Papers by Tomasz Okruszko
A synthesis of research fields is required for a sustainable future of our planet. One of the ing... more A synthesis of research fields is required for a sustainable future of our planet. One of the ingredients suggested for seemingly conflicting scientific traditions is to 'embrace the science of place'. Place-centered studies provide the best means we have for going beyond pattern to process and for identifying the actual mechanisms at work. Here we provide a case study in which we integrate a number of natural scientific disciplines. This interdisciplinary approach aims at sustainable management of natural resources such as water and biodiversity. We will demonstrate that the insights obtained go beyond the particular wetland we studied and have implications for preservation and restoration of wetlands elsewhere. The Biebrza River (NE-Poland) is an almost natural lowland river with a mean annual discharge of about 30 m 3 /s. In 1921 and 1925 two strict nature reserves were established in the valley wetlands, originally to protect elk population and mires. In 1993 these became part of the Biebrza National Park, covering more than 59,000 ha, protecting the wetlands in the upper, middle and lower Biebrza basins. Biebrza is quite undisturbed, making it for Europe a unique reference area for lowland valley mires and river floodplains. Nevertheless, it is changing and sustainable management needs proper scientific input. Regular field campaigns have determined ecological, surface and groundwater conditions and given insight in: plant-water relationships; effects of nutrient availability on floristic diversity; river ecosystem functioning; groundwater discharge to wetlands supporting habitat connectivity within natural fens; spatial and temporal heterogeneity of groundwater-surface water exchange processes; bush encroachment; and effects of changing land management. Analyses are supported by a suite of rainfall-runoff, hydraulic and groundwater models. It is shown that due to interdisciplinary research Biebrza is a showcase for the analysis of spatial patterns of plant communities and occurrence of plant species, hydrological features such as groundwater discharge, river flooding and concomitant chemical water types and nutrient availabilities. Embracing Biebrza research is of great value for three reasons: gain fundamental knowledge on the functioning of these types of ecosystems; realize effective preservation strategies for the Biebrza wetlands; and design restoration measures for deteriorated ecosystems elsewhere.
Knowledge & Management of Aquatic Ecosystems
We studied distributions and abundances of macroinvertebrates in relation to hyporheic water exch... more We studied distributions and abundances of macroinvertebrates in relation to hyporheic water exchange (HWE) patterns of the upper Biebrza − a small, lowland, low dynamic European river located in Northeast Poland. On a 6-km stretch of the river; we determined the variability of water exchange in the hyporheic zone by using direct field measurements of the pressure gradient to determine groundwater–surface water interactions. We identified locations with upwelling and downwelling fluxes of HWE as well as ambiguous hydraulic contact between groundwater and surface water along the river. In these locations, we sampled bottom-dwelling macroinvertebrates. In total, 627 individuals of benthic macroinvertebrates of 34 taxa were identified. We revealed that bottom-dwelling macroinvertebrate fauna is more abundant and diverse in river stretches where water from the river infiltrates the hyporheic zone. Results also show higher taxonomic richness and abundances of benthic macroinvertebrates i...
The Biebrza Wetlands (northeast Poland) belongs to the biggest protected areas in Europe aiming a... more The Biebrza Wetlands (northeast Poland) belongs to the biggest protected areas in Europe aiming at conservation ot wetland ecosystems. In order to optimize the expensive and time-consuming protection and restoration measures a Management Support System (MSS) was developed. The MSS consists of following three elements: a data catalogue combined with a Geographic Information System (GIS); a hydrological module, which simulates quantitative and qualitative variability of both ground- and surface waters dynamics; and an ecological module, which predicts directions of changes for particular wetlands' vegetation types as an effect of hydrological condition variability. MSS, as a complex tool for wetlands analysis, indicates the reaction of Biebrza Valley and Red Bog to different scenarios of hydrological conditions ― as an effect of the present status (i.e. for various scenarios of drainage network function) and as possible consequences that would occur if all the conservation activit...
The aim of this work was to model the water management problem of the Upper Narew Valley (North E... more The aim of this work was to model the water management problem of the Upper Narew Valley (North East Poland). The analysis was carried out in the general form of the scenario study, which combined different hydrological conditions during the flood event with different releases polices from the reservoir Siemianówka. There are five basic components of this system, namely: rule based model of the Siemianówka Reservoir, hydrological model of the Narewka River, hydrological model of the Orlanka River, 1D unsteady state flow routing model and GIS ARCView based platform for linking all models. The results of the calculation using developed modeling system led to the conclusions, that to cope the different hydraulic and hydrological models on the GIS platform, which serves not only for the preparation of the input data and presentation of the calculation results but also provides the data handling for each computational time step.
