Riverine Ecosystem Management
Riverine Ecosystem Management

Author: Stefan Schmutz

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2018-05-08

Total Pages: 562

ISBN-13: 3319732501

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This open access book surveys the frontier of scientific river research and provides examples to guide management towards a sustainable future of riverine ecosystems. Principal structures and functions of the biogeosphere of rivers are explained; key threats are identified, and effective solutions for restoration and mitigation are provided. Rivers are among the most threatened ecosystems of the world. They increasingly suffer from pollution, water abstraction, river channelisation and damming. Fundamental knowledge of ecosystem structure and function is necessary to understand how human acitivities interfere with natural processes and which interventions are feasible to rectify this. Modern water legislation strives for sustainable water resource management and protection of important habitats and species. However, decision makers would benefit from more profound understanding of ecosystem degradation processes and of innovative methodologies and tools for efficient mitigation and restoration. The book provides best-practice examples of sustainable river management from on-site studies, European-wide analyses and case studies from other parts of the world. This book will be of interest to researchers in the field of aquatic ecology, river system functioning, conservation and restoration, to postgraduate students, to institutions involved in water management, and to water related industries.

Sustaining River Ecosystems and Water Resources
Sustaining River Ecosystems and Water Resources

Author: Ellen Wohl

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2017-08-31

Total Pages: 157

ISBN-13: 3319651242

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This work is designed to broaden the scope with which many people regard a river. Rivers are commonly regarded from a very simplistic perspective as conduits for downstream flows of water. In this context, it may be considered acceptable and necessary to engineer the channel to either facilitate such flows (e.g., channelization, levees) or limit flows and store water (e.g., water supply reservoirs, flood control). The book presents the concept of a river as a spatially and temporally complex ecosystem that is likely to be disrupted in unexpected and damaging ways by direct river engineering and by human activities throughout a drainage basin. Viewing a river as a complex ecosystem with nonlinear responses to human activities will help to promote a more nuanced and effective approach to managing river ecosystems and to sustaining the water resources that derive from rivers. In this context, water resources refers to ecosystem services including water supply, water quality, flood control, erosion control, and riverine biota (e.g., freshwater fisheries). Chapters in this book draw extensively on existing literature but integrate this literature from a fresh perspective. General principles are expanded upon and illustrated with photographs, line drawings, tables, and brief, site-specific case studies from rivers around the world.

The Paraná River Basin
The Paraná River Basin

Author: Chris D. Metcalfe

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2020-06-10

Total Pages: 241

ISBN-13: 1000069737

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This book provides insight into the hydrology, ecosystem services and management of water resources in the Paraná River basin, including the importance of water to the socio-economic development of the countries within the watershed. Running through Brazil. Paraguay and Argentina, the Paraná River and its watershed is home to some of South America's major population centers as well as important ecosystems threatened by development. At the same time, the river is a major resource driving the economies of the nations within its boundaries. This volume examines the impacts of environmental degradation, and the tradeoffs between the energy sector and the maintenance of ecosystem services. In particular, it focuses on the threats from development to sensitive ecosystems within the basin and the challenges of transboundary management of water resources. In addition to presenting wider perspectives on water management, the volume specifically covers water infrastructure, aquatic ecosystems, water quality, geomorphological influences and the impact of climate change. Finally, by assessing each country's current status in meeting the Sustainable Development Goals this volume provides a timely analysis as national governments within the basin are becoming increasingly concerned about the sustainability of the freshwater ecosystems within the Paraná River basin. This book will be of great interest to students and scholars of water and natural resource management, environmental policy, sustainable development and Latin American studies. It will also be relevant to water management professionals.

Stream Ecosystems in a Changing Environment
Stream Ecosystems in a Changing Environment

Author: Jeremy B. Jones

Publisher: Elsevier

Published: 2016-07-07

Total Pages: 566

ISBN-13: 0124059198

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Stream Ecosystems in a Changing Environment synthesizes the current understanding of stream ecosystem ecology, emphasizing nutrient cycling and carbon dynamics, and providing a forward-looking perspective regarding the response of stream ecosystems to environmental change. Each chapter includes a section focusing on anticipated and ongoing dynamics in stream ecosystems in a changing environment, along with hypotheses regarding controls on stream ecosystem functioning. The book, with its innovative sections, provides a bridge between papers published in peer-reviewed scientific journals and the findings of researchers in new areas of study. - Presents a forward-looking perspective regarding the response of stream ecosystems to environmental change - Provides a synthesis of the latest findings on stream ecosystems ecology in one concise volume - Includes thought exercises and discussion activities throughout, providing valuable tools for learning - Offers conceptual models and hypotheses to stimulate conversation and advance research

