Wetland Essay

            
             I strongly believe that government protection of wetlands should increase. They provide many helpful services and if they are destroyed then these services are destroyed. Some of those services are flood control, pest control, filters out pollutants before they reach lakes, rivers, and groundwater. Those are only the services that benefit us. In addition to this, wetlands are habitats for a wide range of animals.
             Wetlands are very good flood controllers. The soils in wetlands are very porous and sponge-like. When there is excess water the soil soaks it up and there not any surface water. When developers build over wetlands and destroy them concrete is put in place of this porous soil. Concrete doesn't absorb water very well and water gets trapped on top of the surface. This can create devastating floods costing millions of dollars in damage. The cost to repair the damage is more than the cost to save the wetlands.
             Mosquitoes aren't pleasant; they are annoying and can carry diseases. When the insects that eat mosquitoes die then the amount of mosquitoes goes up. Mosquitoes can live in a lot of places but dragonflies have a very low pollution tolerance level. When wetlands get polluted with car fluids, fertilizer, and pesticides organisms that control pests die and then the pest population goes up.
             Wetland acts as filters before water reaches main bodies of water that we get our drinking water from. The watershed is the area where the wetland draws water from. When runoff goes through the watershed it collects nutrients, silt, and pollutants. These things settle to the ground of the water and degrade and provide nutrition to the surrounding plants. Also the water sinks through the ground and refills the groundwater supplies.
             Wetlands are home to hundred or even thousands of wetlands and a lot of them are endangered. Recreational activities wouldn't be as fun if there were no animals. By the Riverwalk, if they had developed over the wildlife area then it would be plain and dull and all it would be is a dirty river going through some buildings.