A wetland has been drained and paved over to make room for housing and a retail center. Which bacterial function is most likely to decrease?

Wetlands often have waterlogged, oxygen-poor soils, where denitrifying bacteria convert nitrate into nitrogen gas that returns to the atmosphere. Draining and paving the wetland removes much of this habitat, so that function is most likely to decrease. Nitrification (ammonia to nitrite) generally occurs in oxygen-rich conditions, so it is not the best choice.

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