Most aquatic ecosystems have variable water levels. These water-level fluctuations (WLF) have multiple effects on the organisms above and below the waterline. Natural WLF patterns in lakes guarantee both productivity and biodiversity, while untimely floods and droughts may have negative effects. Human impacts on WLF have led to a stabilization of the water levels of many lakes by hydraulic regulation, untimely drawdown due to water use, or floods due to water release from hydropower plants in the catchments. This book provides a first review in this field. It presents selected papers on the ecological effects of WLF in lakes, resulting from a workshop at the University of Konstanz in winter 2005. Issues addressed here include the extent of WLF, and analyses of their effects on different groups of biota from microorganisms to vertebrates. Applied issues include recommendations for the hydrological management of regulated lakes to reduce negative impacts, and a conceptual framework is delivered by an extension of the floodpulse concept for lakes. Current impacts on water use, including increasing demands on drinking and irrigation water, hydropower etc., and climate change effects on WLF make this book an essential resource for aquatic ecologists, engineers, and decision-makers dealing with the management of lake ecosystems and their catchments.

This book describes how natural or constructed wetlands can be used to reduce pollution of freshwater and coastal ecosystems, while still preserving their biodiversity and ecological functions. Through a series of case histories described in 10 chapters in the monograph, the readers will gain an understanding of the opportunities, as well as the challenges associated with reducing point and non-point source pollution using natural, restored or constructed wetlands. The target audience will be water practitioners involved in projects utilizing integrated watershed management approaches to pollution abatement, as well as researchers who are designing projects focused on this topic.

"The text is an introduction to the ecology, chemisty and physics of freshwater systems, with an emphasis on the human perspective "--Page [4] de couv.

Included in this book are practical guidelines for data collection and interpretation, from antennae configurations to sequence stratigraphy, together with new advances such as vertical radar profiles and 3-D GPR imaging for hydrocarbon reservoir modelling, designed to assist new and veteran users get the most from GPR. Case studies in this book detail GPR investigations in a wide array of sedimentary environments including alluvial fans, braided rivers, spits, beaches, sand dunes, lakes, bogs, and floodplains.

Brings together widely scattered theoretical and laboratory rock physics relations critical for modelling and interpretation of geophysical data.

This groundbreaking work connects the knowledge of system function developed in ecosystem ecology with landscape ecology's knowledge of spatial structure. The book elucidates the challenges faced by ecosystem scientists working in spatially heterogeneous systems, relevant conceptual approaches used in other disciplines and in different ecosystem types, and the importance of spatial heterogeneity in conservation resource management.

Fundamentals of Ecosystem Science, Second Edition provides a comprehensive introduction to modern ecosystem science covering land, freshwater and marine ecosystems. Featuring full color images to support learning and written by a group of experts, this updated edition covers major concepts of ecosystem science, biogeochemistry, and energetics. Case studies of important environmental problems offer personal insights into how adopting an ecosystem approach has helped solve important intellectual and practical problems. For those choosing to use the book in a classroom environment, or who want to enrich further their reading experience, teaching and learning assets are available at Elsevier.com. - Covers both aquatic (freshwater and marine) and terrestrial ecosystems with updated information - Includes a new chapter on microbial biogeochemistry - Features vignettes throughout the book with real examples of how an ecosystem approach has led to important change in policy, management, and ecological understanding - Demonstrates the application of an ecosystem approach in synthesis chapters and case studies - Contains new coverage of human-environment interactions