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River engineering, a branch of civil engineering, deals with the process of planned human intervention to improve and restore rivers for human and environmental needs. With modern technologies, data collection and modelling, navigation can be improved, dredging reduced and new habitats can be created.
The environmental impact of fishing can be divided into issues that involve the availability of fish to be caught, such as overfishing, sustainable fisheries, and fisheries management; and issues that involve the impact of fishing on other elements of the environment, such as by-catch and destruction of habitat such as coral reefs. [51]
Water pollution (or aquatic pollution) is the contamination of water bodies, with a negative impact on their uses. [1]: 6 It is usually a result of human activities. Water bodies include lakes, rivers, oceans, aquifers, reservoirs and groundwater.
The environmental impact of reservoirs comes under ever-increasing scrutiny as the global demand for water and energy increases and the number and size of reservoirs increases. Dams and reservoirs can be used to supply drinking water , generate hydroelectric power , increase the water supply for irrigation , provide recreational opportunities ...
The effects of pollution often depend on the context and material, but can reduce ecosystem functioning, limit ecosystem services, reduce stream biodiversity, and impact human health. [ 75 ] Pollutant sources of lotic systems are hard to control because they can derive, often in small amounts, over a very wide area and enter the system at many ...
Climate change can have a significant impact on rivers, both positive and negative. This could be seen itself as an indirect result of human developments. An area which has a reduction in rainfall or an increase in temperature can make a river fully or partially dry out. This often means that the water can no longer reach its mouth. [1]
Environmental flows do not necessarily require restoring the natural, pristine flow patterns that would occur absent human development, use, and diversion but, instead, are intended to produce a broader set of values and benefits from rivers than from management focused strictly on water supply, energy, recreation, or flood control.
The monitoring of the sediment yield of a river is important for ecologists to understand the health of its ecosystems, the rate of erosion of the river's environment, and the effects of human activity. [11] The Nile in Egypt is known for its fertile floodplains, which flood annually.