The EU Nature Restoration Law represents an important opportunity for freshwater habitat restoration and, consequently, freshwater biodiversity protection. However, a number of challenges must be anticipated in its implementation, which may compromise its success. Some aspects, particularly those relating to freshwater ecosystems, require more clarification. We use riverine ecosystems to illustrate existing ambiguities in the proposed legislation and the potential consequences of leaving these aspects open to interpretation during the implementation process. We also discuss potential solutions to these problems which could help ensure that the law's objectives are met. We argue that river network structure and connectivity dimensions, which result into river meta‐ecosystems, must be explicitly considered. For that purpose, we ask for clear definitions of the critical terms “free‐flowing rivers,” “barriers,” and “reference areas.” In addition, we recommend developing methods for integrated assessment of connectivity across river networks. As a key property of river ecosystems, this must be used to prioritize actions to increase the length and number of free‐flowing rivers. Adequate restoration planning at larger spatial scales will benefit from a meta‐ecosystem perspective and accurate representation of aquatic‐terrestrial linkages, which will significantly improve the efficacy of restoration efforts. Furthermore, stakeholder and citizen engagement offer important opportunities at local, national, and European scales, and should be fostered to ensure inclusive decision‐making. The conservation challenges outlined here are particularly important for rivers, but they also have implications for other ecosystems. These considerations are useful for policymakers, conservationists, and other stakeholders involved in the Nature Restoration Law and related policy initiatives.This article is categorized under: Water and Life > Stresses and Pressures on Ecosystems Water and Life > Conservation, Management, and Awareness Human Water > Water Governance

The usage of remote sensing data for tracking or monitoring war conflicts is a reality nowadays. The Russian invasion in Ukraine seriously impacted on the environment of the attacked country in all areas: air, soil, water, flora and fauna. The war has created a massive increase in air pollution in some regions of Ukraine, and might have effect in neighbouring countries. The Russian attack has caused many fires at places such as oil depots, industrial complexes, equipment and ammunition stockpiles, the forests, and residential areas. In addition to this, many bridges, hydraulic and other structures located over and near the water bodies were destroyed. These events were analysed in this paper by using publicly available remote sensing data: NOAA-2, Suomi NPP, Aqua and Terra satellites, Sentinel and Landsat satellites, as well as from other sources open to public. We assume that the use of remote sensing data is an excellent tool to monitor effects of military conflicts on environment. The conducted research with proposed method can serve as a good scientific practice that should be implemented for monitoring of the harm to nature caused by wars.

Intense “blooming” of cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) caused by eutrophication and climate change poses a serious threat to freshwater ecosystems and drinking water safety. Preventing the proliferation of cyanobacteria and reducing water nutrient load is a priority for the restoration of eutrophic water bodies. Aquatic plants play an important role in the function and structure of aquatic ecosystems, affecting the physiochemistry of the water and bottom sediments, primary production, and biotic interactions that support a balanced ecosystem. This review examines the inhibitory effect of aquatic vascular plants on harmful blooms of cyanobacteria. Aquatic plants are able to successfully inhibit the growth of cyanobacteria through various mechanisms, including by reducing nutrient and light availability, creating favorable conditions for the development of herbivorous zooplankton, and releasing allelopathic active substances (allelochemicals) with algicidal effect. Allelopathy is species-specific and therefore acts as one of the key mechanisms by which the development of cyanobacterial populations in aquatic ecosystems is regulated. However, allelopathic activity of aquatic vascular plants depends on various factors (species characteristics of aquatic plants, area, and density of overgrowth of water bodies, physiochemical properties of allelopathically active substances, hydrological and hydrochemical regimes, temperature, light intensity, etc.), which may regulate the impact of allelochemicals on algal communities. The paper also discusses some problematic aspects of using fast-growing species of aquatic vascular plants to control cyanobacterial blooms.

