Project Overview
The rural Kielstau catchment (50 km²) is located in northern Germany in a lowland area. | The Kielstau river’s water quality is strongly influenced by agriculture. Land use is dominated by grain, corn, rape and pasture; 38% of agricultural land is artificially drained (Fig.1). | The Kielstau river is part of the flora fauna habitat directive (92/43/CEE), and nature conservation areas are used for moderate grazing.
Ecosystem Services
Provisioning
- Provisioning Services are ecosystem services that describe the material or energy outputs from ecosystems. They include food, water and other resources.
- Food: Ecosystems provide the conditions for growing food. Food comes principally from managed agro-ecosystems but marine and freshwater systems or forests also provide food for human consumption. Wild foods from forests are often underestimated.
- Raw materials: Ecosystems provide a great diversity of materials for construction and fuel including wood, biofuels and plant oils that are directly derived from wild and cultivated plant species.
Regulating
- Regulating Services are the services that ecosystems provide by acting as regulators eg. regulating the quality of air and soil or by providing flood and disease control.
- Erosion prevention and maintenance of soil fertility: Soil erosion is a key factor in the process of land degradation and desertification. Vegetation cover provides a vital regulating service by preventing soil erosion. Soil fertility is essential for plant growth and agriculture and well functioning ecosystems supply the soil with nutrients required to support plant growth.
Habitat / Supporting
- Ecosystem services "that are necessary for the production of all other ecosystem services". These include services such as nutrient recycling, primary production and soil formation.
- Habitats for species: Habitats provide everything that an individual plant or animal needs to survive: food; water; and shelter. Each ecosystem provides different habitats that can be essential for a species’ lifecycle. Migratory species including birds, fish, mammals and insects all depend upon different ecosystems during their movements.
Cultural
- Cultural Services corresponds nonmaterial benefits people obtain from ecosystems through spiritual enrichment, cognitive development, reflection, recreation, and aesthetic experiences.
Major Issues
Ecological status of the stream needs to
Ecological status of the stream needs to be improved
Nutrient (nitrogen and phosphorus) and pesticide loads
Nutrient (nitrogen and phosphorus) and pesticide loads due to agricultural activities
EH Engineering Solutions
Renaturalisation of river sections and riparian wetlands
Renaturalisation of river sections and riparian wetlands
River basin model; Hydraulic models; Species distribution
River basin model; Hydraulic models; Species distribution model (SWAT; HEC-RAS; ADH; BIOMOD)
Building and testing of reactive ditches (Fig.2)
Building and testing of reactive ditches (Fig.2) and retention ponds
Project Activities
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Continuous monitoring of river water quality and biological parameters
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Assessment of the catchment water balance and nutrient loads through the use of the river basin model SWAT
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Integrated ecohydrological modelling of aquatic ecosystems
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Stakeholder meetings
Expected Outcomes
Implementation of monitoring strategies and GIS-based approaches in a rural lowland river catchment | Blueprint for other rural basins