PSU Environmental Professional Program :: Full Course Descriptions

(River Restoration Professional Certificate Core Course 1) Successful river restoration projects are planned within a watershed context and incorporate techniques based on the developing theoretical framework for river restoration science. For professionals, it is no longer enough to be expert in a field of discipline; it is necessary to understand the collaborative process and know how to integrate individual practice with other disciplines on the team.

This required introductory course provides a wide-angle view of the constantly evolving philosophy and science of river management and restoration. It will give you an understanding of the full range of skills and project roles needed to develop and implement a river restoration project. This course is designed for consultants, natural resources managers, regulators, environmental planners, engineers, biologists, contractors and concerned members of the public that have an interest in river restoration. It will be led by facilitator and program technical director Dr. Janine Castro, a regional expert in river restoration and geomorphology, and will feature invited speakers and field visits. This three day short course will introduce you to:

Fee includes: All instruction and program facilitation, resource manual, transportation to/from the field, morning coffee/tea, lunch if you are scheduled to be in the field, a certificate of completion for this offering is provided.

Available Credit: 2.3 CEU, 23 PDH. Optional 1 graduate credit available for a fee.

(River Restoration Professional Certificate Core Course 2) This three-day course will provide river restoration professionals with essential knowledge of the types of streams present in the Pacific Northwest and the habitat and aquatic ecosystems common and unique to each. Stream ecosystems are as complex and varied as the types of streams themselves, from ephemeral mountain creeks to large, industrialized waterways like the Willamette River. Each has complex collections of habitats and life forms adapted to living and breeding in flowing water. Habitats vary widely between undercut banks and pools, midstream riffles and rapids, and alcove and other off-channel refugia. Each habitat has its own specifically adapted assemblage of aquatic creatures who interact in a complex web of nutrient processing, predation, and habitat alteration.

The instruction will focus on stream ecology as it relates to river restoration planning, implementation, and monitoring. Participants will learn how the success of river restoration is dependent on the proper assessment of current and desired-condition stream ecology. Instruction will be field-intensive and focused on the biology and habitat needs of salmonids. Facilitator, Chip McConnaha, will lead the course, supported by regional experts in biology, fisheries, water quality, and environmental sustainability. This three-day course will teach you the basics of:

Available Credit: 2.3 CEU, 23 PDH. Optional 1 graduate credit available for a fee.

(River Restoration Professional Certificate Core Course 3) The success of a river restoration project depends on the understanding of the river system and its function within the watershed. Complex interacting processes occur on a variety of temporal and spatial scales, and numerous tools are available to help analyze these processes and predict the likely impact of restoration measures. The ability to choose and implement assessment methods appropriate to the project at hand can make the difference between expensive studies that yield few useful results, and insightful tools that help guide planning for years.

This course will familiarize participants with the most widely-used assessment and reconnaissance methods in our region, and will provide a framework for developing river restoration assessment and monitoring plans. The focus will be on best practice methods and integrating new studies with watershed-wide and regional corridor studies. Led by Dr. Willis McConnaha, the course will feature instruction by regional experts in stream corridor evaluation / assessment techniques and modeling. This three and a half-day course will teach you the basics of:

Available Credit: 3.1 CEU, 31 PDH. Optional 2 graduate credits available for a fee.

(River Restoration Professional Certificate Core Course 4) Recent research has found that many river restoration designs fail because they were created to achieve a preconceived notion of the ideal form and function of the stream without recognizing the dynamic processes at work in that watershed. Others fail due to lack of sound alternatives analysis and fundamental engineering. The most successful rely on a fusion of stream mechanics knowledge and progressive design techniques. This approach establishes and supports those stream processes that create and maintain channel form and associated habitats.

In this course, participants will learn about a variety of design approaches and steps for alternative analysis of stream restoration projects. A design process will be demonstrated that integrates landscape scale considerations of geology, soils, and hydrology, with stream processes of hydraulics, sediment transport and geomorphology. Alternative analysis will focus on providing resiliency to stream systems in light of dominant stream processes overlain with biologic goals and human values. The overall focus will be on understanding and design of best management practices in the river restoration context, and on use of process-based design approaches. Classroom and field case examples will be used to demonstrate implementation of a variety of design approaches and techniques. Led by Rob Sampson P.E., the course will feature instruction by regional restoration design experts. This five-day course will teach you the basics of:

Placing alternatives in context of geomorphology, hydrology, channel geometry, sediment budget, sediment transport and management

Available Credit: 3.5 CEU, 35 PDH, Optional 2 graduate credits available for a fee.

