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Water
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Large Rivers: Ecology and Management in a Changing World
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Large Rivers: Ecology and Management in a Changing World

A special issue of Water (ISSN 2073-4441). This special issue belongs to the section "Biodiversity and Functionality of Aquatic Ecosystems".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2021) | Viewed by 8836

Special Issue Editors

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Gorazd Urbanič

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
URBANZERO Institute for holistic environmental mangement, Ltd., Selo pri Mirni 17, 8233 Mirna, Slovenia
Interests: aquatic ecology; bioindication; aquatic communities; ecological quality assessment; hydromorphology; environmental impact assessment; river basin management
Prof. Dr. Zlatko Mihaljević

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of biology, Faculty of science, University of Zagreb, Rooseveltov trg 6, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Interests: freshwater ecology; biodiversity; benthic invertebrates; ecosystem quality assessment; multiple stressors
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Large rivers are unique aquatic ecosystems. Catchment size, discharge, length, channel width, and stream order are characteristics usually used to define large rivers. Nevertheless, according to Water Framework Directive large rivers are rivers with a catchment area bigger than 1000 km2. Large rivers can be found in regions with varied climate and topographic conditions resulting in several large river types reflecting in their geomorphological conditions, channel patterns, physico-chemical conditions and aquatic and terrestrial biota. Catchment characteristics define the ecological characteristics of large rivers. Any changes in the catchment are reflected in soil erosion, transfer of substances, biogeochemical cycles, water quality, living organisms, and terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Most large rivers have a long history of human use, and therefore large rivers are among the most degraded ecosystems on Earth. They serve as transportation routes, sources of power and food, and as sinks of waste products. However, they are also hot spots of biodiversity, supporting wildlife and human well-being. Due to the variety of interests and ecosystem services they provide to the relationship between man and societies, large rivers usually require complex and demanding river management. Moreover, the catchments of large rivers are often international. Due to differences in development level, public opinion, historical and political constraints, it might be very demanding to achieve common objectives. A better understanding of the functioning of large rivers, as well as impacts of key anthropogenic stressors (e.g., hydrological alterations, damming, morphological alterations, water abstraction, catchment land use changes, water quality issues, invasive species) and their effects on aquatic communities and large river ecosystems could lead to sustainable management of these systems for optimal human well-being. This Special Issue focuses on the structure and functioning of large rivers and their catchments, from understanding the natural processes to anthropogenic impacts with an emphasis on sustainable management solutions, including conservation practices.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Gorazd Urbanič
Prof. Dr. Zlatko Mihaljević
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Water is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • large rivers
  • catchment
  • processes
  • land use
  • pollution
  • hydromorphology
  • multiple stressors
  • aqutic communities
  • functioning
  • sustainable management
  • conservation

