The natural capital of temporary rivers: characterising the value of dynamic aquatic-terrestrial habitats. Valuing Nature Natural Capital Synthesis Reports, VNP12

Temporary rivers naturally transition between flowing, pool and dry states, creating aquatic–terrestrial habitat mosaics that change in space and time. These dynamic habitats are common in the UK's cool, wet climate. Here, they take many forms, from headwater streams that may dominate networks in remote uplands, to winterbourne rivers crossing the chalk of south England. We examine published and unpublished sources to provide an evidence-informed characterisation of the natural assets in temporary rivers

Disentangling the complexity of socio-cultural values of temporary rivers

In the last decade, an awareness towards temporary rivers has increased globally in response to drying climates and growing human demand for water. However, social perceptions of temporary rivers have rarely been incorporated in their science and management. In this study, we advance an understanding of the socio-cultural values of temporary rivers principally in a European context. We used an ecosystem services-based approach for a participatory and deliberative exercise with 16 researchers and managers. Our results point out to two important aspects of socio-cultural values in temporary rivers. First, cultural ecosystem services have high socio-cultural values and usually represent the interests of the less influential stakeholders in related conflicts. And second, the temporal and geographical variability of these types of rivers is key to understand their socio-cultural values. As an example, the low provision of freshwater in a long non-flowing phase is one of the reasons for its high value. The results above point to future research needs that deserve more attention like the study of tradeoffs and synergies of ecosystem services and interdisciplinary research and management. We finally acknowledge the need to conduct case study research to account for geographical variation and to include the multiple views of different stakeholder groups

Rethinking ecosystem service indicators for their application to intermittent rivers

In these times of strong pressure on aquatic ecosystems and water resources due to climate change and water abstraction, intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams (IRES) (rivers that periodically cease to flow and/or dry) have become valuable assets. Indeed, not only do they supply water but they also offer services for humanity. Despite a growing recognition towards IRES, information for assessing their ecosystem services (ES) remains scarce. In a first step, an international interdisciplinary group of researchers developed a methodological framework to acknowledge ES provided by IRES using 109 indicators. A subset of selected ES indicators was then applied to two case studies: the Rio Seco in the Algarve (Portugal) and the Giofyros River in Crete (Greece). This paper discusses the applicability of these indicators, including the temporal and spatial variability of IRES flow regimes. Aspects of the framework, such as the methods and time required for data collection, the nature (demand or supply) and functionality of each indicator are discussed. The new framework accounts for flow intermittence in ES analyses and can help scientists and water managers to i) increase the ease and justification for IRES use in management approaches and ii) improve their conservation and restoration with a comprehensive set of appropriate indicators for IRES. In addition, the comprehensive nature of the proposed indicators ensures that they can be understood by a broad audience and easily applicable. Since they were designed through a public participation process, the setting has been prepared for holistic stakeholder analysis and education around IRES functions and associated ES. From a management point of view, it would be particularly relevant to perform an economic evaluation with this new framework to understand the value of each ES category and their trade-offs. For the scientific community, however, it is important to consider public preferences to design socially accepted policies. The proposed indicators can successfully bridge these elements, hereby establishing a solid basis for the assessment of ES provided by IRES.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Rethinking ecosystem service indicators for their application to intermittent rivers

In these times of strong pressure on aquatic ecosystems and water resources due to climate change and water abstraction, intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams (IRES) (rivers that periodically cease to flow and/or dry) have become valuable assets. Indeed, not only do they supply water but they also offer services for humanity. Despite a growing recognition towards IRES, information for assessing their ecosystem services (ES) remains scarce. In a first step, an international interdisciplinary group of researchers developed a methodological framework to acknowledge ES provided by IRES using 109 indicators. A subset of selected ES indicators was then applied to two case studies: the Rio Seco in the Algarve (Portugal) and the Giofyros River in Crete (Greece). This paper discusses the applicability of these indicators, including the temporal and spatial variability of IRES flow regimes. Aspects of the framework, such as the methods and time required for data collection, the nature (demand or supply) and functionality of each indicator are discussed. The new framework accounts for flowintermittence in ES analyses and can help scientists and water managers to i) increase the ease and justification for IRES use in management approaches and ii) improve their conservation and restoration with a comprehensive set of appropriate indicators for IRES. In addition, the comprehensive nature of the proposed indicators ensures that they can be understood by a broad audience and easily applicable. Since they were designed through a public participation process, the setting has been prepared for holistic stakeholder analysis and education around IRES functions and associated ES. From a management point of view, it would be particularly relevant to perform an economic evaluation with this new framework to understand the value of each ES category and their tradeoffs. For the scientific community, however, it is important to consider public preferences to design socially accepted policies. The proposed indicators can successfully bridge these elements, hereby establishing a solid basis for the assessment of ES provided by IRES

What defines ecosystem service-based approaches?