(River Restoration Professional Certificate Core Course 5) While river restoration science is complex, many projects fail due to lack of funding and coordination between the partners. In a climate of restricted funding, project management skills and systems are critical to maximizing project cost-effectiveness. In addition, restoration projects depend heavily on collaboration and buy-in of affected landowners, local governments, and other stakeholders. The collaborative nature of river restoration projects requires the cooperation of multiple agencies, consultants, and stakeholders at every phase of project selection, planning and implementation. Many river restoration teams undertake complex and large-scale projects without a full appreciation for these management and communication complexities.

This course will lead participants through the process of building multi-agency and interdisciplinary teams, setting up administrative systems, and creating internal and public communication plans. Case examples will be provided for various restoration project types and scales. Facilitated by Bruce Henderson, speakers will include representatives from state and federal agencies, consulting firms, and non-governmental organizations. This three day course will teach you the basics of:

Fee: $495.00 (sorry no individual fee deductions are possible at this rate) Fee includes: All instruction and program facilitation, resource manual, transportation to/from the field, morning coffee/tea, lunch if you are scheduled to be in the field, a certificate of completion for this offering is provided.

Available Credit: 2.3 CEU, 23 PDH. Optional 1 graduate credit available for a fee.

This three-day lecture and field course is designed for both public and private professionals engaged in stream investigation, management, stabilization and restoration. The course is designed to clearly demonstrate the essential links between research, analysis, design, project implementation, and post-project evaluation. Lectures will introduce the fundamental concepts linking streambank processes and geomorphic adjustments in the fluvial system. Field work will allow students to evaluate and quantify force and resistance mechanisms that control streambank-erosion processes, failure mechanisms, and the importance of basal scour to sustained bank retreat in alluvial channels. Hands-on modeling will provide students with the opportunity to investigate the factors which control bank stability, while also recognizing the significance of these factors when designing mitigation measures. All students will be provided with bank-stability modeling software for future use.

Prerequisites: Students attending this course should have solid algebraic and analytical skills. Experience using Microsoft Excel or similar spreadsheet programs is highly recommended. A laptop computer is also recommended for running bank-stability software provided during class.

Instructors: Andrew Simon, Ph.D., Geomorphologist, USDA-ARS National Sedimentation Laboratory, Oxford, MS; Colin Thorne, Ph.D., Professor of Physical Geography, University of Nottingham, UK; Janine Castro, Ph.D., R.G., Geomorphologist, US Fish & Wildlife Service, Portland, OR

Available Credit: This course meets one Elective requirement for the PSU River Restoration Professional Certificate. 2.0 CEU, 20 PDH, Optional 1 graduate credit available for a fee.

Bioengineering is a relatively low-tech method of construction that uses living plants in combination with non-living materials to deal with soil or bank erosion, water quality treatment, flood control, sediment accumulation, or habitat improvement concerns. Bioengineering combines biological, ecological and engineering concepts, using plants as the primary technical component to produce living, functioning systems. Soil bioengineering may be used in combination with, or often as an alternative to, traditionally engineered methods of managing eroded or destabilized stream banks or areas affected by stormwater runoff. Used appropriately, bioengineering methods are cost-effective, favour native biodiversity and habitat function, meet scenic vista standards resolve stormwater compliance problems, meet most regulatory requirements and may exceed permit standards.

This four day course puts students in the field with experienced professionals. They will demonstrate a range of stream and upland sites, focusing on the urban environment that use soil bioengineering methods to resolve a diversity of common but complex stormwater and erosion problems. The focus of this course is to provide a practical understanding of the value of bioengineering methods and the associated design considerations and installation methods. This lecture and hands-on field class will present:
- Knowledge of the principles of bioengineered project assessment and design
- Exposure to the diversity and complexity of bioengineering methods
- Experience installing various bioengineering methods for small stream and upland erosion projects
- Knowledge of when to contact an engineer, hydrologist, geomorphologist, landscape architect or other specialist
- Understanding of the decision making processes for implementing stormwater management, erosion and/or bank stabilization design for landscape projects

Instruction will focus on:
- Design specifications and applications
- Application of soil bioengineering techniques
- Design considerations
- Installation methods and requirements
- Monitoring and on-going maintenance

The course incorporates classroom presentations, site-viewing field trips, field demonstrations and hands-on field workshop sessions. These field sessions will expose students to methods commonly used in the Pacific Northwest which include the installation of live cuttings, facines, brush-layered soil wraps, brush-mattress, erosion control fabrics and native plantings.

