Ecological Effects of Water-level Fluctuations in Lakes

Ecological Effects of Water-level Fluctuations in Lakes PDF

Author: Karl M. Wantzen

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2009-05-06

Total Pages: 184

ISBN-13: 1402091923

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Most aquatic ecosystems have variable water levels. These water-level fluctuations (WLF) have multiple effects on the organisms above and below the waterline. Natural WLF patterns in lakes guarantee both productivity and biodiversity, while untimely floods and droughts may have negative effects. Human impacts on WLF have led to a stabilization of the water levels of many lakes by hydraulic regulation, untimely drawdown due to water use, or floods due to water release from hydropower plants in the catchments. This book provides a first review in this field. It presents selected papers on the ecological effects of WLF in lakes, resulting from a workshop at the University of Konstanz in winter 2005. Issues addressed here include the extent of WLF, and analyses of their effects on different groups of biota from microorganisms to vertebrates. Applied issues include recommendations for the hydrological management of regulated lakes to reduce negative impacts, and a conceptual framework is delivered by an extension of the floodpulse concept for lakes. Current impacts on water use, including increasing demands on drinking and irrigation water, hydropower etc., and climate change effects on WLF make this book an essential resource for aquatic ecologists, engineers, and decision-makers dealing with the management of lake ecosystems and their catchments.

Large Lakes

Large Lakes PDF

Author: Max M. Tilzer

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2012-12-06

Total Pages: 699

ISBN-13: 3642840779

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The vast majority of the world's lakes are small in size and short lived in geological terms. Only 253 of the thousands of lakes on this planet have surface areas larger than 500 square kilometers. At first sight, this statistic would seem to indicate that large lakes are relatively unimportant on a global scale; in fact, however, large lakes contain the bulk of the liquid surface freshwater of the earth. Just Lake Baikal and the Laurentian Great Lakes alone contain more than 38% of the world's total liquid freshwater. Thus, the large lakes of the world accentuate an important feature of the earth's freshwater reserves-its extremely irregular distribution. The energy crisis of the 1970s and 1980s made us aware of the fact that we live on a spaceship with finite, that is, exhaustible resources. On the other hand, the energy crisis led to an overemphasis on all the issues concerning energy supply and all the problems connected with producing new energy. The energy crisis also led us to ignore strong evidence suggesting that water of appropriate quality to be used as a resouce will be used up more quickly than energy will. Although in principle water is a "renewable resource," the world's water reserves are diminishing in two fashions, the effects of which are multiplicative: enhanced consumption and accelerated degradation of quality.

Climate Change Impacts on Freshwater Ecosystems

Climate Change Impacts on Freshwater Ecosystems PDF

Author: Martin Kernan

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2011-02-14

Total Pages: 470

ISBN-13: 1444391275

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This text examines the impact of climate change on freshwater ecosystems, past, present and future. It especially considers the interactions between climate change and other drivers of change including hydromorphological modification, nutrient loading, acid deposition and contamination by toxic substances using evidence from palaeolimnology, time-series analysis, space-for-time substitution, laboratory and field experiments and process modelling. The book evaluates these processes in relation to extreme events, seasonal changes in ecosystems, trends over decadal-scale time periods, mitigation strategies and ecosystem recovery. The book is also concerned with how aspects of hydrophysical, hydrochemical and ecological change can be used as early indicators of climate change in aquatic ecosystems and it addresses the implications of future climate change for freshwater ecosystem management at the catchment scale. This is an ideal book for the scientific research community, but is also accessible to Masters and senior undergraduate students.

Restoration of Aquatic Ecosystems

Restoration of Aquatic Ecosystems PDF

Author: National Research Council

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 1992-01-01

Total Pages: 580

ISBN-13: 9780309045346

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Aldo Leopold, father of the "land ethic," once said, "The time has come for science to busy itself with the earth itself. The first step is to reconstruct a sample of what we had to begin with." The concept he expressedâ€"restorationâ€"is defined in this comprehensive new volume that examines the prospects for repairing the damage society has done to the nation's aquatic resources: lakes, rivers and streams, and wetlands. Restoration of Aquatic Ecosystems outlines a national strategy for aquatic restoration, with practical recommendations, and features case studies of aquatic restoration activities around the country. The committee examines: Key concepts and techniques used in restoration. Common factors in successful restoration efforts. Threats to the health of the nation's aquatic ecosystems. Approaches to evaluation before, during, and after a restoration project. The emerging specialties of restoration and landscape ecology.

North Sea Region Climate Change Assessment

North Sea Region Climate Change Assessment PDF

Author: Markus Quante

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2016-08-31

Total Pages: 528

ISBN-13: 3319397451

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This book offers an up-to-date review of our current understanding of climate change in the North Sea and adjacent areas, as well as its impact on ecosystems and socio-economic sectors. It provides a detailed assessment of climate change based on published scientific work compiled by independent international experts from climate-related disciplines such as oceanography, atmospheric sciences, marine and terrestrial ecology, using a regional evaluation and review process similar to that of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). It provides a comprehensive overview of all aspects of our changing climate, discussing a wide range of topics including past, current and future climate change, and climate-related changes in marine, terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems. It also explores the impact of climate change on socio-economic sectors such as fisheries, agriculture, coastal zone management, coastal protection, urban climate, recreation/tourism, offshore activities/energy, and air pollution.

