Definition of an indicator assessing the impact of a dam on the downstream river landscape

The increasing number of water withdrawals in Alpine regions represents a significant threat to aquatic ecosystems and river landscape (riverscape). To assess their sustainability, the impacts on river ecological status and landscape features need to be quantified with appropriate indicators. Howeve...

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Autores principales:	Erica Vassoney, Andrea Mammoliti Mochet, Maria Bozzo, Roberto Maddalena, Donatella Martinet, Chiara Paternoster, Claudia Quiriconi, Raffaele Rocco, Claudio Comoglio
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Elsevier 2021
Materias:	Sustainable river management River landscape Water withdrawal Ecological flows Visual riverscape perception Sustainability indicator Ecology QH540-549.5
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/8ec7c1ecc1334200a03801d9ec50e8f7
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:8ec7c1ecc1334200a03801d9ec50e8f72021-12-01T04:56:20ZDefinition of an indicator assessing the impact of a dam on the downstream river landscape1470-160X10.1016/j.ecolind.2021.107941https://doaj.org/article/8ec7c1ecc1334200a03801d9ec50e8f72021-10-01T00:00:00Zhttp://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1470160X21006063https://doaj.org/toc/1470-160XThe increasing number of water withdrawals in Alpine regions represents a significant threat to aquatic ecosystems and river landscape (riverscape). To assess their sustainability, the impacts on river ecological status and landscape features need to be quantified with appropriate indicators. However, assessment of landscape attributes is a complex challenge, due to the lack of standardized methods. Moreover, few metrics quantifying the impacts of water withdrawal on downstream riverscape perception are available in the scientific literature.In this paper, a new indicator, named Landscape Protection Level (LPL), aimed at assessing the effects of water withdrawals on the river landscape, is presented. The indicator has been developed in Aosta Valley (NW Italian Alps), where the river network is heavily exploited by hundreds of withdrawals for hydropower production and irrigation, and it has been included in a multi-criteria analysis (MCA) procedure to assess the sustainability of water withdrawal licenses in relation to different flow release scenarios.The LPL indicator is based on three parameters, Constraint Factor, Release Factor, and Visual Elements Factor, quantifying the presence of landscape protection constraints, the ratio of flow released downstream of the dam to the available river discharge, and the impact on the visual perception of the bypassed stretch, respectively.Its application in four real case studies of existing hydropower plants is presented and discussed in the paper, demonstrating the indicator applicability to assess both specific release values and flow release scenarios varying over the year. Results are analyzed by highlighting the main strengths and weaknesses of the indicator and proposing some suggestions for future improvements. In particular, the reactiveness of the indicator, the representativeness of the stakeholders’ interests, the transparency of the indicator calculation procedure, and the time required for data collection and processing are discussed. Finally, future activities aimed at further improving the indicator applicability and transferability to different river contexts are proposed.Erica VassoneyAndrea Mammoliti MochetMaria BozzoRoberto MaddalenaDonatella MartinetChiara PaternosterClaudia QuiriconiRaffaele RoccoClaudio ComoglioElsevierarticleSustainable river managementRiver landscapeWater withdrawalEcological flowsVisual riverscape perceptionSustainability indicatorEcologyQH540-549.5ENEcological Indicators, Vol 129, Iss , Pp 107941- (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Sustainable river management River landscape Water withdrawal Ecological flows Visual riverscape perception Sustainability indicator Ecology QH540-549.5
spellingShingle	Sustainable river management River landscape Water withdrawal Ecological flows Visual riverscape perception Sustainability indicator Ecology QH540-549.5 Erica Vassoney Andrea Mammoliti Mochet Maria Bozzo Roberto Maddalena Donatella Martinet Chiara Paternoster Claudia Quiriconi Raffaele Rocco Claudio Comoglio Definition of an indicator assessing the impact of a dam on the downstream river landscape
description	The increasing number of water withdrawals in Alpine regions represents a significant threat to aquatic ecosystems and river landscape (riverscape). To assess their sustainability, the impacts on river ecological status and landscape features need to be quantified with appropriate indicators. However, assessment of landscape attributes is a complex challenge, due to the lack of standardized methods. Moreover, few metrics quantifying the impacts of water withdrawal on downstream riverscape perception are available in the scientific literature.In this paper, a new indicator, named Landscape Protection Level (LPL), aimed at assessing the effects of water withdrawals on the river landscape, is presented. The indicator has been developed in Aosta Valley (NW Italian Alps), where the river network is heavily exploited by hundreds of withdrawals for hydropower production and irrigation, and it has been included in a multi-criteria analysis (MCA) procedure to assess the sustainability of water withdrawal licenses in relation to different flow release scenarios.The LPL indicator is based on three parameters, Constraint Factor, Release Factor, and Visual Elements Factor, quantifying the presence of landscape protection constraints, the ratio of flow released downstream of the dam to the available river discharge, and the impact on the visual perception of the bypassed stretch, respectively.Its application in four real case studies of existing hydropower plants is presented and discussed in the paper, demonstrating the indicator applicability to assess both specific release values and flow release scenarios varying over the year. Results are analyzed by highlighting the main strengths and weaknesses of the indicator and proposing some suggestions for future improvements. In particular, the reactiveness of the indicator, the representativeness of the stakeholders’ interests, the transparency of the indicator calculation procedure, and the time required for data collection and processing are discussed. Finally, future activities aimed at further improving the indicator applicability and transferability to different river contexts are proposed.
format	article
author	Erica Vassoney Andrea Mammoliti Mochet Maria Bozzo Roberto Maddalena Donatella Martinet Chiara Paternoster Claudia Quiriconi Raffaele Rocco Claudio Comoglio
author_facet	Erica Vassoney Andrea Mammoliti Mochet Maria Bozzo Roberto Maddalena Donatella Martinet Chiara Paternoster Claudia Quiriconi Raffaele Rocco Claudio Comoglio
author_sort	Erica Vassoney
title	Definition of an indicator assessing the impact of a dam on the downstream river landscape
title_short	Definition of an indicator assessing the impact of a dam on the downstream river landscape
title_full	Definition of an indicator assessing the impact of a dam on the downstream river landscape
title_fullStr	Definition of an indicator assessing the impact of a dam on the downstream river landscape
title_full_unstemmed	Definition of an indicator assessing the impact of a dam on the downstream river landscape
title_sort	definition of an indicator assessing the impact of a dam on the downstream river landscape
publisher	Elsevier
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/8ec7c1ecc1334200a03801d9ec50e8f7
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Definition of an indicator assessing the impact of a dam on the downstream river landscape

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