Water Framework Directive (WFD) obligates Member States to prevent further deterioration as well ... more Water Framework Directive (WFD) obligates Member States to prevent further deterioration as well as to protect and enhance the status of aquatic ecosystems and wetlands. In order to fulfill one of the WFD objectives to keep wetlands in good surface water and groundwater status (determined by good ecological, chemical and quantitative status) it is necessary to specify most favourable conditions for them. In that case monitoring of factors responsible for wetlands status in natural areas is a key issue. Further, achieved knowledge of existing relations in ecosystems can be implemented in protection and restoration projects.
SCENES is a four year European research project developing scenarios on the changes in the quanti... more SCENES is a four year European research project developing scenarios on the changes in the quantity and quality of fresh water resources in pan-Europe due to climate change, land use change and socio-economic development. The water scenarios are developed based ...
The Biebrza Wetlands is located in a marginal-ice valley in north-eastern Poland and covers some ... more The Biebrza Wetlands is located in a marginal-ice valley in north-eastern Poland and covers some 195 000 hectares in area. The most characteristic feature of the Biebrza River is flooding, which appears there almost every year. In the period 1999-2002, investigation of the flooding phenomena was carried out in order to understand the main processes involved in the inundation of the river valley and to combine them with characteristic vegetation patterns. The investigation used Landsat images, a hydrodynamic 1-D model of river and flood plain flow, and chemical analysis of flood waters. It was shown that river water is responsible for inundation of part of the valley only. Other parts of the valley were inundated by groundwater seepage or in situ snow melt. These observations agree with qualitative descriptions of water sources for the particular plant communities.
Water
Climate change is expected to affect the water cycle through changes in precipitation, river stre... more Climate change is expected to affect the water cycle through changes in precipitation, river streamflow, and soil moisture dynamics, and therefore, present a threat to groundwater and surface water-fed wetland habitats and their biodiversity. This article examines the past trends and future impacts of climate change on riparian, water-dependent habitats within the special areas of conservation (SAC) of the Natura 2000 network located within Odra and Vistula River basins in Poland. Hydrological modelling using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) was driven by a set of nine EURO-CORDEX regional climate models under two greenhouse gas concentration trajectories. Changes in the duration of flooding and inundation events were used to assess climate change’s impact on surface water-fed wetland habitats. The groundwater-fed wetlands were evaluated on the basis of changes in soil water content. Information about the current conservation status, threats, and pressures that affect the h...
Water, 2017
Future climate change is projected to have significant impact on water resources availability and... more Future climate change is projected to have significant impact on water resources availability and quality in many parts of the world. The objective of this paper is to assess the effect of projected climate change on water quantity and quality in two lowland catchments (the Upper Narew and the Barycz) in Poland in two future periods (near future: 2021-2050, and far future: 2071-2100). The hydrological model SWAT was driven by climate forcing data from an ensemble of nine bias-corrected General Circulation Models-Regional Climate Models (GCM-RCM) runs based on the Coordinated Downscaling Experiment-European Domain (EURO-CORDEX). Hydrological response to climate warming and wetter conditions (particularly in winter and spring) in both catchments includes: lower snowmelt, increased percolation and baseflow and higher runoff. Seasonal differences in the response between catchments can be explained by their properties (e.g., different thermal conditions and soil permeability). Projections suggest only moderate increases in sediment loss, occurring mainly in summer and winter. A sharper increase is projected in both catchments for TN losses, especially in the Barycz catchment characterized by a more intensive agriculture. The signal of change in annual TP losses is blurred by climate model uncertainty in the Barycz catchment, whereas a weak and uncertain increase is projected in the Upper Narew catchment.
Ecohydrology, 2016
Floods and droughts, two opposite natural components of streamflow regimes, are known to regulate... more Floods and droughts, two opposite natural components of streamflow regimes, are known to regulate population size and species diversity. Quantifiable measures of these disturbances and their subsequent ecological responses are needed to synthesize the knowledge on flow-ecosystem relationships. This study for the first time combines the systematic review approach used to collect evidence on the ecological responses to floods and droughts in Europe with the statistical methods used to quantify the extreme events severity. Out of 854 publications identified in literature search, 54 papers were retained after screening and eligibility checks, providing in total 82 case studies with unique extreme event-ecological response associations for which data were extracted. In this way, a database with metadata of case studies that can be explored with respect to various factors was constructed. This study pinpointed the research gaps where little evidence could be synthesized, for example, drought event studies and fish studies. It was demonstrated that in many cases the studied metrics (abundance, density, richness, and diversity) showed statistically significant decreases after or during the event occurrence. The responses in invertebrate density and richness were in general more negative than the corresponding responses in fish. Biota resistance to floods was found to be lower than the resistance to droughts. The severity of extreme events was not found to be an important factor influencing ecological metrics, although this analysis was often hampered by insufficient number of case studies. Conceivably, other factors could mask any existing relationships between disturbance severity and biotic response.
