The British river of the future: How climate change and human activity might affect two contrasting river ecosystems in England

Johnson, Andrew C.; Acreman, Mike; Dunbar, Michael J.; Feist, Stephen W.; Giacomello, Anna Maria; Gozlan, Rodolphe E.; Hinsley, Shelley A.; Ibbotson, A.T.; Jarvie, Helen P.; Jones, J. Iwan; Longshaw, Matt; Maberly, Stephen C.; Marsh, Terry; Neal, Colin; Newman, J. R.; Nunn, Miles A.; Pickup, Roger W.; Reynard, Nick; Sullivan, Caroline A; Sumpter, John P.; Williams, Richard J.

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2009.05.018

Cited by 139 publications

(97 citation statements)

References 113 publications

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“…more favourable conditions for phytoplankton growth), resulting in maximum chlorophyll-a concentrations that are six times higher than rivers not connected to canals (Bowes et al, 2012). The River Thames is considered particularly vulnerable to phytoplankton blooms, with its gentle slopes and relatively slow flow (also slowed by the presence of several weirs and locks), although there is still considerable uncertainty over the magnitude of future phytoplankton concentrations and their sensitivity to climate change (Johnson et al, 2009). The five reaches of the River Thames considered in this study (Table 1, Figure 1 (Whitehead et al, 2015a) are spread along 158 km of the River Thames.…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, the effect of environmental change on phytoplankton blooms and its consequences on water quality has only been addressed recently for lakes (Elliott, 2012;Thackeray et al, 2008), and not yet tackled for river systems, except through some qualitative description of potential impacts by Arnell et al (2015), Johnson et al (2009) and Whitehead et al (2009). These studies agree that phytoplankton are likely to increase their concentration above current levels in the future (Johnson et al, 2009), due to lower flows, reduced velocities and higher water residence (Whitehead et al, 2009), also reducing oxygen levels in rivers (Whitehead et al, 2009). An important step forward would be to develop a quantitative approach to assess the effects of environmental change on phytoplankton populations in river systems.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Impacts of climate change, land-use change and phosphorus reduction on phytoplankton in the River Thames (UK)

Bussi

Whitehead

Bowes

et al. 2016

Science of The Total Environment

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Article (refereed) -postprintBussi, Gianbattista; Whitehead, Paul G.; Bowes, Michael J.; Read, Daniel S.; Prudhomme, Christel; Dadson, Simon J. 2016. Impacts of climate change, land-use change and phosphorus reduction on phytoplankton in the River Thames (UK).Contact CEH NORA team at noraceh@ceh.ac.ukThe NERC and CEH trademarks and logos ('the Trademarks') are registered trademarks of NERC in the UK and other countries, and may not be used without the prior written consent of the Trademark owner. AbstractPotential increases of phytoplankton concentrations in river systems due to global warming and changing climate could pose a serious threat to the anthropogenic use of surface waters. Nevertheless, the extent of the effect of climatic alterations on phytoplankton concentrations in river systems has not yet been analysed in detail. In this study, we assess the impact of a change in precipitation and temperature on river phytoplankton concentration by means of a physically-based model. A scenarioneutral methodology has been employed to evaluate the effects of climate alterations on flow, phosphorus concentration and phytoplankton concentration of the River Thames (southern England).In particular, five groups of phytoplankton are considered, representing a range of size classes and pigment phenotypes, under three different land-use/land-management scenarios to assess their impact on phytoplankton population levels. The model results are evaluated within the framework of future climate projections, using the UK Climate Projections 09 (UKCP09) for the 2030s. The results of the model demonstrate that an increase in average phytoplankton concentration due to climate change is highly likely to occur, with the magnitude varying depending on the location along the River Thames. Cyanobacteria show significant increases under future climate change and land use change. An expansion of intensive agriculture accentuates the growth in phytoplankton, especially in the upper reaches of the River Thames. However, an optimal phosphorus removal mitigation strategy, which combines reduction of fertiliser application and phosphorus removal from wastewater, can help to reduce this increase in phytoplankton concentration, and in some cases, compensate for the effect of rising temperature.

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Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impacts of climate change, land-use change and phosphorus reduction on phytoplankton in the River Thames (UK)

Bussi

Whitehead

Bowes

et al. 2016

Science of The Total Environment

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“…They can cause significant financial loses to the water industry, due to filter blockages at water abstraction points and toxin, taint and odour problems produced by cyanobacterial communities, and can greatly affect the leisure and tourism industry (Dodds et al, 2009;Pretty et al, 2003;Whitehead et al, 2013). It is vital that the controls and causes of riverine phytoplankton blooms are identified and understood, so that effective measures can be adopted to reduce the risk of severe and damaging blooms in the future, particularly because they are predicted to increase in magnitude under future climate change scenarios (Johnson et al, 2009;Whitehead et al, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Identifying multiple stressor controls on phytoplankton dynamics in the River Thames (UK) using high-frequency water quality data

