Wetlands and Water Allocation: U.S. Policy
Summary
Over the past several centuries however, water resources have suffered due to population growth, urbanization and expanded agriculture, to the point where only a fraction of the world’s wetlands still exist. In the end, allocation comes down to meeting an adequate ecological threshold, factoring in the costs of various actions, and recognizing that crop yields may be down depending on the water supply. In parts of East Africa, wetlands managers have successfully integrated fisheries and crop production with the natural hydrological flow, minimizing the impact on the environment while still benefiting agriculturally. In other areas of the world, ancient fishery practices are being adapted to riparian wetlands in order to achieve a sustainable balance between habitat protection and the benefit of humans. However, despite the nutrients that a wetland might be able to use and sequester, wastewater also contains higher levels of salts and other pollutants that have been found to actually impede seed and plant growth over time, and alter the natural hydraulic conductivity of soils.