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Leta BM, Adugna D. Characterizing the level of urban Flood vulnerability using the social-ecological-technological systems framework, the case of Adama city, Ethiopia. Heliyon 2023; 9:e20723. [PMID: 37860573 PMCID: PMC10582392 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e20723] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2023] [Revised: 10/03/2023] [Accepted: 10/04/2023] [Indexed: 10/21/2023] Open
Abstract
This study characterizes the flood vulnerability of Adama City, Ethiopia, where the city faces high flood vulnerability due to its unplanned urbanization in low-lying floodplain areas surrounding deforested mountains and ridges. The study applied an interlinked Social-Ecological-Technological-Systems (SETS) vulnerability framework using a GIS-based Multi-Criteria Decision-Making and Analytical Hierarchy Process (MCDM-AHP). The framework analyzed exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity to flooding for each of the three SETS domains. The study analyzed 18 variables at the city level within each SETS domain. The result revealed that clusters of flood-vulnerable areas were identified by each SETS domain showing the concentration of flood vulnerability in the study area and the need to consider prompt adaptive mechanisms to severe and recurring flooding. The finding has significant implications for holistic approaches to sustainable cities. Moreover, the reduction of complex urban flood vulnerabilities according to their priority as individual or combined solutions for decision-makers and professionals in early warning and flood management systems is the other contribution of the study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bikila Merga Leta
- Ethiopian Institute of Architecture, Building Construction & City Development, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
- Addis Ababa Science and Technology University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
| | - Dagnachew Adugna
- Ethiopian Institute of Architecture, Building Construction & City Development, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
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Leibowitz SG, Hill RA, Creed IF, Compton JE, Golden HE, Weber MH, Rains MC, Jones CE, Lee EH, Christensen JR, Bellmore RA, Lane CR. National hydrologic connectivity classification links wetlands with stream water quality. NATURE WATER 2023; 1:370-380. [PMID: 37389401 PMCID: PMC10302404 DOI: 10.1038/s44221-023-00057-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2022] [Accepted: 02/27/2023] [Indexed: 07/01/2023]
Abstract
Wetland hydrologic connections to downstream waters influence stream water quality. However, no systematic approach for characterizing this connectivity exists. Here using physical principles, we categorized conterminous US freshwater wetlands into four hydrologic connectivity classes based on stream contact and flowpath depth to the nearest stream: riparian, non-riparian shallow, non-riparian mid-depth and non-riparian deep. These classes were heterogeneously distributed over the conterminous United States; for example, riparian dominated the south-eastern and Gulf coasts, while non-riparian deep dominated the Upper Midwest and High Plains. Analysis of a national stream dataset indicated acidification and organic matter brownification increased with connectivity. Eutrophication and sedimentation decreased with wetland area but did not respond to connectivity. This classification advances our mechanistic understanding of wetland influences on water quality nationally and could be applied globally.
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Affiliation(s)
- Scott G. Leibowitz
- US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment (CPHEA), Pacific Ecological Systems Division (PESD), Corvallis, OR, USA
| | - Ryan A. Hill
- US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment (CPHEA), Pacific Ecological Systems Division (PESD), Corvallis, OR, USA
| | - Irena F. Creed
- Department of Physical and Environmental Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Jana E. Compton
- US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment (CPHEA), Pacific Ecological Systems Division (PESD), Corvallis, OR, USA
| | - Heather E. Golden
- US EPA, Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling (CEMM), Watershed and Ecosystem Characterization Division, Cincinnati, OH, USA
| | - Marc H. Weber
- US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment (CPHEA), Pacific Ecological Systems Division (PESD), Corvallis, OR, USA
| | - Mark C. Rains
- School of Geosciences, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Chas E. Jones
- ORISE Post-doctoral Participant, c/o US EPA, CPHEA, PESD, Corvallis, OR, USA
- Present address: Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians, Portland, OR, USA
| | - E. Henry Lee
- US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment (CPHEA), Pacific Ecological Systems Division (PESD), Corvallis, OR, USA
| | - Jay R. Christensen
- US EPA, Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling (CEMM), Watershed and Ecosystem Characterization Division, Cincinnati, OH, USA
| | - Rebecca A. Bellmore
- National Research Council, c/o US EPA, CPHEA, PESD, Corvallis, OR, USA
- Present address: Southeast Alaska Watershed Coalition, Juneau, AK, USA
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Harwell MC, Jackson CA. Synthesis of Two Decades of US EPA's Ecosystem Services Research to Inform Environmental, Community, and Sustainability Decision Making. SUSTAINABILITY 2021; 13:1-8249. [PMID: 34804601 PMCID: PMC8597581 DOI: 10.3390/su13158249] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
A conceptual framework is helpful to understand what types of ecosystem services (ES) information is needed to support decision making. Principles of structured decision making are helpful for articulating how ES consideration can influence different elements in a given decision context resulting in changes to the environment, human health, and well-being. This article presents a holistic view of an ES framework, summarizing two decades of the US EPA's ES research, including recent advances in final ES, those ES that provide benefits directly to people. Approximately 150 peer-reviewed publications, technical reports, and book chapters characterize a large ES research portfolio. In introducing framework elements and the suite of relevant US EPA research for each element, both challenges and opportunities are identified. Lessons from research to advance each of the final ES elements can be useful for identifying gaps and future science needs. Ultimately, the goal of this article is to help the reader develop an operational understanding of the final ES conceptual framework, an understanding of the state of science for a number of ES elements, and an introduction to some ES tools, models, and frameworks that may be of use in their case-study applications or decision-making contexts.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Chloe A. Jackson
- US EPA, Gulf Ecosystem Measurement and Modeling Division, Gulf Breeze, FL 32561, USA
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