This course is designed for supervisory and technical consultants, landscape architects, developers, landscape contractors and supervisors, and agency planners, inspectors, regulators, and site restoration crews.

This course is not directed at the technical assessment of stream and sediment flow dynamics, slope stability physics or other areas of stream engineering or fluvial geomorphology that may be required prior to the design and installation of bioenginered shoreline, stream bank or slope stabilization construction projects.

Instructor: Clayton Anderson, CPESC, Consultant, Contractor
Time: 8:00 – 5:00 Tuesday – Thursday, 8:00 – 3:00 Friday
Location: Leach Botanical Garden, Portland, Oregon
Fee: $740
Fee includes: morning coffee, snacks, trespass permission, handouts, transportation
Transportation: Van
Available Credit: 3.0 CEU or 30 PDH
Course Number:EPP 232

This is a recommended 3-day advanced course for wetland delineators. The course covers the fundamental relationship between hydrology, soils and landscape in the context of delineating wetlands according to the procedures and standards established by the US Army Corps of Engineers.

This lecture and field course will focus on a "hands-on" understanding and the ability to describe hydrology sources, quantify drainage basins and hydrology alterations, document soil profiles, and interpret landscape features (geomorphology).

One-third of the course will be lecture; the remaining time will involve numerous field stops in and just beyond the Portland Metropolitan area. Field study will include installing observation wells, examining redoximorphic features, describing drained hydric soils, and characterizing problem situations. Other topics include land forms and geomorphology, soil taxonomy and chemistry, ground water gradient analysis, runoff factors, sampling depths and measurements, collecting and interpreting precipitation data, and use of aerial photographs.

This course requires some wetland hiking, carrying field gear and some labor. Hiking/walking may involve slippery or wet, uneven ground that is often without trails.

This course is appropriate for anyone interested in learning how to identify our difficult NW willows. While there are relatively few willow species in the Northwest, they are nonetheless notoriously difficult to identify due to widespread interbreeding of the species. To make matters worse, the diagnostic reproductive parts used in most taxonomic keys are based on characteristics that have a narrow time window of availability.

- Willow communities and habitat requirements
- Taxonomic language and use of a plant key for identifying willows
- How to field identify most willows of the Willamette Valley and neighboring wetlands and streams
- How to harvest, protect and plant the willow cuttings
- Hands-on demonstrations and field hints on how to revegetate with and maintain willows

The morning will begin with class instruction; the rest of the day will be spent in the field learning willow field characteristics as well as hands-on demonstrations of how to revegetate using willows. Class samples will include willow specimens that were pre-collected to give you specimens from other seasons.
The class manual will include diagrams, locally developed keys, and other resources. Prior experience using botanical keys and dissecting microscopes is helpful, although not required.
Upon completing the course you will have the skills needed to identify and revegetate using willows.
Note: class size is small, early registration is recommended.

Text: Hitchcock and Cronquist, 1973, Flora of the Pacific Northwest
Or
Hitchcock, Cronquist, Ownby, and Thompson, 1971, Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest, Part 1: Vascular Cryptogams, Gymnosperms, and Monocotyledons
And
Cooke, Sarah Spear, editor, 1997, A Field Guide to the Common Wetland Plants of Western Washington and Northwestern Oregon

Materials: Please bring a hand lens (10x) and dissecting kit that includes a probe, razor blade, metric ruler, fine tipped tweezers and hand pruners/clippers. You might want your camera, too. Dress for any weather; bring boots.

Field transportation will be by carpool.

This five day laboratory and field wetland plant identification course focuses on teaching you to identify wetland plants. You will learn the taxonomic identification skills necessary to identify most common species of wetland plants in the Pacific Northwest. Students will be introduced to the National List of Plants Species that occur in wetlands, and will consider the indicator status of species seen in various habitats across the wetland landscape. Lecture-labs (with lots of microscope and hand-lens work) and field study will cover terminology, field characteristics, keying, habitat preferences, species distribution and species assemblages. Emphasis will be placed on teaching field characteristics of the wetland plants, including how to key sedges, grasses, rushes, and willows. Participants should have some familiarity with our NW flora and be aware of the National List of Plants that occur in wetlands. An "advanced beginner" course, students are NOT expected to be proficient in plant taxonomy or wetland ecology. This course is intended for those interested in:

Fee Includes: Instruction, resource manual, specimens, microscope use, a very significant manual covering all the wetland plant families, complete with diagrams, notes, and hard to find keys.

