This book answers key questions about environment, people and their shared future in deltas. It develops a systematic and holistic approach for policy-orientated analysis for the future of these regions. It does so by focusing on ecosystem services in the world’s largest, most populous and most iconic delta region, that of the Ganges-Brahmaputra delta in Bangladesh. The book covers the conceptual basis, research approaches and challenges, while also providing a methodology for integration across multiple disciplines, offering a potential prototype for assessments of deltas worldwide. Ecosystem Services for Well-Being in Deltas analyses changing ecosystem services in deltas; the health and well-being of people reliant on them; the continued central role of agriculture and fishing; and the implications of aquaculture in such environments.The analysis is brought together in an integrated and accessible way to examine the future of the Ganges Brahmaputra delta based on a near decade of research by a team of the world’s leading scientists on deltas and their human and environmental dimensions. This book is essential reading for students and academics within the fields of Environmental Geography, Sustainable Development and Environmental Policy focused on solving the world’s most critical challenges of balancing humans with their environments. This book is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

This timely book explores the innovative non-doctrinal methods currently being used in environmental law research. Drawing on their extensive experience, expert contributors provide insight into how creative approaches to research can improve understanding of law and policy, leading to more effective legal protection for the environment.

The Anthropocene is the human-dominated modern era that has accelerated social, environmental and climate change across the world in the last few decades. This open access book examines the challenges the Anthropocene presents to the sustainable management of deltas, both the many threats as well as the opportunities. In the world’s deltas the Anthropocene is manifest in major land use change, the damming of rivers, the engineering of coasts and the growth of some of the world’s largest megacities; deltas are home to one in twelve of all people in the world. The book explores bio-physical and social dynamics and makes clear adaptation choices and trade-offs that underpin policy and governance processes, including visionary delta management plans. It details new analysis to illustrate these challenges, based on three significant and contrasting deltas: the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna, Mahanadi and Volta. This multi-disciplinary, policy-orientated volume is strongly aligned to the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals as delta populations often experience extremes of poverty, gender and structural inequality, variable levels of health and well-being, while being vulnerable to extreme and systematic climate change.

This book presents the state-of-the-art of knowledge in assessing, mapping, and modeling mangrove ecosystem services and outlines various scientific tools and techniques, including environmental scenario-building, spatial and econometric modelling to understand the fluctuations and future availability of mangrove ecosystem services. The book also highlights the current gaps and measures in policy planning and outlines the avenues for capacity building. Through case studies and thematic reviews, the book plans to cater to a wide range of audiences, including students, researchers, and decision-makers at various levels involved in mangrove conservation and land use optimization for sustainable and resilient development. This book is particularly useful to researchers and students in the field of landscape and spatial ecology, coastal zone management, ecosystem services, and resilience planning. It is also a must-read for policymakers, conservators, coastal zone managers, foresters, and general administrators in understanding the current and future roles of mangroves in ecosystem-based adaptation through informed decision-making.

This book is a compilation of peer reviewed chapters which address the dynamics of biodiversity and ecosystem services (ESSs) used at Lake Ngami in Northern Botswana. This book focuses on the implications of the ESSs used in terms of human well-being and sustainability, with Lake Ngami as a case study. Three broad cross-cutting themes are addressed: 1) The interaction between ESSs and direct drivers of ecosystem change such as flooding, climate change and variability; 2) the relationship between ESSs and institutions (rules, beliefs, norms, markets and property rights); and 3) the relationship between changes in ESSs and human well-being. In order to address these themes, the authors have divided the book into five parts: 1) Introduction and Background, 2) Supporting and Regulating ESSs, 3) Provisioning ESSs, 4) Cultural ESSs, and 5) Strategy for ESSs' Governance and Policy Implications. The book demonstrates how the ESSs of Lake Ngami have the potential to make a substantial contribution to human-well-being. However, due to the variability in the flooding of the Okavango River, which results in decadal and longer dry periods in the lake, the benefits derived from ESSs by the local population cannot be guaranteed for the future. The contributors to this book are researchers with a plurality of backgrounds in natural and social sciences with diverse views. The policy recommendations suggested by some of the authors could contribute to the sustainable use and management of ESSs of wetlands in semi-arid environments.