Encyclopedia of Paleoclimatology and Ancient Environments

Encyclopedia of Paleoclimatology and Ancient Environments PDF

Author: Vivien Gornitz

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2008-10-31

Total Pages: 1062

ISBN-13: 1402045514

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One of Springer’s Major Reference Works, this book gives the reader a truly global perspective. It is the first major reference work in its field. Paleoclimate topics covered in the encyclopedia give the reader the capability to place the observations of recent global warming in the context of longer-term natural climate fluctuations. Significant elements of the encyclopedia include recent developments in paleoclimate modeling, paleo-ocean circulation, as well as the influence of geological processes and biological feedbacks on global climate change. The encyclopedia gives the reader an entry point into the literature on these and many other groundbreaking topics.

Abrupt Climate Change

Abrupt Climate Change PDF

Author: National Research Council

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2002-04-23

Total Pages: 252

ISBN-13: 0309133041

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The climate record for the past 100,000 years clearly indicates that the climate system has undergone periodic-and often extreme-shifts, sometimes in as little as a decade or less. The causes of abrupt climate changes have not been clearly established, but the triggering of events is likely to be the result of multiple natural processes. Abrupt climate changes of the magnitude seen in the past would have far-reaching implications for human society and ecosystems, including major impacts on energy consumption and water supply demands. Could such a change happen again? Are human activities exacerbating the likelihood of abrupt climate change? What are the potential societal consequences of such a change? Abrupt Climate Change: Inevitable Surprises looks at the current scientific evidence and theoretical understanding to describe what is currently known about abrupt climate change, including patterns and magnitudes, mechanisms, and probability of occurrence. It identifies critical knowledge gaps concerning the potential for future abrupt changes, including those aspects of change most important to society and economies, and outlines a research strategy to close those gaps. Based on the best and most current research available, this book surveys the history of climate change and makes a series of specific recommendations for the future.

Ecological Impacts of Climate Change

Ecological Impacts of Climate Change PDF

Author: National Research Council

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2008-12-07

Total Pages: 70

ISBN-13: 0309127106

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The world's climate is changing, and it will continue to change throughout the 21st century and beyond. Rising temperatures, new precipitation patterns, and other changes are already affecting many aspects of human society and the natural world. In this book, the National Research Council provides a broad overview of the ecological impacts of climate change, and a series of examples of impacts of different kinds. The book was written as a basis for a forthcoming illustrated booklet, designed to provide the public with accurate scientific information on this important subject.

Riverine Ecosystem Management

Riverine Ecosystem Management PDF

Author: Stefan Schmutz

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2018-05-08

Total Pages: 571

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.

Pollution of Lakes and Rivers

Pollution of Lakes and Rivers PDF

Author: John P. Smol

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2009-03-12

Total Pages: 396

ISBN-13: 1444307576

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Now in its second edition, Pollution of Lakes and Rivers provides essential insights into present-day water quality problems from an international perspective. Explains simply and effectively how lake sediments can be used to reconstruct pollution history Includes over 200 additional references and a new chapter on recent climatic change and its effects on water quality and quantity Tackles present-day water quality problems from an international perspective Previously published by Hodder Arnold PowerPoint slides of the artwork from the book are available from: http://post.queensu.ca/~pearl/textbook.htm Reviews: "This is a very well-written and wide-ranging volume that is both instructive and topical. It is likely to prove useful as an introduction to the general area, a reference source and for teaching purposes." (The Holocene, November 2008) "If you thought that paleolimnology was just mud, pollen, and diatoms then you will likely be both struck by the complexity of this field of research and grateful that John Smol, FRSC, has described it so clearly and broadly. Simply put, the second edition is an excellent book." ( Journal of Phycology, 2008) “This is a useful text. It provides a good level of detail so that the beginner in this area can appreciate what palaeolimnology can (and cannot) achieve. It goes beyond the simple introduction to provide a detailed understanding of how techniques can be applied ... This is a different take on the usual pollution text and would be of great use to those wishing to understand more from sedimentary records.” Taken from the British Ecological Society’s Teaching Ecology website "John Smol has extensive experience in this field of paleoenvironmental research which he combines well with his excellent written communication skills to produce a text that is easy to read but also thought provoking." (Quaternary Science Reviews, 2009) “The breadth of coverage in this text is impressive.” (Lake and Reservoir Management, 2009) “If I could speak with fluidity and clarity in my lectures as consistently as John Smol writes my students would be very grateful.” (Journal of Paleolimnology, 2009)