Bowes

Loewenthal

Read

et al. 2016

Science of The Total Environment

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Contact CEH NORA team at noraceh@ceh.ac.ukThe NERC and CEH trademarks and logos ('the Trademarks') are registered trademarks of NERC in the UK and other countries, and may not be used without the prior written consent of the Trademark owner. AbstractRiver phytoplankton blooms can pose a serious risk to water quality and the structure and function of aquatic ecosystems. Developing a greater understanding of the physical and chemical controls on the timing, magnitude and duration of blooms is essential for the effective management of phytoplankton development. Five years of weekly water quality monitoring data along the River Thames, southernEngland were combined with hourly chlorophyll concentration (a proxy for phytoplankton biomass), flow, temperature and daily sunlight data from the mid-Thames. Weekly chlorophyll data was of insufficient temporal resolution to identify the causes of short term variations in phytoplankton biomass. However, hourly chlorophyll data enabled identification of thresholds in water temperature (between 9 and 19 o C) and flow (less than 30 m 3 s -1 ) that explained the development of phytoplankton populations. Analysis showed that periods of high phytoplankton biomass and growth rate only occurred when these flow and temperature conditions were within these thresholds, and coincided with periods of long sunshine duration, indicating multiple stressor controls. Nutrient concentrations appeared to have no impact on the timing or magnitude of phytoplankton bloom development, but severe depletion of dissolved phosphorus and silicon during periods of high phytoplankton biomass may have contributed to some bloom collapses through nutrient limitation. This study indicates that for nutrient enriched rivers such as the Thames, manipulating residence time (through removing impoundments) and light / temperature (by increasing riparian tree shading) may offer more realistic solutions than reducing phosphorus concentrations for controlling excessive phytoplankton biomass.

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“…Periods of low DO, or hypoxia, can occur as a result of many factors such as eutrophication, elevated ambient temperature and algal blooms. With climate-related warming of freshwater bodies predicted to continue (Bates et al 2008;Johnson et al 2009), a greater understanding of the response of fish species to consequent environmental factors such as hypoxia could prove beneficial (Gitay et al 2002). The three-spined stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus, is a highly adaptable teleost fish, ubiquitous throughout temperate regions of the Northern hemisphere.…”

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confidence: 99%

The effects of acute and chronic hypoxia on cortisol, glucose and lactate concentrations in different populations of three-spined stickleback

O’Connor

Pottinger

Sneddon

2010

Fish Physiol Biochem

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Article (refereed)O'Connor, E.A.; Pottinger, T.G.; Sneddon, L.U.. 2011 The effects of acute and chronic hypoxia on cortisol, glucose and lactate concentrations in different populations of three-spined stickleback. Fish Physiology and Biochemistry, 37 (3). 461-469. 10.1007/s10695-010-9447-y Contact CEH NORA team at noraceh@ceh.ac.ukThe NERC and CEH trade marks and logos ('the Trademarks') are registered trademarks of NERC in the UK and other countries, and may not be used without the prior written consent of the Trademark owner. ABSTRACTThe response of individuals from three different populations of three-spined sticklebacks to acute and chronic periods of hypoxia (4.4 kPa DO, 2.2 mg l -1 ) were tested using measures of whole-body (WB) cortisol, glucose and lactate. Although there was no evidence of a neuroendocrine stress response to acute hypoxia, fish from the population least likely to experience hypoxia in their native habitat had the largest response to low oxygen, with significant evidence of anaerobic glycolysis after two hours of hypoxia. However, there was no measurable effect of a more prolonged period (seven days) of hypoxia on any of the fish in this study, suggesting that they acclimated to this low level of oxygen over time. Between-population differences in the analytes tested were observed in the control fish of the acute hypoxia trial, which had been in the laboratory for 16 days. However, these differences were not apparent among the control fish in the chronic exposure groups that had been held in the laboratory for 23 days suggesting that these site-specific trends in physiological status were acclimatory. Overall, the results of this study suggest that local environmental conditions may shape sticklebacks' general physiological profile as well as influencing their response to hypoxia. 2 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 Reduced dissolved oxygen (DO) in the water is an important environmental stressor for fish. Periods of low DO, or hypoxia, can occur as a result of many factors such as eutrophication, elevated ambient temperature and algal blooms. With climate-related warming of freshwater bodies predicted to continue (Bates et al. 2008;Johnson et al. 2009), a greater understanding of the response of fish species to consequent environmental factors such as hypoxia could prove beneficial (Gitay et al. 2002). The three-spined stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus, is a highly adaptable teleost fish, ubiquitous throughout temperate regions of the Northern hemisphere. Their small size, widedistribution, short generation time and ease of care in captivity have made them a popular study species across a number of different disciplines including ecology, toxicology and molecular biology (Barber and Nettleship 2010; Katsiadaki et al. 2007;Colosimo et al. 2005). However, relatively little is known about how these fish respond to hypoxic stress.Previous studies indicate that the three-...

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The British river of the future: How climate change and human activity might affect two contrasting river ecosystems in England

Cited by 139 publications

References 113 publications

Impacts of climate change, land-use change and phosphorus reduction on phytoplankton in the River Thames (UK)

Impacts of climate change, land-use change and phosphorus reduction on phytoplankton in the River Thames (UK)

Identifying multiple stressor controls on phytoplankton dynamics in the River Thames (UK) using high-frequency water quality data

The effects of acute and chronic hypoxia on cortisol, glucose and lactate concentrations in different populations of three-spined stickleback

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