https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv Exploring and Understanding the Rhine Watershed en-us 2019-11-29 21:25:52 UTC 2025-03-21 00:08:06 UTC hello@padlet.com https://padlet.net/icons/png/1f1ea-1f1fa.png etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417852788 The Rhine Watershed is the area of land surrounding the River Rhine and which drains into the Rhine River. Below is an illustration depicting the features of a watershed. ]]> 2019-11-29 21:40:48 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417852788 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417853643 The Rhine Watershed is located within the European Union and flows through multiple sovereign countries. It covers a large and climatically diverse region beginning in the Swiss Alps and ultimately flowing into the Atlantic Ocean via the deltas in the Netherlands. The image below indicates the different nations in which the Rhine River Basin lies as well as illustrating the boundaries of the watershed where the two colors meet. ]]> 2019-11-29 21:49:06 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417853643 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417855445 The land area of the Rhine River basin is approximately 185,000 sq. km. The Rhine Basin is contained by 9 different European countries and is home to about 60 million inhabitants. The average discharge is 2300 cubic meters per second, and the average precipitation averages to about 945 millimeters per year, but varies by region. The Rhine River is also historically and culturally significant including several UNESCO World Heritage Sites along the river. The following link gives more information on UNESCO sites on the Rhine as well as a gallery of images detailing the Upper Middle Rhine Valley ]]> 2019-11-29 22:06:03 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417855445 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417855737 According to 2009 figures about 50% of land within the Rhine River Basin is used for agriculture, 31.7% is forest land, 8.8% urban areas, 4.1% natural grasslands, 2.6% freshwater bodies, sparsely vegetated grasslands 2%, and 0.2% wetlands. Additionally, the land within the Rhine River Basin is highly industrialized. The following link from the group AGAdapt can provide additional information on land use within the Rhine Basin]]> 2019-11-29 22:09:07 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417855737 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417855798 Estimates put the population of the Rhine Watershed at about 60 million. The Rhine Watershed provides many services. To list a few they include drinking water for just under half of the basin's population, electricity generation, inland waterway navigation, agricultural irrigation, sanitation and tourism. The following link expands on more of the ecosystem services that are provided by the Rhine River Basin done by a student that has previously done this project. ]]> 2019-11-29 22:09:53 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417855798 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417855822 Due to the large land area of the Rhine River basin the ecology of the area varies widely but can generally be categorized based on the previously listed region. The Alpine Rhine for example is a mountainous regions where one would find riparian alpine grassland vegetation. In the lower altitudes generally biodiversity is high however floodplain management to supply more arable land has decreased that by a considerable extent. Another reason why flood management is important to the Rhine Basin. Visit the following ICPR link for more information on Rhine River Basin ecology]]> 2019-11-29 22:10:08 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417855822 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417855929 In many ways the Rhine River Basin is fortunate to be within the relatively political stable EU. This is because experts agree that in order to have a chance to protect the Rhine Watershed from devastating predicted consequences transboundary cooperation is imperative. Although the ICPR remains committed conservation of the area there must be political backing to allow the IGOs involved do due what is necessary, and often times perceived to be at odds to the best interests of industry, therefore creating a formidable foe. However, because the European Union is relatively stable it has a much better chance of creating a diplomatic consensus as well as the ability to properly implement the plan. The following linked report considers the realities and challenges of creating successful transboundry diplomatic solutions to the Rhine River Basin's problems.]]> 2019-11-29 22:11:06 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417855929 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417856109 A 2000 study published by the ICPR showed a rebound of many species within the Rhine. Of the 44 indigenous fish species in the Rhine basin only one, the Atlantic Sturgeon, has not since been recorded, due to over-fishing. The ICPR has devised and hit many of the goals set out in the Rhine 2020 plan which aims to restore ecological continuity especially in regard to fish migratory patterns. Below is an graph detailing biodiversity as well as oxygen content in the Rhine River from 1900 - 2000]]> 2019-11-29 22:12:35 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417856109 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417856477 There is no shortage of present or soon expected changes in the Rhine River Watershed due to global warming. Decreased water flow in summers means difficulty navigating the waterway for commerce while high flow in the summers indicates likely flooding. Disparity in water flow levels also threaten operations of power plants and many other industries. The following link connects to more information about Rhine River Basin Discharge concerns as well as to the four most recent reports from the International Commission on the Protection of the Rhine]]> 2019-11-29 22:15:34 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417856477 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417856647 The modern role of the Rhine Basin in Europe can be traced back to WWII. The Nazi war machine demanded great amounts of power and the Rhine was able to supply it to many places in Europe the Nazis sought or did occupy, Following the war the existing hydroelectric infrastructure was combined with the burgeoning coal and chemical industries to cement the Rhine as an important part of supplying electricity to the continent of Europe. As time went on it became clear that protecting the Rhine basin and ensuring it would remain able to supply energy would become an intergovernmental task. The following link is a short essay about how the Rhine Basin became essential to supplying many of the continent's residents with their energy requirements]]> 2019-11-29 22:17:14 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417856647 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417856694 Agricultural uses make up about 50% of the land use within the Rhine River Watershed. Much of this arable land was not naturally suitable for agriculture as it was frequently flooded. Humans began to construct dikes to prevent certain areas from being flooded annually and were instead flooded infrequently enough to become agricultural land. Now about 10 of the 60 million inhabitants of the basin live in flood plains which may be dangerous. Additionally, there have been many unintended ecological consequences such as cutting off access to main channel for certain species. The following link examines how floodplain flood risk can be responsibly mitigated along with an EU report on the same topic.]]