IWRM and ECOSYSTEMS

I. Concept of Ecosystem and Aquatic Ecosystems

Training of Trainers on IWRM Kandy, Sri Lanka, Sept. 2010

Brij Gopal
Centre for Inland Waters in South Asia NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ECOLOGY brij44@gmail.com

IWRM- Integrated Water Resource Management

WATER: An Integrating Force

AIR without Water
Full of noxious gases and particulates that will never return to land

LAND without Water

Rocks will never turn into soils that provide nutrients to plants.
weathering- salinity- erosion- peat formation

NO LIFE exists without Water

Precipitation

Evaporation

Plants are not simply Water Users But also Water Providers
Transpiration Interception, Infiltration, Obstruction, Transpiration

Transfer to Animals and Humans

Interception Evaporation

Throughfall

Stem Flow Runoff Uptake

Infiltration

Subsurface Flow

ECOSYSTEMS

Ecosystem: dynamically interacting community of plants, animals, and microorganisms, together with their non-living environment, constituting a functional unit

Structural Attributes
Abiotic Soil Water Air
Energy

Biotic Primary Producers Herbivores (Grazers) Carnivores

Decomposers (Microbes)

Interactions in an Ecosystem
Nutrients

heat
Energy

Producers

Consumers

Decomposers heat Nutrients

AQUATIC ECOSYSTEMS
Rivers, Lakes, Thermal Springs, Oceans, Groundwater Wetlands: Bogs Marshes Swamps Estuaries Lagoons Mangroves

Rivers and Lakes

are NOT
Water Storages
They are Ecosystems

Wetlands

Marshes and Swamps make the divide between terrestrial and aquatic habitats fuzzy

Water is NOT just a Commodity for Humans

Humans did not originate in Water Humans do not live in Water Millions of organisms - from bacteria and algae to fish, dolphins and whales would not exist outside water!

Humans use water for themselves

All other organisms use water to provide goods and services that humans cannot obtain by using water

Besides humans, all other organisms are genuine stakeholders in water

What do Aquatic Ecosystems do for Us?

and

What do we do to them?

IWRM and ECOSYSTEMS

II. Ecosystem Services and Environmental Flows

Ecosystem Services

Millennium ecosystem Assessment (2005) .. .. the benefits derived by the humans from ecosystems The term was first coined by Ehrlich & Ehrlich (1981) Earlier referred to as environmental services or natures services

Daily (1997) defines ecosystem services as: the conditions and processes through which natural ecosystems, and the species that make them up, sustain and fulfill human life

Ecosystem Services
Scott et al. (1998) elaborates: Processes are interactions among elements of the ecosystem, Functions are aspects of the processes that affect humans or key aspects of the ecosystem itself... Services are attributes of ecological functions that are valued by humans De Groot et al. (2002) define functions as the capacity of natural processes and components to provide goods and services that satisfy human needs. Thus, processes lead to functions, which lead to services.

ECOSYSTEM SERVICES
Provisioning Food, Fodder, Fuel, Fiber, Fresh water, Biochemicals, Genetic material Climate, Hydrology, water Quality, Erosion, Natural Hazards, Pollination Spiritual, Recreational, Aesthetic, Educational

Regulating

Cultural

Supporting

Soil formation, Nutrient cycling, Biological production

What do Aquatic Ecosystems do for Us?

Rivers are known for their Purification ability.

Purification and Processing

are dependent upon the kind, nature and functions of ecosystems Uptake = Removal = Purification Processing = Converting to nonpolluting or useful form

Hypothesis 10: Optimization of the structure of ecotonal zones like riparian buffer zones,

wetlands or floodplains is a main tool for the reduction of nutrient transfer from the catchment to the river and other downstream recipients.

