The Loss of Indiana Wetlands Did you know that wetlands use to make up 25 percent of Indiana? Now, 86 percent of the wetlands have either been filled or drained (“Miller, Brian K”). Wetlands are all over Indiana as well as all over the United States. I’m sure you’ve been to one before and may not have even known it was considered a wetland. The problem is, is that wetlands have dramatically decreased throughout the state. Wetlands locally and nationally are so beneficial to our environment that the loss of them are doing more harm than good. Not only do they provide numerous functions like helping with flood control and water quality, but they also benefit the wildlife as well. The loss of wetlands needs to become more of an awareness issue …show more content…
This is something that’s very important not only in Indiana, but the whole United States. Wetlands help to absorb certain excess organic and inorganic nutrients in the water. Some of the nutrients are “farm fertilizers and septic system runoff, filter sediments such as eroded soil particles, and trap pollutants such as pesticides and some heavy metals” (“Status of Wetlands in Indiana”). Once they absorb these materials, the plants and natural bacteria found in wetlands break up those chemicals to make it less harmful to people (“Protecting Indiana’s Wetlands”). These materials that I just mentioned can do lots of harm to the surface water and groundwater quality so wetlands do a good job of trapping those materials. Without wetlands, our water quality that we get out of the faucet would not only affect us in Indiana, but everyone else nationally as well. This could pose a huge problem if our water became …show more content…
The coastal wetlands are very important too. The loss of coastal wetlands are being destroyed twice as fast than they are being restored (“Coastal Wetlands”). Coastal wetlands include bottomland hardwood and mangrove swamps, salt and freshwater marshes, and shrubby depressions that are called “pocosins” mostly found in the southeast part of the United States. Coastal wetlands have many functions. They play a role in flood protection, erosion control, wildlife food and habitat, commercial fisheries, water quality, recreation, and even carbon sequestration (“Coastal Wetlands”). So as you can see, coastal wetlands have many functions just as any other wetland. There are multiple reasons why the wetlands have continuously had a downfall. Two of the reasons are due to hydrologic alterations and urbanization along with many more reasons such as natural processes. Hydrologic alterations consist of: drainage, dredging, stream channelization, ditching, levees, and deposition of fill material, stream diversion, groundwater withdrawal, and impoundment (“Wetlands Loss and Degradation”). When these changes occur to wetlands, it also cause changes to the animals or plants living there as well as the soil that’s
The Deep Creek Conservation Park was full of wildlife and plants. Many people in the group saw lots of kangaroos and bird species that live in the area (See figure 8). We saw a few animal tracks on the camp as well which shows that the area is full of wildlife. While there the group also noticed some human impacts such as paths, long drops or other sustainable practices that humans have made to make the environment more sustainable in the long run. Although these practices were effective many small improvements could be made such as teaching people who use the park correct usage such as not feeding the animals. Other improvements that could be made could be things such as putting lights in the toilets so people can see or making paths easier to walk on.
DUI’s vision is, “…wetlands sufficient to fill the skies with waterfowl today, tomorrow and forever.” The site’s main focus stays true to DUI’s vision; protecting important waterfow...
Invasive species do not only affect other species in their ecosystem, but also cost the United States more than one hundred and twenty million dollars each year in damages (“Cost” par. 2). Invasive species come in all different forms, and all have a negative impact on the environment. These species can come into a new area without being detected at first, but as time goes on their effects can soon be seen. Efforts are being made to prevent these invasive species from destroying fish population and habitat, but in order to be successful they need to be done on a much larger scale. In order to protect Wisconsin's waters, which are already infected with many invasive species that cause great damage to our bodies of water, more actions need to be taken. It is vital to remove all invasive species from Wisconsin’s waters because it will improve fish habitat, native fish population, and water quality.
They hold pollutants that could be exposed during swimming. Even low levels of pollutant exposure should be avoided. Ecosystems in these ponds can be somewhat fragile and very slim due to the amount of work that is going on through the pond. These ponds can easily be enjoyable for a nice place to sit but even then a pond may or may not turn green and be smelly during the summer heat. What matters is what the pond is doing to keep our streams healthy. There are more than 14,000 recorded storm water ponds in South Carolina. Experiments are run on these ponds by a multitude of people from University of South Carolina, or Clemson University. These ponds exemplify a new type of aquatic environment and are also known for Canadian geese which makes for highly experimental grounds. These ponds make for a little habitat for many types of species to thrive and for our streams to thrive as well. Our very own storm water pond, for example, is home to a fair amount of varieties of ducks and
The Everglades has been a foundational part of Florida ever since it was discovered. Its swamps have taken hold of the bottom quadrant of the Florida peninsula with its majestic swamps and exotic wildlife within. However, with Florida's population growth since the turn of the twenty-first century, the Everglades has been threatened by man (Everglades). The Everglades has sustained substantial damage due to over-drainage, runoff of nutrient pollutants, like phosphorus, and the spreading of algae and other plants that upset the ecosystem of the swamp. A greater amount of restoration must be done in the Everglades, otherwise, the whole ecosystem of the swamp could be destroyed.
