"This manual is based on the authors' experience teaching the Wetland Assessment Training Course to employees of the Chinese National Environmental Protection Agency (CNEPA) at Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, October 1986 and at Tongliao, Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region, august 1987, Peoples Republic of China. the object of the course was to provide a basic introduction to freshwater wetlands, their functions and preliminary techniques by which to screen wetlands for potential functions. Minimal acquaintance with wetlands, as systems, was assumed and emphasis was put on functions important to subsistence economies and sustainable utilization. The manual is designed to be used by an instructor who has taken the course or who has had training in wetland functions and assessment. It is an outline on which not all of the concepts and procedures are fully developed. It is intended to serve as an instructional guide to course topics and organization, and a framework for student note taking, discussion, and as an aide to bridging a language barrier. We recommend that instructors use the books listed in section 11.0 as prime sources while instructing the course. We have drawn from them extensively."--Page ii

Wetlands perform functions that deliver benefits to society, often referred to as ecosystem services. These ecosystem services include water supply, flood regulation, water purification, climate regulation, biodiversity, agriculture (e.g. grazing land), and amenity. A functional approach to wetland assessment enables a holistic view to be taken of the wide range of services wetlands can provide. The functional assessment procedures (FAPs) in this volume translate best available scientific knowledge into reasonable predictions of how component parts of wetlands function in different landscape contexts. They can be used to indicate the potential and priorities for management options in such areas as flood control, pollution reduction and biodiversity conservation. Functional assessment enables the user to predict the functioning of a wetland area without the need for comprehensive and expensive empirical research The FAPs therefore provide a methodology that can be used by both experts and non-experts to assess wetland functioning relatively rapidly. The volume includes an electronic version of the FAPs on CD which automates aspects of the assessment once the initial recording stage is completed. It is anticipated that the FAPs will be used by a range of individuals or organisations concerned with wetland management who wish to gain a better understanding of the processes, functions, services or benefits and potential of the wetlands for which they have responsibility. Provides a systematic methodology to evaluate how wetlands function Allows non-experts to assess wetland functioning rapidly and cost-effectively Automates aspects of the functional assessment through the accompanying CD-ROM