Rivers for Life
Rivers for Life

Author: Sandra Postel

Publisher: Island Press

Published: 2012-06-22

Total Pages: 265

ISBN-13: 1597267805

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The conventional approach to river protection has focused on water quality and maintaining some "minimum" flow that was thought necessary to ensure the viability of a river. In recent years, however, scientific research has underscored the idea that the ecological health of a river system depends not on a minimum amount of water at any one time but on the naturally variable quantity and timing of flows throughout the year. In Rivers for Life, leading water experts Sandra Postel and Brian Richter explain why restoring and preserving more natural river flows are key to sustaining freshwater biodiversity and healthy river systems, and describe innovative policies, scientific approaches, and management reforms for achieving those goals. Sandra Postel and Brian Richter: explain the value of healthy rivers to human and ecosystem health; describe the ecological processes that support river ecosystems and how they have been disrupted by dams, diversions, and other alterations; consider the scientific basis for determining how much water a river needs; examine new management paradigms focused on restoring flow patterns and sustaining ecological health; assess the policy options available for managing rivers and other freshwater systems; explore building blocks for better river governance. Sandra Postel and Brian Richter offer case studies of river management from the United States (the San Pedro, Green, and Missouri), Australia (the Brisbane), and South Africa (the Sabie), along with numerous examples of new and innovative policy approaches that are being implemented in those and other countries. Rivers for Life presents a global perspective on the challenges of managing water for people and nature, with a concise yet comprehensive overview of the relevant science, policy, and management issues. It presents exciting and inspirational information for anyone concerned with water policy, planning and management, river conservation, freshwater biodiversity, or related topics.

Water Ecosystem Services
Water Ecosystem Services

Author: Julia Martin-Ortega

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2015-03-26

Total Pages: 187

ISBN-13: 1107100372

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This book uses ecosystem services-based approaches to address major global and regional water challenges, for researchers, students, and policy makers.

A World of Rivers
A World of Rivers

Author: Ellen Wohl

Publisher: University of Chicago Press

Published: 2010-11-15

Total Pages: 368

ISBN-13: 0226904806

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Far from being the serene, natural streams of yore, modern rivers have been diverted, dammed, dumped in, and dried up, all in efforts to harness their power for human needs. But these rivers have also undergone environmental change. The old adage says you can’t step in the same river twice, and Ellen Wohl would agree—natural and synthetic change are so rapid on the world’s great waterways that rivers are transforming and disappearing right before our eyes. A World of Rivers explores the confluence of human and environmental change on ten of the great rivers of the world. Ranging from the Murray-Darling in Australia and the Yellow River in China to Central Europe’s Danube and the United States’ Mississippi, the book journeys down the most important rivers in all corners of the globe. Wohl shows us how pollution, such as in the Ganges and in the Ob of Siberia, has affected biodiversity in the water. But rivers are also resilient, and Wohl stresses the importance of conservation and restoration to help reverse the effects of human carelessness and hubris. What all these diverse rivers share is a critical role in shaping surrounding landscapes and biological communities, and Wohl’s book ultimately makes a strong case for the need to steward positive change in the world’s great rivers.

Disconnected Rivers
Disconnected Rivers

Author: Ellen E. Wohl

Publisher: Yale University Press

Published: 2004-01-01

Total Pages: 319

ISBN-13: 0300127464

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Ellen Wohl offers a survey of the history & present condition of river systems across the US. After describing the biological chemical & physical aspects of the functioning of rivers, she discusses the changes as the result of development & federal management, & examines rehabilitation projects.

Health of People, Health of Planet and Our Responsibility
Health of People, Health of Planet and Our Responsibility

Author: Wael Al-Delaimy

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2020-05-13

Total Pages: 414

ISBN-13: 3030311252

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This open access book not only describes the challenges of climate disruption, but also presents solutions. The challenges described include air pollution, climate change, extreme weather, and related health impacts that range from heat stress, vector-borne diseases, food and water insecurity and chronic diseases to malnutrition and mental well-being. The influence of humans on climate change has been established through extensive published evidence and reports. However, the connections between climate change, the health of the planet and the impact on human health have not received the same level of attention. Therefore, the global focus on the public health impacts of climate change is a relatively recent area of interest. This focus is timely since scientists have concluded that changes in climate have led to new weather extremes such as floods, storms, heat waves, droughts and fires, in turn leading to more than 600,000 deaths and the displacement of nearly 4 billion people in the last 20 years. Previous work on the health impacts of climate change was limited mostly to epidemiologic approaches and outcomes and focused less on multidisciplinary, multi-faceted collaborations between physical scientists, public health researchers and policy makers. Further, there was little attention paid to faith-based and ethical approaches to the problem. The solutions and actions we explore in this book engage diverse sectors of civil society, faith leadership, and political leadership, all oriented by ethics, advocacy, and policy with a special focus on poor and vulnerable populations. The book highlights areas we think will resonate broadly with the public, faith leaders, researchers and students across disciplines including the humanities, and policy makers.