The Swamp School Launches Cloud-based Antecedent Precipitation Tool (APT)

ANGIER, N.C., Feb. 09, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Swamp School LLC, the gold standard of training and certifications for government agencies and clients in the private sector seeking to advance their wetland careers, has developed a cloud-based Antecedent Precipitation Tool (APT).

The new APT tool is designed to meet the requirements of the 2020 Navigable Waters Protection Rule, which updates the definition of jurisdictional waters in the U.S.  A significant part of this definition requires the user to limit their wetland delineation work to typical rainfall years.

To aid with compliance for the accurate timing of delineation work, the Swamp School has developed a user-friendly, cloud-based APT solution. The tool runs the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACOE)- developed software, which is only available on limited platforms, on the Swamp School’s secure cloud servers, making it accessible on any Internet-connected device. There is no software to download or install, and all-weather station FTP connections happen on the Swamp School’s servers, eliminating any potential security breaches to systems. 

“We continue to bring new innovative applications to wetland science,” said Marc Seelinger, founder, director and lead instructor of the Swamp School. “The new APT solution democratizes the USACOE software tool and makes its valuable data truly accessible to our students and clients.”

To use the tool, simply enter the study area location and study date. Within minutes, the system will report a 90-day window of precipitation history and compare it to 30-year historical data. A one-page PDF report is generated that details the wet, dry or normal conditions of the study for the selected date.

All of the database heavy lifting is done in the cloud, reducing the bandwidth required to run the tool. The PDF file generated is usually about 100K in size, so even a poor Internet connection is sufficient.

The Swamp School is currently offering a 7-day free trial of the tool. Thereafter, a $19.99 monthly subscription service to access the tool will apply. The service includes technical support, training guides and automatic version updates. Subscribers can cancel at any time and the charge will cease at the end of the billing cycle.

“The APT is yet another service we offer to help both government agencies and clients in the private sector to fulfill their mission and leverage the latest wetland science,” Seelinger said. “Students who sign up for our Online Wetland Basic Delineation Training will receive complimentary access to the tool for the duration of their class.”

ABOUT THE U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS ANTECEDENT PRECIPITATION TOOL
The APT is an automation software application that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers developed to facilitate the comparison of antecedent or recent rainfall conditions for a given location to the range of normal rainfall conditions that occurred during the preceding 30 years. In addition to providing a standardized methodology to evaluate normal precipitation conditions (“precipitation normalcy”), the APT can also be used to assess the presence of drought conditions, as well as the approximate dates of the wet and dry seasons for a given location.

ABOUT SWAMP SCHOOL LLC
Based in Angier, North Carolina, the Swamp School offers post-secondary/college classes and webinars in wetland assessment, delineation and design, and other topics relating to the management of wetlands. The classes are designed to help environmental professionals enhance their skills and expand their business.

Find out more about the Swamp School online at swampschool.org

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