This statement is probably true, but is it really a bad thing? Primitive man may have learned to use bows to hunt, is it a bad thing that they are worse at killing animals with their bare hands? Only when they don't have the bow available, but this does not offset the benefits of having it, because it is much more efficient.
The same thing can be applies to public water works, they enable a larger population (or a larger crop) to exist in a location, but they are dependent on the water is brings, but here, again, they are not worse off due to the dependence, as it allows them to do other things.
