Mon Apr 12th 2021 7:00pm

Talk: How Wetlands Impact Water Quality & Quantity

birds, harrison reservoir, audubon
When
, -
Location
Online
Cost
FREE

Wetlands protect us from drought and flooding, and ensure our groundwater, rivers, streams, and oceans are fit to sustain life. They are nature’s built-in buffer, neutralizing change to maintain a stable system. Nature has installed them all over the landscape, to mitigate dispersed impacts from herds of migrating elk, geology rich in phosphorus, a heavy rain storm here, and a dry summer there. As we add human impacts, these unassuming, soggy places have that much more work to do. Each wetland provides localized protection, while they all work together to avoid larger, cumulative damage. Every wetland across a watershed does a little bit to make our homes, our towns, our state, our country, and the world resilient. Each wetland we remove from a landscape makes us more susceptible to pollution, drought, and flooding. I will talk about each of these free services, and why wetlands are so good at what they do.

Lilly Deford grew up as part of a big farming family in Maryland. Weather and water were topics of conversation often, something to be humbled by, thankful for, and to steward. In 2006, she went to MSU to earn a bachelor’s and master’s degree in bio-resource engineering. Her graduate work observed changes in wetland function before and after the restoration of Story Mill Park. Lilly is now the Restoration Director for the Gallatin Watershed Council. GWC guides collaborative water stewardship for a healthy and productive landscape. She believe that we can find common ground in our dependence on clean water, and that our efforts to protect the resources in the Gallatin Watershed are stronger together.

SAS programs are free and open to the public. Our programs feature a special guest speaker the 2nd Monday of each month, September through May. Join us for a virtual social at 6:30 pm. Announcements and the program begin at 7:00 pm. For more information on SAS Program Meetings contact Kyle Moon at [email protected]