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A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Sustainability and Applications".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2017) | Viewed by 87639

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Prof. Dr. Phoebe Koundouri

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Guest Editor

Department of International & European Economic Studies, Athens University of Economics and Business, Athens, Greece
Interests: resource and energy economics and econometrics; sustainable development and innovation; interdisciplinary approaches for sustainable development; climate change modeling and policy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Ebun Akinsete

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Guest Editor

ICRE8 (The International Centre for Research on the Environment and the Economy)
Interests: sustainable development, urban regeneration, Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) policy and implementation, community development, climate change mitigation, renewable energy, stakeholder participation, participatory planning, evaluation and impact assessment for sustainability, sustainability in developing nations
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue seeks to expand the discourse on methodological and empirical advancements within the field of sustainable river basin management. Curated papers examine integrated approaches to river basin management, taking into account various multidisciplinary perspectives on the subject. Ecosystems services and the extent to which they are considered and embedded in current river basin management practice is a core focal point of this Special Issue. Particular emphasis is placed on the role of ‘sustainability’ and the exploration of a systems approach, which considers river basin management holistically in the context of environmental, economic and social sustainability. Therefore, aspects such as the integration of the Sustainable Development Goals and their implementation within relevant policy are also deliberated within the selected papers.

Prof. Dr. Phoebe Koundouri
Dr. Ebun Akinsete
Guest Editor

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Keywords

Water
Environmental Sustainability
Economic Sustainability
Social Sustainability
River Basin Management
Policy and Governance
Ecosystem Services
Multidisciplinary Approach
Integrated Management
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
SDG Implementation

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Published Papers (12 papers)

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Research

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17 pages, 3200 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Converting UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to Decision-Making Objectives and Implementation Options at the River Basin Scale

by Yingchun Ge, Xin Li, Ximing Cai, Xiangzheng Deng, Feng Wu, Zhongyuan Li and Wenfei Luan

Sustainability 2018, 10(4), 1056; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10041056 - 3 Apr 2018

Cited by 21 | Viewed by 7550

Abstract

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations cover all living things on Earth. However, downscaling the SDGs to regional scales for implementation is challenging. In the paper, we convert the general SDGs into tangible and actionable goals, targets and indicators for use in integrated river basin management (IRBM). Further, we propose a decision support framework that can be used to support IRBM implementation based on the SDGs. The framework offers a context for open thinking in which IRBM decision makers envision socioeconomic and ecosystem goals and the development tracks of a river basin and explore the various paths that can be followed to reach the goals. In particular, indicators are proposed for use in IRBM, which consider five aspects of river basins, specifically water, ecosystems, socioeconomic development, ability and data. To enable decision-making that promotes progress toward the goals, five scenarios, 17 sub-scenarios and 29 key parameters are provided that form a diverse set of scenarios corresponding to specific decision schemes. Moreover, these scenarios, sub-scenarios and parameters consider future uncertainties and both engineering and non-engineering measures that can be taken to achieve the co-development of human and natural factors in a basin. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable River Basin Management)

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18 pages, 4109 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Sustainability of Water Withdrawals in the Tiber River Basin (Central Italy)

by Stefano Casadei, Arnaldo Pierleoni and Michele Bellezza

Sustainability 2018, 10(2), 485; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10020485 - 12 Feb 2018

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 5789

Abstract

Problems in the sustainable exploitation of water resources are mainly due to the spatial distribution of uses and are worsened by uncontrolled withdrawals by different activities. In this context, in order to evaluate and manage the available water resources, a decision support system has been developed to support the decision-making processes. This system was implemented on a web platform, in order to manage spatial data and to analyze information on water resources. The system also integrates a WEB-GIS engine for the elaboration and regionalization of data over the river network. The web architecture also makes these tools widely accessible and easily shareable by all stakeholders. The Web-based application was tested successfully in the Tiber River Basin (Central Italy) and focuses on the building of a hydrological database together with an evaluation model for surface water resources. The results provide synthetic information on the sustainability of water allocation scenarios, with particular regard to the feasibility of allowing new dissipative water withdrawal, such as dissipative water use in agricultural production for precision irrigation. The software technology of this project relies on open source code and can also be applied in other fields for the sustainable management of environmental resources. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable River Basin Management)

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9 pages, 917 KiB

Open AccessCommunication

A Comparison of the Water Environment Policy of Europe and South Korea in Response to Climate Change

by Heejung Kim and Kang-Kun Lee

Sustainability 2018, 10(2), 384; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10020384 - 1 Feb 2018

