Third, this study’s findings indicate that adaptive
management should be practiced for playa wetlands.
The boundary and type of wetlands continually
change as a result of land-use changes, variation in
hydrologic conditions, and vegetation succession. To
maintain the function and integrity of wetlands, they
must be routinely monitored and scientifically evaluated
for the effectiveness of current conservation
measures for wetland ecosystems. The construction of
roads can significantly influence the flow direction
and drainage flow accumulation of wetlands (Gritzner,
2006). Neglecting culvert geospatial data may
cause an overestimation of the total number of the
watersheds. This occurs because many watersheds
are actually connected by culverts underneath roadways.
Fortunately, the boundary of delineated watersheds
depends on the topographical conditions. Due
to this, watershed boundaries may not substantially
change when culvert data are included, yet, some of
the watersheds could become merged due to the
hydrological connectivity provided by culverts