080.M35
Electronic Access: [http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/0025326X]

Research Journal of the Water Pollution Control Federation. Bi-monthly.
Location: Engineering Library Periodical Stacks
Call Number: TD511.S41

Shore and Beach. Quarterly.
Location: McKeldin Folio
Call Number: TC330.A1A5

Water Environment & Technology. Monthly.
Location: Engineering Library Periodical Stacks
Call Number: TD365.W35

Water Environment Research. Bi-monthly.
Location: Engineering Library Periodical Stacks
Call Number: TD365.W25

Water Research. Monthly.
Location: Engineering Library Periodical Stacks, Online UM only
Call Number:TD420.W3
Electronic Access: [http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/00431354]

Water Resources Research. Monthly.
Location: Engineering Periodical Stacks, Online UM only
Call Number: GB651.W3
Electronic Access: [http://www.agu.org.proxy-um.researchport.umd.edu/journals/wr/]
An interdisciplinary journal including social and natural sciences, published by American Geophysical Union.

Water Science and Technology. Semi-monthly.
Location: Engineering Periodical Stacks, Online UM only
Call Number: TD420.P71
Electronic Access: [http://www.iwaponline.com/wst/toc.htm]

Wetlands. Semi-annual.
Location: McKeldin Stacks, Online UM only
Call Number: QH75.A1W47 Electronic Access:[http://www.bioone.org/bioone/?request=get-journals-list&issn=0277-5212]

return to top

Statistical Sources

Bird, Eric C., and Maurice L. Schwarts. The World's Coastline. New York, N.Y.: VanNostrand Reinhold, 1985.
Location: McKeldin Reference Stacks & Engineering Reference
Call Number: GB451.2.W67 1985
Statistical data about coastal regions throughout the world, includes primarily geological and geophysical information.

return to top