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 4421

Abstract

Climate change not only increases the atmospheric temperature, but also changes the precipitation conditions and patterns, which can lead to an increase in the frequency of occurrence of natural disasters, such as flooding and drought. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has reported fluctuations in the precipitation levels for each country from 1900 to 2005, based on global climate change, suggesting that environmental changes due to climate change manifest very differently based on the region. According to the results of studies that have been carried out recently, changes in the precipitation patterns based on climate change result in changes in the water environment, including alterations to the vegetation, land use, and river flow, while considerably influencing the rate of development of groundwater as well. In this study, the 3Is, which are the important variables of Ideas, Institutions, and Interests that are universal to the international field of political science, were used to comparatively analyze the water environment policies of South Korea and Europe. The first variable, Ideas, examined the influence of awareness on establishing the water environment policy in response to climate change. In particular, differences in the conceptual awareness of the water environment with regard to hyporheic zones were studied. The second variable, Institutions, examined the differences in the water environment policy within the national administration in response to climate change. The South Korean administration’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport and the Ministry of Environment were used in a case study. Finally, the results drawn from the third variable, i.e., Interests, for South Korea appear to differ from those of Europe, in terms of water environment policy. In this study, the water environment policy of South Korea was analyzed and compared to that of Europe in order to identify problems in South Korea’s water environment policy in response to climate change, while seeking a sole solution for a comprehensive water environment policy direction for South Korea. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable River Basin Management)

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22 pages, 4674 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Comparing the Applicability of Commonly Used Hydrological Ecosystem Services Models for Integrated Decision-Support

by Anna Lüke and Jochen Hack

Sustainability 2018, 10(2), 346; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10020346 - 29 Jan 2018

Cited by 46 | Viewed by 6727

Abstract

Different simulation models are used in science and practice in order to incorporate hydrological ecosystem services in decision-making processes. This contribution compares three simulation models, the Soil and Water Assessment Tool, a traditional hydrological model and two ecosystem services models, the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Trade-offs model and the Resource Investment Optimization System model. The three models are compared on a theoretical and conceptual basis as well in a comparative case study application. The application of the models to a study area in Nicaragua reveals that a practical benefit to apply these models for different questions in decision-making generally exists. However, modelling of hydrological ecosystem services is associated with a high application effort and requires input data that may not always be available. The degree of detail in temporal and spatial variability in ecosystem service provision is higher when using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool compared to the two ecosystem service models. In contrast, the ecosystem service models have lower requirements on input data and process knowledge. A relationship between service provision and beneficiaries is readily produced and can be visualized as a model output. The visualization is especially useful for a practical decision-making context. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable River Basin Management)

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11825 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Modelling Interactions between Land Use, Climate, and Hydrology along with Stakeholders’ Negotiation for Water Resources Management

by Babak Farjad, Majeed Pooyandeh, Anil Gupta, Mohammad Motamedi and Danielle Marceau

Sustainability 2017, 9(11), 2022; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9112022 - 7 Nov 2017

Cited by 20 | Viewed by 6320

Abstract

This paper describes the main functionalities of an integrated framework to model the interactions between land use, climate, and hydrology along with stakeholders’ negotiation. Its novelty lies in the combination of individual-based and spatially distributed models within the Socio-Hydrology paradigm to capture the complexity and uncertainty inherent to these systems. It encompasses a land-use/land-cover cellular automata model, an agent-based model used for automated stakeholders’ negotiation, and the hydrological MIKE SHE/MIKE 11 model, which are linked and can be accessed through a web-based interface. It enables users to run simulations to explore a wide range of scenarios related to land development and water resource management while considering the reciprocal influence of human and natural systems. This framework was developed with the involvement of key stakeholders from the initial design stage to the final demonstration and validation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable River Basin Management)

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4212 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Spatial and Temporal Variations of Water Quality in Songhua River from 2006 to 2015: Implication for Regional Ecological Health and Food Safety

by Chunfeng Wei, Chuanyu Gao, Dongxue Han, Winston Zhao, Qianxin Lin and Guoping Wang

Sustainability 2017, 9(9), 1502; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9091502 - 24 Aug 2017

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 4609

Abstract

The Songhua River is the largest river in northeastern China; the river’s water quality is one of the most important factors that influence regional ecological health and food safety in northeastern China and even the downstream of the Heilong River in Russia. In recent years, the Chinese government implemented several water resource protection policies to improve the river’s water quality. In order to evaluate the influence of the new policies on the water quality in the Songhua River, water quality data from 2006 to 2015 were collected monthly from the nine sites along the mainstream of the Songhua River. Results show that the water quality in the Songhua River could be divided into two groups during the last 10 years. Before 2010, water quality in the Songhua River was primarily influenced by regional human activities. Industries were the major pollutant sources in the upstream of the Songhua River. After several new policies were implemented by the local government in 2010, water quality in the Songhua River improved. As a result, the biodiversity of fish and ecological health in the Songhua River improved. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable River Basin Management)

