Its becoming harder and harder to be non-partisan these days and to remain neutral when so much crazy stuff is going on. Despite your political preference some crazy stuff is going on in the world and some of that is having a real negative effect on the environment and the planet as a whole. Let’s dive on in then! Okay so according to The Independent President Trump is planning on instructing the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers to reconsider the 2015 Waters of the United States rule instated by President Obama. This move could ultimately make it much easier for agriculturists to drain wetlands and small streams. This may not seem like a big deal at first glance but wetlands play an EXTREMELY important ecological role.
Wetlands offer a variety of ecosystem services. For one wetlands help to filter water removing harmful minerals and dangerous heavy metals before they reach the ocean. Furthermore, wetlands provide a buffer to flooding. Wetlands can disperse flood waters over large shallow areas. Without wetlands the water must move in narrower channels which increases the peak of the flood leading to faster and more dangerous floods. Furthermore, wetlands are home to a variety of unique species; if the wetlands are destroyed, so to are their habitats. This brings me to a bigger idea; that of ecosystem services. In the current economy we simply do not value the environment despite all its benefits. Think of all the money that is spent on large infrastructure projects to mitigate flood damage. These costs could be eliminated (perhaps not entirely but significantly) if we simply kept these precious ecosystems intact. It just goes to show that even if a person doesn’t believe in the intrinsic value of the environment; it still offers us many services that can be given a dollar value.
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AuthorsJust two water lovers exploring todays water issues. Archives
July 2017
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