ASSIMILATIVE CAPACITY
Determined by

A. Physical and chemical conditions

A Rivers Assimilative Capacity is determined by

River order Channel size and morphology Flow volume and velocity Water quality

B. Ecosystem characteristics
For example

Plankton populations Animal populations (Fish, Amphibia, Birds) Riparian vegetation

Values of Aquatic Ecosystems

Providing Habitat Moderation of Physical Conditions (weather) Change in Temperature (Energy Absorption) Change in Relative Humidity (Evapotranspiration) Water Infiltration (Groundwater Recharge) Change in Water Flow Velocity Checking Erosion Changes in Chemical Environment Reduction in Carbon Dioxide Production of Oxygen Uptake of Chemical Substances (Nutrients, Toxics) Production of Chemical Substances

Ecosystem Services of Aquatic Ecosystems

SERVICES
Provisioning Food Fresh water Fiber and fuel Biochemical Genetic materials

Examples
Production of fish, wild game, fruits, and grains (rice) Storage and retention of water for domestic, industrial, and agricultural use Production of timber, fuelwood, peat, fodder Extraction of medicines / biochemicals from biota Genes for resistance to plant pathogens, ornamental species, etc.

Ecosystem Services of Aquatic Ecosystems

Regulating Climate regulation Source of and sink for greenhouse gases; Influence local and regional temperature, precipitation, and other climatic processes Groundwater recharge/discharge Retention, recovery, and removal of excess nutrients and other pollutants Retention of soils and sediments Flood control, storm protection Habitat for pollinators

Water regulation (hydrological flows) Water purification and waste treatment Erosion regulation Natural hazard regulation Pollination

Ecosystem Services of Aquatic Ecosystems

Cultural
Spiritual and inspirational aspects Recreational Aesthetic Educational Supporting Soil formation Nutrient cycling Sediment retention and accumulation of organic matter Storage, recycling, processing, and acquisition of nutrients source of inspiration; many religions attach spiritual and religious values (sacred lakes, rivers) Opportunities for recreational activities Scenic beauty or enhancement of aesthetics of landscape Opportunities for formal and informal education and training

What do we do to them?

How do we manage Water?

Dams and Barrages
(Storage and Diversion)

Embankments
(Flood control, Navigation)

Wastewater Discharge

Altered Flow Regimes

Altered Flow Regimes and Water Quality

Altered Wetlands

Loss of Floodplains

Decline in Fisheries
Loss of Livelihoods

Why do we need FLOW in our rivers?

Upstream vs Downstream Communities

Specific Reaches vs Entire River vs Coastal Areas OR River Basin Bathing, swimming, rafting? Fishing? Sediments (Gravel, Sand)? Waste assimilation? Groundwater recharge? Birds? Wildlife? Floodplain Grazing?
What does the community value more? Off-stream benefits OR In-Stream benefits

Environmental Flow
Water is also important for
Besides for Transport, and Waste Assimilation

Ecosystem Services

Domestic use, Agriculture or Industry

Env. Flow is not Minimum Flow

The ecosystem conditions sought to be achieved through EFs is determined Not just by the quantity of water but also Quality, and Water availability in time and space Connectivity, abundance and timing

Definition
Water that is left in a river ecosystem, or released into it, for the specific purpose of managing the condition of that ecosystem

Identifying the value of various ecosystem services Linking them to the flow and then Reserving a part of it to achieve the desired level of ecosystem condition worked on the basis of trade offs/consensus among water use communities Ensuring that the reserved water is delivered in the right amounts, to the right places at the right times

Different Flows
Different parts of the flow regime elicit different responses from the river ecosystem and removal of one part of the flow regime will affect the ecosystem differently than removal of another.

Identify the different parts of the flow describe in isolation the probable consequences of partial or whole removal of any one of these parts re-combined in various ways, to describe the river condition of any flow regime of interest

Flow variability Promotes diversity and resilience to

disturbance
Low flows:
occur when river is not in flood. Define whether the river flows all year.Creating varying conditions during seasons dictating which (and how many) biotic species occur at any time of the year

Small (relatively frequent) floods:

Stimulate spawning in fish, flush out poor quality water, cleanse the river bed, sort the river stones by size, creating different kinds of habitat. Trigger and synchronize activities as varied as upstream migrations of fish and germination of seedlings on river banks

Large Floods (infrequent) floods: Provide scouring

flows that shape the channel. Move and cleanse cobbles and boulders on the river bed, recharge soil moisture on banks, inundate backwaters and secondary channels, and floodplains

COMPONENTS OF RIVER FLOW

Volume: depth, area, velocity Duration: each year Amplitude of variation Frequency of variation Timing of the year

All flow components and their interactions influence the habitat and biota differently.