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4484 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Zoning and Analysis of Control Units for Water Pollution Control in the Yangtze River Basin, China

by Fuliang Deng, Tao Lin, Yue Zhao and Ying Yuan

Sustainability 2017, 9(8), 1374; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9081374 - 4 Aug 2017

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 6886

Abstract

In order to meet the needs of the control-unit-based water pollution prevention problem in China, we proposed a comprehensive control unit zoning method with the combined basic administrative region and objective watershed management. The method can effectively connect the natural characteristics of watershed water sources, three-level zoning of water resources, and comprehensively consider the pollution distribution, socio-economics and many other factors. The zoning process includes four steps: (1) Generate the multi-level hydrological unit; (2) Identify the multi-element water catchment units; (3) Obtain the control unit with the administrative boundary as the boundary; (4) Check and adjust the results to meet the actual needs. Based on this method, the Yangtze River Basin was divided into 568 control units with a total area of 1.91 million km². These control units were used as the basic unit to analyze the water quality status and the results show that the upper reaches have good water quality, while the lower reaches have poor water quality and more serious water pollution. Our study helps the Ministry of Environmental Protection of China develop the list of control units that are needed to improve water quality during the “13th Five-Year Plan”, with a goal to provide technical support for control-unit-based water pollution prevention and control in the future. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable River Basin Management)

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606 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Economic Valuation of the Aquatic Biodiversity Conservation in South Korea: Correcting for the Endogeneity Bias in Contingent Valuation

by Ik-Chang Choi, Hyun No Kim, Hio-Jung Shin, John Tenhunen and Trung Thanh Nguyen

Sustainability 2017, 9(6), 930; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9060930 - 2 Jun 2017

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 5342

Abstract

In this study, we use the Contingent Valuation (CV) method to estimate households’ willingness to pay (WTP) for the aquatic ecosystem health (biodiversity) improvement. This paper extends CV studies by dealing with the endogenous effect of a proxy variable, namely the subjective experience of negative environmental quality changes. The results show that the correction for the endogeneity bias facilitates the efficiency of parameter estimation in the empirical model. The mean WTP per household accounts for around 46.8% (KRW 79.6) of the current water use charge (KRW 170 per cubic meter). The total benefit from conserving the biodiversity is around KRW 198.62 billion. We found several factors that affect households’ WTP for fish biodiversity conservation, suggesting the importance of these factors in the formulation of water policies associated with aquatic biodiversity. In addition, the inefficient water management costs should be redistributed to other projects or new programs such as for the fish biodiversity conservation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable River Basin Management)

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1667 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Sustainable Use of Reservoir Sediment through Partial Application in Building Material

by Natalia Junakova and Jozef Junak

Sustainability 2017, 9(5), 852; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9050852 - 21 May 2017

Cited by 32 | Viewed by 5752

Abstract

Sediment, often considered a by-product of various activities within river basin management to be disposed of, or a pollutant to be controlled, is increasingly being acknowledged as a resource in need of management. The paper deals with the possibility of reusing sediment from two Slovak reservoirs (Klusov and Ruzin) as an alternative raw material in concrete production. Concrete specimens were prepared by a combination of original reservoir sediment, reservoir sediment mechanically activated by dry milling, reservoir sediment mechanically activated by dry milling together with biomass incinerator fly-ash as a binder. To improve the strength properties of specimens, sodium hydroxide (NaOH) was used as a sediment activator. Mixtures containing 40% of binder replacement by the above-mentioned combinations of original and treated sediments were tested for flexural and compressive strengths after 28, 90 and 365 days of curing. The results showed that the mixtures prepared from sediments milled without and with addition of fly ash as cement replacement satisfied the strength requirements for the compressive strength class C16/20 according to the European standard except the composites prepared with NaOH as the sediment activator. Addition of NaOH into composites in the concentration of 5 M as an activator of sediment indicated the negative impact on compressive and flexural strengths and thus NaOH was not an effective pozzolanic activator for sediments. This study reveals that the sediment may be considered as 40% cement substitution in building materials. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable River Basin Management)