2.1 INTRODUCTION It has long been held that human life depends on the existence of a finite natural resource base, and that nature contributes to the fulfilment of human needs (Malthus 1888; Meadows et al. 1972). This knowledge has led to different and evolving ways of understanding the relationship between humans and nature (Raymond et al. 2013). The notion of ecosystem services is one of these, which began to be developed in the late 1960s (King 1966; Helliwell 1969; Study of Critical Environmental Problems 1970; Odum and Odum 1972). How human needs and well-being interact with quantities and qualities of the finite natural resource base, and how changes to the natural environment impact on human activities and vice versa, are key questions underlying the conceptual development of ecosystem services and related concepts. In 2000, the Secretary-General of the United Nations called for a worldwide initiative, the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, ‘to assess the consequences of ecosystem change for human wellbeing and the scientific basis for action needed to enhance the conservation and sustainable use of those systems’ (Millennium Ecosystem Assessment 2003). Ecosystem services were defined as ‘the benefits that people obtain from ecosystems’ and the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment emphasised the need to incorporate the value of ecosystem services into decision-making to reverse increasing degradation of ecosystems. Since the publication of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment in 2005, economic approaches to the understanding and management of natural resources based on the notion of ecosystem services have been increasingly discussed in the scientific literature (Fisher et al. 2009; Norgaard 2010; Ojea et al. 2012). The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment was followed by a number of other initiatives to assess ecosystem services, the most significant global assessment being The Economics of Ecosystem Services and Biodiversity (Kumar 2010). Other national-level assessments, for example, the UK National Ecosystem Assessment (2011; see Schaafsma et al., this book) and the Spanish Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (EME 2011) have also been published.</p

Accounting for flow intermittency in environmental flows design

1. River ecosystems worldwide are affected by altered flow regimes, and an advanced science and practice of environmental flows has developed to understand and reduce these impacts. But most environmental flows approaches ignore flow intermittency, which is a natural feature of 30% of the global river network length. Ignoring flow intermittency when setting environmental flows in naturally intermittent rivers might lead to deleterious ecological effects. 2. We review evidence of the ecological effects of flow intermittency and provide guidance to incorporate intermittency (non-flow events) into existing methods judged as suitable for application in temporary waterways. 3. To better integrate non-flow events into hydrological methods, we propose a suite of new indicators to be used in the Range of Variability Approach. These indicators reflect dry periods and the unpredictable nature of temporary waterways. We develop a predictability index for protecting those species adapted to temporary conditions. 4. For hydraulic habitat models, we find that mesohabitat methods are particularly effective for describing complex habitat dynamics during dry phases. We present an example of the European eel to show the relationship between discharge and non-flow days and wet area, habitat suitability, and connectivity. 5. We find that existing holistic approaches may be applied to temporary waterways without significant structural alteration to their stepwise frameworks, but new component methods are needed to address flow-related aspects across both flow and non-flow periods of the flow regime. 6. Synthesis and applications. Setting environmental flow requirements for temporary waterways requires modification and enhancement of existing approaches and methodologies, most notably the explicit consideration of non‐flow events and greater integration of specific geomorphic, hydrogeologic, and hydraulic elements. Temporary waterways are among the freshwater ecosystems most vulnerable to alterations in flow regimes, and they are also under great pressure. The methodological modifications recommended in this paper will aid water managers in protecting key components of temporary flow regimes, thereby preserving their unique ecology and associated services

Rethinking ecosystem service indicators for their application to intermittent rivers

In these times of strong pressure on aquatic ecosystems and water resources due to climate change and water abstraction, intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams (IRES) (rivers that periodically cease to flow and/or dry) have become valuable assets. Indeed, not only do they supply water but they also offer services for humanity. Despite a growing recognition towards IRES, information for assessing their ecosystem services (ES) remains scarce. In a first step, an international interdisciplinary group of researchers developed a methodological framework to acknowledge ES provided by IRES using 109 indicators. A subset of selected ES indicators was then applied to two case studies: the Rio Seco in the Algarve (Portugal) and the Giofyros River in Crete (Greece). This paper discusses the applicability of these indicators, including the temporal and spatial variability of IRES flow regimes. Aspects of the framework, such as the methods and time required for data collection, the nature (de-mand or supply) and functionality of each indicator are discussed. The new framework accounts for flow intermittence in ES analyses and can help scientists and water managers to i) increase the ease and justification for IRES use in management approaches and ii) improve their conservation and restoration with a comprehensive set of appropriate indicators for IRES. In addition, the comprehensive nature of the proposed indicators ensures that they can be understood by a broad audience and easily applicable. Since they were designed through a public participation process, the setting has been prepared for holistic stakeholder analysis and education around IRES functions and associated ES. From a management point of view, it would be particularly relevant to perform an economic evaluation with this new framework to understand the value of each ES category and their tradeoffs. For the scientific community, however, it is important to consider public preferences to design socially accepted policies. The proposed indicators can successfully bridge these elements, hereby establishing a solid basis for the assessment of ES provided by IRES