Saving Wetlands

  It was astronaut Robert Thirsk who had stated,” Earth’s life-support system... relies upon finely tuned interactions among land, oceans, atmosphere, the freshwater cycle, flora and fauna” It is evident that after discovering even the galaxy, anyone can agree that the whole life-support system of our planet Earth relies on our waters.  

And it was Leonardo De Vinci who had reminded us that, “Water is the driving force of ALL nature.” It is evident that Leonardo De Vinci understood our wetland communities and the importance of keeping them. Leonardo De Vinci wanted to encourage us to embrace the water.  

    So, what is so important about our wetlands? Why should we keep them? What is in it for us? And most of all are wetlands really worth saving?We cannot forget about the wonders that our community watersheds are doing. Wetlands in our communities are helping us by-  

• storing and controlling flood water and acting as a floodplain 

•  reducing erosion 

• slowing down run off 

• regulating water levels 

• filtering sediment and water 

•  trapping and producing nutrients 

•  breaking down pollutants 

• Maintaining surface water flow during dry periods of time 

•  natural products 

• recharging ground water 

All of these are reasons which, whether we realize it or not, are especially important. For example, without having wetlands we could have had several floods take place in our city, but because the wetlands are storing and controlling flood water and acting as a flood plain (an area near rivers which could flood). We can also use wetlands for our recreational activities such as canoeing, kayaking, stand up paddle boarding, swimming, fishing, and even other fun activities.  

 

    Many of us may not have realized, but our economy also relies on our wetlands. Have you ever wondered where our blueberries and cranberries came from? Or where we got our fish and shellfish? We receive fish, shellfish, blueberries, cranberries, timber, and wild rice, all from a wetland. Even some medicines are created using wetlands strong and thriving soils and plants. The nation's economic industry relies on wetlands.  

 

Our wetland is a big, biodiverse ecosystem. Our wetland is not just affecting us. It is also affecting other creatures and animals. According to the Google Dictionary, ecosystems are a biological community of interacting organisms and their physical environment. Ecosystems contain biotic factors and abiotic factors. Biotic factors which are living factors and abiotic factors which are physical but non-living factors. The ecosystem is a big part of animals, birds, macro invertebrates also known as visible insects.  

 

Even the creatures in our world rely on the wetlands to provide a delightful home, food, nurseries for small animals, and a place for migrating birds. Wetlands are known as one of the most productive ecosystems in our world and are comparable to rain forests and coral reefs. A source says that- “The more the city grows, the more we need to protect our wetlands” This means that as the amount of our city land and buildings are increasing, we need to remember to protect our wetlands because these city lands are reducing the number of wetlands which are affecting our environment.  Removing our wetland will remove a good habitat from several creatures. Doing that will make a tremendous change in our communities.  

 

But is there anything else that a wetland helps with? A recent problem in our communities has been global warming. Global warming is causing our earth to get warmer. Which means that it is less likely for there to be snow. If you have not realized it yet, we have not had any snow yet this year which has taken away the fun activities which we all take part in. Global warming is caused by human practices which are causing greenhouse gases. Because of greenhouse gases there are going to be several effects on our earth and not good ones. These effects will be on us and the creatures in our environment. Researchers have proven that we can use wetlands to limit the amount of greenhouse gases. By absorbing greenhouse gases, wetlands are limiting the amount of greenhouse gases. This will make a meaningful change in our communities. But without our wetlands, it is not possible to make this impact. 

 We need to make good choices not only for ourselves but also for others and our communities. According to a source, “A world without wetlands, is a world without water.” So how can we protect our wetlands? One great way to protect our wetlands is to encourage others to not build or pollute in wetlands. Don't forget to work together to appreciate and protect our wetlands!