LANSING, MI (AP)-- A new report says Michigan has lost more than 4.3 million acres of wetlands since the early 1800s.
The Grand Rapids Press reports that the state had about 10.7 million acres of wetlands in the 1820s. The report by the state Department of Environmental Quality says the state now has about 6.4 million acres. Ducks Unlimited helped with the National Wetland Inventory update.
Most wetland loss to farming and development came before 1978. The next year the state passed the Geomare-Anderson Wetlands Protection Act. Michigan's wetland loss since 1978 is about 41,000 acres.
The report says about 17 percent of the state is wetlands. Wetlands are important because they act as a natural biological water filter that aids in flood control and provides diverse wildlife habitats.
