Assessing the Geomorphic Recovery Potential of Rivers: Forecasting Future Trajectories of Adjustment for Use in Management:
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See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/303596591 Assessing the geomorphic recovery potential of rivers: forecasting future trajectories of adjustment for use in management: .... Article in Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Water · May 2016 DOI: 10.1002/wat2.1158 CITATIONS READS 10 249 2 authors: Kirstie Fryirs Gary Brierley Macquarie University University of Auckland 132 PUBLICATIONS 3,623 CITATIONS 204 PUBLICATIONS 5,635 CITATIONS SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects: Revegetation through use of soil seed banks in riparian ecosystems View project River recovery as a social-and-physical process View project All content following this page was uploaded by Kirstie Fryirs on 19 December 2017. The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file. Focus Article Assessing the geomorphic recovery potential of rivers: forecasting future trajectories of adjustment for use in management Kirstie A. Fryirs1* and Gary J. Brierley2 In an era of river repair, the concept of recovery enhancement has become cen- tral to river management practice. However, until about the early 2000s there were no coherent geomorphic frameworks with which to forecast river recovery potential. While the practical uptake of such frameworks has been slow, and debates continue about what recovery means, some river management agencies in different parts of the world have applied related concepts within catchment scale, process-based approaches to river management. Agencies that make use of recovery enhancement approaches have reframed the way that vision setting, planning, and prioritization are undertaken. In this study, we review river recov- ery as a principle. We then present, using examples, an updated version of the framework for assessing river recovery and river recovery potential that is embedded in the River Styles framework. Finally, we show how the application of this framework can be used to better inform river management practice. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. How to cite this article: WIREs Water 2016, 3:727–748. doi: 10.1002/wat2.1158 INTRODUCTION are, and we have appropriate understanding of the processes by which recovery comes about. Prospec- otions of resilience have become extremely fash- tively, misapplications of this principle may seek to fi Nionable in recent decades. In scienti c terms, the impose notional stability in a world where change resilience concept refers to adjustments around an and evolution is the norm. Indeed, resilience notions expected or characteristic condition which is often now have distinctly political overtures in the quest expressed in relation to an equilibrium state (e.g., Ref for ‘engineering resilience’ and ‘resilient communities’ 1). Implicitly, these concepts suggest that if a system that are designed to help society adapt to (cope with) moves away from its expected or characteristic struc- changes that are inevitable (e.g., Refs 2–7). Herein ture and function (range of process-form linkages), it lies a key scientific dilemma: How do we make the ‘ ’ will adjust back to that state through recovery most effective use of insights from the past to inform mechanisms. Although this is an attractive and pow- the future and how do we forecast future trajectories erful supposition, it can also be quite dangerous as it of adjustment? How do ‘re’ words such as resilience, assumes that we know what these recovery states recovery, and restoration relate to contemporary ‘buzzwords’ which are used to represent contempo- *Correspondence to: [email protected] rary and prospective future adjustments; concepts 1Department of Environmental Sciences, Macquarie University, such as: emergence, complexity, contingency, nonlin- North Ryde, Australia ear dynamics, thresholds, alternative stable states, 2School of Environment, The University of Auckland, Auckland, no analogue states, novel ecosystems, uncertainty? In New Zealand the management realm, how do notions such as ‘ ’ 8 Conflict of interest: The authors have declared no conflicts of inter- recovery relate to the feral world of rewilding, and est for this article. contested notions of wilderness, pristine worlds, and Volume3,September/October2016 ©2016WileyPeriodicals,Inc. 727 Focus Article wires.wiley.com/water naturalness (cf. Refs 9 and 10)? Just as importantly, adjustment. The potential for river recovery follow- how do scientists and managers collaborate to make ing disturbance reflects a river’s inherent sensitivity sense of these concepts and use them in real-world, to change and the severity of impacts to which the – on-the-ground applications where many rivers