Benthic foraminiferal assemblages from Moreton Bay, South-East Queensland, Australia: Applications in monitoring water and substrate quality in subtropical estuarine environments

We assess species composition, assemblage structure and distribution of the benthic foraminiferal assemblages from diverse substrates in Moreton Bay, South-East Queensland, Australia. Analysis of 47 surface sediment samples revealed 69 species, three distinct foraminiferal assemblages and six sub-assemblages. The assemblages from the western Bay are characterized by stress tolerant taxa and the lowest diversity, whereas the assemblages from the eastern Bay are characterized by symbiont-bearing taxa and high diversity. We found a correlation between foraminiferal assemblages and substrate conditions that was indicative of strong environmental gradients (substrate type, water quality and salinity), from an urban-impacted assemblage in the westernmost part of the Bay, to a hyposaline, estuarine-influenced assemblage in the western Bay to a nearly normal marine to hypersaline assemblage in the eastern Bay. The FORAM Index was consistent with the changes in water and sediment quality gradient, from the western shoreline to the eastern Bay. Thus the foraminiferal assemblages of Moreton Bay make excellent bio-indicators of environmental changes in a subtropical, estuarine setting in eastern Australia.     

Informing policy to protect coastal coral reefs: Insight from a global review of reducing agricultural pollution to coastal ecosystems

The continuing degradation of coral reefs has serious consequences for the provision of ecosystem goods and services to local and regional communities. While climate change is considered the most serious risk to coral reefs, agricultural pollution threatens approximately 25% of the total global reef area with further increases in sediment and nutrient fluxes projected over the next 50 years. Here, we aim to inform coral reef management using insights learned from management examples that were successful in reducing agricultural pollution to coastal ecosystems. We identify multiple examples reporting reduced fluxes of sediment and nutrients at end-of-river, and associated declines in nutrient concentrations and algal biomass in receiving coastal waters. Based on the insights obtained, we recommend that future protection of coral reef ecosystems demands policy focused on desired ecosystem outcomes, targeted regulatory approaches, up-scaling of watershed management, and long-term maintenance of scientifically robust monitoring programs linked with adaptive management.     

高原湖泊水质变化趋势及驱动因素研究:以四川邛海为例

邛海是四川第二大湖泊,地处高原,距离西昌市城区不足5 km,生态位置重要。本文以近20年邛海湖区主要水质监测数据为依据,采用M-K检验定量解析了水生态环境历史变化特征,建立邛海污染物浓度、营养状态指标的时空对应关系,分析其驱动因素,识别风险并提出对策建议。结果表明:(1)1980s-2000年是有记录以来邛海水质最差的时期,总氮(TN)、总磷(TP)浓度远超地表水Ⅲ类标准;(2)2003—2020年,邛海氨氮(NH₃-N)、高锰酸盐指数(COD_Mn)年际变化总体呈下降趋势,TN、TP、透明度、溶解氧浓度年际变化趋势总体不明显,COD_Mn、TN、TP浓度在研究期间出现多个显著变化过程;(3) 2003—2020年,邛海营养状态整体为中营养水平,综合营养状态指数TLI(Σ)为33.82±6.88,叶绿素a(Chl.a)浓度为(4.234±3.903) μg/L,TLI(Σ)和Chl.a浓度年际变化没有显著趋势;(4)多年数据统计表明,邛海宾馆所在区域水质最差,邛海湖心水质最好,2003—2020年COD_Mn、TP等指标最大单月浓度均出现在邛海宾馆所在水域;(5)COD_Mn浓度在枯水期低于丰水期,NH₃-N浓度在枯水期高于丰水期,TP浓度高值和低值集中出现在枯水期,TN各月浓度没有显著差异,Chl.a浓度与COD_Mn、TP、NH₃-N浓度呈显著正相关,从水体中氮磷比来看,磷是邛海藻类生长限制性元素;(6)面源污染主要通过邛海大小支流入湖,环湖湿地对邛海面源污染削减效果总体有限,未来邛海发生水华的风险较大,建议以小流域为单元推进陆源污染控制,按照“游在邛海,吃、住在城区”的理念布局旅游发展,探索用“物理+生态”方式调控和预防邛海水生态系统失衡的问题。     

A coastal three-dimensional water quality model of nitrogen in Jiaozhou Bay linking field experiments with modelling

