Environmental Integrity

Wetlands are miracles of nature. They work as the world’s kidneys, filtering and cleaning our water. Wetlands capture carbon dioxide more effectively than even forests and act as cradles of life for biodiversity, sheltering many endangered species. Despite all this, the Trump Administration on November 17 proposed regulations that would strip federal protections from more than 80 percent of wetlands across the U.S., leaving more than 70 million acres of wetlands vulnerable to development. We discuss the issue with Jon Devine, Director of Freshwater Ecosystems at the Natural Resources Defense Council.