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quality includes the removal of suspended solids, heavy metals, <br />and nutrients. For example, the ability of peatlands to filter • <br />sediments, and absorb heavy metals and nutrients is well known, <br />and has recently been applied to the problems of urban runoff, <br />wastewater disposal, and ameliorating acid mine drainage. <br />Although constructed wetlands are often necessary when addressing <br />these problems, the ecological value of a peatland for removing <br />contaminants, whether from natural or artifactual sources, should <br />not be overlooked. At a.minimum, these values represent no -cost <br />services to society that would perhaps need to be replaced at a <br />cost after excavation is completed. <br />The streamflow attenuation capabilities of peatlands were <br />previously discussed in section 4.2.1. It was noted there that <br />peatlands often have the ability to store and slowly release <br />storm runoff. The value in this respect is the ability of <br />peatlands to diminish the magnitude and severity of floods, and <br />flood - related damage to real property. For example, Jarrett and <br />Costa (1984) noted that the effect of the 1983 Lawn Lake flood on <br />the town of Estes Park would have been much worse if the flood <br />waters had not first traveled through the Horseshoe Park wetlands <br />in Rocky Mountain National Park. <br />The educational value of peatlands can provide both <br />scientific advancement to society and personal enrichment to the <br />individual. Many peatlands contain deposits that originated in <br />the post - glacial period up to nearly 10,000 years ago and could <br />serve as histological records of the recent past. Useful <br />58 i <br />