Effect of Flow on Habitat Characteristics

Mean gradient Bed material size
The predominant substrate size decreases downstream Boulders and cobbles Gravel Sand

Distance downstream
Silt

www.shorelandmanagement.org/depth/rivers/04.html

www.usda.gov/stream_restoration/chap1

Connectivity

Longitudinal Important for migration between breeding and feeding grounds Prevents genetic isolation

Lateral
Allows species reaching floodplains Prevents isolation and elimination of floodplain species

Connectivity

Spawning ground

Feeding ground

Longitudinal

Lateral Courtesy: Robin Welcomme

Flooodplain

U/s River Flow

Riverbed Agriculture

Agriculture

Grazing/Fuel Resources
Floodplain Agriculture

Erosion (sediment movement)

X
Groundwater

Waterbodies (fisheries)

X X

River shifting

Groundwater

River Fisheries Biodiversity

Flow eliminated

D/s River Flow

Ecosystem Services Dependent upon Flow

Transport and deposition of sediments along river course
Watering Floodplain wetlands Recharging groundwater Moderation of salinity Role of Floodplains
Supply of good quality water Resources: fish, reeds and forage Purification of wastes Flood protection Agriculture and fisheries Recreation, aesthetics, social-cultural activity Eco-tourism Support estuarine and marine species Support terrestrial species

livelihoods, food, income, quality of life for communities

Methods for Environmental Flows

Hydrological: Complexity- Low. Data needs: Mainly desktop; Some virgin
naturalistic historic flow records Expertise: hydrological, ecological

Hydraulic rating: Complexity: Low- Medium. Data needs: Discharge linked

to hydraulic variables - typically single river cross-section Expertise: Hydrological, hydraulic modelling, ecological

Habitat Simulation: Complexity: Medium High. Data needs: desktop and

field, Historical flow records, many hydraulic variables multiple crosssections, Physical habitat suitability data for target species. Expertise: Advanced hydrological modelling, advanced computer-based hydraulic and habitat modelling, specialist ecological expertise on physical habitat-flow needs of target species

Holistic: Complexity Medium High. Data needs: + many hydraulic

variables multiple cross-sections, biological data on flow- and habitatrelated requirements of all biota and ecological components. Expertise: As above

Methods for Environmental Flows

Hydrological

Hydraulic

Usable Habitat Area

Habitat

Flow

Framework approaches
Drawing and synthesising the best information from precise, site and reach-based studies general models professional advice
Objective oriented, e.g. IFIM procedure (Instream Flow Incremental Method), popular in UK and USA

Scenario based e.g DRIFT procedure (Drawdown Response to Imposed Flow Transformation), developed and practiced in South Africa.

Downstream Response to Imposed Flow

Transformation
(DRIFT)

method for the assessment of EF requirement

Methods for Environmental Flows

Method

Data and Time requirements Moderate to low Moderate

Appr. duration of assessment Two weeks

Confidence output Low

Levels of experience

Prescriptive

Tennant method Wetted perimeter method Expert panels Holistic Method

USA/extensive

2-4 months

Low

USA/Extensive

Moderate to low Moderate to high Very high

1-2 months

Medium

Australia/very limited Australia/Very limited USA, UK, Extensive Lesotho, South Africa/very limited

6- 18 months 2 5 Years

Medium

Interactive

IFIM
Instream Flow Incremental Methodolgy

High

DRIFT
Downstream Response to Imposed Flow Tranformation

High to very High

1-3 Years

High

No agreement on methods or any common method All available methods developed for the specific conditions of small, headwater streams Not suitable for large, lowland, monsoon-fed rivers Ecosystem services and livelihoods need to be considered