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Conclusion

               The nation and Wisconsin in particular can take pride in the amount of active citizen involvement in land trust activity to conserve land and wetlands.  Recent efforts to preserve and restore wetlands are impressive but are not sufficient to assure that native plants and species will have the environment necessary for their survival.  Continued urban development and climate change are both a challenge for our wetlands.  The impact of the national 2012 drought (http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu) on wetlands is not currently known, but in some areas as wetlands within pastures dried they became part of the cropland. 

            Protecting wetlands can be as simple as making a donation to a land trust in your community.  Most of the trusts need funds to purchase land or restore wetlands.  Many trusts also rely on volunteers to achieve their mission and vision.  Naturally, making a land or easement donation to a national or local land trust is an option for landowners (reference the link to Gathering Waters on Land Trusts and Wetland Preservation).  If you are still undecided about how you can get involved visit the Wisconsin Wetland Association’s web site (http://www.wisconsinwetlands.org/protectingwetlands.htm) to discover how to become an involved citizen.  As the association states, “Most people can readily recognize when a proposed construction project or land use activity will degrade or destroy a wetland. However, far fewer know what to do about it.”  They provide helpful links on everything from gathering information to reporting your observations to the appropriate agency and success stories on citizen led wetland protection projects.