Rivers for Life

Rivers for Life PDF

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.

Environmental Flow Assessment

Environmental Flow Assessment PDF

Author: John G. Williams

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2019-06-10

Total Pages: 236

ISBN-13: 1119217369

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Provides critiques of current practices for environmental flow assessment and shows how they can be improved, using case studies. In Environmental Flow Assessment: Methods and Applications, four leading experts critique methods used to manage flows in regulated streams and rivers to balance environmental (instream) and out-of-stream uses of water. Intended for managers as well as practitioners, the book dissects the shortcomings of commonly used approaches, and offers practical advice for selecting and implementing better ones. The authors argue that methods for environmental flow assessment (EFA) can be defensible as well as practicable only if they squarely address uncertainty, and provide guidance for doing so. Introductory chapters describe the scientific and social reasons that EFA is hard, and provide a brief history. Because management of regulated streams starts with understanding freshwater ecosystems, Environmental Flow Assessment: Methods and Applications includes chapters on flow and organisms in streams. The following chapters assess standard and emerging methods, how they should be tested, and how they should (or should not) be applied. The book concludes with practical recommendations for implementing environmental flow assessment. Describes historical and recent trends in environmental flow assessment Directly addresses practical difficulties with applying a scientifically informed approach in contentious circumstances Serves as an effective introduction to the relevant literature, with many references to articles in related scientific fields Pays close attention to statistical issues such as sampling, estimation of statistical uncertainty, and model selection Includes recommendations for methods and approaches Examines how methods have been tested in the past and shows how they should be tested today and in the future Environmental Flow Assessment: Methods and Applications is an excellent book for biologists and specialists in allied fields such as engineering, ecology, fluvial geomorphology, environmental planning, landscape architecture, along with river managers and decision makers.

Water for the Environment

Water for the Environment PDF

Author: Avril Horne

Publisher: Academic Press

Published: 2017-08-16

Total Pages: 758

ISBN-13: 0128039450

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Water for the Environment: From Policy and Science to Implementation and Management provides a holistic view of environmental water management, offering clear links across disciplines that allow water managers to face mounting challenges. The book highlights current challenges and potential solutions, helping define the future direction for environmental water management. In addition, it includes a significant review of current literature and state of knowledge, providing a one-stop resource for environmental water managers. Presents a multidisciplinary approach that allows water managers to make connections across related disciplines, such as hydrology, ecology, law, and economics Links science to practice for environmental flow researchers and those that implement and manage environmental water on a daily basis Includes case studies to demonstrate key points and address implementation issues

Environmental Flows

Environmental Flows PDF

Author: Angela Arthington

Publisher: Univ of California Press

Published: 2012-10-15

Total Pages: 422

ISBN-13: 0520953452

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Environmental Flows describes the timing, quality, and quantity of water flows required to sustain freshwater and estuarine ecosystems and the human well-being and livelihoods that depend upon them. It answers crucial questions about the flow of water within and between different kinds of ecosystems. What happens when the flow or the availability of water is curtailed or diverted, either naturally or by human activity? How will climate change alter the availability of water and impact aquatic ecosystems? Methodological developments from the simplest hydrological formulas to large-scale frameworks that inform water management make this book a must-read for water managers and freshwater and estuarine ecologists contending with ever-changing conditions influencing the flow of water.

Environmental Water Requirements in Mountainous Areas

Environmental Water Requirements in Mountainous Areas PDF

Author: Elias Dimitriou

Publisher: Elsevier

Published: 2021-10-19

Total Pages: 384

ISBN-13: 0128193433

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Environmental Water Requirements in Mountainous Areas presents comprehensive and scientifically sound approaches and methodologies for estimating the environmental water requirements and tradeoffs for water allocation by analyzing anthropogenic and natural water needs. The book covers environmental water management issues in mountainous areas, specifically focusing on the Mediterranean region which exhibits significant contrasts in its demographic and hydrologic features. The authors include paradigms and information that will be useful for water resources managers, decision makers, scientists working in the fields of ecology and water resources management, engineers that design hydraulic works, and environmental policymakers. Offers a complete background screening on theoretical and practical guidelines on estimating environmental water requirements in mountainous areas Promotes and guides interdisciplinary work with information on policies and best practices in the field of ecological flows and water resources management Provides examples and case studies on the successful implementation efforts of ecological flows to analyze lessons learned and overcome practical issues and solutions

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.

Implementing Environmental Flows: Lessons for Policy and Practice

Implementing Environmental Flows: Lessons for Policy and Practice PDF

Author: David Tickner

Publisher: Frontiers Media SA

Published: 2020-10-08

Total Pages: 151

ISBN-13: 2889660397

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This eBook is a collection of articles from a Frontiers Research Topic. Frontiers Research Topics are very popular trademarks of the Frontiers Journals Series: they are collections of at least ten articles, all centered on a particular subject. With their unique mix of varied contributions from Original Research to Review Articles, Frontiers Research Topics unify the most influential researchers, the latest key findings and historical advances in a hot research area! Find out more on how to host your own Frontiers Research Topic or contribute to one as an author by contacting the Frontiers Editorial Office: frontiersin.org/about/contact.

Handbook of Material Flow Analysis

Handbook of Material Flow Analysis PDF

Author: Paul H. Brunner

Publisher: CRC Press

Published: 2016-12-19

Total Pages: 307

ISBN-13: 131531343X

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In this second edition of a bestseller, authors Paul H. Brunner and Helmut Rechberger guide professional newcomers as well as experienced engineers and scientists towards mastering the art of material flow analysis (MFA) from the very beginning to an advanced state of material balances of complex systems. Handbook of Material Flow Analysis: For Environmental, Resource, and Waste Engineers, Second Edition serves as a concise and reproducible methodology as well as a basis for analysis, assessment and improvement of anthropogenic systems through an approach that is helpfully uniform and standardized. The methodology featured in this book is a vital resource for generating new data, fostering understanding, and increasing knowledge to benefit the growing MFA community working in the fields of industrial ecology, resource management, waste management, and environmental protection. This new second edition takes into account all new developments and readers will profit from a new exploration of STAN software, newly added citations, and thoroughly described case studies that reveal the potential of MFA to solve industrial ecology challenges.