A Rapid Field Screening Methodology for Assessing the Health of Highland Streams and Rivers in Ethiopia

Contenu principal de l'article

Aschalew Lakew
Otto Moog

Résumé

The present study describes the development of a macro- invertebrate-based rapid field screeningmethod for assessing the ecological status of streams and  rivers in Ethiopian highlands.Abiotic and  biotic data  were  collected from 104 sites distributed in the upper section of four major basins of Ethiopia, namely Awash, Rift-Valley, Wabi-Shebele and  Genale. The  method  was adapted based on the screening protocol developed for assessing highland streams in the Hindu-Kush-Himalayan  regions  which  was initially designed and  a prerequisite to assess Austrian highland streams. The  assessment procedure was based  on  sensory features,  reduction  phenomena and  biota that  can  be  identified in the  field, with a  special focus on benthic macro-invertebrates. The sensitivity of a specific benthic invertebrate (BMI) taxon  to different level of degradation was derived from a multi-metric indexdeveloped for assessing same highland streamsof Ethiopia.  To ensure simplicity of the protocol, only 20 BMI taxa with clear ecological quality preference were included. The sensitivity ranges from  less tolerant taxa  such as Perlidae,  Scirtidae and  Lepidostomatidae to tolerant taxa  such as Psychodidae, Chironomidae and  Syrphidae.  The protocol is manually calculated in the  field and  it serves as an  ‘early warning’ method  to identify areas that  require  urgent   attention  or  detailed  investigation.  The  method can   be   considered  as rapid,  inexpensive  but  scientifically  sound monitoring method   to  evaluate the  ecological conditions of runningwaters in the highlands of Ethiopia.

Details de l'article

Comment citer
Lakew, A., & Moog, O. (2023). A Rapid Field Screening Methodology for Assessing the Health of Highland Streams and Rivers in Ethiopia. Ecological Insights, 5(1). https://doi.org/10.59411/n6w8x361
Rubrique
Articles

Comment citer

Lakew, A., & Moog, O. (2023). A Rapid Field Screening Methodology for Assessing the Health of Highland Streams and Rivers in Ethiopia. Ecological Insights, 5(1). https://doi.org/10.59411/n6w8x361

##plugins.generic.shariff.share##

Références

Armitage, P.D., Moss, D., Wright, J.F., & Furse, M.T. (1983). The performance of a biological water quality scoring system based on macro-invertebrates, over a wide range of unpolluted running-water sites. Water Research, 17, 333–347.

Aschalew, L. (2012). Testing bioassessment methods in some highland streams of Ethiopia. LAP LAMBERT Academic Publishing GmbH & Co.KG, ISBN: 978-3-659-15484-3.

Aschalew, L., & Moog, O. (2015a). A multimetric index based on benthic macroinvertebrates for assessing the ecological status of streams and rivers in central and southeast highlands of Ethiopia. Hydrobiologia, 751, 229–242.

Aschalew, L., & Moog, O. (2015b). Benthic macroinvertebrates based new biotic score “ETHbios” for assessing ecological conditions of highland streams and rivers in Ethiopia, Limnologica, 52, 11–19.

Barbour, M.T., Gerritsen, J., Snyder, B.D., & Stribling, J.B. (1999). Rapid Bioassessment Protocols for Use in Streams and Wadeable Rivers. EPA/841/B-99/002. US Environmental Protection Agency, Washington D.C.

Bonada, N., Dallas, H., Rieradevall, M., Prat, N., & Day, J. (2006). A comparison of rapid bioassessment protocols used in 2 regions with Mediterranean climates, the Iberian Peninsula and South Africa. Journal of the North American Benthological Society, 25, 487–500.

Bowman, M.F., & Bailey, R.C. (1997). Does taxonomic resolution affect the multivariate description of the structure of freshwater benthic macroinvertebrate communities? Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, 54, 1802–1807.

Chutter, F.M. (1998). Research on the rapid biological assessment of water quality impacts in streams and rivers. Water Research Commission Report 422/1/98, Pretoria: 240 pp.

Dallas, H.F. (1997). A preliminary evaluation of aspects of SASS (South African Scoring System) for the rapid bioassessment of water quality in rivers, with particular reference to the incorporation of SASS in a national biomonitoring program. South African Journal of Aquatic Sciences, 23, 79–94.

Dickens, C.W.S., & Graham, P.M. (2002). The South African Scoring System (SASS) Version 5 rapid bioassessment method for rivers. African Journal of Aquatic Sciences, 27, 1–10.

Ferreira, W.R., Paiva, L.T., & Callisto, M. (2011). Development of a benthic multimetric index for biomonitoring of a neotropical watershed. Brazilian Journal of Biology, 71, 15–25.

