To reverse the damage though will be difficult at best. Pollution, the removal of riparian vegetation, channelization, and the draining of wetlands are the by-products of urban sprawl. This has inflicted serious damage to the hydraulics that a stream employs to keep itself in dynamic equilibrium. Healthy floodplains store water during floods and release it to the stream during the summer. This helps to maintain base flows even during hot, dry months.
Wetlands are an integral part of the flood plain.
They not only store water but provide a habitat for micro biological life forms which in turn provide the nutrients for the higher level life forms Another important function of a wetland is sediment deposition. During high water levels streambeds are scoured clean and the water is muddied up. The wetlands allow the current to slow down long enough for the sediment to settle out. During the dry months riparian vegetation overtakes these sand bars. Their roots provide a binding structure and the land is reclaimed.