With anthropogenic changes, the structure and quantity of nitrogen nutrients have changed in coastal ocean, which has dramatically influenced the water quality. Water quality modeling can contribute to the necessary scientific grounding of coastal management. In this paper, some of the dynamic functions and parameters of nitrogen were calibrated based on coastal field experiments covering the dynamic nitrogen processes in Jiaozhou Bay (JZB), including phytoplankton growth, respiration, and mortality; particulate nitrogen degradation; and dissolved organic nitrogen remineralization. The results of the field experiments and box model simulations showed good agreement (RSD = 20% ± 2% and SI = 0.77 ± 0.04). A three-dimensional water quality model of nitrogen (3DWQMN) in JZB was improved and the dynamic parameters were updated according to field experiments. The 3DWQMN was validated based on observed data from 2012 to 2013, with good agreement (RSD = 27 ± 4%, SI = 0.68 ± 0.06, and K = 0.48 ± 0.04), which testifies to the model's credibility.     

城镇化下河流水质变化及其与景观格局关系分析——以太湖流域苏州市为例

以河流近域景观格局与水环境质量间的关系为研究对象,基于2001年及2010年两期土地利用类型以及7条典型河流的溶解氧、氨氮、高锰酸盐指数、总磷、总氮5项水质指标,分析城镇化下苏州市河流水质与景观格局之间的关系及其变化规律.结果表明:(1)苏州市河流水质状况总体较差,但呈现一定的好转趋势.(2)河流水质受到城镇用地、旱地及水田的综合影响,并表现出尺度效应.其中城镇用地与旱地对河流水质恶化具有明显的作用,水田则反之.2001-2010年城镇用地及水田对水质的影响程度有所减弱,旱地则增强.(3)蔓延度指数、最大面积斑块比例对河流水质呈现负相关,斑块数量、斑块密度、香农均匀度指数、香农多样性指数则与水质呈现正相关.景观格局对于水质的影响在大范围缓冲区更为显著.研究结果可为苏州水环境管理及太湖流域城市空间开发提供一定的参考依据.     

A case study of in situ oil contamination in a mangrove swamp (Rio De Janeiro, Brazil)

Mangroves are sensitive ecosystems of prominent ecological value that lamentably have lost much of their areas across the world. The vulnerability of mangroves grown in proximity to cities requires the development of new technologies for the remediation of acute oil spills and chronic contaminations. Studies on oil remediation are usually performed with in vitro microcosms whereas in situ experiments are rare. The aim of this work was to evaluate oil degradation on mangrove ecosystems using in situ microcosms seeded with an indigenous hydrocarbonoclastic bacterial consortium (HBC). Although the potential degradation of oil through HBC has been reported, their seeding directly on the sediment did not stimulate oil degradation during the experimental period. This is probably due to the availability of carbon sources that are easier to degrade than petroleum hydrocarbons. Our results emphasize the fragility of mangrove ecosystems during accidental oil spills and also the need for more efficient technologies for their remediation.     

Assessing the regional spatio-temporal pattern of water stress: A case study in Zhangye City of China

Water scarcity and stress have attracted increasing attention as water has become increasingly regarded as one of the most critical resources in the world’s sustainable development. The Water Poverty Index (WPI), an interdisciplinary but straightforward measure that considers water availability from both the bio-geophysical perspective and the socio-economic perspective of people’s capacity to access water, has been successfully applied at national, regional, and local levels around the world. However, the general assessment of water stress at a macro level over only a snapshot limits the understanding of the geographic differences in and dynamics of water stress; this will, in turn, mislead decision-makers and may result in improper water strategies being implemented. In addition, to date, the typologies and trajectories of water stress have been underexplored. To fill this knowledge gap, we examine the spatio-temporal patterns, trajectories, and typologies of water stress using an adapted WPI for six counties in Zhangye City, which lies within an arid region of China, in order to provide policy priorities for each county. The results of our assessment indicate that water stress has become more severe over time (2005–2011) in most of the counties in Zhangye City. The results also show a distinct spatial variation in water scarcity and stress. Specifically, the results for Shandan county reflect its progressive policies on water access and management, and this county is regarded as engaging in good water governance. In contrast, Ganzhou district has faced more severe water pressure and is regarded as practicing poor water governance. Typology results show that each county faces its own particular challenges and opportunities in the context of water scarcity and stress. In addition, the trajectory map reveals that none of the counties has shown substantial improvement in both water access and management, a finding that should draw decision-makers’ close attention.     