For nearly a century, the energy industry had a profound impact on the Mississippi Delta, including both the natural and socio-economic systems. The purpose of this book is to describe the delta, how oil and gas (O&G) activities have impacted both natural and socio-economic systems and how much of the degradation could have been avoided. The Mississippi Delta formed over the past six thousand years but, in less than a century, lost 25 percent of coastal wetlands. O&G activities contributed significantly to this loss. O&G production began in the early 20th century and over 600 conventional fields were developed. Production ramped up rapidly, peaking around 1970, then declined. As O&G production declines, produced water dominates fluid production, and this high salinity brine is laced with a variety of toxins. Often, O&G was produced rapidly and much was left in the ground and is now technically and economically unavailable. With careful planning, this situation could have been avoided. The industry also affected the regulatory framework by weakening regulations, enforcement and impacts were not adequately addressed, and more profits flowed out of state. Thus, the state was economically and environmentally worse off. The industry should be compelled to contribute expertise and financial resources to restoration of the delta.

Human impacts and emerging mega-trends such as climate change and energy scarcity will impact natural resource management in this century. This is especially true for deltas because of their ecological and economic importance and their sensitivity to climate change. The Mississippi delta is one of the largest in the world and has been strongly impacted by human activities. Currently there is an ambitious plan for restoration of the delta. This book, by a renown group of delta experts, provides an overview of the challenges facing the delta and charts - a way forward to sustainable management.

This volume covers the floods of the major rivers of the Ganga-Brahmaputra-Meghna (GBM) Delta, and storm surge related coastal floods in these regions. The book is dedicated to addressing floods from an integrated physical-social perspective to provide students and researchers with a holistic understanding of floods in terms of both human and geomorphological aspects. The systematic coverage of all the major rivers and coastal areas in the GBM delta and surrounding regions will foster a clear comprehension of this dense reservoir of population, where thousands of people are impacted every year due to flood hazards and agricultural destabilization. This comprehensive treatment of flood issues in the region covers flash floods, fluvial floods, fluvio-tidal floods, and coastal floods, and outlines flood management strategies to maintain ecological integrity and environmental stability, and prevent harmful impacts of future floods. The book is intended for students and researchers in earth and environmental sciences, especially geomorphology, hydrology, geography, geology, natural resources management, and regional planning.

Understanding how to sustain the services that ecosystems provide in support of human wellbeing is an active and growing research area. This book provides a state-of-the-art review of current thinking on the links between ecosystem services and poverty alleviation. In part it showcases the key findings of the Ecosystem Services for Poverty Alleviation (ESPA) programme, which has funded over 120 research projects in more than 50 countries since 2010. ESPA’s goal is to ensure that ecosystems are being sustainably managed in a way that contributes to poverty alleviation as well as to inclusive and sustainable growth. As governments across the world map how they will achieve the 17 ambitious Sustainable Development Goals, most of which have poverty alleviation, wellbeing and sustainable environmental management at their heart, ESPA’s findings have never been more timely and relevant. The book synthesises the headline messages and compelling evidence to address the questions at the heart of ecosystems and wellbeing research. The authors, all leading specialists, address the evolving framings and contexts for the work, review the impacts of ongoing drivers of change, present new ways to achieve sustainable wellbeing, equity, diversity, and resilience, and evaluate the potential contributions from conservation projects, payment schemes, and novel governance approaches across scales from local to national and international. The cross-cutting, thematic chapters challenge conventional wisdom in some areas, and validate new methods and approaches for sustainable development in others. The book will provide a rich and important reference source for advanced students, researchers and policy-makers in ecology, environmental studies, ecological economics and sustainable development. The Open Access version of this book, available at https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/e/9780429016295, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license.