Wetlands, our irreplaceable resource

Our Pearl River cypress swamps contribute invaluable and irreplaceable ecological services to our local economy and communities. These wetlands soak up surface waters during heavy rains, reducing downstream flood peaks and lessoning the damage from flood waters. They provide habitat for an entire ecosystem and help sustain biodiversity. They retain and filter sediments and nutrients to increase water quality. They provide economic value in terms of eco-tourism activities such as boating, bird watching, hunting, fishing and hiking. They act as carbon sinks, providing long-term storage of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Destroying wetlands has a cascading, permanent detrimental effect on the health and welfare of a community. The One Lake project proposes the destruction of over 1,000 acres of Pearl River wetlands, robbing our future generations of a vital resource and permanently altering a river that belongs to all of us.

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