The clam and the dam: A Bayesian belief network approach to environmental flow assessment in a data scarce region.

The Volta clam, Galatea paradoxa, is a freshwater macrobenthic bivalve which is endemic to the Lower Volta River in Ghana. The range of occurrence of the clam has been influenced by the flow regime in the Lower Volta which is in turn controlled by operation of two dams located upstream. Previous research has documented the changes to the Lower Volta due to the dams and attempts have been made to design environmental flows (e-flows), freshwater flows to sustain ecosystems, to inform the re-operation of the dams.

Developing stakeholder-driven scenarios on land sharing and land sparing - Insights from five European case studies.

Empirical research on land sharing and land sparing has been criticized because preferences of local stakeholders, socio-economic aspects, a bundle of ecosystem services and the local context were only rarely integrated. Using storylines and scenarios is a common approach to include land use drivers and local contexts or to cope with the uncertainties of future developments. The objective of the presented research is to develop comparable participatory regional land use scenarios for the year 2030 reflecting land sharing, land sparing and more intermediate developments across five different European landscapes (Austria, Germany, Switzerland, The Netherlands and Spain).

Water Quality Is a Poor Predictor of Recreational Hotspots in England.

Maintaining and improving water quality is key to the protection and restoration of aquatic ecosystems, which provide important benefits to society. In Europe, the Water Framework Directive (WFD) defines water quality based on a set of biological, hydro-morphological and chemical targets, and aims to reach good quality conditions in all river bodies by the year 2027. While recently it has been argued that achieving these goals will deliver and enhance ecosystem services, in particular recreational services, there is little empirical evidence demonstrating so.

The impact of Best Management Practices on simulated streamflow and sediment load in a Central Brazilian catchment.

The intense use of water for both public supply and agricultural production causes societal conflicts and environmental problems in the Brazilian Federal District. A serious consequence of this is nonpoint source pollution which leads to increasing water treatment costs. Hence, this study investigates in how far agricultural Best Management Practices (BMPs) might contribute to sustainable water resources management and soil protection in the region.