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The common carp (Cyprinus carpio) has been introduced to many locations around the world and is highly invasive. Its habit of foraging by digging in the bottom substrate significantly alters freshwater systems by uprooting plants, resuspending sediment, and increasing turbidity and the release of nutrients. However, the extent to which aquatic nutrient flows are affected […]
June 19, 2017
Comments Off on Planting vegetation to stop stream bank erosion: where’s the evidence?
Increased rates of stream bank erosion and sediment movement in disturbed catchments have been attributed to changes in catchment hydrology caused by land clearing, channel modification, the trampling activities of livestock and the removal of riparian vegetation. Given that these effects are human-induced, it’s commonly assumed that they can also be reversed by human intervention, […]
June 1, 2016
Comments Off on Remote surveillance: assessing water quality
Remote sensing technology gives natural resource managers and landowners the ability to monitor environmental conditions in new and powerful ways. However, the remote assessment of water quality in lakes and ponds is complicated by wide variations in the inorganic and organic composition of suspended particles, which affect the optical environment, and the moderate- and medium-resolution […]
June 1, 2016
Comments Off on How environmentally-damaging are run-of-river hydropower systems?
Hydropower generation typically involves the creation of large dams for the storage and release of water, which can have serious adverse effects on riverine environments. However, growing pressures on governments to meet renewable energy targets have stimulated interest in small-scale hydropower systems, especially run-of-river schemes, which use the flow within a river channel and operate […]
October 15, 2015
Comments Off on Chemical control of algae by submerged plants
The appearance and ecology of lakes can be strongly affected by competition between large submerged plants (macrophytes) and algae. Macrophyte-dominated lakes tend to have a limited nutrient supply and clear water, while algal dominance is usually associated with nutrient enrichment and turbid water. Although macrophytes and algae compete mainly for nutrients and light, Belgian experiments […]
December 16, 2014
Comments Off on When ponds are fertile, mussels aren’t
Freshwater mussels help to maintain water quality by filtering suspended particles and reducing concentrations of heavy metals, pesticides and other pollutants. Unfortunately, however, freshwater mussels are experiencing dramatic declines around the world. It’s been suggested that heightened levels of suspended solids, associated with agriculture and urban development, are responsible for the decline, but the mechanism […]
June 19, 2017
Comments Off on A disturbing mix