Available Credit: 3.2 CEU, 32 PDH, 2 optional graduate credits for additional fee.

“If you work for the Federal Government or your projects receive any federal funding, you need to understand and know how to work with NEPA.”

Besides the Endangered Species Act, the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is the most important environmental law in our country. This course shows you how NEPA establishes national environmental policies, how it provides the framework for federal agency planning, and what the procedures are that ensures the federal agencies consider the environmental implications of their actions before they make decisions.

Covered in the course is how to prepare Environmental Assessments (EA's) and Environmental Impact Statements (EIS's), both mandated by NEPA.

This class is for anyone implementing federal funds for environmental projects including regulators, engineers, scientists, consultants, and planners.

The fundamentals of NEPA
NEPA’s legal and regulatory framework
How to determine when NEPA applies
How to prepare Environmental Assessments (EA's), Findings of No Significant Impacts, and when an EIS is required
The NEPA distinction between “purpose and need” and “alternatives“
The key factors involved with EIS preparation
How to prepare adequate, defensible, and useful environmental documents
The current standards of judicial review, and
How to integrate NEPA with other federal, state, and local requirements and permits.

Instructor: Ronald Bass, Coauthor of The NEPA Book, A Step-by-Step Guide on How to Comply with the National Environmental Policy Act

EPP 752 - The Endangered Species Act: Overview and Best Approaches to Compliance in Oregon

Participants in this course will gain a thorough understanding of the current federal laws, regulations, policies, and practices concerning threatened and endangered fish, wildlife and plants. This program presents the latest case law and regulatory changes in the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA) and practical advice for resolving endangered species conflicts with proposed projects.
This course presents an overview of the federal ESA, reviewing the primary sections of the ESA, as well as presenting an overview of how the ESA relates to Oregon issues. A short overview of state species preservation laws will be presented.
The following key aspects of the ESA are addressed, including the most recent case law and agency policies:

History and Overview of the ESA
Responsible parties in the ESA process
Section 4 listing process
The role of science in the listing process
Section 4(d) Rules and flexibility for the regulation of species listed as “threatened”
Section 7 consultation process: Species lists, Determination of “effect”, Biological Assessments, and Biological Opinions
Conferencing for species proposed for listing
Section 9 prohibition against “take”
Section 10 incidental take permit process: Habitat Conservation Plans (HCPs)
Safe Harbors and No Surprises policies
Other federal and state laws that provide for species protection

Instructor:Shane Latimer, Ph.D., Ecologist, Consultant, Jones & Stokes Associates

Aquatic macroinvertebrate biomonitoring is a quick, cost-effective method for assessing
the water quality and habitat conditions of streams and small rivers. Biomonitoring is
particularly useful for monitoring and assessing river restoration and habitat
improvement projects. The two-day course will provide professionals with the skills and
knowledge needed to conduct Rapid Bioassessment field techniques for aquatic
macroinvertebrate Biomonitoring.

This training program focuses on:
- Family-level taxonomy and identification of common macroinvertebrates.
- Macroinvertebrate collection and sampling
- Data analysis and interpretation.

“Project managers don’t like costly surprises. Especially regulatory surprises!”

This course should not only prevent regulatory surprises, but teach you to coordinate your planning so that you may integrate all your permits at the planning stage, identify environmentally superior alternatives, and reduce costs and project schedule time.

Many projects trigger the need for multiple environmental permits and certifications that require similar information and involve parallel permitting schedules. This one-day course will focus on how to integrate federal, state, and local environmental regulations and permits into a “no-surprises” project plan. Emphasis will be on providing the resources and information needed to conduct a preliminary constraints analysis, understanding the various permitting processes and how they relate to one another, and the importance of early and frequent coordination with the appropriate resource agencies.

The course presents regulatory constraints in a graphic, geography-based manner utilizing case studies to illustrate the planning and permitting process. The primary regulations covered include the Clean Water Act (wetlands and water quality), the Endangered Species Act (ESA), the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and the National Historic Preservation Act. As examples of local regulations, e.g., Oregon’s wetland removal/fill law and Statewide Planning Goals will be covered briefly.