A two-phase grey fuzzy optimization approach for water quality management of a river system

An extension of the Grey Fuzzy Waste Load Allocation Model (GFWLAM) developed in an earlier work is presented here to address the problem of multiple solutions. Formulation of GFWLAM is based on the approach for solving fuzzy multiple objective optimization problems with max–min as the operator, which usually may not result in a unique solution. The multiple solutions of fuzzy multiobjective optimization model should be obtained as parametric equations or equations that represent a subspace. A two-phase optimization technique, two-phase GFWLAM, is developed to capture all alternative or multiple solutions of GFWLAM. The optimization model in Phase 1 is exactly same as the optimization model described in GFWLAM. The optimization model in Phase 2 maximizes the upper bounds of fractional removal levels of pollutants and minimizes the lower bounds of fractional removal levels of pollutants keeping the value of goal fulfillment level same as obtained from Phase 1. The widths of the interval-valued fractional removal levels play an important role in decision-making as these can be adjusted within their intervals by the decision-maker considering technical and economic feasibility in the final decision scheme. Two-phase GFWLAM widens the widths of interval-valued removal levels of pollutants, thus enhancing the flexibility in decision-making. The methodology is demonstrated with a case study of the Tunga-Bhadra river system in India.     

Designing river water quality policy interventions with scarce data: the case of the Middle Tagus Basin,Spain

ABSTRACT

Anthropic pressures deteriorate river water quality, so authorities need to identify their causes and define corrective actions. Physically based water quality models are a useful tool for addressing physicochemical pollutants, but they must be calibrated with an amount of data that is often unavailable. In this study, we explore the characterization of a model to design corrective interventions in a context of sparse data. A calibration indicator that is both simple and flexible is proposed. This approach is applied to the Middle Tagus Basin in central Spain, where the physicochemical concentration of pollutants is above legal standards. We quantify the effects of the main existing pressures (discharge from wastewater treatment plants, agricultural diffuse pollution and a major inter-basin water transfer) on the receiving waters. In particular, the study finds that wastewater treatment plant effluent concentrations should be reduced to up to 0.65 mg/L of ammonium and 0.55 mg/L of phosphate to achieve the environmental goals. We propose and prioritize a set of policy actions that would contribute to the good status of surface water bodies in the region.     

基于湖库水质目标的流域氮、磷减排与分区管理——以天目湖沙河水库为例

湖库水环境保护在保障生产与生活用水、维系生态平衡、发展旅游等方面发挥着重要的作用.水质目标管理是保护湖库水质的最佳管理办法.本文以天目湖地区沙河水库及其流域为研究区域,建立模型模拟沙河水库流域的水文与水质,评估入库污染通量和主要来源;依据水质目标测算氮、磷污染的容量和减排量,结合土地的生态保护与开发适宜性评估,提出氮、磷污染分区减排和土地管控的对策和措施.研究结果表明,沙河水库氮、磷污染物入库通量分别为206.01和3.29 t/a,面源总氮和总磷分别占总入库量的85.7%和67.5%.不同土地利用类型氮、磷输出强度有显著差异,总氮输出强度依次为茶园 >耕地 >建筑用地 >裸地 >草地 >退耕地 >林地 >河湖漫滩,总磷输出强度与地表覆盖度有关,依次为裸地 >建筑用地 >茶园 >耕地 >草地 >退耕地 >林地和河湖漫滩.从氮、磷输移过程来看,沙河水库流域总氮排放量为321.64 t/a,进入河流的为255.53 t/a,在河道输送过程中损失19.4%,最终有206.01 t/a进入水库;沙河水库流域总磷排放量为13.42 t/a,进入河流的为7.90 t/a,在河道输送过程中损失58.3%,最终有3.29 t/a进入水库.不同分区河流氮、磷滞留降解率有很大的差异,中田河总氮、总磷滞留降解能力最强,分别为34.71%和84.31%.2009年的通量计算结果显示,沙河水库总氮达到Ⅳ类水质目标需要的入湖减少量为32.01 t/a,入湖削减比例为15.50%,总氮达到Ⅲ类水质目标需要的入湖减少量为59.66 t/a,入湖削减比例为29.00%;总磷达到Ⅲ类水需要的入湖减少量为0.682 t/a,入湖削减比例为20.70%,总磷达到Ⅱ类水需要的入湖减少量为1.479 t/a,入湖削减比例为44.90%.为了实现基于土地利用的面源污染减排管控,选定植被覆盖度、水源涵养能力、地形坡度、土地利用、氮磷分区贡献量、与道路和村落距离等指标综合评估生态保护价值和开发适宜性,并划定禁止开发区、限制开发区和保护性开发区3个管理分区,最终确定各分区的开发强度限制和管控方式.     