Spring ecosystems are diverse transition zones between ground- and surface-water habitats. Due to their characteristics and vulnerable species assemblages, springs are considered indicator systems for monitoring environmental change. In particular, climate change is expected to alter spring-ecosystem features, such as water temperature and discharge, affecting otherwise typically stable biotic and abiotic conditions. However, reliable trend-development recognition and analysis require a uniform methodology and comparable data series over long periods of time. Spring research findings in the Berchtesgaden National Park and the Adamello-Brenta Nature Park have been consolidated to develop methodological recommendations to create lasting societal-added value. The successful transfer of the methodology to the Bavarian Forest National Park and the experienced contribution of the Bavarian Association for the Protection of Nature (Bavarian Climate Alliance) strongly improved method validations. Our resulting, newly developed recommendations for long-term spring monitoring have a focus on climate change impacts and aim at providing a decision-making basis for establishing programs in similar ecological and climatic zones. Uniform site-selection criteria and selected climate-sensitive parameters are indicated. This includes documenting the spring’s environment and structure, measuring abiotic parameters, and determining selected floristic and faunistic groups. We recommend measurement and sampling-survey intervals ranging from 3(4) times yearly to every 5 years, depending on the parameter. We further suggest a database system that integrates all monitoring parameters to ensure consistent data management and storage. Analysing the data resulting from our new holistic spring monitoring methodology should provide critical knowledge about putatively changing ecosystems that can then be used as evidence of climate-change impact on spring ecosystems.

We studied diatoms from the fifteen springs selected in the Berchtesgaden National Park on behalf of the Bavarian State Ministry for the Environment to be sentinel environments of climate-change effects. For three of these springs, diatom data based on samples taken in 1997 were also available. A total of 162 species belonging to 49 genera were found sampling three microhabitat types (lithic materials, bryophytes, surface sediments). The cumulative percentage of all species included in a threat category including endangered species was 43%, confirming previous findings for comparable environments of the Alps. We could find a statistically significant positive association between the Meinzer variability index for discharge and the cumulative relative abundance of aerial diatom species. This study thus highlighted once again the relevance of discharge (and associated water-level) variability as an environmental determinant of diatom assemblages in spring ecosystems. Increased nitrate concentrations in some springs, likely due to diffuse airborne pollution and, locally, to impacts such as forest management, game, and cattle, led to a relevant occurrence of eutraphentic diatom species. Our results show a segregation of the older data in non-parametric diatom-based ordinations, suggesting a strong potential for the use of spring diatoms in studies aiming at tracking the effects of climate and environmental change.

Climate change and nutrient pollution are echoed by worldwide increasing trends in the frequency, duration, and toxicity of cyanobacterial (blue-green algal) blooms. Therefore, searching for the best options to mitigate blooms is relevant and timely. Aquatic vascular plants offer a promising solution through biological control. In this study, we use reservoirs regularly affected by intensive blooms (the Kyiv and Kaniv Reservoirs of the Dnipro River, Ukraine) to investigate whether macrophytes may inhibit or reduce the massive development of cyanobacteria. Special attention was paid to plants with floating leaves and free-floating plants since data on their effects on cyanobacteria are controversial. On the basis of field and satellite observations, the spatial distribution of cyanobacterial blooms and aquatic macrophyte patches was assessed. Multispectral images captured by satellites Sentinel-2a (S2A) and Sentinel-2b (S2B) were used. In addition, based on data from field observations, a comparative analysis of phytoplankton and physical and chemical parameters between areas of the reservoirs overgrown and not overgrown by macrophytes was carried out. The obtained results indicate that in macrophyte patches phytoplankton structure differed from that observed in open waters. However, in areas of reservoirs dominated by floating-leaf plants or free-floating plants, a significant decrease in phytoplanktic or cyanobacterial biomass was not observed. This is most likely due to the fact that these macrophytes did not reduce the concentration of biogenic substances to a level that would limit cyanobacterial growth. On the contrary, intensive overgrowth of floating-leaf plants (in particular, Trapa natans) along the river sections of the reservoirs, as well as other factors, contributed to nitrogen and phosphorus enrichment. Therefore, in the face of relevant nutrient supply, these ecological groups of macrophytes (floating-leaf plants and free-floating plants) have not shown statistically significant effectiveness in controlling the process of cyanobacterial blooms in reservoir ecosystems.