This course is designed for professionals faced with projects that are potentially constrained by natural resource issues, permitting schedules, and connections to natural resource function and values. It is particularly important for land managers, regulators, environmental planers, and civil engineers, landscape architects, contractors, and scientists.

This course does not cover any one of the regulations in exhaustive detail. As a planning methodology, it will provide a basis for understanding common regulatory integration issues.

This three day laboratory course will teach you how to identify grasses, sedges, and rushes in the Pacific Northwest. Coursework will cover the vocabulary needed to use technical keys and the majority of class time will be spent learning to use both locally developed keys and more technical resources such as Hitchcock and Cronquist, Flora of the Pacific Northwest. In addition to keying, we will also cover the field identification characteristics used to identify each species. Class samples will include more than 50 of the most common grasses, sedges, and rushes of fresh and salt-water wetlands and associated upland and riparian habitats in Oregon and Washington. The class manual will include diagrams, locally developed keys, and other resources. Prior experience using botanical keys is recommended, although not required. This course is appropriate for anyone interested in learning to identify grasses, sedges, and rushes.

Materials: Hand Lens (10x) and dissecting kit that includes a probe, razor blade, ruler, and fine tipped tweezers

In wetland permit applications, guidance and rules of the Corps of Engineers and Oregon Division of State Lands (DSL) require that functions of wetlands be assessed, and both agencies encourage use of regionalized hydrogeomorphic (HGM) methods for doing so. Use of Oregon's HGM wetland classification scheme is specifically required by the Oregon DSL. More broadly, many restoration projects and monitoring programs share with the HGM the need for "reference sites."

This two-day course is being taught by the author of Oregon's 3-volume HGM Guidebook, which was sponsored by the Oregon DSL and USEPA. Day-1 will cover general hydrogeomorphic principles as applied to wetlands, as well as classification of wetland and riparian systems (including practice with maps), and the basics of function assessment. Day-2 will feature a guided field application of the HGM methods in two wetlands, discussion of results, and demonstration of regulatory applications. This course is relevant for resource planning at the city, county, watershed and state levels. It is intended for engineers, administrative and technical staff of resource agencies, consultants, and others needing to apply best-available-science to assess wetland and riparian functions. This course will explain and demonstrate how to:

Assess functions of wetland and riparian systems using the Willamette Valley HGM method

Use results in determining ratios for different types of mitigation projects, or for prioritizing restoration/ preservation efforts

Use reference data and performance standards to help design restoration sites and maintain the condition of existing wetland / riparian systems

Included: The three volume HGM guidebook and CD is included and mailed to you upon receipt of registration. Please review it prior to class, and bring it with you.

Fee Includes: The three volume HGM Guidebook and CD, by Paul Adamus, instruction, Professional Certificate of Completion.

This four and a half day lecture and field class will teach you how to design, construct and supervise the installation of wetland mitigation projects. Lectures will cover Design, Construction, Installation, and Monitoring/ Maintenance. The class includes a hands-on, "how-to" practicum in the field.

Construction and installation oversight methods and monitoring and maintenance will also be reviewed.

Fee Includes: Substantial reference manual, morining coffee, water and snacks in the field. There is no text that covers this topic. The included reference manual is in excess of 300 pages.

Available Credit: 3.6 CEU, or 36 PDH. 2 optional graduate university credits available for additional fee.

A great training course needed by anyone who intends to delineate, restore, or work with wetlands. The course includes both lecture and "hands-on" field work.

Following completion of this course, you will understand how to identify and delineate wetlands according to the procedures and standards established by the US Army Corps of Engineers, the Oregon Division of State Lands, and Washington Department of Ecology. It is designed and taught by expert practitioners in the field of wetland delineation with decades of field experience. This course is appropriate for both professionals and students; it qualifies as credit towards certification through the Society of Wetland Scientist Professional Certification Program.

Our PSU Basic Wetland Delineation Training Course, though nationally applicable, focuses on wetlands of the Pacific Northwest. Topics include wetland parameters (hydrology, hydrophytic vegetation, and hydric soils) and field indicators, technical criteria, delineation procedures, methods for disturbed areas, and recognizing problem areas.

Available Credit: 3.8 CEU, or 38 PDH. Optional 2 graduate credits, available for a fee.

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Materials: Please bring a hand lens (10x) and dissecting kit that includes a probe, razor blade, metric ruler, fine tipped tweezers and hand pruners/clippers. You might want your camera, too. Dress for any weather; bring boots.

Field transportation will be by carpool.

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