Swamps, environment without commercial uses ?

[Externet]

Are swamps left alone because are useless for cultivating anything ?

Are there any fruit trees, crops or something swamps produce besides mosquitoes ?

Miguel

[Edtharan]

Draining swamps has produced some very fertile faring lands. So the commercial value of these areas is quite good. However, these swamps play a very important part in filtering pollutants and organic wastes (the reason they are so good as farm lands) from rivers. It is because of the degradation of the rivers and water ways that draining swamps (or a another term is wetlands) has caused, this practice is rapidly falling into disuse (but some people still do it).

 

Draining a swamp does not just effect the individual swamp, but can disrupt ecosystems all along the river (including water supplies for towns and cities).

[Externet]

Thanks.

Well, but if the swamp is drained, it is no more. I mean as in wetland state, gets ignored and stays undisturbed. Or... is there some crops from such places?

Miguel

[Edtharan]

Well, but if the swamp is drained, it is no more. I mean as in wetland state, gets ignored and stays undisturbed. Or... is there some crops from such places?

All land that is used by humans for commercial reasons is modified/disturbed in some fassion. So a swamp that is left alone does not produce crops (just as even normal farmland, if left alone, does not produce crops).

 

The commercial value of an undisturbed wetland/swamp is that it acts as a filter. This means that various pollutants and organic wastes are absorbed by the swamp and thus reduce their passage further along the water ways. This means that an industry (even a farm) that produces pollutants (in the case of a farm: pesticides, herbicides, fertilisers, etc) will be absorbed by the wetlands/swamps and then reduce the amount of pollution that enters the river system that feeds a nearby town.

 

If the swamp was not there then these pollutants would find their way into the water source and have to be dealt with in some fashion (filtration and other water processing) which is usually very expensive.

[Mokele]

So a swamp that is left alone does not produce crops

 

Correct, but it does produce fish, including those we eat; swamps/wetlands are vital habitats for the fry of numerous game and food fish.