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Environmental flows (e-flows) aim to mitigate the threat of altered hydrological regimes in river systems and connected waterbodies and are an important component of integrated strategies to address multiple threats to freshwater biodiversity. Expanding and accelerating implementation of e-flows can support river conservation and help to restore the biodiversity and resilience of hydrologically altered and water-stressed rivers and connected freshwater ecosystems. While there have been significant developments in e-flow science, assessment, and societal acceptance, implementation of e-flows within water resource management has been slower than required and geographically uneven. This review explores critical factors that enable successful e-flow implementation and biodiversity outcomes in particular, drawing on 13 case studies and the literature. It presents e-flow implementation as an adaptive management cycle enabled by 10 factors: legislation and governance, financial and human resourcing, stakeholder engagement and co-production of knowledge, collaborative monitoring of ecological and social-economic outcomes, capacity training and research, exploration of trade-offs among water users, removing or retrofitting water infrastructure to facilitate e-flows and connectivity, and adaptation to climate change. Recognising that there may be barriers and limitations to the full and effective enablement of each factor, the authors have identified corresponding options and generalizable recommendations for actions to overcome prominent constraints, drawing on the case studies and wider literature. The urgency of addressing flow-related freshwater biodiversity loss demands collaborative networks to train and empower a new generation of e-flow practitioners equipped with the latest tools and insights to lead adaptive environmental water management globally. Mainstreaming e-flows within conservation planning, integrated water resource management, river restoration strategies, and adaptations to climate change is imperative. The policy drivers and associated funding commitments of the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework offer crucial opportunities to achieve the human benefits contributed by e-flows as nature-based solutions, such as flood risk management, floodplain fisheries restoration, and increased river resilience to climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Freshwater biodiversity loss is accelerating globally, but humanity can change this trajectory through actions that enable recovery. To be successful, these actions require coordination and planning at a global scale. The Emergency Recovery Plan for global freshwater biodiversity aims to reduce the risk for freshwater biodiversity loss through six priority actions: (1) accelerate implementation of environmental flows; (2) improve water quality to sustain aquatic life; (3) protect and restore critical habitats; (4) manage exploitation of freshwater species and riverine aggregates; (5) prevent and control nonnative species invasions in freshwater habitats; and (6) safeguard and restore freshwater connectivity. These actions can be implemented using future-proofing approaches that anticipate future risks (e.g., emerging pollutants, new invaders, and synergistic effects) and minimize likely stressors to make conservation of freshwater biodiversity more resilient to climate change and other global environmental challenges. While uncertainty with respect to past observations is not a new concern for freshwater biodiversity, future-proofing has the distinction of accounting for the uncertainty of future conditions that have no historical baseline. The level of uncertainty with respect to future conditions is unprecedented. Future-proofing of the Emergency Recovery Plan for freshwater biodiversity will require anticipating future changes and developing and implementing actions to address those future changes. Here, we showcase future-proofing approaches likely to be successful using local case studies and examples. Ensuring that response options within the Emergency Recovery Plan are future-proofed will provide decision makers with science-informed choices, even in the face of uncertain and potentially new future conditions. We are at an inflection point for global freshwater biodiversity loss; learning from defeats and successes can support improved actions toward a sustainable future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Substrate composition has been widely recognised as a primary variable shaping lotic macroinvertebrate communities at the habitat unit level. However, fundamental understanding of how communities inhabiting mineralogical habitats (i.e., gravel, sand and silt) are structured across differing rivers is lacking. Moreover, research largely focusses on gravel beds and fine sediment in general (<2 mm) and as a result detailed field observations specifically of the sand and silt fractions are lacking. Using data from five UK streams collated from published studies, we assess taxonomic and functional biodiversity (alpha and beta diversity) at the habitat unit level (as defined by substrate composition of sand, silt and gravel). We found that the composition of taxonomic communities were clearly different in all habitat units for each individual stream (and at the landscape scale), with comparable, but less strong, distinctions between substrates for functional macroinvertebrate community composition. However, alpha diversity metrics and Local Contribution to Beta Diversity (LCBD) recorded among the different habitat units varied significantly across individual rivers, and the amount of variation explained by the habitat unit for taxonomic and functional composition demonstrated considerable differences suggesting strong context dependence. The depositional fine sediment habitats of sand and silt were found to support a discrete community composition and differing levels of alpha and beta diversity within and between rivers. We advocate that care should be taken when seeking to generalise biodiversity patterns at a landscape scale as our study highlights the high degree of context dependency when considering the role of the habitat template. Moreover, our results provide evidence that discriminating between the size fractions of fine sediment habitats (sand or silt) is important to fully elucidate the wider ecological importance of these habitats and the distinct taxonomic and functional biodiversity they support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following a 2015 Memorandum of Understanding, efforts began to