The benefits of wetlands are incalculable, both for our economy and our environment, yet more than 120,000 acres of wetlands continue to be destroyed every year. More than half of the wetlands in the lower 48 states that were present when European settlers arrived have already been lost.
Wetlands can be the first line of defense against flooding.
The summer after a neighboring developer destroyed a nearby wetland, her yard flooded,even though it wasn't raining. When it did rain, three feet of water forced her from her home for two months. Like sponges, wetlands soak up rain and store excess floodwater runoff, then slowly release flood waters back into streams, lakes, and groundwater. One acre of wetlands stores up to 1.5 million gallons of flood water. People living near South Carolina's Congaree Bottomland Swamp don't take that for granted.