An important aspect, often underestimated or not adequately considered within the River Basin Manage-ment Plans, is the relationship between hydromorphological and habitat aspects on one hand biological communities. In those Plans where hydromorphological aspects are evaluated, only a single parameters or impact is considered, and the effects of hydromorphological and habitat alterations on ecological quality is rarely assessed. When ecological quality of water bodies is evaluated, and restoration measures are planned, it becomes important to know, assess and quantify the response of the Biological Quality Elements (BQEs) at local and habitat scale. The evaluation on pressures at catchment scale and of their impacts are important, but they should be associated to a local analysis. The aim of the present deliverable is that to suggest measures for the achievement of the good ecological status that use an innovative approach based on relationships and interactions between hydromorphological features, habitat, chemical-physical conditions and the response of the biological community. Examining in detail the first River Basin Management Plans and their evaluation by the offices of European Community evaluation, it appears necessary to close up the cognitive gaps on lake hydromorphological aspects and their consequences on biocoenoses and on the ecological quality of the lacustrine waterbody, and to include habitat aspects and their link with biocoenoses, which are rarely evaluated and considered in the River Basin Management Plans. The activities carried out within the INHABIT Project made it possible to analyse both hydromorphological and habitat features, highlighting the relationship among these parameters and the biological quality ele-ments. Analyses and statistical elaborations showed to make clear the relationship between human pres-sures and impacts on the biocoenoses, deeper analyses are necessary. The activities carries out during the INHABIT project allowed to identify new measure to be included in the River Basin Management Plans to improve lake ecological quality: it has been highlighted that pressures on the littoral zone can affect most biocoenoses, decreasing lake ecological quality. As a consequence, adopting measures aimed to the preservation of this habitat and its biological diversity are fundamental for maintaining ecosystem services, supporting a high biodiversity and a better ecological quality. In small lakes, measures aimed to the reduction of diffuse nutrient load derived from agriculture are im-portant for the improvement of the ecological quality of the lakes and are necessary to improve the adap-tation of the lakes to climate change. In fact, a marked relationship between year-to-year meteorological variability and lake ecological quality can be ascribed to climate-related differences in nutrient wash out from arable land. There is a strong need to extend these studies on different lake types, including both natural lakes and reservoirs in the Alpine and Mediterranean ecoregions, in order to deepen the knowledge of the reliability of the Lake Habitat Survey (LHS) method and to understand the complex and frequently non-linear, relationships among biological metrics, trophic pressures, hydrological pressures, lake morphology and habitat features, helping to identify and calibrate restoration measures.
Classificazione dello stato ecologico e variabilità locale di habitat e idromorfologia: proposte di nuove misure utili a ripristinare la qualità ecologica. Parte A: Laghi
Marzia Ciampittiello;Martina Austoni;Angela Boggero;Aldo Marchetto;Giuseppe Morabito;Paolo Sala;Pietro Volta;Silvia Zaupa
2013
Abstract
An important aspect, often underestimated or not adequately considered within the River Basin Manage-ment Plans, is the relationship between hydromorphological and habitat aspects on one hand biological communities. In those Plans where hydromorphological aspects are evaluated, only a single parameters or impact is considered, and the effects of hydromorphological and habitat alterations on ecological quality is rarely assessed. When ecological quality of water bodies is evaluated, and restoration measures are planned, it becomes important to know, assess and quantify the response of the Biological Quality Elements (BQEs) at local and habitat scale. The evaluation on pressures at catchment scale and of their impacts are important, but they should be associated to a local analysis. The aim of the present deliverable is that to suggest measures for the achievement of the good ecological status that use an innovative approach based on relationships and interactions between hydromorphological features, habitat, chemical-physical conditions and the response of the biological community. Examining in detail the first River Basin Management Plans and their evaluation by the offices of European Community evaluation, it appears necessary to close up the cognitive gaps on lake hydromorphological aspects and their consequences on biocoenoses and on the ecological quality of the lacustrine waterbody, and to include habitat aspects and their link with biocoenoses, which are rarely evaluated and considered in the River Basin Management Plans. The activities carried out within the INHABIT Project made it possible to analyse both hydromorphological and habitat features, highlighting the relationship among these parameters and the biological quality ele-ments. Analyses and statistical elaborations showed to make clear the relationship between human pres-sures and impacts on the biocoenoses, deeper analyses are necessary. The activities carries out during the INHABIT project allowed to identify new measure to be included in the River Basin Management Plans to improve lake ecological quality: it has been highlighted that pressures on the littoral zone can affect most biocoenoses, decreasing lake ecological quality. As a consequence, adopting measures aimed to the preservation of this habitat and its biological diversity are fundamental for maintaining ecosystem services, supporting a high biodiversity and a better ecological quality. In small lakes, measures aimed to the reduction of diffuse nutrient load derived from agriculture are im-portant for the improvement of the ecological quality of the lakes and are necessary to improve the adap-tation of the lakes to climate change. In fact, a marked relationship between year-to-year meteorological variability and lake ecological quality can be ascribed to climate-related differences in nutrient wash out from arable land. There is a strong need to extend these studies on different lake types, including both natural lakes and reservoirs in the Alpine and Mediterranean ecoregions, in order to deepen the knowledge of the reliability of the Lake Habitat Survey (LHS) method and to understand the complex and frequently non-linear, relationships among biological metrics, trophic pressures, hydrological pressures, lake morphology and habitat features, helping to identify and calibrate restoration measures.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.