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There are a number of government agencies in the United States that are in some way concerned with the protection of wetlands. The top five are the Army Corps of Engineers (ACoE), Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). [5]
Example of land loss in coastal Louisiana between 1932 and 2011; detail of Port Fourchon area. Coastal erosion in Louisiana is the process of steady depletion of wetlands along the state's coastline in marshes, swamps, and barrier islands, particularly affecting the alluvial basin surrounding the mouth of the Mississippi River.
Commonly, wetland loss is defined as the conversion of vegetated wetlands into either uplands or drained areas, unvegetated wetlands (e.g., mudflats), or (submerged habitats (open water). According to this, and similar definitions, wetland loss includes both land loss and land consumption as components of it. In historic times, both wetland and ...
Wetlands can help mitigate the impacts of flooding in areas due to their function of floodwater storage. According to Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation, numerous wetlands, particularly those situated in floodplains, possess the ability to temporarily hold excess floodwaters when there are high runoff conditions.
"No Net loss" is the United States government's overall policy goal regarding wetlands preservation. The goal of the policy is to balance wetland loss due to economic development with wetlands reclamation , mitigation, and restorations efforts, so that the total acreage of wetlands in the country does not decrease, but remains constant or ...
Although the endangered species is protected, habitat loss from human development is a major reason for the loss of green turtle nesting beaches. Wetlands and marine areas have endured high levels of habitat destruction. More than 50% of wetlands in the U.S. have been destroyed in just the last 200 years. [8]
Wetlands generally include swamps, marshes, bogs, and similar areas." [1] [2] [3] Wetlands can be valued in terms of their contributions to ecological, economic and social systems. Wetlands service these systems through multiple processes including water filtration, water storage and biological productivity. [4]
Recent studies indicate that global loss of wetlands could be as high as 87% since 1700 AD, with 64% of wetland loss occurring since 1900. [59] Some loss of wetlands resulted from natural causes such as erosion, sedimentation , subsidence , and a rise in the sea level.