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The EU-funded research project WISER ('Water bodies in Europe: Integrative Systems to assess Ecological status and Recovery') developed new assessment methods required by the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD) for lakes, coastal and transitional waters. WISER also addressed the recovery of biotic assemblages from degradation. The results are summarised in five key messages, supported by papers in this special issue and by WISER results published elsewhere: (1) Response to stress differs between organism groups, water types and stressors; a conceptual model is proposed summarising how the individual organism groups respond to different types of degradation in rivers, lakes, transitional and coastal waters. (2) The sources of uncertainty differ between BQEs and water types, leading to methodological suggestions on how to design WFD sampling programmes. (3) Results from about 300 current assessment methods indicate geographical variations in metrics but assessments are comparable at an aggregated level ('ecological status'). (4) Scale and time matter; restoration requires action at (sub)-basin levels and recovery may require decades. (5) Long-term trends require consideration; the effects of both degradation and restoration at the water body or river basin scales is increasingly superimposed by multiple stressors acting at large scales, in particular by climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Riverine habitats are vulnerable to a host of environmental stressors, many of which are increasing in frequency and intensity across the globe. Climate change is arguably the greatest threat on the horizon, with serious implications for freshwater food webs via alterations in thermal regimes, resource quality and availability, and hydrology. This will induce radical restructuring of many food webs, by altering the identity of nodes, the strength and patterning of interactions and consequently the dynamics and architecture of the trophic network as a whole. Although such effects are likely to be apparent globally, they are predicted to be especially rapid and dramatic in high altitude and latitude ecosystems, which represent 'sentinel systems'. The complex and subtle connections between members of a food web and potential synergistic interactions with other environmental stressors can lead to seemingly counterintuitive responses to perturbations that cannot be predicted from the traditional focus of studying individual species in isolation. In this review, we highlight the need for developing new network-based approaches to understand and predict the consequences of global change in running waters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study which investigates the chemical flow from 1996-2005 and the climate changes in Selenga River in Mongolia and Russia. The study made use of the result of the complex studies in the Selenga River lower reaches that included the biogenic elements and the main ions to describe the chemical flow of the river with the use of freshwater hydrochemistry. The result of the study shows that the chemical flow in Selenga River has 20-30% increase due to the washout of the accumulated material during the high floods. It adds that the low precipitation and water expenditure in the river was due to the reduction on the transported dissolved matter due to the deficiency of the elements in the ecosystem of the Lake Baikal.

The Arctic environment, including sea ice, is changing. The impacts of these changes to Inuit and 15upiat ways of life vary from place to place, yet there are common themes as well. The study reported here involved an exchange of hunters, Elders, and others from Barrow, Alaska, USA, and Clyde River, Nunavut, Canada, as members of a larger research team that also included visiting scientists. Although the physical environments of Barrow and Clyde River are strikingly different, the uses of the marine environment by residents, including sea ice, had many common elements. In both locations, too, extensive changes have been observed in recent years, forcing local residents to respond in a variety of ways. Although generally in agreement or complementary to one another, scientific and indigenous knowledge of sea ice often reflect different perspectives and emphases. Making generalizations about impacts and responses is challenging and should therefore be approached with caution. Technology provides some potential assistance in adapting to changing sea ice, but by itself, it is insufficient and can sometimes have undesirable consequences. Reliable knowledge that can be applied under changing conditions is essential. Collaborative research and firsthand experience are critical to generating such new knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Northern River Basins Study (NRBS) assessed the ecologicalstate of three complex northern river basins for which we had a limitedunderstanding of the physical, chemical and biological environment. Amajor challenge of this study was the choice of ecosystem components tomonitor. This process was guided by determining the indicators thatwould best assess environmental state relative to ecosystem objectivesarticulated by people living within the basin. This charge lead the NRBSto use a cumulative effects assessment framework that measured stressorexposure and their effects along with the development of plausiblecause-effect mechanisms. Thus, the NRBS developed and applied anintegrated assessment framework that included public stakeholders,various levels of government and scientists. A key feature of thisframework was the ability to allow feedback among these groups toproduce the syntheses of science results, and the resultant managementresponses that ultimately modified environmental regulations. Papers inthis series present the results of the NRBS and emphasize theinterdisciplinary nature of this project. Investigations evaluated theroles of flow regulation, nutrients, contaminants, and their interactiveeffects, on the integrity of the Athabasca, Peace and Slave rivers,Canada. Novel contributions of the NRBS model included the cooperationamong governments, aboriginal peoples, non-government organizations,industry and other stakeholders, and the two-way communications flowamong the scientific community and these groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Large river ecosystems worldwide are under increasing pressuresfrom environmentally degrading processes related to population increase,land use changes, climate change and the release of chemical substancesinto the environment. The large spatial scale and a lack of empiricaland theoretical understanding of the systems complicate environmentalassessment in these systems. Recently, the Northern River Basins Study(NRBS) undertook a multi-disciplinary approach to assess environmentaland socio-economic impacts of development in three large river basins,the Peace, Athabasca and Slave river basins in northern Canada. Thispaper provides the background and context for the NRBS and describes therationale used in developing an assessment framework for the Study. Anindependent science advisory committee comprised of scientific expertsfrom academia, First Nations and government oversaw quality assurance interms of science planning, implementation and reporting. All technicalstudies were subject to both internal and external peer review prior toapproval by a multi-stakeholder Study Board. The NRBS produced over 150technical and 12 synthesis reports that detailed these findings andprovided scientific recommendations. The Study Board used thisinformation to prepare a final report and recommendations. The NRBSprovides a clear example of a participatory, stakeholder approach thatwas successfully implemented in the design and management of anintegrated watershed environmental assessment program. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]