SUPERVISOR: Stefan SCHMUTZ

PROJECT ASSIGNED TO: James NKHOSWE

Human activities are increasingly altering river systems worldwide, particularly within Industrialized River Landscapes (IRLs). These transformations are driven by factors such as population growth, rising food demands, and the need for sustainable energy, which in turn lead to the construction of hydropower dams and the expansion of irrigation systems, further exacerbated by changing drought patterns. These challenges underscore the significance of understanding the “Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystem” (WEF-E) nexus, as these interlinked systems require a multidisciplinary approach combined with participatory approaches to ensure comprehensive analysis and sustainable solutions centered on socioeconomic shifts.

Anchored to the concept of “coupled socio-eco-hydrological systems”, this research examines the evolution of Human Rivers in the 21st century (HR 21) in response to a rapidly changing world. Through the WEF-E nexus lens, an interdisciplinary approach—integrating natural sciences, engineering, and social sciences—explores the co-evolution of socio-ecohydrological systems for of sustainable management of natural resources. By analyzing the interactions between effects of hydropower production and multiple stressors, including nutrient pollution and hydromorphological alterations such as channelization and riparian modifications, the study identifies pathways driving degradation processes in riverine ecosystems.

Well-planned and coordinated policy efforts, such as the EU Water Framework Directive, the Renewable Energy Directive (RED) and the Energy Efficiency Directive (EED) and the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), also face inefficient implementation of management actions on the ground. This research framework thus integrates reviewing EU directives and large-scale dataset analyses to reveal the complexities of IRLs in the context of governance towards resource sustainability, circularity and ecosystem health. Mesocosm experiments are used to explore the interactions of multiple stressors and inform tailored management measures for sustainable development. 

Results and approaches from this research, derived in the EU, particularly in Austria, will foster ecologically sustainable outcomes, ranging from land use to water budgeting and the sustainable production of hydropower energy. This can also serve as a further blueprint for upscaling solutions to other regions, including sub-Saharan Africa, such as Zambia and its neighbouring countries in the SADC region.

Keywords: Hydropower, Multiple stressors, WEF-E-Nexus, Multi-disciplinarity, Hydromorphology, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Stakeholder Participatory Approaches.

References

Borowski, P. F. (2020). Nexus between water, energy, food and climate change as challenges facing the modern global, European and Polish economy. AIMS Geosciences, 6(4), 397–421. https://doi.org/10.3934/geosci.2020022 

Hauer, C., Tritthart, M., Flödl, P., Holzapfel, P., Unfer, G., Graf, W., Leitner, P., & Habersack, H. (2024). Wie viel „BIO“ braucht die Ökohydraulik? – Neue Ansätze und Modellentwicklungen für die integrative Wasserwirtschaft. Österreichische Wasser- und Abfallwirtschaft, 76(3–4), 158–167. doi.org/10.1007/s00506-024-01029-4

Hein, T., Hauer, C., Schmid, M., Stöglehner, G., Stumpp, C., Ertl, T., Graf, W., Habersack, H., Haidvogl, G., Hood-Novotny, R., Laaha, G., Langergraber, G., Muhar, S., Schmid, E., Schmidt-Kloiber, A., Schmutz, S., Schulz, K., Weigelhofer, G., Winiwarter, V., . . .  Wang, C. (2021). The coupled socio-ecohydrological evolution of river systems: Towards an integrative perspective of river systems in the 21st century. Science of The Total Environment, 801, 149619. doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.149619 

Schinegger, R., Palt, M., Segurado, P., & Schmutz, S. (2016). Untangling the effects of multiple human stressors and their impacts on fish assemblages in European running waters. Science of The Total Environment, 573, 1079-1088. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.08.143 

Schmutz, S., Friedrich, T., Greimel, F., Hayes, D. S., Jungwirth, M., Muhar, S., Pinter, K., Seliger, C., Unfer, G., & Zeiringer, B. (2025). Contribution of sustainable hydropower to fish conservation. WASSERWIRTSCHAFT, 115(1), 18. https://doi.org/10.1007/s35147-024-2440-7