Furse, M.T., Moss, D., Wright, J.F., & Armitage, P.D. (1984). The influence of seasonal and taxonomic factors on the ordination and classification of running-water sites in Great Britain and on the prediction of their macroinvertebrate communities. Freshwater Biology, 14, 257–280.

Hannaford, M.J., & Resh, V.H. (1995). Variability in macroinvertebrate rapid-bioassessment surveys and habitat assessments in a northern California stream. Journal of the North American Benthological Society, 14, 430-439.

Hartmann, A., Moog, O., & Stubauer, I. (2010). ‘‘HKH screening’’: a field bio-assessment to evaluate the ecological status of streams in the Hindu Kush-Himalayan region. Hydrobiologia, 651, 25–37.

Hilsenhoff, W.L. (1988). Rapid field assessment of organic pollution with a family level biotic index. Journal of the North American Benthological Society, 7, 65–68.

Marchant, R., Barmuta, L.A., & Chessman, B.C. (1995). Preliminary study of the ordination of macroinvertebrate communities from running waters in Victoria, Australia. Australian Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research, 45, 945–962.

Moog, O., & Chovanec, A. (2000). Assessing the ecological integrity of aquatic environment: Walking the line between ecological, political, and administrative interests. Hydrobiologia, 422/423, 99–109.

Moog, O. (2007). Manual on pro-rata multi-habitat sampling of benthic invertebrates from Wadeable Rivers in the HKH-Region. Deliverable 8, Part 1 for ASSESS-HKH. European Commission, 29 pp., Available from: http://www.assess-hkh.at.

Moog, O., Chovanec, A., Hinteregger, H., & Raemer, A. (1999). Richtlinie für die saprobiologische Gewässergütebeurteilung von Fließgewässern. Wasserwirtschaftskataster, Bundesministerium für Land- und Forstwirtschaft, Wien: 144 pp.

Mustow, S.E. (2002). Biological monitoring of rivers in Thailand: use and adaptation of the BMWP score. Hydrobiologia, 479, 191–229.

Nesemann, H., Sharma, S., Sharma, G., Khanal, S.N., Pradhan, B., Shah, D.N., & Tachamo, R.D. (2007). Aquatic Invertebrates of the Ganga River System, Vol. 1. Mollusca, Annelida, Crustacea: 263 pp.

Nielsen, D.L., Shiel, R.J., & Smith, F.J. (1998). Ecology versus taxonomy: is there a middle ground? Hydrobiologia, 387/ 388, 451–457.

Obubu, J.P. (2010). Identifying Applicable Bio-assessment and Monitoring Methods for Sustainable Management of Ugandan River Quality Using Macro-benthic Invertebrates as Indicators. UNESCO–IPGL, Delft, The Netherlands, 91 pp.

Ofenboeck, T., Moog, O., Sharma, S., & Korte, T. (2010). Development of the HKH bios: a new biotic score to assess the river quality in the Hindu Kush-Himalaya. Hydrobiologia, 651, 39–58.

Prat, N., Munne’, A., Rieradevall, M., Sola`, C., & Bonada, N. (2000). Ecostrimed: protocol to establish the ecological status of Mediterranean rivers and streams. Diputacio’ de Barcelona, A‘rea de Medi Ambient, Barcelona, Spain. Available from: http://www.diba.es/mediambient/ecostrimed.asp.

Resh, V.H., & Unzicker, J.D. (1975). Water quality monitoring and aquatic organisms: the importance of species identification. Journal of Water Pollution Control, 47, 9–19.

Resh, V.H. (1995). Freshwater benthic macroinvertebrates and assessment procedures for water quality monitoring in developing and newly industrialized countries. In: Davis, W.S., Simon, T.P. Eds.), Biological Assessment and Criteria.Tools for Water Resource Planning and Decision Making. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, pp. 167–177.

Rosenberg, D.M., & Resh, A.P. (eds) (1993). Freshwater Biomonitoring and Benthic macro-invertebrates. Chapman and Hall, London: 461.

Rutt, G.P., Pickering, T.D., & Reynolds, N.R.M. (1993). The impact of livestock farming on Welsh streams: the development and testing of a rapid biological method for use in the assessment and control of organic pollution from farms. Environmental Pollution, 81, 217–228.

Sharma, S., & Moog, O. (2005). Description of a simple operative top-down typology for the HKH region. Deliverable 4 for ASSESS-HKH. European Commission: 26 pp. Available from: http://www.assess-hkh.at.

Sharma, S. (1996). Biological assessment of water quality in the rivers of Nepal. PhD thesis, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences at Vienna, Austria. 398 pp.

Articles les plus lus par le même auteur ou la même autrice

1 2 3 > >>