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5432 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Floodplain Stability Indices for Sustainable Waterfront Development by Spatial Identification of Erosion and Deposition

by Chang Geun Song, Tae Geom Ku, Young Do Kim and Yong Sung Park

Sustainability 2017, 9(5), 735; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9050735 - 3 May 2017

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 4130

Abstract

The abrupt rises of water level in rivers by torrential rain or storm repeatedly cause inundation damage, such as erosion and deposition in floodplains. However, studies on identifying the abrasion of waterfront facilities or the accumulation of sediment near rivers under extreme flow conditions are seldom found because floodplains are utilized in various ways in each country. In this study, novel floodplain sustainability indices by spatial classification of erosion and deposition were developed for sustainable waterfront development. The indices can provide the relative spatial distribution of erosion and deposition in a floodplain by using only kinematic flow information, such as flow depth and velocity obtained by 2D numerical analysis. Accordingly, applying a complex sediment transport model that involves numerous assumptions and parameters can be moderately replaced with the present approach. The suitability of developed indices was tested in several flow problems by comparing the predicted erosional or depositional region with measured data. In addition, the developed indices were applied to a floodplain in a natural river to examine the relative spatial distribution of the erosion and deposition for a typhoon event, and the results were compared with field monitoring data. It was found that deposition was more likely to occur than erosion in most floodplains, and the developed floodplain sustainability indices accurately quantified the erosion and deposition phenomena. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable River Basin Management)

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1335 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Household Livelihood Strategy Choices, Impact Factors, and Environmental Consequences in Miyun Reservoir Watershed, China

by Wenjia Peng, Hua Zheng, Brian E. Robinson, Cong Li and Fengchun Wang

Sustainability 2017, 9(2), 175; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9020175 - 25 Jan 2017

Cited by 34 | Viewed by 17982

Abstract

Household livelihood strategies are embedded in the natural and socioeconomic contexts in which people live. Analyzing the factors that influence household livelihood choice and defining their consequences can be beneficial for informing rural household policies. In turn, this has great significance for fostering sustainable livelihood strategies. We grouped household livelihood strategies based on the income distribution of 756 households and analyzed their influencing factors and possible livelihood consequences in the watershed of Miyun Reservoir, the only source of surface water currently available for domestic use in Beijing, China. Local farmers’ livelihood strategies can be grouped into three types: farming, local off-farm, and labor-migrant. Farming households have the lowest livelihood capitals, other than natural capital, compared with labor-migrant households and off-farm households, the latter having better livelihood capital status. Geographical location, natural capital, household structure, labor quality, and ecological policies are the main factors affecting farmers’ choice of livelihood strategy. Local off-farm households have a significantly lower dependency on firewood, land resources, and investment than that of farming and labor-migrant households, and have the highest reliance on fossil fuel. This household classification can help us understand the livelihood characteristics, impact factors, and consequences of different types of household strategies, which also suggest tailored policy and management options to promote sustainable livelihoods based on different household types. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable River Basin Management)

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Review

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1934 KiB

Open AccessReview

Sustainable Ecosystem Services Framework for Tropical Catchment Management: A Review

by N. Zafirah, N. A. Nurin, M. S. Samsurijan, M. H. Zuknik, M. Rafatullah and M. I. Syakir

Sustainability 2017, 9(4), 546; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9040546 - 4 Apr 2017

Cited by 18 | Viewed by 9706

Abstract

The monsoon season is a natural phenomenon that occurs over the Asian continent, bringing extra precipitation which causes significant impact on most tropical watersheds. The tropical region’s countries are rich with natural rainforests and the economies of the countries situated within the region are mainly driven by the agricultural industry. In order to fulfill the agricultural demand, land clearing has worsened the situation by degrading the land surface areas. Rampant land use activities have led to land degradation and soil erosion, resulting in implications on water quality and sedimentation of the river networks. This affects the ecosystem services, especially the hydrological cycles. Intensification of the sedimentation process has resulted in shallower river systems, thus increasing their vulnerability to natural hazards (i.e., climate change, floods). Tropical forests which are essential in servicing their benefits have been depleted due to the increase in human exploitation. This paper provides an overview of the impact of land erosion caused by land use activities within tropical rainforest catchments, which lead to massive sedimentation in tropical rivers, as well as the effects of monsoon on fragile watersheds which can result in catastrophic floods. Forest ecosystems are very important in giving services to regional biogeochemical processes. Balanced ecosystems therefore, play a significant role in servicing humanity and ultimately, may create a new way of environmental management in a cost-effective manner. Essentially, such an understanding will help stakeholders to come up with better strategies in restoring the ecosystem services of tropical watersheds. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable River Basin Management)

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