Zooplankton succession during extraordinary drought–flood cycles: A case study in a South American floodplain lake

We examined the zooplankton abundance and composition of Laguna Grande, a floodplain wetland of the Lower Paraná Basin (Argentina), during an extraordinary drought–flood cycle that affected both the environment and the biological conditions of the lake. Low waters were characterised by remarkably high conductivities and pH values, and high phytoplankton and bacterioplankton abundances with cyanobacterial blooms, while high waters showed opposite features. In relation to zooplankton, the mean abundances of all the taxonomic groups (rotifers, cladocerans, copepods, ciliates, and heterotrophic nanoflagellates) were slightly higher at low waters. Major changes were observed in the specific composition of metazooplankton: the euryhaline species assemblage that dominated in the dry warm period was replaced by several oligohaline littoral and planktonic species characteristic of the Paraná River Basin, when the water level rose. Mean species richness values at high waters doubled those of low waters and were directly correlated to water depth. Most of the rotifers of the genus Brachionus and the cladoceran Moina micrura switched from parthenogenetic to sexual reproduction during low waters, as a response to a harsh environment and crowding. We suggest that the main changes in the environmental conditions in this eutrophic floodplain lake are driven by the hydrology, which regulates the zooplankton succession. The herein described shifts in the zooplankton structure and dynamics of Laguna Grande over an extraordinary drought–flood cycle contribute to the understanding of the processes that might occur under the scenarios predicted by climate change models.     

The performance of constructed wetlands for,wastewater treatment: a case study of Splash wetland in Nairobi Kenya

The performance of a constructed wetland for wastewater treatment was examined for four months (December 1995 to March 1996). The study area, hereby referred to as the Splash wetland, is approximately 0·5 ha, and is located in the southern part of Nairobi city. Splash wetland continuously receives domestic sewage from two busy restaurants. Treated wastewater is recycled for re‐use for various purposes in the restaurants. Both wet and dry season data were analysed with a view of determining the impact of seasonal variation on the system performance. The physical and chemical properties of water were measured at a common intake and at series of seven other points established along the wetland gradient and at the outlet where the water is collected and pumped for re‐use at the restaurants. The physico‐chemical characteristics of the wastewater changed significantly as the wastewater flowed through the respective wetland cells. A comparison of wastewater influent versus the effluent from the wetland revealed the system's apparent success in water treatment, especially in pH modification, removal of suspended solids, organic load and nutrients mean influent pH = 5·7 ± 0·5, mean effluent pH 7·7 ± 0·3; mean influent BOD₅ = 1603·0 ± 397·6 mg/l, mean effluent BOD₅ = 15·1 ± 2·5 mg/l; mean influent COD = 3749·8 ± 206·8 mg/l, mean effluent COD = 95·6 ± 7·2 mg/l; mean influent TSS = 195·4 ± 58·7 mg/l, mean effluent TSS = 4·7 ± 1·9 mg/l. As the wastewater flowed through the wetland system dissolved free and saline ammonia, NH₄⁺, decreased from 14·6 ± 4·1 mg/l to undetectable levels at the outlet. Dissolved oxygen increased progressively through the wetland system. Analysis of the data available did not reveal temporal variation in the system's performance. However, significant spatial variation was evident as the wetland removed most of the common pollutants and considerably improved the quality of the water, making it safe for re‐use at the restaurants. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Dynamics of mesozooplankton assemblages in subtropical coastal waters of Hong Kong: A comparative study between a eutrophic estuarine and a mesotrophic coastal site

A monthly comparative study of mesozooplankton biomass and composition between a eutrophic Pearl River estuarine site (WE) and a mesotrophic coastal-oceanic site (EO) in Hong Kong waters was conducted to examine the response of mesozooplankton to nutrient-rich riverine discharge. Although the annual average mesozooplankton biomass was higher at WE than at EO, they were not statistically significant. Variations of mesozooplankton biomass at both stations followed similar trends of Chl a concentrations, with the exception of July at WE where mesozooplankton biomass was low but total Chl a was high. This mismatch may be due to the high flushing effect of the Pearl River discharge in summer and a time lag in mesozooplankton population growth. On the other hand, the composition of mesozooplankton was significantly modified by riverine discharge and eutrophication conditions. While small copepods dominated at both sites, the eutrophic estuarine water had a high abundance of barnacle and polychaete larvae, while cladocerans, bivalve larvae, gastropod larvae and chaetognaths mainly occurred at EO. Eutrophication increased the top-down role of copepods in the grazing community, revealed by an increase in the percentage of copepods in the total metazoan mesozooplankton, especially during the period of high river discharge. Moreover, mesozooplankton diversity at the two stations was similar, and they both showed relatively higher diversity during autumn and winter and lower diversity during summer, especially at WE. These results suggest that, despite high nutrient and Chl a concentrations in estuarine waters, mesozooplankton biomass were not enhanced compared to coastal waters with no river impact, possibly due to poor food quality and increased predation in the eutrophic estuarine waters.     

