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 each year. 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 percent of all waterfowl breed only in the wetlands.
Wetlands are more than 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 sediment. Most groundwater-related wetlands occur near where the groundwater discharges into the waterbody. 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.