This is Deep Dive: WFHB and Limestone Post Investigate where we look into issues regarding Health, Housing, and the Environment that directly impact residents of Monroe County. We look into Indiana’s wetlands, and the wetlands we have right here in Monroe County. Our deep dive is prompted by the legislation Indiana has passed to decrease the protection of wetlands, and environmental concerns that have arisen as a result.

But first, what are wetlands?
A wetland is a flooded ecosystem, teeming with life, the habitat of herons, egrets, frogs, snakes, and dragonflies, there are often cat tails and slow moving waters, and a chorus of croaks. But at a much more basic level, a wetland is what it sounds like a wet – land.

A great blue heron at Stillwater Marsh–Northfork Waterfowl Resting Area at Monroe Lake | Photo by Anne KibblerAccording to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency wetlands are QUOTE “ areas where water covers the soil, or is present either at or near the surface of the soil all year or for varying periods of time during the year, including during the growing season.” END QUOTE

John Lawrence, the executive director of the Sycamore Land Trust, described the nature of a wetland – saying it has both a scientific and a legal definition.

John Lawrence, Director of Sycamore Land Trust | Courtesy photoYou’ve been listening to Deep Dive WFHB and Limestone Post Investigate. Tune in next week to learn more about Indiana Wetlands. To read the full article, What’s at Stake in the Debate Over Indiana’s Wetlands?, written and photographed by Anne Kibbler, visit LimestonePostMagazine.com.