Water ecological carrying capacity of urban lakes in the context of rapid urbanization: A case study of East Lake in Wuhan

With the excessive development of social economy, water scarcity and water environment deterioration become a common phenomenon in metropolis. As a crucial component of urban water environment system, urban lake is mainly influenced by social economic system and tourism system. In this paper, a framework for quantitatively evaluating development sustainability of urban lake was established by a multi-objective model that represented water ecological carrying capacity (WECC). And nine key indicators including population, irrigation area, tourist quantity, the average number of hotel daily reception, TP, TN, COD_Mn, BOD₅ were chosen from urban social-economy system and natural resilience aspects, with their index weight was determined by using the Structure Entropy Weight method. Then, we took Wuhan East Lake, the largest urban lake in China as a case study, and selected five time sections including 2002, 2004, 2007, 2009 and 2012 to synthetically evaluate and comparatively analyze the dynamic change of WECC. The results showed that: firstly, the water ecological carrying capacity values of the East Lake in five time sections were 1.17, 1.07, 1.64, 1.53 and 2.01 respectively, which all exceeded 1 and increased fluctuation. The rapid growth of population and GDP lead to sharply increasing demand for water quantity. However, a large amount of the domestic sewage and industrial waste led by economic development increases pressure on ecological environment of urban lakes. Secondly, the carrying capacity of the East Lake for tourist activities was still low. The value in 2012 was only 0.22, keeping at a slowly increasing phase, which indicates that the East Lake has large opportunity and space for developing the water resource carrying capacity and could make further efforts to attract tourists. Moreover, the WECC of the East Lake was mainly affected by rapid social and economic development and water environment damage caused by organic pollutants. From the view of urban water sustainable management, we must deeply recognize the reality that water shortages and the limited carrying capacity, and dynamic assessment of WECC provides an early warning approach and control direction of water environment. For the East Lake, it is the primary target to mitigate the carrying capacity of social-economy, especially for prevention of lake area encroachment shrinking and domestic wastewater discharge.     

Fishery resource utilization of a restored estuarine borrow pit: A beneficial use of dredged material case study

Numerous pits in coastal waters are subject to degraded water quality and benthic habitat conditions, resulting in degraded fish habitat. A pit in Barnegat Bay, New Jersey (USA) was partially filled with dredged sediment to increase flushing, alleviate hypoxia, and enhance benthic assemblages. Restoration objectives were assessed in terms of benthic community parameters and fishery resource occupation. Restoration resulted in increased benthic diversity (bottom samples) and the absence of water column stratification. Fisheries resources occupied the entire water column, unlike pre-restoration conditions where finfish tended to avoid the lower water column. The partial restoration option effectively reproduced an existing borrow pit configuration (Hole #5, control), by decreasing total depth from −11 m to −5.5 m, thereby creating a habitat less susceptible to hypoxic/anoxic conditions, while retaining sufficient vertical relief to maintain associations with juvenile weakfish and other forage fishes. Partially filling pits using dredged material represents a viable restoration alternative.     

环境一号卫星高光谱遥感数据的内陆水质监测适宜性——以巢湖为例

环境一号星座的A星(HJ-1A)上搭载了超光谱成像仪(HSI),它是具有高光谱分辨率的全新国产遥感数据源,为水质遥感特别是内陆水质遥感提供了新的高光谱数据.但HSI影像的处理方法尚不完善,在广泛应用于水质遥感前对其进行质量研究和评价非常必要.本文针对HSI数据在巢湖水质监测应用方面的适宜性,对信噪比和数据真实性、倾斜条...     