develop a transboundary water allocation plan in the Mara River Basin between Kenya and Tanzania. Many lessons were learned along that way, including the importance of involving basin and national water authorities in all phases of data collection, planning and decision-making; understanding existing water management structures to promote communication and cooperation within countries; and using locally collected data whenever possible. Applying these concepts to future efforts can promote, although not ensure, ownership of the process within each country, trust between countries, and productive discussions around transboundary water resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Freshwater habitats are experiencing two to three times the rate of biodiversity loss of terrestrial and marine habitats. As status quo actions within the conservation community are not reversing the downward trajectory for freshwater biodiversity, we propose four actions to shift the narrative such that freshwater biodiversity is no longer invisible and overlooked, but rather explicitly recognized, valued, and protected: (1) Reshape our relationship with freshwater habitats and biodiversity, (2) Appreciate indigenous knowledge systems relating to freshwater habitats, (3) Connect science more directly to action, and (4) Elevate freshwater habitats as a unique "domain" that requires explicit recognition in conservation planning (RACE). We highlight roles that both freshwater scientists and the wider conservation community can play in implementing the four actions such that the "RACE" can be won. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pressure on freshwater resources is leading to diminishing flows in some of the critical river systems across the globe. India is no exception, and this is mainly because of water withdrawal for irrigation, which is often to the tune of 70% to 80% of the lean season flows, with some proportion for domestic and industrial use. While graduating from the concept of environmental flows and its assessment methodologies in India, the water-managers, the researchers and the conservationists are now moving towards answering the next question, if the rivers are to be revived, where will the water come from, especially in the case of over-allocated rivers, including the River Ganga. While the logical way is to look at the biggest user of water, i.e., irrigation, it remains to be seen whether the irrigation water savings will actually lead to enhancing flows in a river, complementing the efforts towards maintaining e-flows in rivers, or whether it will lead to more area under agriculture, bring changes in cropping patterns towards more water-intensive crops or result in something else. This is a growing debate across the globe, where India is no exception, and there has been a wide range of opinions in this regard. This paper discusses the process, findings and lessons from a joint initiative involving farmers, the Uttar Pradesh state Irrigation and Water Resources Department, Bijnor District Administration and a conservation organisation, WWF, to enhance flows in a sub-tributary, called the Karula River, which is part of the Ganga River system. Another objective of this paper is to look at the scalability and replicability of similar approaches in other irrigation command areas to benefit nearby river systems in general. Under this initiative, the team attempted to enhance flows in the river Karula by routing the saved water from irrigation supplies in a canal commanded area. This saving of water is being achieved due to supply-side and demand-side measures that are being adopted in the project area. With the objective of ensuring the sustainability of the initiative, efforts are made to form an institutional arrangement, through which this initiative can be sustained beyond the project support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the face of declining rivers globally, the flow regime as the key hydrological determinant for healthy freshwater ecosystems is receiving unprecedented attention. This study investigates the challenge of implementing environmental flows in the Orange–Senqu basin in Southern Africa by assessing progress and its key factors during 1998 and 2013. Based on 22 interviews, the study shows that despite an advanced understanding of e-flows and its requirements, there have been effective implementation actions in only a few river systems to give effect to these e-flow requirements. Ineffective implementing institutions and a challenging basin context are more responsible than largely sufficient policies and legislation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Freshwater biodiversity loss is one of the greatest environmental threats in our changing world. Although declines have been reported extensively in the literature, much less attention has been devoted to solving the freshwater biodiversity crisis relative to other ecosystems. The recently proposed Emergency Recovery Plan for Freshwater Biodiversity (Tickner et al., 2020, BioScience, 70(4), 330–342) outlines an ambitious but necessary set of overarching actions that can help "bend the curve" for freshwater biodiversity declines. This plan is timely given the present opportunity to adjust freshwater biodiversity targets in international biodiversity agreements and to encourage meeting targets of relevant Sustainable Development Goals. Yet, relying solely on a trickle down from such agreements to national and local scales will likely take too long, given the immediate urgency of the situation. Here, we advocate for a broader, concerted effort from all actors to ensure the Emergency Recovery Plan meaningfully influences the actions of practitioners at a local scale. We outline the roles and responsibilities of actors involved with policy, research, professional bodies and societies, advocacy, and industry, as well as practitioners themselves, in achieving this goal. It is our hope that this overview facilitates the real‐world actions needed to execute the Emergency Recovery Plan so that we can indeed "bend the curve" for freshwater biodiversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sand mining (used here as a generic term that includes mining of any riverine aggregates regardless of particle size) is a global activity that is receiving increasing media attention due to perceived negative environmental and social impacts. As calls grow for stronger regulation of mining, there is a need to understand the scientific evidence to support effective management. This paper summarizes the results of a structured literature review addressing the question, "What evidence