bear system is (or has been) subjected.36 39 Nonlinear little relation to how they looked and functioned in dynamics and threshold-induced responses may make the recent past (see Ref 11)? it difficult to determine the likelihood that any partic- Across much of the globe, flow regulation, river ular trajectory will be followed, when that will occur – diversions, channelization, removal of wood and and at what rate.40 42 As different parts of a system riparian vegetation, amongst many factors, have had adjust at different rates, different reaches undergo significant geomorphological and ecological conse- transitions between different states over different quences. Few rivers retain their ‘natural’ geomorphic timescales, driven by disturbing and forcing events – structure and function.9,12 14 In many instances, that are often impossible to predict.43 Multiple changes to river morphology must be considered to potential trajectories can emerge for any given river be irreversible, in practical terms. Elsewhere, some type dependent on the condition of each reach and rivers have proven to be relatively resilient to distur- its likely responses to future disturbance events, bance (e.g., Refs 15 and 16). In many settings, the along with prevailing, system-specific driving factors – long-term impact of human activities may be less evi- and time lags.44 47 Novel outcomes are likely and dent at first view, as recurrent phases of disturbance surprises are inevitable.48,49 This presents countless can be masked by other attributes of the contempo- challenges in framing adaptive approaches to man- rary river system (e.g., Refs 13, 17–20). In tracing agement that embrace a commitment to experimenta- the evolutionary trajectories of river systems, it is tion alongside appropriate monitoring and clear that many rivers that have experienced multiple documentation procedures.50 phases of deterioration have now started on a path- This study builds directly on the review of way toward recovery. So, what are the recovery pro- approaches to assessment of geomorphic river condi- spects for rivers in different landscape settings across tion presented by Fryirs (Ref 51). Assessing geomor- the globe? Recognizing the diversity of process–form phic river recovery is ‘the next step’ in more interactions for different types of river, what does sophisticated analyses of river systems that produce recovery look like (i.e., what would be expected in results that can be used to inform river management any given instance)? If the river was left alone, would decision making.29 We contend that ‘emergent’ geo- its condition deteriorate or improve? Perhaps inevita- morphic frameworks can apply recovery notions to bly, these are deeply contextual (place-based, often provide critical understandings of the past (i.e., look- highly contested) situations.14,21 ing backward meaningfully) in efforts to inform the The concept of river recovery has permeated the future in an effective, proactive, and precautionary literature, particularly in ecology, for several decades manner. However, such analyses require examination (e.g., Refs 22–24). However, appreciation of geomor- of larger-scale pressures and limiting factors that phic river recovery has been a much more recent phe- influence prospects for river improvement. For exam- nomenon. Indeed, frameworks to assess geomorphic ple, land-use pressures and sediment fluxes in catch- river recovery only came to fruition in the early 2000s ments must be understood with some degree of (e.g., Refs 25 and 26). Concepts of geomorphic river confidence (e.g., Refs 30, 52–57). Catchment-specific recovery encapsulate how a river has adjusted in the understandings of these relationships provide a criti- past, and what that river is adjusting toward. In this cal information base with which to prioritize river sense, recovery is considered to be a natural process reach interventions in a holistic manner.58 Such that reflects the self-healing capacity of river sys- efforts seek to maximize cumulative benefits while tems.14,27 In an era of river repair,28 in which process- minimizing off-site impacts of interventions.59 Proac- based management strategies strive to ‘work with tively framed, precautionary catchment action plans nature,’ critical understandings of the trajectory of can be used to justify expenditure as part of a recov- river adjustment and change and the potential for river ery enhancement approach to river management, – recovery are required.29 32 Such analyses can support wherein likely future scenarios are forecast and moni- more sophisticated approaches to river management, tored under a range of likely conditions (e.g., climate/ such as ‘space to move’ and ‘freedom rivers’ initiatives water, land-use/vegetation, or sediment) to aid risk where the river is allowed to freely adjust,