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 1337 KiB  
Article
Back to Ecology: Reference Conditions as a Basis for Assessment, Restoration and Sustainable Management of Large Rivers
by Gorazd Urbanič, Zlatko Mihaljević, Vesna Petkovska and Maja Pavlin Urbanič
Water 2021, 13(18), 2596; https://doi.org/10.3390/w13182596 - 20 Sep 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2104
Abstract
Under the EU Water Framework Directive, ecological assessment and management are based on type-specific reference conditions. In the EU it may be difficult to find sites in large rivers with at least near-natural conditions, though this is not the case in southeast Europe, [...] Read more.
Under the EU Water Framework Directive, ecological assessment and management are based on type-specific reference conditions. In the EU it may be difficult to find sites in large rivers with at least near-natural conditions, though this is not the case in southeast Europe, where stretches of large rivers still exist with at least near-natural conditions, meaning that there is little or no disturbance from hydromorphological alteration, water quality, land use in the catchment and alien species. We examined benthic invertebrate assemblages in 45 samples collected from near-natural sites of several large rivers: Sava, Drava, Mura, Kupa and Una. The near-natural benthic invertebrate assemblages of large rivers contained several rare or remarkable species, especially among stoneflies, e.g., Marthamea vitripennis, Xanthoperla apicalis. We compared benthic invertebrate communities in river sections with fine and coarse substrates and in three eco-hydromorphological (ECO-HM) types of large rivers, reflecting habitat heterogeneity: lowland-deep, lowland-braided and intermountain. Multivariate analysis of variance (PERMANOVA) was used to statistically evaluate similarities among assemblages. It was found that the composition of benthic invertebrate assemblages varied by both ECO-HM types and substrate category. Similarity percentage (SIMPER) analysis showed that the average dissimilarity of benthic invertebrate assemblages was high between all ECO-HM type pairs and between fine and coarse substrate. We found that habitat heterogeneity and substrate independently influenced benthic invertebrate assemblages. To achieve ecological goals in the management of large rivers, in addition to functionality, a holistic view with at least near-natural assemblages, including the names of the taxa present, should also be considered. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Large Rivers: Ecology and Management in a Changing World)
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17 pages, 4697 KiB  
Article
Ecological Status as the Basis for the Holistic Environmental Flow Assessment of a Tropical Highland River in Ethiopia
by Wubneh B. Abebe, Seifu A. Tilahun, Michael M. Moges, Ayalew Wondie, Minychl G. Dersseh, Workiye W. Assefa, Demesew A. Mhiret, Anwar A. Adem, Fasikaw A. Zimale, Wuletawu Abera, Tammo S. Steenhuis and Michael E. McClain
Water 2021, 13(14), 1913; https://doi.org/10.3390/w13141913 - 10 Jul 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3052
Abstract
There is an increasing need globally to establish relationships among flow, ecology, and livelihoods to make informed decisions about environmental flows. This paper aimed to establish the ecological foundation for a holistic environmental flow assessment method in the Gumara River that flows into [...] Read more.
There is an increasing need globally to establish relationships among flow, ecology, and livelihoods to make informed decisions about environmental flows. This paper aimed to establish the ecological foundation for a holistic environmental flow assessment method in the Gumara River that flows into Lake Tana in Ethiopia and the Blue Nile River. First, the ecological conditions (fish, macro-invertebrate, riparian vegetation, and physicochemical) of the river system were characterized, followed by determining the hydrological condition and finally linking the ecological and hydrological components. The ecological data were collected at 30 sites along the Gumara River on March 2016 and 2020. River hydrology was estimated using the SWAT model and showed that the low flow decreased over time. Both physico-chemical and macroinvertebrate scores showed that water quality was moderate in most locations. The highest fish diversity index was in the lower reach at Wanzaye. Macroinvertebrate diversity was observed to decrease downstream. Both the fish and macroinvertebrate diversity indices were less than the expected maximum, being 3.29 and 4.5, respectively. The normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) for 30 m and 60 m buffer distances from the river decreased during the dry season (March–May). Hence, flow conditions, water quality, and land-use change substantially influenced the abundance and diversity of fish, vegetation, and macroinvertebrate species. The pressure on the ecology is expected to increase because the construction of the proposed dam is expected to alter the flow regime. Thus, as demand for human water consumption grows, measures are needed, including quantification of environmental flow requirements and regulating river water uses to conserve the ecological status of the Gumara River and Lake Tana sub-basin. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Large Rivers: Ecology and Management in a Changing World)
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19 pages, 2320 KiB  
Article
Responses of Freshwater Diatoms and Macrophytes Rely on the Stressor Gradient Length across the River Systems
by Gorazd Urbanič, Barbara Debeljak, Urška Kuhar, Mateja Germ and Alenka Gaberščik
Water 2021, 13(13), 1814; https://doi.org/10.3390/w13131814 - 30 Jun 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2327
Abstract
Phytobenthic diatoms and macrophyte communities respond differently to stressors in aquatic environments. For the assessment of the ecological status of rivers in Slovenia, we use several indices, including the River Macrophyte Index (RMI) and Trophic index (TI) based on macrophyte and phytobenthic diatoms [...] Read more.
Phytobenthic diatoms and macrophyte communities respond differently to stressors in aquatic environments. For the assessment of the ecological status of rivers in Slovenia, we use several indices, including the River Macrophyte Index (RMI) and Trophic index (TI) based on macrophyte and phytobenthic diatoms communities, respectively. In the present study, we examined the relationships between nutrient variables and values of RMI and TI using varied stressor gradient lengths. We also aimed to explain the variability of macrophyte and diatom communities with different stressors, namely nutrients and land cover variables and their combinations. The relationships of RMI and TI with nutrient variables varied significantly and were affected by the length of the stressor gradient. We obtained a stronger relationship between the RMI and total phosphorous at an approximately <0.3-mg/L annual mean value, while, for the relationships with the TI, the values were significant at bigger gradient lengths. The greatest share of variability in the macrophyte and diatom community was explained by the combination of land use and nutrient variables and the lowest share by phosphorus and nitrogen variables. When we applied a composite stressor gradient, it explained a similar share of the variability of both macrophyte and diatom communities (up to 26%). A principal component analysis (PCA) based on land use and nutrient stressor gradient revealed that the relationship between RMI EQR and PCA1 that represents intensive agriculture depends on the length of the gradient. The relationship was stronger for shorter gradients at lower values and decreased as the gradient extended towards higher values. Both tested assessment methods showed that macrophyte communities are more sensitive to shorter stressor gradients of lower values, whereas diatom communities are more sensitive to longer stressor gradient and higher values of the stressor. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Large Rivers: Ecology and Management in a Changing World)
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