Earth System Science Data Discussions, 2015
The CHASE-PL Forcing Data-Gridded Daily Precipitation and Temperature Dataset-5 km (CPLFD-GDPT5) ... more The CHASE-PL Forcing Data-Gridded Daily Precipitation and Temperature Dataset-5 km (CPLFD-GDPT5) consists of 1951–2013 daily minimum and maximum air temperatures and precipitation totals interpolated onto a 5 km grid based on daily meteorological observations from Institute of Meteorology and Water Management (IMGW-PIB; Polish stations), Deutscher Wetterdienst (DWD, German and Czech stations), ECAD and NOAA-NCDC (Slovak, Ukrainian and Belarus stations). The main purpose for constructing this product was the need for long-term aerial precipitation and temperature data for earth-system modelling, especially hydrological modelling. The spatial coverage is the union of Vistula and Odra basin and Polish territory. The number of available meteorological stations for precipitation and temperature varies in time from about 100 for temperature and 300 for precipitation in 1950 up to about 180 for temperature and 700 for precipitation in 1990. The precipitation dataset was corrected for snowf...
38th IAHR World Congress - "Water: Connecting the World"
Various types of measures listed under the name of Natural (Small) Water Retention Measures may h... more Various types of measures listed under the name of Natural (Small) Water Retention Measures may have significant positive effects on solving environmental problems such as hydrological extremes, nutrients' transport and decreased biodiversity. We observed, however limited integration of this type of measures in the river basin and flood risk management in Europe. FramWat (Interreg Central Europe) project focuses on tools development and stakeholders dialog, which should help bringing the Natural (Small) Water Retention Measures to river basin planning agenda. So far developed tools: valorisation of river catchment area, static tool for estimation of cumulative effectiveness and decision support system for assistance in retention planning show significant knowledge gap in quantifying the effects of particular measures and they are very much biased to the expert knowledge. Approach is verified by using the hydrological and hydrodynamic models in the case study catchments.
Geosciences
The advances and retreats of ice sheets during Pleistocene significantly changed high- and mid-la... more The advances and retreats of ice sheets during Pleistocene significantly changed high- and mid-latitude landscapes and hydrological systems, albeit differently, in North America and Europe. On the southern margin of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) in the Baltic Sea basin, a specific type of valley has developed between glacial margins and upland or mountain slopes. We studied new geological data (boreholes, electrical resistivity imaging (ERI) from this geomorphic setting in Northeast Poland to understand: (1) how the landscape and river network evolved to eventually produce peat mires during the Holocene, and (2) the nature of groundwater recharge to fens in the upper Biebrza Valley. We present the results on a geological cross-section with hydrogeological interpretation. We also discuss regional geomorphology. In addition, we present the LGM extent derived from a spatial distribution of Vistulian (Weichselian) terminal moraines. These end moraines are also interpreted as Saalian ka...
Journal of Ecological Engineering
The method based on original metric called Hydromorphological Index for Rivers (HIR) was develope... more The method based on original metric called Hydromorphological Index for Rivers (HIR) was developed in 2017 for the purpose of the monitoring of the hydromorphological status of flowing waters in Poland. It fulfils the requirements of the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD). It allows the assessment of both lowland rivers as well as mid-altitude and highland streams. The proposed system can be used to assess the natural and heavily modified rivers as well as artificial channels. The basis of the proposed system is a field survey, which is supplemented by the analysis of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) data and remote sensing materials. The analysis of the GIS data and remote sensing materials already enable to estimate preliminary classification of the hydromorphological status of the non-surveyed water bodies. On the basis of the field survey, the principal HIR value can be estimated for the considered river site and comparing with the reference conditions, the hydromorphological quality status in the five-class system can be calculated. The properly selected, representative survey sites (one or more depending on the heterogeneity of the environment), enable the classification and evaluation of entire surface water bodies in the framework of the national environmental monitoring. The GIS component of the HIR proved to be useful in verifying the determination of heavily modified water bodies and in assessing the needs of river restoration. It was also applied in the development of the National river restoration program for predicting the impact of the proposed restoration measure on the state of hydromorphology.
Ambio
Riverine nutrient loads are among the major causes of eutrophication of the Baltic Sea. This stud... more Riverine nutrient loads are among the major causes of eutrophication of the Baltic Sea. This study applied the Soil & Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) in three catchments flowing to the Baltic Sea, namely Vantaanjoki (Finland), Fyrisån (Sweden), and Słupia (Poland), to simulate the effectiveness of nutrient control measures included in the EU’s Water Framework Directive River Basin Management Plans (RBMPs). Moreover, we identified similar, coastal, middle-sized catchments to which conclusions from this study could be applicable. The first modelling scenario based on extrapolation of the existing trends affected the modelled nutrient loads by less than 5%. In the second scenario, measures included in RBMPs showed variable effectiveness, ranging from negligible for Słupia to 28% total P load reduction in Vantaanjoki. Adding spatially targeted measures to RBMPs (third scenario) would considerably improve their effectiveness in all three catchments for both total N and P, suggesting a need ...
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Papers by Tomasz Okruszko