Improving the ecological status methods toolkit for assessment of river health. Martyn Kelly

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1 Improving the ecological status methods toolkit for assessment of river health Martyn Kelly

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3 Monitoring in practice Science Legislation Stakeholders

4 Biological Monitoring in 2013 FCS All now expressed as Ecological Quality Ratios (EQR) RIVPACS / RICT DARLEQ See

5 Three challenges in the Water Framework Directive Good Ecological Status... slight changes in the composition and abundance of macrophytic and phytobenthic taxa [absence of ] undesirable disturbances not adversely affected by bacterial tufts and coats Article 4 clause 5 achieve less stringent environmental objectives... if achievement [of good surface water status] would be infeasible or disproportionately expensive... Article 14 clause 1 encourage the active involvement of all interested parties...

6 Good Ecological Status may not be feasible if Variability / uncertainty of We are not confident of the status of a water body method, resources available for multiple samples We are not confident of the causal factors responsible for less than Diagnostic good status capabilities of method(s) Meaning we may not have (especially high confidence when faced that a particular Programme of with Measures multiple stressors) will be successful Stakeholders do not recognise the benefits Visibility of organism Or they do recognise the groups, benefits recognition but regard of their the price functions and benefits of achieving these is too high

7 The Trophic Diatom Index

8 DARLEQ Diatoms for Assessing River and Lake Ecological Quality Advantages Shared concepts across Europe Strong pressure-response relationships Disadvantages Slow and expensive Not fully compliant with WFD requirements Assesses hazard, not risk Not understood by most lay people Limited diagnostic capability TDI TDI log SRP (mg/l) log TON (mg/l)

9 Risk Hazard versus Risk Percent cover of green filamentous algae Hazard Willby et al. 2009

10 Relating phytobenthos to Ecosystem Service concepts

11 A supporting ecosystem service... Prevents anoxia / N 2 O production / climate change

12 Levels of ecological analysis Kelly (2014) Ecological Indicators 36: DeNicola & Kelly (2014) Freshwater Science (in press) Level Description Example 1 communication Rapid assessment tools, outputs readily interpretable by non-specialist stakeholders, suitable for citizen science programs 2 assessment Taxonomic-based methods for assessment of biological condition / ecological status, 3 diagnosis Advanced methods for determining cause-effect relationships (e.g. between nutrients and periphyton) as basis for restoration/remediation efforts Angler s catch returns (Lusk et al., 2003) RAPPER? RICT / WHPT DARLEQ, LEAFPACS, FCS In situ algal bioassays (Bowes et al., 2007) Vitellogenin assay (Heppell et al., 1995) Metallothionein assay (Shaw-Allen et al., 2003) Akaline phosphatase assay (Petterrson, 1980)

13 (2012) Science

14 Levels of ecological analysis Kelly (2014) Ecological Indicators 36: DeNicola & Kelly (2014) Freshwater Science (in press) Level Description Example 1 communication Rapid assessment tools, outputs readily interpretable by non-specialist stakeholders, suitable for citizen science programs 2 assessment Taxonomic-based methods for assessment of biological condition / ecological status, 3 diagnosis Advanced methods for determining cause-effect relationships (e.g. between nutrients and periphyton) as basis for restoration/remediation efforts Angler s catch returns (Lusk et al., 2003) RAPPER RICT / WHPT DARLEQ, LEAFPACS, FCS In situ algal bioassays (Bowes et al., 2007) Vitellogenin assay (Heppell et al., 1995) Metallothionein assay (Shaw-Allen et al., 2003) Akaline phosphatase assay (Petterrson, 1980)

15 RAPPER Rapid Assessment of PeriPhyton Ecology in Rivers Visual assessment of larger algae Under development EA and SEPA trials in 2013 Objectives: Increase confidence in DARLEQ assessments Rapid assessment within catchment Communication / citizen science

16 RAPPER trials, summer 2013 Midlands Area, Environment Agency at risk not at risk 40 macroalgal taxa 9 point density scale Simple weighted average metric

17 Levels of ecological analysis Kelly (2014) Ecological Indicators 36: DeNicola & Kelly (2014) Freshwater Science (in press) Level Description Example Look, I think you have a 1 communication Rapid assessment tools, problem outputs readily... interpretable by non-specialist stakeholders, suitable for citizen science programs 2 assessment I Taxonomic-based think we have a methods problem for... assessment of biological condition / ecological status, 3 diagnosis Advanced methods for determining cause-effect relationships (e.g. between nutrients and periphyton) as basis for restoration/remediation efforts... and the reason for the problem is... Angler s catch returns (Lusk et al., 2003) RAPPER RICT / WHPT DARLEQ, LEAFPACS, FCS In situ algal bioassays (Bowes et al., 2007) Vitellogenin assay (Heppell et al., 1995) Metallothionein assay (Shaw-Allen et al., 2003) Akaline phosphatase assay (Petterrson, 1980)

18 Level 3: diagnosis Use of phosphatase assays to determine nutrient limitation

19 Towards a River Health Diagnosis System Nationwide tools for strategic assessment Standardised scale of damage Toolkits for diagnosis within water bodies Measures of structure and function Rapid assessment for locating hot spots within water bodies Functional indicators to unpick role of multiple stressors Think about risk not hazard Tools for communicating with stakeholders

20 Oscar Wilde