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Some floodplains
have been changed
to farmland.
During times of heavy rain, rivers can overflow their banks. The
water flows onto large areas of flat, low land next to a river. These
lowlands are the river’s
floodplain
. Flowing onto its floodplain is a
river’s way of spreading its extra water over a much larger area. By using
its floodplain, a river can hold a large amount of water. That water
slowly returns to the river later as the flow shrinks.
You may have never seen a floodplain by a river because people
have changed the landscape. Many floodplains have been changed
into farmland. Many more
have been used as land for
building homes and stores.
Many floodplains that were
once wetlands have been
drained of water.
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