> 2019-11-29 22:17:48 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417856694 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417856736 Since the thirty or so years since the 1986 chemical spill water quality has seen a general increase largely due to the efforts of tho the ICPR whose members represent the nations which the Rhine River Basin is contained. There are continuing concerns with water quality which include deforestation and destruction of riparian zones allows increased pollutants and excess nutrients access to the River. These effects are often seen as consequences of inflating populations and increased industrial demand. The below link includes up to date information on Rhine Basin surface and groundwater quality]]> 2019-11-29 22:18:08 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417856736 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417857144 There are 6 regions of the Rhine Watershed beginning with the headwaters in the Swiss Alps and draining into the Atlantic Ocean. The regions are as follows: Alpine Rhine, High Rhine, Upper Rhine, Middle Rhine, Lower Rhine, and Delta Rhine. See Figures 1,2, and 3 in the following link for a detailed breakdown and maps of the Rhine Regions.]]> 2019-11-29 22:22:10 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417857144 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417857210 Humans have been using technology to alter the Rhine River Basin for nearly 1000 years but things began to change with the technological advancements from the industrial revolutions. Following WWII the water quality of the Rhine had gotten bad enough that IGOs began to form with the goal of protecting the basin. Slow progress on cleaning up the Rhine was halted by a 1986 chemical factory accident which led to extreme pollution of the basin. Since than the EU has used IGOs to prioritize protection of the Rhine Basin. The main organization in charge is the ICPR or International Commission for Protection of the Rhine whose link is below. ]]> 2019-11-29 22:22:40 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417857210 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417857431 Within the Rhine River Basin there are 62 cities with more than 100,000 people and several cities with many more. The five largest cities which also tend to correlate with the industrial centers are as follows: Basel, Cologne, Dusseldorf, Utrecht, and Rotterdam. The following link lists the large and small cities within the basin as well as other man made objects such as railroad bridges, dams, and canals helping to get a sense of the human impact on the basin and river ]]> 2019-11-29 22:24:41 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417857431 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417857550 There are clear and sustained efforts to protect and restore the Rhine River Watershed. The main EU actor in working to protect the basin is the International Committee on the Protection of the Rhine. The main mission of the group at present is to meet the final targets for the plan called Rhine 2020.  ]]> 2019-11-29 22:25:53 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417857550 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417858233 With the 19 year plan of Rhine 2020 soon to see its end, those in charge of the ICPR will be looking to the future. While Rhine 2020 met many of its goals there are many issues, many laid out here, that still need to be addressed. What is clear that unless humans alter the way the Rhine River Basin is utilized, it may not continue to serve the same, vital services it provides for the people of the basin as well as those who rely on services provided by the watershed. Below is a picturesque image of the Rhine River illustrating its beauty.]]> 2019-11-29 22:33:25 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417858233 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417858658 Salmon restoration projects in the Rhine Basin have been active since 1991 and have seen encouraging results although there is still more work to be done. Dams cause most of the salmon issues but cannot be removed due to energy and agricultural interests. A 2013 campaign launched by the ICPR aims to create the conditions necessary for salmon to reach the city of Basel along the river. For more information on the Salmon Comeback Campaign see the link below from Salmoncomeback.org]]> 2019-11-29 22:37:07 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417858658 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417859063 Water Diplomacy is a type of diplomatic strategy that some EU governments have been exploring to develop the niche diplomacy of water management. This is important that governments are taking longer and harder looks at becoming diplomatic leaders in areas such as water management because as climate change continues to take effect water resources are bound to become more valuable. It is also likely that water related conflicts become more frequent and intense as water scarcity becomes a reality. Therefore, whichever government holds a diplomatic or political advantage may stand to gain. This is where the future of politics meets the climate crisis. The following link examines the Dutch interest in potentially becoming involved in the niche world of water diplomacy. ]]> 2019-11-29 22:41:10 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417859063 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417859433 Human interaction with the Rhine River Basin combined with the fact that nearly a fifth of the Rhine Basin's total population live in flood prone areas has led for a need for the governments responsible for those people must work together to develop a plan to increase flood risk mitigation strategies. Many experts the agree the increasing frequency of unusually high waters makes the issue all the more important and necessary to complete. The following link is a short paper by J. Wessel concerning floodplain management in the Rhine Basin.]]> 2019-11-29 22:45:24 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417859433 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417859503 The attached file is a bibliographic list of sources in order of slides. ]]> 2019-11-29 22:46:11 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417859503 etollifson https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417881017 While the quality of water has fluctuated over time so has the pollutants and reason for change in quality. While pollutants like heavy metals have decreased there has been an increase in micro-pollutants. Additionally, oxygen levels are on the rise currently which can lead to development of micro-organisms thriving, using up more oxygen creating eutrophication and perpetuating a reinforcing feedback loop. The map below denotes the current monitoring stations within the Rhine River Basin.]]> 2019-11-30 03:09:07 UTC https://padlet.com/etollifson/lx7wwit5fabv/wish/417881017