Alachua County's Environmental Protection Department encouraged the public to get outdoors and visit local preserves on behalf of World Wetlands Day on Feb.2.
Alachua County boasts many wetlands, many of which are thriving. Others, such as Blues Creek, no longer meet current environmental regulations.
Chris Bird, director of the Alachua County Environmental Protection Department, said it costs taxpayers more money to fix and clean dirty wetlands than it does to keep them untouched and protected.
"Wetlands are probably the most efficient and the most cost effective in terms of filtering out dirty water and we refer to them as nature's kidneys," Bird said.