Inhaltsbereich
Forschungsprojekte
GLOBAQUA: MANAGING THE EFFECTS OF MULTIPLE STRESSORS ON AQUATIC ECOSYSTEMS UNDER WATER SCARCITY
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Fachgebiet: Fernerkundung, Geo-Informationssysteme, Geographische Entwicklungsforschung, Geographische Gesellschaft-Umwelt-Forschung, Hydrologie, Hydrologische Modellierung, Klimatologie, Landschaftsökologie, Modellierung Gefördert durch: Europäische Union Förderkennzeichen: Project Number: 603629 Projektleitung: Projektwissenschaftler: Dr. David Gampe, , Laufzeit: 02/2014 - 01/2019 |
Water and water-related
services are major components of the human wellbeing, and as such are major
factors of socio-economic development in Europe; yet freshwater systems are
under threat by a variety of stressors (organic and inorganic pollution,
geomorphological alterations, land cover change, water abstraction, invasive species
and pathogens. Some stressors, such as water scarcity, can be a stressor on its
own because of its structural character, and drive the effects of other
stressors. The relevance of water scarcity as a stressor is more important in
semi-arid regions, such as the Mediterranean basin, which are characterized by
highly variable river flows and the occurrence of low flows. This has resulted
in increases in frequency and magnitude of extreme flow events. Furthermore, in
other European regions such as eastern Germany, western Poland and England, water
demand exceeds water availability and water scarcity has become an important
management issue. Water scarcity is
most commonly associated with inappropriate water management, with resulting
river flow reductions. It has become one of the most important drivers of
change in freshwater ecosystems. Conjoint occurrence of a myriad of stressors
(chemical, geomorphological, biological) under water scarcity will produce
novel and unfamiliar synergies and most likely very pronounced effects. Within
this context, GLOBAQUA has assembled a multidisciplinary team of leading
scientists in the fields of hydrology, chemistry, ecology, ecotoxicology,
economy, sociology, engineering and modeling in order to study the interaction
of multiple stressors within the frame of strong pressure on water resources.
The aim is to achieve a better understanding how current management practices
and policies could be improved by identifying the main drawbacks and
alternatives.