The Natural Communities Commonly Associated With Groundwater

The Natural Communities Commonly Associated with Groundwater dataset is a compilation of 48 publicly available State and Federal agency datasets that map vegetation, wetlands, springs, and seeps in California. A working group comprised of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and The Nature Conservancy reviewed the compiled dataset and conducted a screening process to exclude vegetation and wetland types less likely to be associated with groundwater and retain types commonly associated with groundwater. Two habitat classes are included in the dataset: (1) wetland features commonly associated with the surface expression of groundwater under natural, unmodified conditions; and (2) vegetation types commonly associated with the sub-surface presence of groundwater (phreatophytes).