Institute of Geography and Sustainability, University of Lausanne, Building Géopolis, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland.
Institute of Earth Surface Dynamics, University of Lausanne, Building Géopolis, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland.
Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2018 Jan;25(1):805-823. doi: 10.1007/s11356-017-0423-2. Epub 2017 Oct 23.
Hydro-climatic changes and the increasing release of pollutants into rivers by human activities tend to affect the quality of watercourses, to alter aquatic ecosystems and to reduce the amount of useable water. The ecological and chemical states of rivers and their evolution is thus of growing concern. In Europe and Switzerland, water policies are progressively shifting towards a holistic approach of river systems. The European Commission notably established a framework to highlight rivers' ecological deficits and to enhance regional or local water management plans. In Switzerland, a similar framework is currently under development. In this paper, both procedures are compared and implemented in a Swiss catchment dominated by agricultural activities. The aim is to define the challenges that still need to be addressed to assess and sustain river health. The hydromorphological, ecological, and ecotoxicological quality of the river was evaluated. Both frameworks highlighted the fact that no section of the river can currently be classified as being in a good environmental state and that the state deteriorates as tributaries and wastewater discharge flow into the main riverbed. Chemical issues and water quality changes due to hydro-climatic variations and management strategies were also pinpointed. Both frameworks are thus useful tools to survey changes in rivers quality in space and over time. However, challenges remain regarding the appropriate strategies to monitor and analyze chemicals, the definition of target values and conditions, the evaluation and integration of human-induced pressures, and the overall evaluation of the state of a river. The development of integrated indicators or of ecosystem services approaches is considered as a potential solution to explore river health and to define efficient restoration measures by water managers.
水-气候变化以及人类活动向河流中不断排放污染物，这些因素往往会影响水道的水质，改变水生生态系统，并减少可用水量。因此，河流的生态和化学状况越来越受到关注。在欧洲和瑞士，水政策正逐渐向河流系统的整体方法转变。欧洲委员会特别制定了一个框架，以突出河流的生态赤字，并加强区域或地方水资源管理计划。在瑞士，目前正在制定类似的框架。在本文中，这两种程序在一个以农业活动为主的瑞士流域进行了比较和实施。目的是确定评估和维持河流健康仍然需要解决的挑战。评估了河流的水文学形态、生态和生态毒理学质量。这两个框架都强调了这样一个事实，即目前没有一段河流可以被归类为处于良好的环境状态，而且随着支流和废水排入主河床，河流的状况会恶化。还指出了由于水-气候变化和管理策略而产生的化学问题和水质变化。因此，这两个框架都是调查河流质量随时间和空间变化的有用工具。然而，在监测和分析化学物质的适当策略、定义目标值和条件、评估和整合人为压力以及全面评估河流状况方面仍然存在挑战。综合指标或生态系统服务方法的开发被认为是一种潜在的解决方案，可以探索河流健康状况，并由水资源管理者定义有效的恢复措施。
