All Wet

Despite loosening regulations protecting wetlands from development, the Bush administration now claims total wetland acreage in the U.S. has increased under its watch.

In fact, some 523,500 acres of swamps and tidal marshes disappeared between 1998 and 2004. At the same time, however, the Fish and Wildlife Service measured gains of 715,300 acres of shallow-water wetlands and ponds; that is, everything from golf course water traps to mine reclamation ponds and abandoned water-filled quarries -- what one critic characterized as "wet deserts." At a news conference, officials allowed that the survey measured quantity, not quality. But the distinction didn't stop departing Interior Secretary Gale Norton from declaring victory. "I'm pleased to complete my term as secretary of interior by announcing some good news," she said.

The survey covered the period from 1998 to 2004 and thus does not include the loss of 64,000 acres of Gulf wetlands to hurricanes Katrina and Rita.