Mapping groundwater quality variables using PCA and geostatistics: a case study of Bajo Andarax,southeastern Spain

Abstract

A case study is presented for the application of statistical and geostatistical methods to the problem of estimating groundwater quality variables. This methodology has been applied to the investigation of the detrital aquifer of the Bajo Andarax (Almería, Spain). The use of principal components analysis is proposed, as a first step, for identifying relevant types of groundwater and the processes that bring about a change in their quality. As a result of this application, three factors were obtained, which were used as three new variables (VI: sulphate influence; V2: thermal influence; and V3: marine influence). Analysis of their spatial distribution was performed through the calculation of experimental and theoretical variograms, which served as input for geostatistical modelling using ordinary block kriging. This analysis has allowed a probabilistic representation of the data to be obtained by mapping the three variables throughout the aquifer for each sampling point. In this way, one can evaluate the spatial and temporal variation of the principal physico-chemical processes associated with the three variables VI, V2 and V3 implicated in the groundwater quality of the detrital aquifer.     

Influence of the quality factor on simulated seismic waves: A case study of the 1994 Northridge earthquake

In numerical simulations of ground motion, the constant quality factor Q of a viscoelastic medium can be determined using the time-domain constitutive approximation method of the generalized standard linear solid (GSLS) model. This study introduces a numerical seismic wavefield simulation method which combines the spectral element method with the constant-Q model. The method is used to simulate the seismic wavefield of the 1994 Northridge earthquake. The optimal attenuation coefficient for the simulated seismic waves in this study area is determined empirically based on a quantitative analysis of the deviation curve. Further, the effect of the quality factor on the simulated wavefield are analyzed according to the site characteristics of each seismic station. The quality factor shows a variable effect on the different frequency components of the simulated wavefield. The effect of the quality factor also varies with the characteristic parameters of each seismic station site, such as site velocity structure, fault distance, and azimuth angle.     

太湖上游水源区河流水质对景观格局变化的响应关系——以东苕溪上游为例

景观格局演变作为人类活动的综合表征,通过改变水文过程和径流路径,从而影响非点源污染物的发生位置、迁移路径和转化过程,进而对流域水环境产生深刻影响.苕溪作为太湖的主要入湖河流之一,对太湖水环境有着关键的影响作用.本文以发源于杭州市临安区太湖源镇的东苕溪上游区域作为研究对象,在对河流水质进行两个时期监测的基础上,运用相关性分析、冗余分析和逐步回归分析等方法,综合景观组分指数和景观空间配置指数,在子流域尺度上量化景观指数对河流不同水质指标的解释能力,探讨河流水质对流域景观格局的响应规律.结果表明:1)东苕溪上游大部分监测点总氮浓度远超地表水V类水质标准限值,但氨氮和总磷浓度整体较低,部分监测点可达Ⅰ类水质标准.2)在汛期,景观组成中流域的"源"景观比例是影响水质的重要因素,农业用地占比与硝态氮、总氮浓度呈显著正相关,建设用地占比对氨氮、总磷浓度影响显著;而在非汛期,景观配置因子,特别是表征斑块形状的周长—面积分形维数(PAFRAC)对河流水质的影响极显著.3)无论是汛期还是非汛期,林地和草地对河流中污染物均具有显著的削减作用,是流域河流污染防治的关键"汇"景观.4)从整体上来看,河流氮、磷污染与人类活动强度密切相关,增加景观连通性、降低自然景观的破碎化程度可有效改善河流水环境.     

Integrating water management,habitat modelling and water quality at the basin scale and environmental flow assessment: case study of the Tormes River,Spain

Abstract

Multidisciplinary models are useful for integrating different disciplines when addressing water planning and management problems. We combine water resources management, water quality and habitat analysis tools that were developed with the decision support system AQUATOOL at the basin scale. The water management model solves the allocation problem through network flow optimization and considers the environmental flows in some river stretches. Once volumes and flows are estimated, the water quality model is applied. Furthermore, the flows are evaluated from an ecological perspective using time series of aquatic species habitat indicators. This approach was applied in the Tormes River Water System, where agricultural demands jeopardize the environmental needs of the river ecosystem. Additionally, water quality problems in the lower part of the river result from wastewater loading and agricultural pollution. Our methodological framework can be used to define water management rules that maintain water supply, aquatic ecosystem and legal standards of water quality. The integration of ecological and water management criteria in a software platform with objective criteria and heuristic optimization procedures allows realistic assessment and application of environmental flows to be made. Here, we improve the general methodological framework by assessing the hydrological alteration of selected environmental flow regime scenarios.

Editor D. Koutsoyiannis; Guest editor M. Acreman

Citation Paredes-Arquiola, J., Solera, A., Martinez-Capel, F., Momblanch, A., and Andreu, J., 2014. Integrating water management, habitat modelling and water quality at the basin scale and environmental flow assessment: case study of the Tormes River, Spain. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 59 (3–4), 878–889.