Fluvial Systems in the Anthropocene: Important Concepts, Issues and Research Needs

Abstract

In the Anthropocene, humans exert a geomorphic force that now rivals that of the natural Earth. Human disturbance of different types at different scales in river systems is a consequence of the perceived needs of human populations; however, these needs have to be in consonance with the needs of the river itself. For instance, the river requires its own space to perform such functions as flooding and floodplain development. Channel flow and forms are deliberately modified with the effect of increasing or decreasing stream power by dam building, embankment, in-channel agriculture, urbanization, gravel mining and dredging, roads, trails, ditches, channelization, and constriction by dikes. All rivers of the world respond to altered conditions of Anthropocene (as well as climate change), and the observed variability through time is important to know the adjustment, complexity and sensitivity against the threshold condition to save water resources. The key research questions are concentrated on the natural and anthropogenic factors and processes related to human modification of the rivers, and the future modelling of human-induced geomorphic changes. It is obvious that these research questions would require a multi-disciplinary approach involving geomorphologists, engineers, ecologists and social scientists. River science and fluvial geomorphology provide an ideal platform to tackle such issues and it is time now to promote this science in India in a major way. This work, thus, intends to review the many facets of the fluvial response to the various stimuli in the Anthropocene. Finally, a summary of the different chapters of this multi-contributed volume has been presented to reveal the recent progress in the field of river science and water resources in the Anthropocene.