Indian Village, Tamiami Trail. Photo courtesy of South Florida Water Management District. Developers have also been responsible for the passive removal of wetlands as a result of cutting off the flow of water into them. When the natural flow of water is diverted away from a wetlands, the ecosystem dries up and disappears. In addition to removing wetlands by actively or passively restricting the flow of water through them, people have destroyed these ecosystems by polluting them.
Wetlands are natural water filtration systems.
They can be used for the treatment of wastewater, agricultural runoff, and acid mine drainage. However, when these pollutants become too concentrated, they begin to degrade the wetland itself. This problem occurs in areas where too many pollutants are allowed to flow through a wetlands. The removal of wetlands has also resulted in the loss of habitat for many unique species of microorganisms, plants and animals. This loss of habitat has led to a decrease in biodiversity and the near extinction of many of these organisms.