Integrated catchments for environmental sustainability
Taking a catchment-based approach to understanding the resilience of ecosystems and ecosystem services.
About
Managing water resources for ecosystem services encompasses providing clean water for people, sustainable fisheries and flood management. Research shows freshwater ecosystems degrade faster than others due to exploitation. Decision-making at the catchment level is a contested issue and coordinated action at the catchment level poses challenges for stakeholders and regulatory institutions. However, governments support locally focused action for water catchments and citizen science involvement. Our researchers work across scales and test catchments to create an evidence base for decision-making.
Hear an expert interview by Prof Steve Ormerod on biodiversity and water quality.
Catchment systems
Find out more about some of the catchments our researchers are working on in Wales, the UK and beyond:
- River Severn
- San Pedro River, USA
- Large database cross-catchment studies in the UK and globally
PhD research
| PhD project | Student | Supervisor | Partner |
|---|---|---|---|
| STREAM: study of two rivers' eDNA analysis and anthropogenic pollutant monitoring | Maya Lhoste | Pablo Orozco Ter Wengel | Afonydd Cymru |
Long-term river invertebrate trends in England and Wales (2024) | Emma Pharaoh | Ian Vaughan | Environment Agency, Natural Resources Wales |
Fish swimming dynamics and behaviour in the vicinity of a fish exclusion screen | Guglielmo Sonnino-Sorisio | Catherine Wilson | Environmental Agency |
| Environmental triggers for geosmin and 2-MIB production in drinking water reservoirs (2023) | Annalise Hooper | Rupert Perkins | Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water |
In silico modelling of parasite dynamics (2022) | Clement Twumasi | Owen Jones, Jo Cable |
Project highlights
For over 40 years, our researchers have been gathering data to understand how to balance freshwater sustainability with societal prosperity in an uncertain world.