STRESSORS/RECEPTORS & INTEGRATION & SCENARIOS

During the Module meeting held on 18- 20 November 2015, the GLOBAQUA team presented a modelling & integration framework which addresses a suitable theoretical framework for integration. This work was based on presentations of previously performed work in GARBs (GLOBAQUA river basins) as well as methodological approaches.

The most important stressors identified are: water scarcity, urban and agricultural pollutants as well as COD, BOD and nutrients and changes in hydrological dynamics, and partly also alien species. These stressors are expressed in the GARBs and are adequately addressed by field investigations/experiments. Multi-stress is expressed in all catchments. To solve the questions on how the identified stressors may be related to the pressures in particular to biological and ecological responses, a scheme for integrated assessment was developed according to the ideas and instructions given by the European Water Framework Directive: Stressor/pressure/response relationships in GLOBAQUA will finally be tackled by thinking from the endpoint of the “ecological status”.

A corresponding modelling & integration framework was presented and discussed and suitable criteria and indicators for the selection and evaluation of GLOBAQUArelevant multi-stress scenarios were defined. All catchment experiments/investigations have been or will be aligned along this framework in the future to come to a common modelling/integration framework. As field investigations and experiments are in general selected according to multi-stress conditions, ecological response might finally be evaluated based on an overall assessment of the results. In GARB-specific workshops the group tried to link stressors to features that might be input parameters to models (proxies), and looked into possibilities how case studies or specialists’ experimental results can be generalized and transferred to other basins and Europe.