Mission The mission of the River Studies Branch is to develop interdisciplinary science to inform river management and restoration. The River Studies Branch carries out basic and applied research in support of ecosystem-level management and restoration of large rivers, streams, flood-plain wetlands, and aquatic resources by providing scientific understanding of riverine ecology, habitat dynamics, and effects of human-induced disturbances. Problems Addressed Most rivers in the world have been substantially altered from their natural state by multiple stressors including dams, water use, channelization, land use changes, and chemical pollution. Society has recognized that these alterations have resulted in diminished ecosystem health, [...]
Summary
Mission
The mission of the River Studies Branch is to develop interdisciplinary science to inform river management and restoration.
The River Studies Branch carries out basic and applied research in support of ecosystem-level management and restoration of large rivers, streams, flood-plain wetlands, and aquatic resources by providing scientific understanding of riverine ecology, habitat dynamics, and effects of human-induced disturbances.
Problems Addressed
Most rivers in the world have been substantially altered from their natural state by multiple stressors including dams, water use, channelization, land use changes, and chemical pollution. Society has recognized that these alterations have resulted in diminished ecosystem health, human health, and socio-economic value. As a result there is strong interest in managing rivers to improve ecologic conditions while continuing to accommodate conventional socio-economic goods and services. Definition of that balance is a central challenge to river management.
Decision-making to improve health of rivers typically requires several steps:
Diagnosis of the problem, often a challenging prospect in rivers subject to multiple interacting stressors.
Formulation of cost-effective management or restoration solutions. In the rare case that all human influences can be removed from a river basin, true “restoration” could be possible. However, in most rivers, accommodation of improvements to ecosystem health and socio-economic values will require precise scientific understanding coupled with innovative engineering.
Implementation of solutions through social, economic, and legal frameworks. The effective use of scientific information typically requires scientists to engage with decision makers, stakeholders, and the public. Engagement includes development of quantitative models, delivery of salient and unbiased information to decision processes, and educational efforts to provide accessible science to stakeholders and the public.
Approach
Rivers are inherently complex systems that integrate fluxes of water, energy, materials, and biota through drainage basins to create dynamic habitats and influence biotic communities, and populations. Moreover, rivers provide substantial economic goods and services (for example, transportation, hydropower, and arable floodplain lands) that are highly valued by society. Understanding of the diverse interactions of drivers, stressors, and ecological and socio-economic consequences requires an interdisciplinary approach. The River Studies Branch is staffed with ecologists, biologists, hydrologists, and geologists in order to provide the interdisciplinary science needed to address these complex problems.
Branch scientists work over a broad range of scales to develop the information that is most critical to specific problems and decisions. Within the branch, and through collaborations, studies extend from the molecular scale (for example, understanding of origin and fate of Asian carp environmental DNA) to regional landscape scale (for example, understanding the implications of sandbar dynamics in rivers of the Great Plains for shorebird metapopulations). Branch research also spans a range of approaches, including laboratory scale experiments, field-scale experimentation, monitoring and assessment, application of simulation models, database design, and development of new theories. Branch scientists bring strong quantitative skills and expertise to this research, including specific expertise in hydroacoustics, biotelemetry, statistics, simulation modeling, database development, geospatial modeling, and remote sensing.
Research Foci
River Studies research efforts are prioritized based on the goals outlined in the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Ecosystems Mission Area Science Strategy (Williams and others, 2013), engagement to understand critical science needs of partner agencies, and recognition of a Federal niche that emphasizes science needed to manage trust species, nuisance species, interjurisdictional rivers, and Federal lands. Four dominant themes in Branch research are:
Invasive Species. Science to understand biology, distribution, reproductive ecology, and control technologies for invasive species. Recent emphasis is on invasive Asian carps.
Endangered Species. Science to understand biology, distribution, reproductive ecology, and approaches to recovery for endangered species. Recent emphasis has been on pallid sturgeon, interior least tern, piping plover, and a variety of native mussels.
Bioassessments. Science to develop robust, diagnostic metrics to evaluate impairments to river and stream benthic communities. Emphasis is on using macroinvertebrate communities to assess and diagnose impairments in highly altered urban streams and large rivers.
River Corridor Habitat Dynamics. Links from river management actions to ecological responses frequently involve hydrologic and geomorphic processes that alter physical and chemical river habitats. Habitat dynamics research seeks to quantify those links and apply understanding to management of channels and floodplains to attain ecological objectives.
Our Business Model
"No one should approach the temple of science with the soul of a money changer." ---Thomas Browne (1605-1682)
Notwithstanding Thomas Brown’s profound statement, experience has demonstrated that success in scientific research requires a significant aliquot of financial and strategic understanding. The River Studies Branch business strategy emphasizes providing consistent, high quality, decision-relevant, and policy-neutral scientific information to managers and decision makers. The Branch financial structure is based on matching appropriated USGS funds in partnerships with other agencies. In particular, we leverage USGS Ecosystem Mission area funds, in a ratio of approximately 1 part USGS to 5 parts from other agencies. Our dominant partnerships have been with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. National Park Service, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
The Branch has a track record of success in sustaining external funding because of the high quality and relevance of our research. We also seek to maximize cost-effectiveness by collaborating with other groups in USGS, other agencies, international groups, and universities, to work with the best expertise to produce science with the highest benefit:cost ratio.
Relevance and credibility are maintained as well by investing time and effort in three specific activities:
Engagement with decision making and adaptive management of natural resources. Branch scientists provide expertise to independent science review of river and species management programs and collaborate by serving on science advisory teams such as the Pallid Sturgeon Recovery Team and the Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force.
Continual training of Branch scientists to maintain diverse and quantitative skill sets.
Emphasis on publishing science into the public domain in diverse formats tailored to needs of decision makers, stakeholders, and the scientific community.
References Cited
Williams, B.K., Wingard, G.L., Brewer, G., Cloern, J.E., Gelfenbaum, G., Jacobson, R.B., Kershner, J.L., McGuire, A.D., Nichols, J.D., Shapiro, C.D., van Riper Iii, C., and White, R.P., 2013, U.S. Geological Survey Ecosystems science strategy: advancing discovery and application through collaboration: 1383C, 56 p. [Report].