is there of impacts of sand mining on ecosystem structure, process, and biodiversity in rivers, floodplains, and estuaries?" The review found that most investigations have focused on temperate rivers where sand mining occurred historically but has now ceased. Channel incision was the most common physical impact identified; other physical responses, including habitat disturbance, alteration of riparian zones, and changes to downstream sediment transport, were highly variable and dependant on river characteristics. Ecosystem attributes affected included macroinvertebrate drift, fish movements, species abundance and community structures, and food web dynamics. Studies often inferred impacts on populations, but supporting data were scarce. Limited evidence suggests that rivers can sustain extraction if volumes are within the natural sediment load variability. Significantly, the countries and rivers for which there is science‐based evidence related to sand mining are not those where extensive sand mining is currently reported. The lack of scientific and systematic studies of sand mining in these countries prevents accurate quantification of mined volumes or the type, extent, and magnitude of any impacts. Additional research into how sand mining is affecting ecosystem services, impacting biodiversity and particularly threatened species, and how mining impacts interact with other activities or threats is urgently required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Protected areas are a global cornerstone of biodiversity conservation and restoration. Yet freshwater biodiversity is continuing to decline rapidly. To date there has been no formal review of the effectiveness of protected areas for conserving or restoring biodiversity in rivers, lakes, and wetlands. We present the first assessment using a systematic review of the published scientific evidence of the effectiveness of freshwater protected areas. Systematic searches returned 2,586 separate publications, of which 44 provided quantitative evidence comprising 75 case studies. Of these, 38 reported positive, 25 neutral, and 12 negative outcomes for freshwater biodiversity conservation. Analysis revealed variable relationships between conservation effectiveness and factors such as taxa assessed, protected area size and characteristics, International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) protected area category, and ecoregion. Lack of effectiveness was attributed to many anthropogenic factors, including fishing (often with a lack of law enforcement), water management (abstraction, dams, and flow regulation), habitat degradation, and invasive non‐native species. Drawing on the review and wider literature we distil eight lessons to enhance the effectiveness of protected areas for freshwater biodiversity conservation. We urge policymakers, protected area managers, and those who fund them to invest in well‐designed research and monitoring programs and publication of evidence of protected area effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Major droughts are an ever-present threat in almost all countries; a threat that is set to increase in response to climate change and the influence of socio-economic change on the demand for, and use of, water. Historically droughts have been responded to 'as they happen' leading to incremental shifts in approach as lessons are learnt. Given the significance of the challenge now faced in this heuristic approach is no longer fit for purpose and a new approach is required. Based upon a combination of expert workshops, detailed international case studies and analysis of past droughts, this paper sets out a strategic approach to managing water resources that specifically addresses drought. The framework encourages a focus on long-term outcomes (for people, ecosystems and economies) and views drought as a water-related risk, not simply a hazard. Strategic drought risk management (SDRM) is presented as a multi-scale endeavour, providing both local and regional solutions whilst addressing short- and long-term challenges. It seeks to implement a diverse portfolio of measures during non-drought conditions as well in the run-up to, during and after a drought event whilst recognizing the critical interdependences between human systems and freshwater ecosystems. The paper concludes by presenting eight 'Golden Rules' to guide a sound approach to SDRM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In response to major water-related challenges, the Chinese government is preparing to significantly expand river restoration efforts. The high level of development in many Chinese river basins requires that this work be undertaken strategically. This article identifies current global challenges to river restoration and presents a framework for strategic river restoration, together with a set of eight ‘golden rules’. The framework and rules were developed specifically to address the Chinese situation, but are relevant elsewhere, particularly for heavily developed and highly contested river basins. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This review employs academic and policy literature to gage the relative importance and concerns associated with the main challenges facing the management of transboundary river basins: increasing pressures; management and policy that has not kept pace with a broadened set of actors; the influence of climate change; and the politics of reconciling political borders and basin boundaries. The persistence of the supply-side management philosophy within current political economies is also reviewed, along with infrastructure and institutional responses to the challenges (e.g., IWRM, dams, treaties). An analytical frame developed from the review is applied to three basins where there has been successful, considerable, or no effort at transboundary basin management: the Rhine, the Nile, and the Euphrates. International politics and national self-interest are found to be the key challenge facing international basins, though each of the challenges is interconnected and should be considered in combination. If transboundary basin management is to confront the challenges successfully, it should develop along two paths: away from a supply-side management paradigm toward adaptive management, and away from sovereignty and unilateralism to multilateralism. While infrastructure built under a paradigm of reducing uncertainty is found to reduce the adaptation options set, adaptive management that can make the most of the increasingly diverse governance and confront the supply-management philosophy is seen as best-suited to meet future challenges. The disabling effect of sovereignty and international politics may best be addressed by confronting resistance of the promotion of 'shared sovereignty' and fair water-sharing. WIREs Clim Change 2013, 4:331-349. doi: 10.1002/wcc.228 Conflict of interest: The authors have declared no conflicts of interest for this article. For further resources related to this article, please visit the WIREs website. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In response to increasing concerns about pressures on global water resources, researchers have developed a range of water footprint concepts and tools. These have been deployed for a variety of purposes by businesses, governments and NGOs. A debate has now emerged about the value, and the shortcomings of using water footprint tools to support better water resources management. This paper tracks the evolution of the water footprint concept from its inception in the 1990s and reviews major applications of water footprint tools, including those by the private sector. The review suggests that water footprint assessments have been an effective means of raising awareness of global water challenges among audiences 'outside the water box' including decision makers in industry and government. Water footprint applications have also proved to be useful for the assessment of strategic corporate risks relating to water scarcity and pollution. There is evidence that these applications may help to motivate economically important stakeholders to contribute to joint efforts to mitigate shared water-related risks, although there have been few examples to date of such approaches leading to tangible improvements in water resources management at the local and river basin scales. Water footprint assessments have so far had limited influence on the development or implementation of improved public policy for water resources management and there is reason to believe that water footprint approaches may be a distraction in this context. Suggestions that international trade and economic development frameworks might be amended in light of global water footprint assessments have not yet been articulated coherently. Nevertheless, if used carefully, water footprint tools could contribute to better understanding of the connections between water use, economic development, business practice and social and environmental risks. In light of the review, a set of 'golden rules' is suggested for using water footprint tools in the broader context of awareness-raising, management of shared water-related risks and public policy development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explains why isolated planning for the testing of response, recovery or continuity plans will not ensure the survival of an organization in a critical event. It shows the real challenges faced by planning for the testing of response, recovery or continuity plans. The article includes a practical component based on examples of an innovative testing technique.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) purport to report holistically on progress towards sustainability and do so using more than 231 discrete indicators, with a primary objective to achieve a balance between the environment, social and economic aspects of development. The research question underpinning the analyses presented in this paper is: are the indicators in the SDGs sufficient and fit for purpose to assess the trajectory of natural resources towards sustainability? We extracted the SDG indicators that monitor the state of natural resources, or alternately support policy or governance for their protection, and determined whether these are adequate to provide the essential data on natural resources to achieve the aims of the SDGs. The indicators are clustered into four natural resource categories—land, water (both marine and freshwater), air and biodiversity. Indicators for monitoring land resources show that the most comprehensive land resource indicator for degraded land is not fully implemented and that missing from land monitoring is an evaluation of vegetation health outside of forests and mountains, the condition of soils, and most importantly the overall health of terrestrial ecosystems. Indicators for monitoring water resources have substantial gaps, unable to properly monitor water quality, water stress, many aspects of marine resources and, most significantly, the health of fresh and salt water ecosystems. Indicators for monitoring of air have recently become more comprehensive, but linkage to IPCC results would benefit both programs. Monitoring of biodiversity is perhaps the greatest weakness of the SDG Agenda, having no comprehensive assessment even though narrow aspects are monitored. Again, deliberate linkages to other global biodiversity programs (e.g., CBD and the Post-2020 Biodiversity Framework, IPBES, and Living Planet) are recommended on condition that data can be defined at a country level. While the SDG list of indicators in support of natural resource is moderately comprehensive, it lacks holistic monitoring in relation to evaluation of ecosystems and biodiversity to the extent that these missing but vital measures of sustainability threaten the entire SDG Agenda. In addition, an emerging issue is that even where there are appropriate indicators, the amount of country-level data remains inadequate to fully evaluate sustainability. This signals the delicate balance between the extent and complexity of the SDG Agenda and uptake at a country level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Competing Interests: We declare no competing interests. This paper was supported by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and Carleton University. Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the US Government. SJC is supported by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (319774) and Carleton University.

Global freshwater biodiversity is declining dramatically, and meeting the challenges of this crisis requires bold goals and the mobilisation of substantial resources. While the reasons are varied, investments in both research and conservation of freshwater biodiversity lag far behind those in the terrestrial and marine realms. Inspired by a global consultation, we identify 15 pressing priority needs, grouped into five research areas, in an effort to support informed stewardship of freshwater biodiversity. The proposed agenda aims to advance freshwater biodiversity research globally as a critical step in improving coordinated actions towards its sustainable management and conservation., (© 2021 The Authors. Ecology Letters published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)