Myths about Wetlands

For many years wetlands had been looked at as a nuisance. Because of this belief, many persons have grown up hearing, have been taught, or just plain do not understand some basics about wetlands.
The following is a list of some of the myths and misconceptions many persons have in regards to wetlands, and the real story.

MYTH:
We have plenty of wetlands. Who needs them anyway?

FACT:

In the lower 48 states, development has destroyed more than half (53 percent) of our original wetlands. The wetlands we lost would have reduced flood damage,
filtered pollution and provided homes for fish and wildlife, including some
endangered species. (Source: Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service)
See our map for wetland loss in your state.

MYTH:
Because wetlands are saturated with water, they must be a liability -- not an asset -- in floods.

FACT:

It's true that some kinds of wetlands are already saturated, such as those atop
permafrost in Alaska. But most wetlands have great capacity and act like sponges,
soaking up rain and water runoff. They then release water slowly back into streams,
lakes and groundwater. The states that have the greatest loss of life and property
due to flooding -- California, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, Kentucky and Ohio --
have lost more than 80 percent of their wetlands. (Source: Fish and Wildlife Service)

MYTH:
Wetlands provide an excuse for eco-fanatics in the EPA and elsewhere to restrict private property rights by barring construction and other development.

FACT:

Just about anyone can develop a wetland -- and in a flash. In 1996, the Army Corps approved 99.7 percent of all permit applications. The EPA has veto power, but since 1979 it has denied only 11 out of 150,000 permit applications. The
overwhelming majority of permits are routinely approved. Last year, 85 percent
were authorized in an average of 11 days. (Source: Army Corps of Engineers, EPA.)

MYTH:
The nation is actually showing a net gain in wetlands habitat.

FACT:

That's what industry and trade organizations would like us to think. But the EPA, Army Corps and Fish and Wildlife Service calculate an annual net loss of 70,000 to 90,000 acres. They base their figures on a 1992 inventory taken by the Natural Resources Conservation Service, which counted only rural, non-federal land. Taking into account all wetlands in the coterminous United States, the figure is actually closer to a net loss of 100,000 acres -- every year. (Sources: EPA; Bill O. Wilen, project leader of the Fish and Wildlife Service's National Wetlands Inventory
Project.)

MYTH:
A restored wetland is just as good as nature's own.

FACT:

Some restored wetlands serve a good purpose, but most lack the diversity in plant and animal life that develops over time and through wet and dry cycles. Also, a wetland created at Point B to make up for the loss of a wetland at Point A does not always perform the same function. The home of Kentucky schoolteacher Doris Wilson hadn't flooded in the 20 years she lived there -- until this spring, after a neighbor destroyed a nearby wetland. Creating wetland acreage along the Missouri River may help the city of Columbia treat its wastewater, but it won't help Doris Wilson in Kentucky.

Additional Facts

- Half the original 221 million acres of wetlands in the lower 48 states have been destroyed and an additional 290,000 acres continue to be lost every year (Dahl and Johnson, 1991)
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- Wetlands support a wide variety of plant and animal populations that rely on the wetland for food, shelter, and reproduction. Many of these inhabitants are federally listed threatened or endangered species.

- Wetlands provide the principal habitat for virtually all waterfowl. Some 75% of all waterfowl breed only in wetlands.

- Wetlands are more than just water reserves. When water enters a wetland, the wetland acts as a purifier, cleaning the water before it exits. Wetlands do this by removing, retaining, and transforming nutrients, processing wastes, and trapping sediments.

- Most groundwater-related wetlands occur near where the groundwater discharges into the water body. In some instances, the wetlands provide water to streams that begin to dry up during the summer months.

- Certain wetlands recharge aquifers that provide drinking water.

- Some wetlands, particularly those on floodplains and in coastal areas, function in flood control by storing excess water during storm events.

- Wetlands stabilize shorelines and prevent erosion by binding stream banks and by absorbing wave energy. Some wetlands also play an early and fundamental role in land building, particularly in coastal areas that regularly lose land to the ocean.

- Wetlands support a multi-billion dollar fishing, hunting and outdoor recreation industry nationwide, as they provide direct spawning and rearing habitat and food supply that supports both freshwater and marine fisheries.

- Wetlands are currently being used in city wastewater treatment programs. As a final stage, the wetlands remove any lingering nutrients and stabilize the waters. Wetlands in Sweden are being used breakdown airport anti-freeze run-off from deicing procedures.