Department Surface Waters - Research and Management

Remote sensing helps foster our understanding of inland water processes allowing a synoptic view of water quality parameters. In the context of global monitoring of inland waters, we demonstrate the benefit of combining in-situ water analysis, hydrodynamic modelling and remote sensing for investigating biogeochemical processes. This methodology has the potential to be used at global scales. We take the example of four Landsat-8 scenes acquired by the OLI sensor and MODIS-Aqua imagery over Lake Geneva (France—Switzerland) from spring to early summer 2014. Remotely sensed data suggest a strong temporal and spatial variability during this period. We show that combining the complementary spatial, spectral and temporal resolutions of these sensors allows for a comprehensive characterization of estuarine, littoral and pelagic near-surface features. Moreover, by combining in-situ measurements, biogeochemical analysis and hydrodynamic modelling with remote sensing data, we can link these features to river intrusion and calcite precipitation processes, which regularly occur in late spring or early summer. In this context, we propose a procedure that can be used to monitor whiting events in temperate lakes worldwide.

Excess fine sediment, comprising particles <2 mm in diameter, is a major cause of ecological degradation in rivers. The erosion of fine sediment from terrestrial or aquatic sources, its delivery to the river, and its storage and transport in the fluvial environment are controlled by a complex interplay of physical, biological, and anthropogenic factors. While the physical controls exerted on fine sediment dynamics are relatively well‐documented, the role of biological processes and their interactions with hydraulic and physicochemical phenomena has been largely overlooked. The activities of biota, from primary producers to predators, exert strong controls on fine sediment deposition, infiltration, and resuspension. For example, extracellular polymeric substances associated with biofilms increase deposition and decrease resuspension. In lower energy rivers, aquatic macrophyte growth and senescence are intimately linked to sediment retention and loss, whereas riparian trees are dominant ecosystem engineers in high energy systems. Fish and invertebrates also have profound effects on fine sediment dynamics through activities that drive both particle deposition and erosion depending on species composition and abiotic conditions. The functional traits of species present will determine not only these biotic effects but also the responses of river ecosystems to excess fine sediment. We discuss which traits are involved and put them into context with spatial processes that occur throughout the river network. While strides towards better understanding of the impacts of excess fine sediment have been made, further progress to identify the most effective management approaches is urgently required through close communication between authorities and scientists.