This paper introduces the environmental concerns of the loss of coastal wetlands. The paper will discuss the significance of wetlands and the devastation that is occurring because of human activity. Wetlands are an essential element of our environment both ecological and societal; conservation will be essential for the preservation of these precious ecosystems.
Wetland reconstruction to areas that are not degraded fully can be a less expensive task to take on. Even in areas of the coast where some wetlands have been filled in, the expense associated with building wetlands is offset by the reduced erosion to the surrounding lands (EPA, 2015). Wetlands can hold large volumes of flood water or other types of precipitation which is invaluable to reducing the effects of flooding. Since these are natural structures and employ the use of native species, they are ecologically sound and contribute to the biodiversity of the areas they are found it. For South Carolina, they can contribute to reducing erosion on its beaches, as well as offer additional beauty to the landscape. I believe that wetland restoration, and also additional wetland construction, should be of high priority to reduce coastal flooding due to the many benefits received in addition to this
Peatlands, are fens, swamps, marshes, and bogs that cover approximately 2-3% of the global land surface [5]. Peat bogs are infertile wetlands with acidic soil that contain unusual communities of plants and animals adapted to live in these conditions. Peat has high water holding capacity and stores organic carbon which has many benefits and functions to the environment. Unfortunately, wetlands are sensitive to environmental change and human impacts such as harvesting and agriculture. It is extremely important to protect and maintain these rare wetlands for the conservation of rare species that reside in these ecosystems and the biodiversity of plants. The importance of the restoration of peat bogs is vital for their survival although, climatic
The objective of this study is twofold. One – to identify overall accuracy in NWI indicated wetlands and waterbodies utilizing both public and privately gathered data and Two – Identify trends in accuracy so as to provide potential predictive tools for NWI usage depending upon wetland or waterbody type, county, ecoregion, or U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) 7.5 Minute
For a typical wetland ecosystem, its values can be accounted in terms of the populations of its species, fish harvested per day, the amount of carbon stored per year, or the annual number of recreational visits. These are generally categorised as values from wetland production, regulating or cultural services (MA, 2005). Proper and accurate estimation of these values enables comparative analysis of intervention practices and therefore contributes to the improvement of the design of policies (Barbier, 1993; Barbier et al., 1997; Turner et al, 2000). Quality is a critical factor in determining the values of wetlands. A healthy and functioning wetland may provide rich ecosystem services (Zedler and Kercher, 2005; Maltby, 2009).
Heimlich, Ralph E.,and Vesterby, Marlow. 1989. "Conversion of Wetlands to Urban Uses: Evidence from Southeastern Counties" Wetlands. Concerns and Successes. pp.161-73
These are the main threats to biodiversity around the world. Very often large scale construction occurs in ‘fragile areas’, for example, wetland drainage and infilling. Habitat destruction changes the conditions needed for particular plants and animals to
Human interventions in watersheds, lakes and river systems take many forms - deforestation, farming, irrigation, river damming and extractions from subterranean aquifers. Wetlands play a crucial role in the filtering of fresh water, including the removal of various chemicals and potentially toxic elements, such as heavy metal pollutants, as cadmium and lead. (WHO, 2005).
In 1971, the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat was held in Ramsar, Iran (Firouz, 1971). The Convention, also known as the Ramsar Convention, entered into force in December of 1975 with the countries of Australia, Finland, Norway, Sweden, South Africa, Iran, Greece and Bulgaria signing on as parties to the Convention at that time (Johnson, 1976). The Ramsar Convention is considered the principal global instrument for intergovernmental cooperation on wetland conservation (Smart and Canters, 1991). The initiative behind the Convention was due to mostly by the efforts of non-governmental organizations (Podolsky, 2001). The main objective of the Convention was to establish a comprehensive international plan for the protection of the wetland ecosystem. The Convention required the parties to formulate their planning so as to promote the "wise use" of wetlands in their territory and the conservation of particular sites to be included in a list of wetlands of international importance (Bowman, 1995). This paper will cover the background leading to the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat, including the formulation of policy, key players, factors, mechanisms, as well as the actual Convention and its effectiveness for protecting the international wetland ecosystem.