New research by a Waterloo Engineering professor shows small, isolated wetlands, often the first to be removed for development and agriculture, play an outsized role in the protection of downstream lake and river ecosystems.
Researchers used a new method involving satellite imagery and computer modelling – the first of its kind – to show how small wetlands trap pollutants such as nitrogen and phosphorous because they are disconnected.
“If pollutants aren’t caught by small wetlands, then they’ll run into our lakes, beaches and eventually impact our supply of drinking water and ability to use the beaches for recreation,” said Dr. Nandita Basu, a jointly appointed professor of earth and environmental sciences, and civil and environmental engineering.
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