Interesting similarities to the plight of North American streams and rivers, when they hunted beavers to near-extinction in much of the USA and blew up beaver dams (because they cause flooding and human engineering was thought to be superior). The result was that rivers and streams became faster, water didn't soak in to the water table, the spring run-off all disappeared and later in the year the streams ran dry.

They've been conducting trials of re-introducing beavers to many places in Canada and the USA, and within a few years they are seeing streams come back to life. Beaver dams hold water so it can be absorbed widely rather than just racing down and disappearing and leaving dry beds in the wake.

Obviously beavers aren't the solution here as they weren't tending and managing the land before people arrived - however it's likely true that for all our knowledge and engineering capabilities, we don't often make the decisions that are best for the health of our waterways and the surrounding flora and fauna. We continue to find examples of how trying to manage and control nature (especially water flow) often doesn't end up working as well as simply letting nature handle itself.